No, I think he wanted to make the prequels great, but failed because:
Here are my all time 10 great movies:
Gigli
Ishtar
Heaven’s Gate
From Justin To Kelly
Catwoman
Manos, Hands of Fate
Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band
Howard the Duck
Battlefield Earth
Freddy Got Fingered
That 70-minute review of Phantom Menace is actually worth watching. I didn’t care for the persona of the reviewer (the voice and the serial killer aspects were just annoying), but even with a totally grating voice, it was fun to watch, and actually quite intelligent.
It made clear to me a big reason why I couldn’t engage with Ep1: there is no protagonist. There is no character you sympathize with and root for. The closest is Obi-Wan, but he doesn’t really get to do much.
Also, an analogy regarding the stories: Star Wars is like Nascar - maybe not highbrow entertainment, but fun and exciting in a simple way. Everyone can follow what’s happening and root for someone to win.
Phantom Menace is like CSPAN. Plodding, convoluted, sometimes nonsensical, and without a coherent story arc. And therefore boring as shit. (The above-cited review also makes the good point that unless you’re engaged with the story and care about the characters, battle scenes are really dull as well.)
The other thing that strikes me is the villains are boring. Villains are usually really fun. Maybe you hate Costner’s Robin Hood, but Alan Rickman was hilarious, right? Sylar is the most popular character on Heroes, isn’t he? Now think about watching Darth Maul. He’s like a potted plant that can kill people.
I’m not rabid about it (and FTR am a sexually active female), but it was disappointing to see the prequels fail at what the original movies were good at: fun.
I’ll watch a 70 minute review of any movie if it’s done by Meagan Fox - and she’s naked. (Anne Hathaway would be OK too)
You really aren’t interested in listening to any opinions that aren’t your own, are you?
Other opinions? What do you mean by that? Like from other people? Like from Obama or Dick Cheney or the Pope?
I will listen to a 70 minute review of Howard the Duck - George Lucas produced that. Did anyone do that review? Maybe I’ll get that DVD and do a 75 minute review just to beat that guy’s record.
Wow. This coming from someone who, earlier in the thread, claimed that anyone who disagreed with him had “never kissed a girl.”
What are you, twelve years old?
I am 13, but I will be 14 next month.
Please do. If it’s as funny and intelligent as the 70 minute review we’re all talking about, I’ll gladly watch it.
You see, having failure explained is INTERESTING. By highlighting how The Phantom Menace went so badly wrong, the reviewer is also illuminating what other movies do right. He helps us understand how a good narrative can be built up, scene by scene, to make something that’s moving and powerful. A bad movie, properly understood, can make watching good movies more fun.
It takes 70 minutes to say- the actors suck, the director sucks , the plot/story sucks, and the CGI sucks? Did I miss anything?
Was there a talking duck in episode 1? Don’t think so but I haven’t seen it recently.
Who was that again who posted this?
Oh. It was you.
And Howard the Duck at least had duck tits.
Why do you think I agree with the guy in the 70 minute diatribe(review)? I’ve had about 20 posts that say I do not. Another straw man.
Sigh. Everybody here is pointing out that the actors suck, the director sucks , the plot/story sucks, and the CGI sucks. It’s fine if you don’t agree - but when people point out a 70 minute critique that’s actually fairly funny and fleshes out the argument, why are you complaining? Or better yet, why did you ask the question in the fist place?
I didn’t like 1-3, and I’ve been married and had four children of my own, none of whom like episodes 1 - 3.
Face it: you liked them, and you’re pissed because you don’t like that others don’t like them. There is nothing wrong with liking something others do not. Don’t worry about it. Just accept that people can have different tastes.
But while you are at it, accept that the movies are generally considered not very good. 
I know I said this upthread but I’ll repeat it.
For ANY fan interested in the backstory, read The Secret History of Star Wars. I was lucky to get it while it was still a free PDF file and you really understand why Lucas made a lot of the changes he did throughout the series. I believe that the 9 vs 6 vs 3 is addressed in the book, Basically he condenced down the trilogy of trilogies into one trilogy. IMHO: had Lucas stayed true to his second vision (the one that was the fully worked up treatment where Luke Starkiller’s father killed by a renegade Jedi named (not titled) Darth Vader), the trilogy would be great.
I just wanted to pop in and say I totally understand the hate for GL. Whether it’s because of poor quality of work or expectations not being met doesn’t matter… I-III are very different from IV-VI and that’s not ok with everyone. There are valid criticisms about technique and choices.
I LOVED the 70 minute commentary. I watched it the other day and it made my week. He summed up all the problems very well while being entertaining.
That being said, I really liked I-III. I really like IV-VI too, but I never considered any of them high art. But I don’t need high art in my movies. I need entertainment and I found all 6 of them entertaining. Maybe I can enjoy I-III because IV-VI were never on a pedestal for me, I didn’t have expectations that needed to be met. I’m not a super-fan too, just a casual fan.
Doesn’t bother me 1 bit that tons of people hate these movies, I kind of think it’s funny. I like many things very few people like. For example I read many history books, not many people do that. On the flip side I dislike many things people love. For example I dislike 95% of all TV shows , I never watch anything on CBS, ABC, Fox or NBC except sports. I really, really hate onions and seafood and lasagna - many people love that stuff.
Not only did he say it, he said it to a reporter for Time (or possibly Newsweek) and it was printed in the magazine. The quote is available, in black and white, in one of this country’s largest newsmagazines. And Lucas still swears he never said it.
Can you locate the quote?
The charisma of Han Solo went a long way in carrying the original Star Wars films. Without a similar cocky, entertaining and also relatable character, the prequels failed.
I think the prequels were too serious and too childish at the same time. They were completely immature, but not funny. They were completely heavy-handed, but not gripping or tense. They shamelessly tried to appeal to kiddie audiences and didn’t consider the tastes of older viewers who would want the same kind of witty back-and-forth banter that Han and Leia had in the originals; at the same time, they were filled with boring quasi-political and philosophical messages that sucked any light-heartedness out of the movie.