George Lucas is being hailed by Steven Spielberg for creating an underrated masterpiece with Star Wars: Episode II: Attack of the Clones.
Tl;dr
- Steven Spielberg particularly admires Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones.
- Steven Spielberg and George Lucas have a long-standing friendship, filled with film collaborations.
- Steven Spielberg contributed creatively to Star Wars despite his absence as director.
An unexpected fan of Star Wars: Episode II: Attack of the Clones
The prodigious director Steven Spielberg is not only known for his remarkable filmography, but also for his passion for cinema. It is therefore surprising that he has a rather singular opinion on the “Star Wars” franchise. In 2002, he told Cinescape that Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones was his second favorite film in the saga, just behind Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. According to him, “the action scenes seemed inspired by James Cameron, they were as good as those in Terminator 2: Judgment Day, and I think George Lucas did his best directing with this film”.
A long-standing cinematic friendship
The friendship between Steven Spielberg and George Lucas dates back decades and has produced many cinematic gems. Notably, their little rivalry at the box office, when Lucas and Spielberg bet on the success of “Star Wars” and “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”. Without forgetting their collaboration on the creation of the “Indiana Jones” franchise.
Regarding “Star Wars,” Lucas initially turned down Spielberg’s offer to direct an original trilogy film. However, he changed his mind and asked Spielberg and Ron Howard if they would direct “The Phantom Menace.” Ultimately, it was Lucas who continued to direct his films, after his friends found the task too daunting.
A creative contribution to Star Wars
Although Spielberg didn’t direct a Star Wars film, that didn’t stop him from contributing creatively to the saga. It was he who introduced John Williams to Lucas for the music of “A New Hope”. Additionally, during pre-production of “Revenge of the Sith”, Spielberg helped design the animatics for certain sequences, providing his vision of Order 66, the duel on Mustafar and Yoda’s fight against Darth Sidious .
As for Spielberg’s comments about Lucas’ use of CG sets and his own reluctance towards them, it appears the director has changed his mind over the years, as evidenced by the extensive use of CGI sets in “Ready Player One” and “The Good Big Giant”.
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