Like me, you may have listened to the Fresh Air interview today with George Lucas. Apparently, he's got a new self-aggrandizing book out called George Lucas's Blockbusting (edited by Lucy Autrey Wilson and Alex Ben Block) that he's pimping out to the usual talk show outlets (he was also on the Daily Show last night, prompting me to fall asleep for several hours on the couch). Now, to be fair, he is properly qualified to discuss what makes a movie a "blockbuster," but it seems to be the heritage of my generation (30-somethings) to backlash on the Spielberg/Lucas legacy. I mean, what was the most significant achievements of these two pop culture powerhouses as I was coming of movie-going age? AI and those gawd awful SW prequels? Backlash, I say!
As I was listening to the interview (conducted by David Bean Cooley), I actually got really anxious. I mean, how many times has Lucas been interviewed about this stuff? hundreds of times, easy. He's well rehearsed, so we're not in for any insightful answers. In fact, most of the time it was like listening to a politician--he was rambling off tangents, pushing some revisionist agenda and dodging questions most of the time. And it's well known that he surrounds himself in a protective bubble of fawning approval and flaccid yes-men. It was a little shocking that Cooley (who obviously knew plenty about Lucas and his movies) didn't ask any of the obvious hard questions.
My only conclusion is that Lucas Inc. (possibly even without George's knowledge) sends along a list of verboten questions, Tom Cruise style, in order to avoid popping the bubble and allowing reality to seep in. Below is my made-up list of blacklisted subjects for an interview with George Lucas:
- Interviewer is not to discuss The Phantom Menace, The Clone Wars, or that other one whose title I can't remember at the moment. It is understood that when the title "Star Wars" is spoken it is referring to the original Star Wars episodes IV thru VI, and nothing else
- Interviewer is not to suggest or insinuate that special effects/CGI are not needed to make a good movie.
- Interviewer is not to make negative comparisons between modern action movies (e.g. Avatar) and any of Mr. Lucas's movies. In fact, comparisons between Mr. Lucas's movies and anything else is to be generally avoided.
- Interviewer will not mention the popular YouTube video critiques Star Wars: The Phantom Menace Review (Parts 1-7).
- Interviewer will not bring up the obvious backlash against him of the Gen X demographic, or the fact that his name is a common joke when discussing the problem of art being created in a vacuum (hint: it aint art).
Anything else is fair game. You know, as long as it is generally of a worshipful, approving nature.
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