[PvK]

My takes:

Star Wars IV: Classic, very well done space opera adventure, with very good action sequences with good pacing/timing. Good portrayal of good guy fear and death and chaos.

Star Wars V: Goodish but it's not a very complete story by itself. It's like a series episode that leaves plot threads dangling for the next episode and doesn't really resolve anything. Good effects, good atmosphere. Boring parts. Too much Yoda muppet and Jedi school lessons.

Star Wars VI: Goodish finale to trilogy with some weak points, especially the Ewoks and other bits that undermined the conflict and the sense of actual danger.

Star Wars I: Disappointing, with some potential and good parts, and some good effects, but too many really bad parts. Utterly unbelieveable underwater ecology with whales costantly chain-swallowing each other is just stupid, not exciting. Jedis bored reaction to it is appropriate for a viewer but not for characters supposedly in danger. Gungans are worse than Ewoks! Utterly unbelieveable physics-nonsensical over-accelerated pod race. Utterly unbelieveable Anakin abilities (build droid, insanely good racer, can fly fighter by instinct, finds the one "press here to turn off droid army and win climactic battle" button...). Bad acting, bad script. No one really seems afraid, ever (see Episode IV for people who show some fear in combat).

Star Wars II: Better than Star Wars I, but still disappointing. More good parts and good effects. Christopher Lee vs. Obi-Wan/Anakin and then Yoda is pretty good. Surface combat is pretty spectactular and ok, but slightly hyperactive and not entirely convincing. Lots of bad stuff though: bad script and acting and choreography (esp. Anakin and Padme), hyperactive/silly bits, like the arena combat and the flying R2D2 in a smelter that is like a platform-jumping computer game - are SO unbelieveable and disbelief-destroying. Again, no one really seems afraid, ever, which as in Episode I, undermines the conflict/tension.

Star Wars III: Better effects than Episode II, and lots of nearly non-stop action and significant events and death. But even more missed bets and screw-ups and potential to be far far better than it turned out. More bad choreography and timing and pointlessly unbelievable nonsensical and stupid action situations. Missiles that launch droids which grapple with fighters? Safely crash-landing a battleship from orbit without engines? That scene with Obi-Wan riding on a fake-o CGI dinosaur with super-ball resiliancy? Light-sabre fight next to lava waterfalls? I think not. The whole Anakin forbidden love transformation to evil thing had some dramatic potential, but the way it was done was very lame.

Alien: Good sci-fi horror film, apparently borrowing lots of ideas and aesthetics from Mario Bava's earlier Space "Vampires" film.

Aliens: Very good alien shoot-em-up adventure/horror.

Alien 3: Utterly unworthy sequel crap.

Alien 4: Outraged reviews and Alien 3 leave me with no desire to suffer through this, so I haven't seen it.

Predator: Good for an Arnie shoot'em up horror film.

Predator 2: Bad-ish crap sequel.

Alien vs Predator: Moronic, hyperactive and highly stupid, which wastes its expensive CGI graphics on horridly stupid plot and extremely fake-o CGI choreography.

* I am slightly amazed that anyone, even Atrocities, can possibly have changed his mind about AvP.