SXSW10-The People Vs. George Lucas (2010)

Directed by: Alexandre O Philippe

How is it that it’s the second day of South By Southwest and I’ve only seen one freakin’ movie? Well, it’s a long story that I won’t go into. Let’s just get to the damn movie

George Lucas is still a hero to some. How that is, most of us can’t really fathom, but I think we’re learning to accept it. He made three amazing films that everyone loves and even worships and basically disappeared. (Ok, he produced some absolutely forgettable films…and Howard The Duck.)

Then, suddenly, he decided to continue his most famous saga, and there was much rejoicing. People went ape-shit. We all knew that these films were going to be amazing. How could they go wrong?

But, oh, how we were wrong. Lucas dropped a shit-bomb called The Phantom Menace on us. Then, for the most part, we allowed him to do it two more times.

Ok, I have to admit this right here…I actually like the prequels. Yes, Phantom Menace is a boring freakin’ movie. But they get better as time went on and they have grown on me. Not most of the folks in this movie, though. Director Alexandre O. Philippe certainly has not forgiven George for his indiscretions, but he’s MUCH more forgiving than a lot of the people he interviews. These people threw away their Star Wars toys and stopped going to the movies just because of a little guy called Jar Jar Binks.

Oh, Jar Jar Binks. You should die 1000 painful deaths.

Here’s what really makes this movie great, though: it makes you think about what an artist truly owes his audience. Does he owe them something that’s basically going to be just like what he’s done before to make them happy? Or does he not owe them a damn thing? Should he just go about his marry way and not worry about what his audience thinks of him?

Honestly, I think the truth lies somewhere in between. He needs to be conscious of what his audience wants while still challenging them to want something different out of him. That’s what Lucas does not do. He suddenly decided to pander to children instead of making something great like Star Wars.

The People Vs. George Lucas drags a little towards the end, but it’s never not engaging and interesting. He found a lot of cool people to talk about their feelings of awe at Star Wars and betrayal at the prequels. He even talked to a few people who kind of agree with Lucas, Neil Gaiman being the most famous. (Francis Ford Coppola is interviewed, but I think it’s archive footage.)

Anyone interested in the phenomenon of adjusting art after its initial release should see this movie. It tries very hard to answer the question, If Van Gogh was allowed to change Starry Night, would we let him? Then it leaves it up to us to answer it on our own.