without George Lucas Star Wars wouldn't exist. PT came out 20 years ago, u would think people would be over it by now. look at it like a 60s sci fi space movie. it is like judging the acting in an old episode of the Twilight Zone or Attack of the 50 Foot Woman.
RLM did some interesting work, and made a lot of good criticism, but IMO they are responsible for a lot of people that can't seem to let go. PT can't simply be a dumb series of movies, a cheesy costume docu drama depicting historical events of the fall of the Republic and it's Knights order. it has to be this Godfather level serious movie. PT has plenty to offer, for all it's shortcomings. ST has thrown that into stark relief with it's lack of interesting new planets, creatures, visuals and setpieces.
PT is not really that far off from ROTJ in terms of believability or serious filmmaking. it is pulp adventure, a high budget b-movie serial, yet the uber fans seem to demand a level of capital-A Art perfection (TLJ the high embodiment of the demand for flash over substance). it has flaws but works perfectly fine as fan service and world building galore. it need not be this monumental failure that we always blame him for not living up to. so the Jedi don't make sense to the OT? that is because this takes place when they were in power, when they were knights, a la King Arthur's Round Table (which ultimately fell amidst internal divisions) this reveals their arrogance, depicts their fall, all the stuff TLJ pretend to do anew. it is as if Luke watched the PT after the events of ROTJ or something. this action hero silly cartoon Jedi was sort of the OG depiction, when Lucas came up with the background information during the creation of Star Wars in the first place. in many ways the PT is him delivering the stuff that he invented alongside coming up w the backstories (Obi Wan Clone Wars dropped in the first hour of the series).
he made Anakin a kid because he had a kid and he already did the trilogy for teen/twentysomethings. he wanted to start him young to give him some innocence, a depiction of Vader before he was corrupted, before he ever even knew the Jedi. people demanded he use an older actor, that he start it later, etc. he wanted something his kids could watch, something that they could grow up with, growing alongside the actors, for it is a story of transformation. the new characters are far more static by comparison. he did what he wanted, regardless of fan demand, and just has he had done with Star Wars, he also reinvented the industry through investing in new visual and sound technology, and provided a blueprint for high budget CGI pulp fantasy that is basically copied by movies 10-15 times a year. people should be building statues to this guy all over Hollywood ffs.
