LoveUniHateExams:
First point:
Have you even SEEN Empire Strikes Back recently. Yoda's opening scene is one of the most cringe-worthy moments in cinema I've ever seen. All that non-essential slapstick was just plain weird and out of place, obviously meant to amuse kids. It was out of character and tarnished the whole thing. Jar Jar's clownishness had a purpose. On the positive side, it showed he was effective in his own way and part of the great symbiotic relationship all living things have, which was one of the main themes of the movie. He also showed Qui Gonn's compassion and attentiveness to the "living force" as opposed to the Jedi Council. Later, Jar Jar was also Palpatine's Patsy to help him get emergency powers.
Second point:
Midichlorians aren't the force; the force is still very much a mystery. They're a symbiant that is a mediator with the force. As for the chosen one prophecy, that was never fully clarified, and Yoda said it may have been misread in Episode III.
One thing you have to understand is that the prequels took place in a more 'civilized' time, as Obi Wan said in the original film. Ever noticed how he's more eloquent and still wears his costume, amidst his sordid surroundings in A New Hope?
The prequels were NEVER going to be a wise-cracking western, that would've been lazy storytelling.
Here's a quote about the prequels from Lucas in 1981:
"The first trilogy will not be as much of an action adventure kind of thing. Maybe we'll make it have some humor, but right now it's much more humorless than this one. This one is where all the excitement is, which is why I started with it. The other ones (sic) a little more Machiavellian -- it's all plotting -- more of a mystery"