The People vs. George Lucas (2010)

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

When it comes to George Lucas, there is a love/hate relationship between him and his fans. This documentary explores that relationship from a number of different angles, including Lucas's constant tinkering with the original films & the prequels that (to many fans) just didn't quite seem right.The strength of this documentary is that the fans "against" Mr. Lucas make some compelling cases as to why the Star Wars creator has come under such scrutiny as of late. For example, they bring up the point that Lucas vehemently opposed the Ted Turner notion of colorizing old black-and-white films, yet then himself will NOT release his original Star Wars movies (IV-VI) in their original theatrical versions on DVD. The fans here bring up some good points that paint Lucas as a sort of "creative obsessive", bent on changing little facets of each of his Star Wars films each time they are re-released (whether for profit or for creative reasons is also a large part of the debate.The only problem with this doc? There is practically no perspective given to the "other side" of the issue, or those who actually enjoyed the prequels and don't mind a bit of tinkering. By viewing this documentary, one would think that there is no "other side" to the issue whatsoever, because the fans doing 99% of the talking are those who viewed the original Star Wars in 1977. Those who took the opposite approach-growing up with the prequels & discovering the older films later--are given no shrift whatsoever in this discussion, a forum in which I believe they should firmly have a place.Either way, "The People vs. George Lucas" is an interesting documentary that will make you think a little bit about Lucas's antics regarding certain aspects of the Star Wars saga both on and off the screen. As long as you can recognize the group of fans for what they are (essentially die- hard "New Hope" loyalists whose seminal moment in life was at the theater in 1977), there is no harm in this fun little romp.

In this day and age when people use pop culture as an extension of themselves, it surprises me there haven't been more documentaries like this (how about a documentary about the decline of The Simpsons?). I hate what has happened to the Star Wars franchise beginning with the special editions in 1997 as much as the next fan, and The People Vs. George Lucas helps ventilate the anger but it is so much more than that. It isn't just mindless Lucas bashing but does give the man a fair shake.The documentary raises many thought provoking points of speculation about the man. Does he believe that what he's doing to Star Wars is the right thing? Is he getting revenge on a franchise which turned him into the thing he hated and promised himself he would never become, a corporate entity. It goes to show you how the man is a much of an enigma as the characters in his films, as pointed out in the documentary, the rise and fall of George Lucas parallels Anakin Skywalker's decent to the dark side. By the end of the documentary, I felt as one of the fans interviewed puts it, "I love/hate George Lucas". The other major debate raised in the documentary is that of who owns art, the artist or the public and does the public have the right to the material of its own culture?You don't have to start a Star Wars related conversation before people start talking about their disdain for the prequels or the changes to the special editions, yet no official Star Wars documentary is certainly going to address this, nor do I doubt this documentary would be shown at the annual Star Wars convention Celebration.The People Vs. George Lucas showcases a large range of fans from the mature to the more childish, to those defending Lucas. The documentary both celebrates fan culture as well as makes fun of it, weather intentional or not (I wonder if the guy who compares Lucas to a Holocaust denier regrets it?). My favourite part of the documentary is the section which perfectly captures the anticipation and undaunted optimism towards the release of The Phantom Menace and the following disappointment and disenchantment.Inter cut between the interviews are an astounding showcase of fan films (recreating scenes from the movies, telling their own Star Wars stories and those ridiculing George Lucas). This along with the perfect balance between the more serious debates related to artistic ethics all the way to the more trivial, such as whether or not George Lucas raped people's childhoods, makes The People Vs. George Lucas immensely entertaining to watch, as I've now done so several times, making this my personal favourite documentary.

We all love George Lucas. And we all hate George Lucas. We love the way, with "Star Wars" (1977) he awakened the collective child within the human race, giving us a visually brilliant fantasy that could be appreciated by 9-year-old kids and 59-year-old astrophysicists alike.And then we hate him for being so arrogant as to deny us access to the original 1977 movie, instead forcing us to replace our nostalgic memories with his 1990s re-design. He is even quoted saying something about how his new re-designs will be remembered while the original, the 30 million VHS tapes, cannot possibly last more than 40 years. Can Lucas rewrite history? I don't think so, although it's his right to try. Illegal copies of the originals will continue to float around the internet as long as the internet exists. So I believe Lucas's last stand will eventually prove fruitless, even if it takes 100 years. It just sucks for those of us who don't know how to get our hands on those illegal copies. And in all honesty, *that's* why I hate George Lucas."The People vs. George Lucas" focuses mostly on the hate aspect, and it doesn't pull any punches. Drawing from archival interviews of Lucas as well as official statements released by Lucasfilm in response to fans requesting the original film versions, we are shown a George Lucas who is an artistic tyrant, a corporate player, the quintessential artist who is corrupted by success. Interspersed with humorous bits by comedians and ex-fanboys alike, most of this movie is like a celebrity roast with Georgie on the spit. And my guess is, if you're interested in a movie called "The People vs. George Lucas", this is what you came for.In that regard, it does not disappoint. It gives you everything you need to indulge your acidic, bloodthirsty resentment ...and then some (did you know that Lucas himself appeared before congress in 1988 to denounce Ted Turner for colorizing black & white films, calling it a crime to our national heritage... just years before he obliterated the original "Star Wars" with modern visuals?).But then, as if fearing that it had gone too far, the documentary pulls a 180 in the last 10 minutes with a sudden, inexplicable change of heart. Sappy music swells while we are shown appreciative fans and children (oh not the children! Way to make me feel like a louse) praising Lucas as the guiding light of their dreams. It would have been interesting if the sudden change of heart were explained, but no, it's more like a sarcastic attack punctuated with a very contrived "No offense! We still love you!" I also took off points for the first 20 minutes which feature a bunch of grainy & unappealing fan videos designed to convince us of what an impact Star Wars had on us. Not necessary. We were there, we don't need anyone telling us how important Star Wars was.So, like my title says, lop off the first 20 minutes and the last 10, and you've got yourself a bold, unapologetic, hard-hitting documentary that explains exactly why so many fans are angry with Lucas. And that's the important part, isn't it? The rest--the stuff about how big a cultural impact Star Wars made--is nothing new.Final note: the documentary has a significant spoiler for the 3rd Star Wars prequel--the shocking conclusion of all the prequel movies, in fact. After Phantom Menace (prequel #1) I never saw the others although I planned to one day. If you're like me, beware because in the 2nd half of the documentary they spill the beans. So if you ever intend to see them, be sure to watch the prequel movies first, then watch this documentary.

I can honestly say that I am one who has never really given a sweet-damn about either George Lucas or his precious Star Wars movies (neither the prequels nor the sequels).But, as I quickly found out through this truly "grate-on-your-nerves" documentary, the blind devotion of Lucas's many, many fans (as of 2010) is as rabid & deranged as you could ever believe possible.For 90 solid minutes these disillusioned ones (from all walks of life) bitched & beefed, ad nauseum, about the betrayal they believed Lucas served them (even though they still adore him) when (20 years later) he offered up Star Wars: Episodes 1 & 2, a pair of supremely inferior prequels to the original, 1977 movie.From where I was sitting, I certainly found all of the reverence, all of the loyalty, and all of the gushing of these fans over George-dearest to be downright irritating.I'd say that this ding-dong documentary was strictly "bottom-of-the-barrel" entertainment.*Note* - For anyone who's interested - As of 2013, George Lucas's net worth was estimated at being $5 billion. (Oh? Yeah? And, may the farts be with you, George!... Ha!)