Some Star Wars thoughts

Picked up Ep III and have watched all the extras (and the movie). I really miss the rebellion stuff with Mon Mothma, Bail Organa, and Padme Amadala plotting to stop Palpatine in the Senate. The stuff where the Jedi are doing this, seemingly by themselves, is far less satisfying than it would have been if the plots of this group had been in the film.

1) It makes the tragedy of Anankin's sticking with Palpatine even more painful to realize that Padme was organizing against the Sup-Chan.
2) As it is, the struggle seems to be between Palpatine and the Jedi for control and influence, but with the future rebels, its more like Palpatine against everyone he hasn't tricked and co-opted. The more broad-based and legitimate the resistance to Palpatine, the more Anakin has been seduced (the word Obi-Wan uses several times in Ep IV) rather than acted on legitimate grievances against the ambitious jedi.
3) It sets up another layer of connection and continuity with later films, where we heard about Bail Organa, see a little of Mon Mothma, and know about the rebellion.

My brother has posted on EP III recently. He's concerned about the curious style of acting involved. I make several points on that subject. 1) These people are largely artificial people. Like a lot of politicians, they have a fake front, and that false presence is visible. 2) Lucas doesn't want character to get in the way of his mythology. 3) Lucas' direction is as off-kilter as he is. Interviews with Lucas kind of reveal him to be stilted and wooden. Interviews with directors are often less smooth and silky than those with actors, but Lucas is particularly unnatural. I suspect he just put himself into those roles. 4) Palpatine and Obi-Wan were established characters. That might have created a bit of room for those actors to work. 5) Hayden Christenson is the Anthony Perkins of his generation. 6) Natalie Portman is a good actress, but couldn't get out from under Lucas' direction. Watching the extras, Lucas appears to think you show emotion by turning away from the camera.

This isn't an argument its a list of observations.