Pros and Cons: Star Wars…Disney is your father

There are some films that are so influential they will be engrained in film culture for years and years to come. There are some stories that are so appealing that they are rendered classics almost immediately. Star Wars is one of those films. Alas, the question we ask is this: Disney has bought the the rights to the series for a pretty penny, but should more Star Wars movies be made? Here’s a breakdown of the pros and cons.

PRO: Why fans should rejoice
by Jenna Cocullo

I sense a disturbance in the force; Disney Studios has bought LucasFilm for $4.05 billion with the intention of making three brand new films. Some fans were upset with the news. However, there is no reason to fret and here are four reasons why.

1. Once you hit rock bottom the only way to go is up.
Let’s face it, Star Wars episodes I to III were not exactly the most satisfying films. Matthew Hays, critic and film studies professor at Concordia University, agrees.

“The first Star Wars film was a lot of fun, and was very creative and new. The next two weren’t as good. The next three, the prequels, were generally quite rotten.”

The good news? Well it seems that it cannot get any more rotten as anything could be better than the last three films to hit theaters.

“I think a new sequel could be fun, and it couldn’t be much worse than the last few,” said Hays.

Disney is starting off favourably since expectations will be very low for any new Star Wars movies because the last few disappointed so intensely.

2. It’s Disney!
Besides supposedly putting subliminal messages in our beloved childhood films, have they ever really done anything bad? They are responsible for this summer’s greatest blockbuster, The Avengers, recent favourites like Pirates of the Caribbean and creating childhood classics such as the epic Toy Story trilogy. It is safe to say that the Star Wars legacy will be in good hands.

3. A fresh new storyline with a fresh new perspective
Had Disney decided to reboot the films, that would have been a problem (even though it would be kind of cool to see what they would look like in the 21st century).

“I like the idea of creating new storylines and not rebooting the old films,” explained Hays. “There are too many reboots going on right now, it just feels like so much recycling.”

Fortunately, that is not the case. New story lines are in the making — ones which do not involve the original cast at all. The fact that George Lucas is not the one producing them is even better because Disney can provide a new take on the films.

4. A classic movie is immortal
Star Wars will live on with the making of three new movies. Of course, they will never be as good as the originals, nothing ever leaves an impression like the first, but that is no reason to stop the legacy. Many enthusiasts have expressed their feelings of joy on Internet forums discussing the topic. They feel that they can relive a great part of their childhood. At the end of the day, a franchise so many love is coming back to the big screen. If it sucks, so what? The originals will always be there. So for any doubtful people out there, my advice to you would be to just sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.

CON: Don’t mess with a good thing
by Christina Rowan

Disney making three more Star Wars films instead of Lucasfilm is the equivalent of a modern day artist adding onto to Michelangelo’s oeuvre in the Sistine Chapel. What’s done is done!

From here on out, the legacy of George Lucas’ cinematic ventures runs the risk of being credited to Disney, which initially, had nothing to do with it.

Lucas will remain a consultant to the Star Wars franchise. However, Disney ultimately holds the cards, allowing them to take directions Lucas wouldn’t if it were solely up to him.

Lucas was clearly in no need of financial aid. He has made beyond what is considered a fortune on his franchise — an estimated $27 billion, through the films, television shows, action figures, video games, board games, you name it — yet still sold to mass film corporation Disney.

Since the sale, the announcement of three new possible Star Wars films has become public, but what more can Disney add to the story?

Everyone is already familiar with the the intergalactic empire, life-threatening lightsaber battles, epic pod races and the ultimate fight between good and evil. We’ve seen what happens from beginning to end to Luke, Princess Leia, and their villainous father, Darth Vader. Even the Emperor fell to his doom in Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi.

So, is the production of three more Star Wars movies really necessary? Three new films may only tarnish the glory it possesses.

The entertainment business today seems to be popping out the same types of movies all the time, most recently, superhero films like Batman, Iron Man, and Spider-Man. They’ve been recycled and updated with clearer graphics, bigger explosions and louder sound effects. It’s becoming a little repetitive, when you think about it.

For Star Wars fans who were disappointed with the prequel films released since 1999, it will only be more of the same disappointment with three Disney-made Star Wars films.

Lucas said in an interview with IGN that when he made the first Star Wars installments back in the 1970s, everybody in Hollywood said it was a movie Disney should have made. He didn’t give in then so why now? In the end, Lucas made some of the greatest movies of all time. Can Disney really live up to that reputation? I don’t think so.

I’m sure the new movies will be enormous box office hits, action-packed blockbusters. They might even be great films in themselves, but we should be looking to new ideas, not revamping old ones.

Despite all the excitement and all the hype, the classics will always be the innovative, new world brought to life by George Lucas, and no remake or newer movie can live up to that.

Graphic by Phil Waheed.

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