4 ms·

I absolutely enjoy Pixar and Star Wars films, along with many Dr. Seuss books which have messages not only directed towards children but also their parents read

I absolutely enjoy Pixar and Star Wars films, along with many Dr. Seuss books which have messages not only directed towards children but also their parents reading it to their children on subjects like nuclear nonproliferation, anti-Semitism, dictatorial leadership, environmentalism, and in the case of Horton Hatches and Egg, not being a dead beat parent. I considered Star Wars just entertainment until my early 20s when I read Joseph Campbell which made me very conscious of what George Lucas and Disney were doing including the message of self sacrifice for a person's community, family, and friends. This means that George Lucas and everything from Disney [1] thoroughly rejects the libertarian philosophy of Ayn Rand using a language of myth and symbolism which according to Campbell connects deeply with children. That is Han Solo's character arc; he didn't care about anyone but himself when we first met him, maybe a little for Chewbacca, until he met the princess. She was the first person he put above his own self interests and the investment paid off when she put herself in harms way to rescue him. It's for children, the toys which children use to foster their imaginations are for children, the dress up customs for Halloween are for children, and Campbell explains that the particular myth of Star Wars is the coming of age story of a boy who leaves the safety of his mother to join the men.[2] Most people are heavily influenced by these stories. It's pseudo science but we understand what is going on with children who have nightmares of the Beast from Beauty and the Beast or Darth Vader. As for adults who play pretend and dress up in customs for play, they really miss the point of coming of age in the stories. [1] http://www.thewritersjourney.com/hero's_journey.htm#Memo http://www.thewritersjourney.com/hero's_journey.htm#Memo [2] http://billmoyers.com/content/ep-3-joseph-campbell-and-the-power-of-myth-the-first-storytellers-audio/ http://billmoyers.com/content/ep-3-joseph-campbell-and-the-p...

icebraining 11y ago
I think the problem is that you're talking past the critics you claim are missing the point. The usual criticism of SW isn't about the main storyline (particularly of the first trilogy, which you summarized here), as the people who find that plot thin and uninteresting were never SW fans in the first place. By the way, I was 10 when the Phatom Menace came out, and I can tell you that I found it very disappointing. For a film supposedly targeted at children, it has a lot of scenes involving politics, both at the Senate and at the Jedi Council. And no, Jar Jar wasn't funny, not even then.
- zappo2938 11y ago
  Too bad you felt that way. All the little kids in my life at the time it was released completely loved it and were obsessed with it the way I was with the first three. At no point did I say the movie was good or bad, only that it was for children and most of the children I know loved it. So I think it was on target. My original comment was about handling criticism. I think that George Lucas will continue to make movies not caring about what people think about them. I'll let him speak for himself on the subject. [1] [1] https://thescene.com/watch/vanityfair/george-lucas-on-why-he-s-done-directing-star-wars-movies https://thescene.com/watch/vanityfair/george-lucas-on-why-he...

icebraining 11y ago

I think the problem is that you're talking past the critics you claim are missing the point. The usual criticism of SW isn't about the main storyline (particularly of the first trilogy, which you summarized here), as the people who find that plot thin and uninteresting were never SW fans in the first place. By the way, I was 10 when the Phatom Menace came out, and I can tell you that I found it very disappointing. For a film supposedly targeted at children, it has a lot of scenes involving politics, both at the Senate and at the Jedi Council. And no, Jar Jar wasn't funny, not even then.

zappo2938 11y ago
Too bad you felt that way. All the little kids in my life at the time it was released completely loved it and were obsessed with it the way I was with the first three. At no point did I say the movie was good or bad, only that it was for children and most of the children I know loved it. So I think it was on target. My original comment was about handling criticism. I think that George Lucas will continue to make movies not caring about what people think about them. I'll let him speak for himself on the subject. [1] [1] https://thescene.com/watch/vanityfair/george-lucas-on-why-he-s-done-directing-star-wars-movies https://thescene.com/watch/vanityfair/george-lucas-on-why-he...