45 replies to this topic

[Delphi]

I'm seeing it on Tuesday through a private showing at my husband's job. I'm probably going to disappear from the interwebz for a few days.

Don't want to be seduced by the Dark Spoilers. It's sooooooo difficult not to dive into them but I want to enjoy it with no expectations.

And researching Episode I recently the biggest problem with it is the pacing and dialogue. The originally trilogy had Harrison Ford who called bullshit on stupid lines and Carrie Fisher who went on to be a respected script doctor and writer. There were some mitigating factors and you can see in A New Hope that Lucas, and he used to freely admit this, just doesn't do dialogue well. That's why he hired Lawrence Kasden for Empire and Raiders of the Lost Ark. And why he allowed Irvin Kershner to make on set line changes.

Lucas is a good story teller, he just gets bogged down under the weight of his own ideas. He needs someone to trim it down or say "This doesn't work" for him to be at his best. And he used to recognize this. He had such a miserable time screen writing and directing Episode IV that he looked for the right people to capture what he wanted his story to tell.

He does have an eye for talent. Lawrence Kasden was originally hired just for Raiders but Lucas couldn't find a screen writer he liked for Empire so gave the story to Kasden and said get started and if Raiders sucks you're out. Irvin Kershner was specifically sought out by Lucas for his approach to directing. He wanted someone who understood Hollywood but wasn't Hollywood. Kershner was Lucas's mentor in film school and he had a lot of respect for the man. He didn't always agree with his decisions (see the "I love you" "I know" scene) but he let the scenes stay in the test screenings to see if the audience would love it. He always came back to Harrison Ford even though he was originally just a guy he hired to do some carpentry work.

Lucas is a great collaborator but everyone forgot that in the twenty plus years after RotJ wrapped filming. So the crew for the Prequels were too intimidated to say anything contrary to this great film giant and the worm suffered for it. Lucas has a lot of ideas and he does keenly understand The Hero's Journey as he is a fan of Campbell's Hero With a Thousand Faces but he can get carried away. He needs people to bounce ideas off of that will stop him and honestly say, "George, that's stupid. Pull it back a bit." He's kind of a victim of his own success.

So yeah there's my Lucas Apologist essay.

[Veteran]

More non-spoilery comments:

It was a joy to watch, nonstop fun from beginning to end. All new main characters were excellent, not one of them disappointed. Some side characters were very marginalised but I expect this is clear trilogy planning.

The Internet (particularly Reddit and YouTube comments) should be avoided as there is a Snape kills Dumbledore redux going on.

We should have a spoiler topic after the weekend for wild mass guessing of VIII and IX.

[Twinrova]

I'm hoping to go see it on Saturday after my tattoo appointment but we didn't buy any tickets early so I'm hoping that doesn't bite us in the butt.  

[Delphi]

All I need to know is if it's better than at least two if not all three of the prequel movies.

Is it?

[DarkJuno]

Work late tomorrow, so I see it early Saturday morning. Even if Vet has Mickey Mouse standing behind him with a gun against his head and it does turn out bad, it's been fun watching the first six leading up to it.

It certainly gives one the right perspective and tempers my excitement coming in. Still, really looking forward to it in this week leading up more then I've ever been for anything Star Wars.

Edited by DarkJuno, 17 December 2015 - 09:09 PM.

[JRPomazon]

I guess I'll be seeing it on Christmas Day with my family, so I guess I've got that to look forward to.

 

Although from what I heard from an interview with Howard Stern and Quentin Tarantino, Disney has been strong arming folks to play this movie hard-core. I feel bad for any movie coming out around the same time as this one.

[Oberon Storm]

I only have one gripe, but it was technically adressed. Sort of...

Otherwise I was blown away. Any anxiety I might have had was unfounded. Defititely better than the prequel trilogy in it's entirety. 

Edited by Oberon Storm, 17 December 2015 - 11:56 PM.

[Veteran]

All I need to know is if it's better than at least two if not all three of the prequel movies.
Is it?

Personally:

5, 7, 4, 6, 3, 1, 2.

[Delphi]

All I needed to know!

I will allow myself some level of excitement now.

[DarkJuno]

A couple things I raised an eyebrow at, but....yeah, that was good.

I await the spoiler thread.

[Masamune]

I'm probably gonna get shot for this, but I thought it was okay. It was by no means bad and it was well put together with interesting characters, but I just didn't get sucked in by it. Halfway through the movie, I was wondering when it was going to hurry up and finish. It seemed to meander quite a bit and I was underwhelmed by the big bad. I don't feel like I went in with high expectations, but I left feeling not all that excited. I don't regret seeing it, but I don't feel all that hyped up for the next movie. 

[TheAvengerLever]

I feel like this film has the opposite problem of the prequel films. Whereas the prequels favored exposition and plot over characterization (though that characterization was still heavy, just not as overt) this film tries to do what A New Hope does of throwing you in the middle of the action without giving you too much expository info, except A New Hope at least provided little nuggets here and there to give context to the action, like the line about the Senate being dissolved. This film just focuses on the characterization over that, and the characters are fun, but I just wished there was more context. I just hope this isn't going to be the model for how these movies are done going forward, with little exposition and context that will just be filled in through the tie-in novels at a later point.

Other than that, the film was solid. I haven't disliked a Star Wars film yet.

[Selena]

I saw it. I loved it.

 

It's not perfect, but none of the classic movies were "perfect" either. Force Awakens definitely recaptures the spirit of Star Wars -- which has nothing to do with the throwbacks or familiar characters. It's just the energy of the narrative. I'd say it was at least as good as A New Hope.

 

 

 

 I feel like this film has the opposite problem of the prequel films. Whereas the prequels favored exposition and plot over characterization (though that characterization was still heavy, just not as overt) this film tries to do what A New Hope does of throwing you in the middle of the action without giving you too much expository info, except A New Hope at least provided little nuggets here and there to give context to the action, like the line about the Senate being dissolved. 

 

 

 

In fairness, I think you can only really appreciate those nuggets in ANH after you've seen the rest of the trilogy -- but that may just be me. The first couple times I watched A New Hope, I had no real image of the galaxy as a whole. No idea how the Empire was structured, no idea who the Emperor even was, why the Rebels were rebelling, no realization that dissolving the Senate was a big deal rather than a "mwahaha look how villainous we are" throwaway moment. There was the Empire, there was the Rebellion, and they were fighting because of reasons. Even the Clone Wars were never described beyond a vague mum-on-details reference.

 

Much like how the original trilogy got fleshed out, I trust this trilogy will have greater world-building as we go forward.

[Delphi]

I agree with Lena. I think the first movie is to get you introduced to the main players without a huge focus on the larger conflict. The second and third movies then focus on expanding the setting for the main characters to influence now that we've gotten to know them and their motives.

Bringing Lawrence Kasdan back I think was part of what made this movie feel more like the original trilogy. The dialogue style as soon as the new snarky character started making cracks was instantly recognizable. It was like coming home. Star Wars finally sounded like Star Wars again! None of the clunky, droning monologues of the prequals. There's still long pieces of dialogue but you don't start drifting off wondering if you let the dog out before you left for the movie.

Praise be to Kasdan!

[Fëanen]

Dad wants to see it (he's having movie withdrawals now that we don't have an annual Hobbit film) and a friend might be interested. Based on the reviews here and elsewhere, I'm totally game for going twice.

...Once the crowds die down. The best theater in the area also happens to be in the 12th largest mall in the country (third by number of stores). Right now you'd need a lightsaber to cut your way through the crowds.

[wisp]

We saw it last night, and it hit me in all my feels. I love pretty much everything about the new characters, and without giving anything away plotwise, the final scene was just amazing.