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Han not only shot first he is the only one that shot 😂
I mentioned this on the Star Wars discussion a few weeks back. So glad i kept my original theatrical cut DVD. It's rough and ready. But that's how i remember the film. And watching it again in it's true form was sheer magic!
Lucas violated his film with grotesque CGI and unforgivable tinkering.
I got lucky whilst looking through a charity shop, I found the trilogy Boxset for only £3, I have been searching for some time only finding the tinkered versions, so was very happy.
The DVD is rough around the edges which in a way makes it even better, I played SW on both my 4K players it is presented as a smaller letterbox so had to zoom in. I will try SW on my older bluray player and PC later.
I was fortunate to see TESB and ROTJ at the cinema so they will always be the first impressions of the film to me. I watched SW quite early on on VHS too.
Edited: This rewatch of theatrical cut of Star Wars was awesome, the models, editing and camera work for the dog fight is out of this world. 48 years later not many movies make you feel good like Star Wars does.
1. RoboCop (1987)
It's as unanimous as movie opinions get: the original Robocop is the best one, and by a wide margin. Peter Weller as Alex Murphy / RoboCop is movie protagonist perfection - a truly impressive, all-in-one performance that features badassery, dry humor, and an epic inner struggle between man and machine. He is surrounded by an outstanding, colorful cast of other characters, too; some particular highlights for me are Nancy Allen as Anne Lewis, Kurtwood Smith as Clarence Boddicker, and Miguel Ferrer as Bob Morton. All the actors put in 200% effort here and it shows! The action is extreme and frequent, and the the graphic nature of the film's ultraviolence appropriately complements the central themes of the sleaziness, corruption, and chaos of dystopian Detroit. Speaking of Detroit, I really appreciated small touches like bringing up the city's baseball team, the Tigers, to make the setting feel real and important to the characters and the audience. Satire has never been more biting than it is here, either; callous and power-hungry corporate sensibilities are positively skewered, and the intermittent television ads are such an excellent inclusion in the movie that gives it lots of personality. I also appreciate the originality of not turning Lewis into Murphy's love interest, which is the kind of thing that would have happened in most other movies around the time this was made. The first RoboCop is a fantastic classic of sci-fi, action, and social commentary, and my life is richer for having watched it - at least by a dollar! ;)
2. RoboCop 2 (1990)
Off the bat, I'll acknowledge that RoboCop 2 is a downgrade from its predecessor, but it also ended up as the only follow-up film the captured the spirit and vibes of RoboCop. Tom Noonan as Cain / RoboCop 2 is a solid, scary antagonist, and his encounters against Murphy in both human and robot form were highly entertaining. It just felt like the natural next step for RoboCop to battle a formidable cyborg foe in a sequel. The brutal warehouse massacre sequence was also really good, and definitely the most horror-esque moment of the franchise. Peter Weller delivers the goods again as Murphy / RoboCop, proving once more he can pull off being intimidating, funny, and vulnerable. I've seen the complaint against this film that it resets Murphy's progress in feeling more human than robot by the end of the first one, but I didn't feel like that was the case; from the way I understood the part with his family near the beginning here, Murphy said what he thought the others wanted to hear, not his own feelings, and in the case of his wife, he did his best to try to set her free. Granted, it's a bit awkward and rushed in its execution, but I didn't see any of this as a fatal flaw. My biggest issues with the movie are that the pacing can be rough, certain plot points felt sloppily handled, and there is a bit too much retreading of the first film. Still, the satire and action are just as intense and effective as they were in RoboCop, and honestly I think it's a lot more good than bad overall. RoboCop 2 might fall short of the golden standard set by the first one, but it's a fun, worthy sequel that is especially boosted by a tremendous finale.
3. RoboCop 3 (1993)
Unfortunately, RoboCop 3 marks the part in my ranking where most of my enjoyment of the series stops. There are a lot, and I mean a lot of problems with this film. Some that stand out in particular for me: shifting from R-rated intensity to PG-13 commercialism, swapping out Peter Weller for Robert Burke as Murphy / RoboCop, treating the awesome Anne Lewis disrespectfully, vastly inferior special effects and acting in general, and poor usage of the ninja android concept. Burke tries too hard to make RoboCop funny in his forgettable imitation of Weller, and his "battle" scenes with the ninja android are a total letdown. The quality of the acting really took a hit across the board. On the bright side, the plot finally gets around to the built-up idea of OCP taking over Detroit and trying to make Delta City, which is a logical next step for the series, and the same goes for the aspect of having a resistance force against that. Conceptually, that's all good and fine, but most of it is very poorly executed. RoboCop himself is out of action for too long of a stretch in the movie, and the more blown apart Detroit, while adding to a dystopian feel, takes away from making it feel more sleazy and alive like it was in the previous two films. RoboCop 3 is a bad movie in most ways and lacks many redeeming qualities, ditching the gritty, nasty flavor that made the first two films so memorable and distinct in favor of a more lighthearted, commercial approach that just leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth.
4. RoboCop (2014)
It really is a pick your poison situation deciding if RoboCop 3 or the 2014 remake of the original is a worse movie, but for my own list, I'm giving the newest RoboCop the bottom spot. The main reason for this is that this film feels the least like a RoboCop film should. The satire is less prevalent and potent than ever before, there is almost no humor of any kind present, and action sequences are strangely infrequent and bland when they do arrive. I didn't care for Joel Kinnaman's performance as Murphy / RoboCop; even before he had to become a cyborg in this movie, he was robotic and unnatural in his acting. Most of the rest of the cast is fine, but not particularly memorable or great, mostly because the writing of the characters and story is mediocre at best. Almost all the concepts here have been explored far more interestingly before, and I fail to think of anything that this unnecessary remake did better than the original. It makes the same mistake as RoboCop 3 of going with a PG-13 direction, and all the colorful, sleazy personality of the Detroit setting from before is completely sucked away. Samuel L. Jackson is a highlight at least, even though he was barely used. I can safely say that I've seen worse films, but 2014's RoboCop is a generic, uncompelling film that completely pales in comparison to one it's based on.
That is a particularly exciting shot. The human being revealed behind the metal, and in a moment of vulnerability. It communicates that this story is going places. He is not ending this story as a machine.
I like all four movies. I'd probably rank them the same way. 3 and 4 are fairly even. 4 is better than 3 in many ways, and more inspired, but in look and feel, 3 is cut from the same cloth as its predecessors to a large degree, so I favor it a bit more.
I rather like Robert John Burke. He was fine as RoboCop, good in Thinner and great in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.
Great viewpoints everyone! There is some hope on the original cut being released soon!
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/star-wars-original-cut-edit-screening-george-lucas-1236191847/
I was watching clips of Revenge of the Sith at my movie theater, and I do have some positive viewpoints of it.
First, above all, Ian McDiarmid owns the role of Emperor Palpatine. He's so charmingly evil, he's always a joy to watch. However, his best performance is here. The character development for him is one the reasons that ROTS is more positively remembered among the prequels. Even though The Rise of Skywalker shouldn't have brought him back, there was NOTHING wrong with Ian McDiarmid's performance. He fits the role as much as any of the original trilogy cast does with their iconic roles.
The lightsaber fights are at their best here. The opening fight with Count Dooku and the Jedi alone is better than any of the lightsaber fights in the Sequels. Plus, it has Sir Christopher Lee, in a great cameo and story foreshadowing. Sure, the General Grievous fight is over the top in CGI, but it helped push movie tech forward. Also, while the Obi-Wan vs Anakin goes on for a bit too long, remember this was going to be the last SW movie at the time. I hope the lightsaber fights can come back to this style in future SW movies.
John Williams never disappoints with his music. ROTS is one of his best, in my opinion. It's hard to pick a favorite for me. It saddens me that he won't compose more SW music anymore, for various (but fair reasons).
The prequel trilogy leads (Obi-Wan, Anakin and Padme) are at their best acting here. The dialogue is a bit off at times. However, George Lucas has self-admitted that he isn't the best at writing dialogue. He does however, know how to world-build (pun intended) for others to follow off of him. And make better stories and characters than even he has, at times.
The Chewbacca cameo is great fan service, and actually makes sense in the plot.
So, to make a long story short, ROTS is still great in many ways 20 years later. Hopefully this successful re-release will give us a Force Awakens re-release later this year.
Director John Milius epic, sweeping action/ adventure with our man Sean choosing another role as far away from his 007 persona as possible! He plays Raisuli the magnificent!!!, a rebellious Arab chieftain who kidnaps a feisty American widow ( the lovely Candice Bergen!) to embarrass the Sultan of Morocco! Brian Keith does a marvellous turn as Teddy Roosevelt, who, in an election year, has to ensure her rescue! An old fashioned epic, with stunning cinematography from Billy Williams, and rousing score from the ever reliable Jerry Goldsmith! Milius also writes the intelligent screenplay, and stages marvellous action sequences ( the opening kidnapping of Bergen and her children is a cracker!) Hugely enjoyable film.
@MaxCasino here is hoping regarding the Theatrical Cuts of Star Wars, I would be very happy with a restoration of the original cinematic releases one day.
@Mathis1 I have never seen The Wind and the Lion and had no idea John Milius directed, that is now high on my watch list.
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The Empire Strikes Back Theatrical Cut. What a joy this was after so many years not seeing it. The Theatrical Cut is like a great symphony or opera I know every single beat of music, sound design, action and effects. As much as the tweaked films look great and are great for the most part, inserted scenes disrupted the flow of the film especially in key scenes.
The end of Empire when we get that random inserted scene of Vader landing in his shuttle whilst the Falcon escapes always irritated me in the special editions, so happy to watch the finale without that shoehorned in again.
I think Vladek Sheybal also appears in it, telling Sean's character he's "a dangerous man" :p
Anyway, rather liked this film.
Vladek is indeed in it!
There's also an appearance by an actor called Antoine Saint-John, playing a very similar character that he played in Sergio Leones 'A Fistful of Dynamite'!
And on sunday, I put Godzilla : Planet of the Monsters in my Blu-Ray player. I'm afraid I missed quite a few nuances, and probably some important plot points due to my bad command of german, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.