There should not be a lot of confusion regarding what the movie should be about, just in how it is played out.

For example, in "Star Wars" Princess Leia's message to Obi-Wan Kenobi states, "Years ago you served my father in the Clone Wars."

So, that would refer to Alderan (sp?) in some way shape or form since she believes that those are her parents--not the ones we find out about in "The Empire Strikes Back." At some point, the "twins" (i.e., Leia & Luke) will be born and then have to be "hidden" from the Emperor. This would infer that the "Empire" wins in the first third of the trilogy, thus setting up the second half.

At some point the Jedi "Masters" will likely be disbursed, or disposed from over the next two films. [And if there ever ends up being something to follow "Return of the Jedi," there could conceivably be another aged master in the universe.]

"STAR WARS????? What the hell is that supposed to be? Let me guess...this guy, George something-or-other is trying to capitalize on Stanley Kubrick and the 2001 phenomena, right? Or is it a throwback to STAR TREK, in the hopes that by having the word 'star' in the title, he'll make money off of name recognition alone......"

May 1980...

"How can he top STAR WARS? What does 'The Empire Strikes Back' refer to? Will it have a bad ending? Sequels don't often do as well as the first film. The only exception I can think of is The Godfather Part II. But, really Mr. Lucas, what exactly are you trying to do? What could there be left to tell? They destroyed the Death Star, Grand Moff Tarkin is dead, and Luke will run off and marry Leia, right......?"

May 1983...

"What a dumb ****ing title!! Return of the Jedi??? What, do they all come back in this movie? Does Luke lead a full army of them? Please, the rumours about the midget furred creatures is bad enough, but now we're hearing that Luke will meet his long-lost mother. I liked it better when it was titled Revenge of the Jedi. That had attitude and great potential......"

Nov. 1998...

"Okay, first we had the special editions, now we finally get to see the new trilogy, and what does he call it...? THE PHANTOM MENACE. What is that supposed to mean? Who is the phantom, anyway?....etc...."

GUys, do you get my point? In five years, the main debate over the complete six-film saga will be which film shone the brightest in our hearts, and I predict it will be The Empire Strikes Back, A New Hope, Attack of the Clones, and Episode III (for it purported darker ending...)

People complain about Phantom Menace, but I feel that when we have the opportunity to view all 6 films in continuity that it will make perfect sense, and feel "right." Lucas undoubtedly incorporated quite a bit of light-hearted fluff into Phantom Menace that will starkly contrast with what will most likely be a much darker second and third chapter.

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Originally posted by Quill:
People complain about Phantom Menace, but I feel that when we have the opportunity to view all 6 films in continuity that it will make perfect sense, and feel "right."

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I've always liked Phantom Menace in context with the other films. Like I said before, the "true story" of PM is hidden behind the thin Darth Maul plot. The political intrigues and Palpatine's rise to power seem really fascinating to me. And I also like how this single movie changed the main character of the later episodes (4, 5, 6): It's no longer Luke now. Anakin Skywalker is the "real" main character of the whole saga.

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On a similar note...it's Lord of the Rings first and foremost...Fellowship, Two Towers, Return of the King second.

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It's a bit different in this case, because the three parts of Lord of the Rings don't stand on their own, like the Star Wars films do. The three volumes (the six books, actually) do have nice cliff-hanger endings, but they don't all end in a climax. That's why apparently, the beginning of the second volume will appear at the end of the Fellowship movie, to give it a more "satisfying" ending - I have no problems with that, though I AM troubled by the rumours that Saruman's part in the story might be changed for a more satisfying ending of Two Towers.

Also, Tolkien always saw LOTR as one novel. The separation into three volumes was the publisher's idea, and Tolkien reluctantly agreed (and the title The Two Towers doesn't have a clear refererence to the story, Tolkien himself only speculated which of the various towers in the story it could refer to).

Np: A New Hope *****/*****

Have no problem with the title. A title is a title.

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Originally posted by Scott:
(after all wasn't Return of the Jedi first Revenge of the Jedi?)

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Reportedly, that was just a fake title so they could recognize illegally sold posters or something like that. When the Phantom Menace title was revealed, everyone said that they'd probably change it later.

Oh, and according to the IMDb, the production title for ROTJ was Blue Harvest...

And yes, I have pictures from the set with Blue Harvest titles around. It was to keep the production secret from the public when shooting in the Redwood forests in northern California.

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Originally posted by SEBULBA:
I have pictures from the set with Blue Harvest titles around. It was to keep the production secret from the public when shooting in the Redwood forests in northern California.

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And also while shooting the Sail Barge sequences in Yuma, Arizona.