By now, I'm sure everyone has heard enough of the lamentations of Star Wars fans. George Lucas, former heir apparent to Joseph Campbell, is a man now known for cannibalizing his own story by tacking on a few Special Editions and poorly planned prequels. There are documentaries and essays all dedicated to bashing all the man's recent efforts to keep his opus alive, and with this new 3D Episode I coming out, that sore is going to get reopened.
Most people say, "Just don't watch the prequels". But I was surprised no one had successfully attempted to redeem the man's story, not necessarily by ignoring all of the stuff he's done lately, but by including it (well...most of it). But then a friend of mine told me about this:
Machete's Recommended Star Wars Viewing Order
I had to share it. I haven't tried it out yet, but I will. The order in which the chapters of story is told is something I've always wondered about. The movie Memento relies heavily on its unusual sequencing, and the TV show 'Lost' shows what masterful use of flashbacks and flash forwards can do for a story. Flashbacks are cliched, I'm sure we all know that, but they are extremely compelling. There's something about finding out what happened before your main event that just draws you in. I remember reading 'The Hobbit' after reading Lord of the Rings, seeing Dragonball after completing Dragonball Z, or seeing Terminator after watching T2, and the feeling I got from it...is so much better than I get from experiencing stories in chronological order.
For me, perfectly following the flow of time is a bit of a chore. I can only focus on how much more I have to read or watch until I get to that final chapter, and how much I'm going to have to remember along the way. But well-placed flashbacks are like discovering the answers to unsolved mysteries along the way. A wonderful distraction from the agonizingly slow flow of time. I'd even argue that they are closer to our life experiences than a perfect, step-by-step journey into the future. We live a little, gain a lot of questions about our parents, our surroundings and ourselves, and then, suddenly, when we reach the right age, people or events start filling in the blanks for us. Where we came from, why our parents are or aren't married, or why we have very strong emotional reactions to certain things. I honestly think that's why prequels are so appealing.
Other countries know this, too. For example, Japanese storytelling revolves around this. Nearly every movie or anime ends with some dramatic flashback explaining why a character is the way he or she is (this usually happens right before it's time for them to die). If you watch too many Japanese films, or read too many manga, this can get old very fast. But this really is how they tell their stories. They won't even foreshadow, though! You can bring in ANY new information you want in a flashback in Japanese storytelling. (I consider that cheating, though.) Because of this cultural difference, many Japanese people are confused by the typical American movie opening: the introductory backstory. Basically, we reveal everything they care about in the first fifteen minutes of a lot of our movies. Imagine Christopher Reeve's Superman with no intro, but instead, put that long Krypton sequence right after he discovers Lois Lane dead, and flies into the sky, screaming like a madman. THAT's how they want to see it. ...Actually, that might be pretty cool. Any editors with some decent equipment out there?
I am wired to appreciate the connections of the past and the future more than most people, however. Some people really just want a perfect sequence. Jumping around hurts their brains. But for the most part, I think the cliche of an extended flashback might just be one of the best storytelling devices ever conceived.
Thoughts, anyone?
MythSmyth
