|
|
This topic comprises 5 pages: 1 2 3 4 5
|
|
Author
|
Topic: Star Wars The Force Awakens
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Matt Russell
Expert Film Handler
Posts: 142
From: Aurora, USA
Registered: Aug 2015
|
posted 12-17-2015 11:23 PM
Just got back from seeing it but I'll do a quick review. ![[Razz]](tongue.gif) It's certainly better than the prequels. The performances are outstanding, specially Harrison Ford and Daisy Ridley. Action is great and story is fun, and Kylo Ren was very powerful, both in action and emotion, as a villain. Flaws are not enough focus on backstory for certain characters, and the ending was not very surprising. Some characters had very limited screen time (people who have seen it will know). Overall, the film was a welcomed return to form for Star Wars and I can't wait to see how the future of the Star Wars universe expands on it.
Film: 3 and a half out of 4 stars
Presentation: 3 out of 4 stars (saw it in Cinemark XD, and will get around to seeing it in IMAX, but the screen looked dirty and was noticeable during any bright scene, but the sound was terrific and audience was energetic so it was a very enjoyable experience, and no crying babies!)
| IP: Logged
|
|
Geoff Jones
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 579
From: Broomfield, CO, USA
Registered: Feb 2006
|
posted 12-18-2015 12:41 AM
(No Spoilers) I liked it a lot and I'm eager to see it again. It's a worth follow-up to Return of the Jedi and a great hand-off to a new generation.
Rey is great. Poe and Finn are cool. Really liked Kylo Ren's backstory. Liked his tantrums. Liked the basement visions. Lots of exciting action. Saber fight is great fun, though Cloud City is still tops. Excited to see where they take things with VIII.
The movie had a lot of backstory - a lot of stuff happened since RotJ, which is great. Prequels had almost zero sense of what came before.
I would have liked a stronger sense of how the First Order came to be and what they were all about. They were sorta just there. But this might be addressed in future films, especially if they do more with Caesar. I did like how the First Order was vicious and threatening.
Another plus - I only noticed two minor callbacks to the prequels, dialog references to the "Sith" and "clonetroopers."
I had a real tough time with Brienne of Tarth doing what she did at gunpoint. It was not believable unless there is more to her than we are led to believe. And there *were* hints that there may be more to her. She has been confirmed for VIII, so fingers crossed.
Biggest gripes:
- Disappointed by the music. None of the new stuff was very memorable.
- A few lines of dialog here and there were a hair too campy for my taste.
- At least one plot point felt too coincidental.
While it wasn't as good as Star Wars or Empire, I'd have to say that all in all, it's a better movie than Return of the Jedi, the weakest Star Wars movie, BUT it was never as emotionally engaging as the last act of RotJ.
Harkins Northfield Cine Capri - Terrific Presentation
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Geoff Jones
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 579
From: Broomfield, CO, USA
Registered: Feb 2006
|
posted 12-18-2015 06:56 PM
quote: Gavin Lewarne
Well, the thing is, there is a whole galaxy, and galactic history of stuff before Phantom menace - where would they start?
Star Wars had a whole galaxy and galactic history of stuff before it, but it found some places to start:
- We learned Darth Vader was a pupil of Obi-Wan's and a Jedi Knight before turning to evil.
- We learned that Luke was a good pilot like his father, who was once a Jedi Knight.
- We learned that for over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times... before the Empire.
- We learned that Obi-Wan served Leia's father during something called "the Clone Wars."
- We learned that Han was a smuggler who sometimes got boarded and had to dump his cargo and that he owed a lot of money to a gangster. He prized his ship and modified it beyond its original configuration.
- We learned that Luke's friends left to go join an academy, leaving him feeling trapped and isolated.
- Etc.
All of those details could have been left out and the narrative still would have worked, but those details brought the story to life and motivated the characters.
Again, where did Maul come from? Qui-Gon? How did Obi-Wan become a Padawan?How did the Jedi council get formed? What was the background of the Trade Federation's dispute with Naboo? My view is that the prequels were lacking in backstory.
But (happily) I felt that The Force Awakens established interesting hints of events that occurred over the past 30 years.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
All times are Central (GMT -6:00)
|
This topic comprises 5 pages: 1 2 3 4 5
|
Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classicTM
6.3.1.2
The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion
and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.
|
Home
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
Printer-friendly view of this topic