Star Wars: The Force Awakens

[H2O.]

So I went for a second viewing, and my opinion of the movie has improved.

I did say that the scenario was the weak point of the movie and it totally is, but this is really a character's movie. John Boyega brings a freshness that is most enjoyable, Harrison Ford plays old Han Solo perfectly, Kylo Ren is gonna be a really interesting antagonist to follow, bb-8 is cute and so on. But the big plus is Daisy Ridley, she is a revelation, she plays very well and I was totally hooked following her in this adventure.

So, this is not a perfect movie (ANH and ESB were better, just way better) but this is really enjoyable and feels like a good Star Wars (an adventure movie in space with great characters).

3D or non 3D? I saw both version and if I go back, I will go non-3D. There is nothing the 3D brings that is necessary, and I don't like wearing glasses.

Edited December 19, 2015 by H2O.

[Xavven]

4 hours ago, H2O. said:

3D or non 3D? I saw both version and if I go back, I will go non-3D. There is nothing the 3D brings that is necessary, and I don't like wearing glasses.

I agree, the 3D didn't improve the movie in a material way. Wasn't worth the money for a person like me who likes Star Wars but isn't a zealous fan.

 

SPOILER ALERT

Spoiler

Contains spoilers. Don't open if you haven't watched the movie

 

Spoiler

Kylo Ren is a very well done antagonist IMO. When I first saw him, I groaned, "oh look, a Vader wannabe." And then you discover that's exactly what he his, making his performance and character just perfect. And then, what's the absolute most EVIL thing he could possibly do? Well, kill a family member at the very moment they're welcoming you back into the family and forgiving you for being an ass. What an amazing and gut wrenching scene!

I also like that the light saber battles weren't perfectly choreographed kung fu scenes. Finn and Rey are total beginners but fight with a lot of heart, which makes their clumsy swordsmanship very exciting and tense. And people get nicked and wounded during the fight instead of, "I cut off your arms, so now I win!" that got incredibly cliche in the prequels.

 

 

[Red Shirt]

Just got home from watching. IMHO, right up there with ANH. Technically it is amost certainly better but we are used to the effects now so the jaw no longer hits the ground. When I saw the original, I was in college. We had driven 60 miles to get to a decent theater. At the end we all just sat there, looked at each other, and with no words spoken that I recall, split into two groups. My half went to the front row and the other half to the back and we sat through it again. I didn't feel that intensity here but have to say there is nothing I would change. 

[worir4]

The movie was awesome! The Stormtroopers were cool and the battles were brilliant, just one problem though:

 

Spoiler

The third time that the Empire/First order have made a weakness involving a tunnel to the core of their 'ultimate weapon'. They need new engineers!

 

[lajoswinkler]

Am I like the only one who despises the franchise made to sell toys and thinks it's a piece of poo?

[Bill Phil]

9 minutes ago, lajoswinkler said:

Am I like the only one who despises the franchise made to sell toys and thinks it's a piece of poo?

I dislike that aspect, but I think they're okay movies. The second in the original trilogy is probably the best. They kind of lose in the end. 

[Wjolcz]

I just came back and I'll say I really enjoyed it. As some people have already said: the first part of the movie > the second part of the movie. Not like it's super bad, but it feels like they had different plans for the second part and they had to modify the script in hurry. Apart from that I think Abrams did really well and I liked the fact that they used actual props and not CGI. That certainly was a good decision.

Heard that Mark Hamill had some accident (probably that's why he appearad by the end only). I can imagine they might have had to modify the script because of that. If that's the case it's totally acceptable and they pulled it off really well IMO.

The other thing I kind of didn't like was the lack of original soundtrack. I think the original one was great and the one in E:VII felt like they had an urge to make it sound more fresh.

 

Oh, and a quick edit: Let's be honest. You don't watch Star Wars for the brilliant plot. It's never been super original. Not like I dislike it, because E:V and E:VII are my favs plot-wise, but still: Good vs Evil and princesses.

Edited December 19, 2015 by Veeltch

[Frybert]

Just now, Veeltch said:

Heard that Mark Hamill had some accident (probably that's why he appearad by the end only).

Harrison Ford, actually.

[Wjolcz]

18 minutes ago, Frybert said:

Harrison Ford, actually.

I actually knew that Ford crash-landed a plane, but thought Hamill had a car accident recently too and a scar on his face. I've done the research a second ago and it seems I mixed the years. What that wampa did to Luke's face in E:V was no make up.

Edited December 20, 2015 by Veeltch

[Frybert]

11 minutes ago, Veeltch said:

I actually knew that Ford crash-landed a plane, but thought Hamill had a car accident recently too and a scar on his face. I've done the research a second ago and it seems I mixed the years. What that wampa did to Luke's face in E:V was no make up.

Actually Ford had his leg crushed by a door on the Falcon set. The plane crash was after filming wrapped.

[cubinator]

I thought it was pretty good. One thing that I thought funny was:

Spoilerish:

Spoiler

First there was the original Death Star, then they built a bigger Death Star, and now they decided: "Let's make ANOTHER new Death Star that's so big it's even got it's own atmosphere! 

What's next? Death Star: Michael Bay edition?

More spoiler:

Spoiler

I also thought it was too easy to find the other part of the map, it should have been discernibly fragmented, even if R2-D2 had all the parts they should have been lots of little bits put together like the one BB-8 had. I feel like the second half of the movie was scrunched a little bit after the elaboration of the first half.

Edited December 21, 2015 by cubinator
in case spoiler was not evident enough

[Kozak]

Please put a warning for spoilers in case anyone does spoil the movie.

[Robotengineer]

6 hours ago, lajoswinkler said:

Am I like the only one who despises the franchise made to sell toys and thinks it's a piece of poo?

As far as franchises that are made to sell toys, it's not like Star Wars is the only franchise that is made to sell toys, (although the extent of merchandising for this one is ridiculous). IMO, the Star Wars movies have everything that you could want in a sci-fi blockbuster action movie.

[KSK]

Saw the film last night. Very refreshing to see some decent characters, dialogue and acting in a Star Wars film, after the prequel trilogy fell down badly in those areas. Action scenes were well up to standard but, in my opinion, the overall story suffered a bit from too much homage to the original trilogy. Still a good film but that last point stopped it being a great film. However, there's buckets of potential there and providing that the writing is halfway decent, I'm very optimistic about Episodes 8 and 9.

[GoSlash27]

I just saw it last night, and thought it was a blast. I agree with all the complaints raised here, but that didn't stop me from thoroughly enjoying it and looking forward to the next installment.

I don't mind at all that Abrams took major liberties with canon (same as he did with Star Trek). He made the franchise fun again, and that's more important IMO.

The other older patrons seemed to really enjoy all the tie- ins to the old trilogy, but what I really enjoyed was the return to the old look and feel. Everything is dirty, scratched, and dented. The lighting and cinematography make it seem more "real". Technology was used to add detail and scale rather than just overwhelming clutter.

 Abrams clearly "gets" what Star Wars movies are supposed to be and he's made a movie that lives up to the hype.

Best,

-Slashy

[lajoswinkler]

11 hours ago, Robotengineer said:

As far as franchises that are made to sell toys, it's not like Star Wars is the only franchise that is made to sell toys, (although the extent of merchandising for this one is ridiculous). IMO, the Star Wars movies have everything that you could want in a sci-fi blockbuster action movie.

IDK, perhaps I just don't like fantasy blockbusters. I will try to see the movie, though. After all, it's Star Wars.

[Robotengineer]

It's shattered records now, ≈ $517 million opening weekend worldwide ticket sales. 

[Dispatcher]

Could this be a spoiler?  You decide!

 

[longbyte1]

Well, at least Abrams saved himself from being called Jar Jar Abrams

I was surprised at the lack of Expanded Universe content in the movie. It's all being cleared out for a totally original story arc, it seems.

One thing we never got to see though, was

Spoiler

whether or not Jar Jar Binks is in fact a Sith Lord

Also still many unanswered questions in the movie. I noticed how the movie strongly reflects society's ongoing shift of gender roles.

[Cydonian Monk]

Saw this thing earlier today. Not a bad film. Not sold on it yet, but it's still hard for me to get over the whole Han shoots second thing from SW:EpIV:ANH:SE:ABCDEF. Generally happy with the performances and the considerably restrained approach to CGI versus the almost entirely greenscreen CGI-fest of... y'know what, we'll just never mention those again. Still not really sure what exactly was going on at one point in the middle-to-late part of the movie.... Hoping there's some information dump deleted scenes that make it on the Special Collector's Edition BluRay-DVD-ReelToReel Disney Vault Deluxe Combo Pack.

 

On December 19, 2015 at 8:25 PM, Robotengineer said:

Just got back from seeing it, I'd give it 9/10, and my main issue isn't with the movie itself, but rather the marketing/merchandising crap that has gone with it. I know that there will be toys and lightsabers and costumes, but Star Wars coffee creamer? Seriously? Ridiculous. 

(In best Yogurt impersonation....) Merchandising, merchandising, merchandising! Where the real money from the movie is made! Spaceballs the T-shirt! Spaceballs the Coloring Book! Spaceballs the Lunchbox! Spaceballs the Breakfast Cereal! Spaceballs the Flamethrower! (The kids _love_ this one!)

[Taowulf]

Just got home from watching it, and JJ done good.

 

Enough references to ANH "touchstones" that it felt familiar, very obvious setup for the next two.

 

P.S. I may be in love with Rey...which is kind of awkward as I am 41.

[A35K]

Watched it yesterday, it was fantastic! Well, I won't say much about it, as everything I have to say has already been said, but this is my updated list of Star Wars movies, from worst to best:

I, II, IV, III (okay, I know there was a lot of cheesy acting, but in the actual scenes that matter, this one does a really good job of capturing the action, and showing the fall to the Dark Side, plus I've never really liked IV too much), VI, VII, V.

So Episode VII is now my second favorite!

Edited December 21, 2015 by A35K

[Frybert]

21 hours ago, longbyte1 said:

Well, at least Abrams saved himself from being called Jar Jar Abrams

Nothing...can stop that now...

21 hours ago, longbyte1 said:

I was surprised at the lack of Expanded Universe content in the movie. It's all being cleared out for a totally original story arc, it seems.

Yeah, they completely threw out all the EU quite some time ago now.

Edited December 22, 2015 by Frybert

[Frybert]

 

[tater]

Took the kids yesterday. I liked it, it fit with the 3 I've seen that were worth seeing (Saw the originals, and ep 1 was so awful I passed on the rest of the prequels entirely).