Does It Really Matter?
Harry Knowles broke embargo on Clone Wars, then pulled it down. Defamer escalated it into a “cease and desist” directly from George Lucas himself.
Drew/Moriarty wrote in an AICN talkback:
Harry took his CLONE WARS review down at the request of Lucasfilm, who have chosen to enforce an embargo on reviews on our site. There may, in fact, be other outlets who have reviews up currently. That is not something we can control. Harry will repost his same review when he is able to. I hope that explains it, but if you have further questions, I’ll try answer them.
I’m not really shocked that Knowles (or others) are enraged by further infantalizing of the franchise. I’m not really sure how embargoes are handled on that site these days, though Drew insists frequently that the site’s rule is that they respect embargoes… and these days, I believe him. There is enough stuff being screened for Knowles and others that doesn’t turn up early that it makes sense.
I’m going to wait for more actual information before speculating… or not speculating… because…
Does It Matter?
ADD, 2p – It turns out that, according to the studio, it was WB requesting that the review be pulled until the release date and not Lucasfilm. Moreover, there was never anything close to a threat of a “cease & desist” and there is no indication that George Lucas was aware that the review had even gone up.
Perhaps Drew will dispute this in Comments. We’ll see.
I an waiting for further input from some of the other players in this “news story,” as I think that it will be more reflective of the circle jerk of stories expanding like a game of telephone than any great drama about the film itself. But we’ll see where it goes.
Update, 3:53p — As you can see in Comments, where Drew/Moriarty has kindly responded in as much detail as he has, he wrote based on what he was told in passing.
I have also had an exchange indicating that the Defamer piece was a riff on the whole situation and a genral dislike of Lucas in recent years, not a factual piece of reporting.
The problem I have with all of this is not that Drew wrote what he was told, not really obsessing on the distinction that Lucasfilm made the request, which it appears not to have made. I don’t have a problem with Defamer riffing on the whole thing with comic intent. The problem is that other media will read this stuff and take it as fact… when it is not. Neither Drew or Stu is really responsible for that.
But as someone who deals with stuff over years and not minutes, I see stuff like this get absorbed into the ideas people – including some very smart and well-read industry people – have about the world we work in. In 2 of the first 6 comments on this blog entry, there is a specific reference to Lucas making the call and that mattering. It is, after all, in the Defamer opening graph – “…rouse George Lucas from his afternoon cash-bath with a cease-and-desist order straight from the top.” But it’s not true.
We will see how many other places it turns up on… and whether the detail shows up accurately, reported, distorted, or ever corrected. And should Lucas or WB be in the position where they have to chase people around the web to correct what seems like a minor detail to some and a major issue to others? Doesn’t it make them look guilty of something they of which they are not guilty?
Small issue… but it resonates in so many bigger stories…
Not really, since there are other sites that have posted reviews as well.
Damage done.
It’s like a political campaign releasing an ad that sparks an uproar and is quickly taken down. Doesn’t matter how long it was up — the people who were intended to see it saw it, and the controversy spreads the message.
Now that this news is making the rounds, yes, the damage is done. And may likely be greater than if LucasFilm had just let them keep the damned review up.
It matters for two reasons –
1. You suspect that had the review (i haven’t seen it) been positive then it would almost certainly have been allowed to have been left up. Didn’t Harry see an incomplete version of Episode 2 in a hotel room about three months before it was released, and then go hog-wild about it? I don’t remember his review being pulled then. Freedom of speech in criticism is the issue here.
2. DP hits on a good point when speaks of ‘the FRANCHISE’. Say what you will about the more recent flicks, but Star Wars was never a frnachise as such, but a SERIAL. Like Lord of the Rings or Potter, it was a finite story in a set number of chapters. The very existence of this movie erodes those mythic qualities and turns it into just another studio tent-pole. Which is sad.
When I first heard this, all I thought was:
This is Harry’s poor bullshit attempt at redemption for his Episdode I Phantom Menace review. Which has the most infamous line:
“As for Jar-Jar? MESA LOVED HIM!!”
He has never lived that down, and I think he tried to that with this review. And I don’t think it worked very well.
Does it matter? Yeah it matters. Not only is this the most interesting news of the day, but it unleashed a scathing review for the next iteration of Star Wars on arguably the “mouthpiece” of his core demo. As mutiny said, damage done.
Drew, PLEASE give us the inside. You know this site isn’t the AICN talkbacks. How hard was George’s wrath?
I don’t know why people are tripping about infantalizing of this cartoon. This movie is essentially the first 90 minutes of the series that is going to be on “Cartoon Network”.
The forthcoming live action series is supposed to be dark and adult and if that doesn’t live up to it, then I think there’s validity for this kind of reaction that Harry is trying to spin…..So he can wash that Episode I review out of everyone’s mouth.
Once again:
“As for JAR-JAR, MESA LOVED HIM!!!”
Yeah…
I also kinda wonder what kind of backhanded repercussions this could have for Harry’s filmmaking career, if any at all. A reason why it’s not a good idea to play on both sides of the fence.
It screened for the public at the Egyptian this past weekend. Trying to put an embargo on reviews now is like trying to do so for something that already played a film festival.
But notably it was Lucasfilm making the demand, and not WB.
Moriarty needs to throw his relationship with that half-wit vulgarian Knowles over Reichenbach Falls where it belongs. Drew is way too smart and passionate to associate himself with the increasingly puerile AICN. He’s the only reason to click on the site these days — the only geek in town with something to say besides “fuck! fuck! fuck!”
I really believe that with a bit of focus the guy could be the heir to Ebert’s thrown in a few years. There aren’t a lot of populist critics around with good taste. And he’s one.
See added info above, LYT.
And do we owe you a “Happy Birthday?”
Slow Monday…
Slow August.
All I know is what I said. I was told before my LA screening that there was an opening day embargo, which I agreed to. Harry was shown the film in Austin, put up his review, then took it down.
I was told it was at the insistence of Lucasfilm.
That’s it. That’s all I know on my end. It would not shock me if it was Lucasfilm, since they do not have the best relationship with our site to begin with, but since Warner is the distributor, the request easily could have been sent through them.
Regarding the Massawyrm thing… you’ve got me. Everything he posts is handled by someone else.
Does anyone think that Lucasfilm/Warner or whoever would have asked for a take down if the story was positive.
tfresca… no. of course not.
Does anybody not think that Harry knew exactly what he was doing? He’s been around a while. Knows a thing or two about embargoes.
I find pretty frequently, at least from my perspective, when something gets taken down, it was put up in the first place knowing that it might have to be taken down.
He made his point. Word is out. No longer matters whether it’s still up or not.
I’m never one to be confused with an AICN cheerleader, but they got F’d over hard on this. Total bullshit from WB/Lucas/ I caught the review by pure random click last night, and it was brutal. Easily the hardest review from Harry in years, where the movie in question wasn’t a pile-on of hate, like Love Guru. It was Knowles circa Rollerball, and it was good.
IMO, it got pulled not just because he hated the film, but because he wrote glowingly about Tartakovsky’s Clone series, which is more about Lucas’ judgment than the failures of the creative team. Tarta’s Clone Wars was better than 90% of what Lucas did in all three films, and I think they both know it.
The only problem with that idea, Martin, is that Lucas didn’t actually make the call.
And his review will be back up on Thursday night or Friday.
And your mention of the Rollerball review, still used to claim independence… yeah… but I don’t see that the way you do.
Harry Knowles likes
If that double posted. My bad. Nevertheless; Harry Knowles is a King Kong fan. His views on Star Wars are about as valid as a hardcore hockey fan discussing ARL. It’s a bit ridiculous.
Mr. S: No. They do not. They are good for what they are, but they are a bit over the top. They also lack any soul. Thus making them what every fanboy wants in a freakin SW film: something cool and soulless.
really not that big of a deal. i don’t think there’s anything to be irked about. they posted a review, the studio freaked, yadda yadda yadda.
what strikes me the most peculiar is the weird position that aicn gets in here.
If they keep the piece up, despite the embargo, then they are clearly and openly playing against the rules and everyone slaps them with a halibut. If the pull the piece, they get accused of being studio shills and everyone tries to ram a carp up their pooper.
AICN has been in a no-win situation with a lot of folks ever since Drew got serious employment. It’s not fair, but this is what happens when you dip the ink in the corporate well. So Harry was screwed today no matter what happened.
David – thanks for the clarification. I was going off what Drew said initially.
As for my birthday, it nearly always falls on Comic-Con, and I celebrate it late.
Meanwhile – downtown LA film fest here I come.
Since this is slightly relevant to the conversation here, I came to say that I downloaded the soundtrack to Star Wars: The Clone Wars and am listening to it in my office. My non-professional opinion is it’s horrific. Just dreadful. Everything wonderful about John Williams’ score has been reduced to ADD snippets of orchestral work infused with keyboards, drum machines, and electric guitars. God this sucks….
Dave – You’re right, but I find it hard to believe that only the distributor cared about the embargo. Correct me if I’m wrong, but WB is getting paid hit or miss.
IO – Tartakovsky used the characters much more effectively than Lucas, especially the Sith Robot-dude. The heart/soul issue is about story structure, which IIRC, Tarta wasn’t allow to delve into, hence the serial format.
And while I don’t agree with Knowles on a number of things, he is fluid in pre-80’s nerdic.
I am officially over all things STAR WARS.
And everything will be fine.
Star Wars is so over you. It’s burnt your pictures, shredded your mix cds, and has started bad mouthing you on Facebook. It is you who is over.