Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens Review (Spoiler Alert)

The Force Awakens Review

 

     Three years after the announcement of Disney's 4.3 billion dollar acquisition of Lucasfilm, on December 18, 2015, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens premiered. It immediately shattered all kinds of box office records, and has grossed over $300 million as of December 23. In five days. This is going to be a whopper. After so much speculation and ideas floating in the air, the enigma that everyone talked about materialized on a movie screen. All of the possibilities that were put out by years of speculation were decided by the movie being shown. There can no longer be any rumors of the content of The Force Awakens, because they're all there in the film. This blog, which has served as an outpost of news and speculation for Episode VII, has served its purpose. But there is still one thing left to do. It is time to see what I got right, what I got wrong, and review the movie.

     I saw it. It's the first Star Wars movie I've seen in theaters, and it is drastically different on a large screen. It was more stunning that way. The tickets for opening night were sold out almost immediately, and for the next several days as well. The lines stretched out into theater parking lots, and they weren't for tickets. The anticipation was enormous. So, now to the movie. Before we begin, let me just say, I am not a professional reviewer or critic. I don't really even know what movie reviews contain. I'll just summarize the plot and give my thoughts on what was in the film and what wasn't, what worked and what I thought didn't, etc. Be warned, there are major spoilers ahead.

    

The film begins without the usual 20th Century Fox fanfare, and that was jarring and slightly sad. However, it immediately launched into "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...." and then the standard opening crawl. The first sentence says it all : "Luke Skywalker has vanished." It goes on to explain how the FIRST ORDER (in all caps because we all love that classic Star Wars cheese) is trying to hunt him down and how Princess (Now General) Leia is trying to find him so he can help the Resistance, which I assume is the new Rebel Alliance. However, the movie also mentions the Republic, so I'm not sure how they're related. You would assume that the Empire collapsed, and that the Republic would take over, but somehow there's still a resistance. Anyway, after the fantastic title crawl, the action is directed toward the desert planet "totally not Tatooine" Jakku, where a bunch of First Order stormtroopers conduct a desert raid in order to capture plans. Max Von Sydow has a very short cameo. He gives Oscar Isaac's character Poe Dameron 

 

stolen plans before the main bad guy Kylo Ren 

shows up and slices him in half. Poe then gets captured, but not before putting the plans/map into a droid named BB-8, which escapes and wanders around on the desert planet. Sound familiar? So this new villain Kylo Ren seems like a Darth Vader cultist, because he dresses the same, has a red lightsaber, has a voice-changing mask, and does Force things for evil. He freezes a laser bolt in midair, and that's cool. During this night raid, a ton of Stormtroopers descend on a village and they kill everybody. However, one Stormtrooper refuses to slaughter the populace after Ren orders it. It was pretty evident that this was John Boyega's Finn (originally FN-2187)

, who, judging from the trailers, was a defecting Stormtrooper. He goes back onto a Star Destroyer, where Poe Dameron is captured and tortured, and breaks him out. The two do an awesome space battle with a stolen TIE fighter, and they become BFFs within four minutes. However, the fun is cut short when the fighter crash lands on Jakku. Finn finds the wreckage of the fighter in the desert, realizes that Poe is dead, and heads toward an outpost town. There he meets Rey

, who collects junk from fallen Imperial walkers and other vehicles. BB-8 wanders into her due to the plot requiring it, and there she meets Finn. There the First Order attacks them and they are forced to escape aboard the Millennium Falcon, due to the plot requiring it. They escape to space, but are quickly captured. And then, surprise, surprise, Han Solo and Chewbacca burst onto the scene. 

 

Then they are all caught in a humorous confrontation with smugglers, and of course some rathgars get loose. What are rathgars? Don't question it; it's Star Wars. So after the monsters kill the smugglers, Han, Chewbacca, Finn, Rey, and BB-8 escape aboard the Millennium Falcon, and go to a Resistance stronghold planet. Han unsuccessfully offers Rey a crew position aboard the Falcon. Onward, to the There they meet CGI Lupita Nyong'o, an old, wise alien whose name eludes me. She also has this weird thing for Chewie, which both made me curious and repulsed. So Finn, trying to escape the First Order, splits up with Rey and tries to get a flight to the Outer Rim. This sounds familiar. Rey then stumbles into a basement and DIRECTLY INTO LUKE SKYWALKER'S OLD LIGHTSABER, has a vision, passes out, yadda yadda she's a Jedi. Then there's a third Death Star (golly gee) and it kills five planets at the same time. The First Order invades the Resistance stronghold, Kylo Ren captures Rey, also Poe is somehow alive and is killing Stormtroopers in a sick X-Wing. I just realized this is basically a blow by blow of the film, not really a review. I'll speed it up. So Rey is interrogated, and we learn that Kylo Ren is less of a Darth Vader character and more of a jerk who tries to emulate him. So the Resistance, with the main characters and Leia (yeah, of course Carrie Fisher's in this movie) plot to blow up the third Death Star (it's not called that, but that's what it is). Han, Finn and Chewie sneak onto the Death Star in order to do the thing that helps destabilize the combobluator compressor boom thing. At the same time, Rey escapes from interrogation. Han sees his son, Ben Solo, who is now Kylo Ren. He goes out and pleads with him to come back to his family. Kylo Ren responds by SHOVING HIS LIGHTSABER STRAIGHT INTO HAN SOLO, 
AND WATCHING AS HE FALLS INTO THE ABYSS. I FRICKIN HATE THIS GUY. LOOK, I KNOW HARRISON FORD HATED STAR WARS, AND THAT I PREDICTED THIS HAPPENING, IT STILL SUCKED. So Chewie goes ape, shoots the bastard, blows up the stuff, and runs off. Rey and Finn escape into the forest on the planet the weapon is built into, searching for the Falcon, but looks who shows up. Giant A-hole With a Lightsaber wants to fight. Finn pulls out Luke's lightsaber and is almost immediately sliced and diced. Rey has a fight, vanquishes Ren, and escapes aboard the Falcon with an unconscious Boyega and Chewbacca. Then the Sun Crusher or whatever blows up into a star and Rey meets Mark Hamill, who stands around like a tool for about thirty seconds before the credits roll. So that's Star Wars. I have some opinions on that. For verification, I was correct in assuming that Han Solo would die. Surprisingly, Making Star Wars was pretty accurate in its leak, although not completely. I saw some of J.J. Abrams' characteristic lens flare in the beginning, but it was way more toned down than in Star Trek. I found it odd that Max Von Sydow was in this movie, given that he dies five minutes into it. I really loved how new worlds were introduced in the Star Wars universe, with the exception of Jakku, which was a Tatooine ripoff in every way, minus Sand People and the like. Rey was a god. Seemingly omnipotent, really, using the Force with zero training. Chewbacca seemed waxed. Carrie Fisher has definitely not acted for a while. Mark Hamill is awkward. I can summarize the plot very briefly. The bad guys want some information that is contained inside a droid, which wanders around on a desert planet before finding a budding Jedi-to-be. The Jedi leaves to help the revolting faction, the main character meets some people in a bar who can provide transportation, the bad guys' space weapon destroys a planet, Han Solo and Chewie run around said space weapon shooting Stormtroopers, an important character is sacrificed by the main red-lightsaber masked baddie. The heroes blow up the space weapon, with Leia overseeing the operation,  and Luke Skywalker is useless until the very end. This was my main beef with this film, it was very similar to the first Star Wars movie. It had a ton of elements from Empire, and it used many, many references. Thankfully, they were regulated. I really enjoyed this movie, because it kept a ton of the elements of Star Wars and used them in new ways that we haven't seen before. J.J. Abrams did a fine job directing, and the actors were perfect for their roles. Captain Phasma doesn't do anything. Domhall Gleeson doesn't do much. I wish there was more Poe. Mark Hamill did actually nothing. Harrison Ford stopped being able to do stuff two-thirds of the way through the film. In conclusion, the epic three years of anticipation did not end in disappointment. The film balanced between old and new remarkably well. It was not a nostalgia fest; it was a Star Wars sequel. Rian Johnson really has his work cut out for him. See you on May 26, 2017. 
I have some small questions left:
- Why is C3POs arm red?
- Why was Captain Phasma in this movie?
- Why doesn't the Empire learn from its mistakes?
- Is Supreme Leader Snoke really fifty feet tall?
- How on Jakku did someone manage to find Luke Skywalker's lightsaber after it was thrown down Cloud City's reactor and into the atmosphere of a gas giant? And if they found the lightsaber, do you suppose they found Luke's hand? If they found Luke's hand, can they clone him oohhh cewl
- In the film, the Republic and the Resistance are separate entities, but both are fighting the First Order. This is weird.
- Where the rathgar did Ren get the burned-out Darth Vader mask? If that method involved destroying the forest moon of Endor and all of the Ewoks, I approve.
- WHY DID YOU KILL HAN SOLO?!?!?!?121111/1/!?

     This is the end. I'll miss the speculation, but Star Wars news marches on.

     Even without Han Solo.

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 51

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Official Teaser #2

IT'S OUT! It's finally out. The second trailer for The Force Awakens has finally dropped and it looks fantastic. Time for a step by step analysis.

     The Lucasfilm logo appears onscreen, with familiar music playing in the background, straight from Return of the Jedi. That's great news. It's hearkening back to the original trilogy. Then again, the first trailer for The Phantom Menace also featured that music. The scene fades in, and it pretty much starts the exact same way the first trailer began, with a desert pan, but there's a crashed Star Destroyer and then Mark Hamill narrates and everyone watching freezes, because Luke Skywalker hasn't spoken in 36 years. He says, "The Force is strong in my family" while a pan reveals the ruined helmet of Darth Vader on a pedestal with his breathing in the background. So Luke puts his robotic hand on R2D2 and cops a feel, but Artoo just looks at him and takes it in stride because that's just classic Luke. Then Luke's lightsaber that was in Star Wars is handed to someone, presumably Leia. That's pretty weird, considering Luke lost it along with his hand in TESB when it fell into a gas giant. So anyway, he says something about how his father, himself, and Leia all have the Force, and then he says "You have it too" and he's obviously talking to one of the new cast members, probably Daisy Ridley. Then THIS CHRISTMAS flashes on the screen with that music still playing, X-Wings on a lake, montage of lightsabers and explosions, and a bad guy, clone troopers(?) and space battles, weird, shiny stormtrooper suit, more explosion, and the main actors can't seem to close their mouths. The Millennium Falcon is being chased by a TIE fighter through a wrecked Star Destroyer. Then, fade in to Han Solo and Chewbacca. The dialogue is like this:

"Chewie, we're home."

"UHHHHHSDFSDHTJYUTYDHBGF"

And cut to title. Show's over.

     The shock is setting in. There's a new Star Wars movie that is coming to theaters. That never really fully registered with me until now. I've now seen the original cast in a Star Wars movie, and now it's sinking in. It's real. Luke will be in the movie, contrary to some rumors, and wait a minute WHERE IS C3PO? THIS IS AN O
UTRAGE!!!!!!111!!111123rffgrhtygsf

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 50

Star Wars: Episode VII-The Force Awakens (Teaser Trailer HD #2)

      

     After almost five months of no official clips from The Force Awakens, we finally have an amazing premier. The trailer has been long in coming, owing to J.J. Abrams' secretive ways, but now I can say that the wait has been worth it. Although, this caught most everyone off guard. The trailer, according to Collider, wasn't supposed to come out for another month, with the premier of Age of Ultron. That would be obvious, and Abrams wasn't obvious last time, posting the first trailer in late November, not attached to any film. The tantalizing 88 second teaser consisted of only eight shots, but it drove the Star Wars frenzy into overdrive. This trailer is a whopping TWO MINUTES and some odd seconds long. Of course, it has much more detail. I don't really want to spoil the details of this, but the original cast makes an appearance, we get to know some of the newer characters, and also the plan of the remnants of the Empire. I love the reveal shot at the end that gets the audience excited. The only thing I would change is to add a bit more dialogue to make it a little clearer as to what the plot was. But I get it. It's a trailer. It did what good trailers should do. It gave us just enough to want the meal. I'm glad Abrams was minimal on the details. It spices it up. I wonder how much J.J. fought the company execs at Disney to release the trailer this way. With 261 days left until the release date of The Force Awakens, this makes me even more eager for the film. Of course, this raises a serious question: will this trailer build up fans so much that the film cannot hope to meet their expectation? It could very well be a horrible flop. But that is extremely doubtful, with all of the money and effort gone into making this. I'm just glad that's the question we're asking instead of, "Is the movie bad? Or is it just the trailer? Fans will find out soon enough.

Star Wars: Episode VII-The Force Awakens (Teaser Trailer HD #2)

April Fool's :)

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 49

The Role of Luke Skywalker

     This week, most of the news concerned the The Force Awakens sequel, Episode VIII, but this news may have more weight than the others. In an interview with Movie Fone, he was asked about what if was like to be in an X-Wing, whether or not he watched Star Wars as a kid, you know, the usual stuff. After talking about J.J. Abrams, Isaac was asked, "And your next director isn't too shabby either. Are you excited to work with Rian (meaning Rian Johnson, the director of Episode VIII.)?" To which Isaac replied, "Yes. Very excited." When he was asked whether he talked to Rian Johnson or not, he said, "No, not yet." So this means two important things for Oscar Isaac's character. Number one, Poe Dameron survives the The Force Awakens. Number two, he want to be in the sequel. This slip up is grave. Some tension in the movie just flew out the window. However, he was later asked by Slashfilm about his quote, he said, "Ah, I couldn’t speak to that. I don’t even know. I think generally…watching the trailer was my only confirmation that I even was going to be in this one so I have no idea. I know that people thought I was saying I was going to be in the next one which is not true. I was asked if I was excited to work with Rian Johnson. I mean of course I would. I’d be excited to work with him. I have no confirmation whether I will or not or anything like that."So that confirms yet another thing; he has a very small role. If you don't know whether or not you're in a movie until you see the trailer, chances are, you're not a very important character. But why would he be casted as one of the big newcomers? Because to kill off a newcomer in the first movie is ludicrous. Except for during The Phantom Menace. But that's not a very good example.

     Another question floating around the plot of The Force Awakens involves the enrollment of Luke Skywalker in these films. There have been rumors of him killing Han Solo, or of him being evil, or of him dying, but according to Making Star Wars, he has a much smaller role.

     After the characters lose Han Solo, they get into the Millennium Falcon and fly off. Rey (played by Daisy Ridley) directs it to a new planet we haven't seen before. She walks up some stone steps, and hands someone his lightsaber. It's Luke Skywalker. Bam, roll credits. The end.

     If this ending were true, it would be incredibly frustrating. Luke Skywalker was cast in a movie, and has no lines, scenes, or anything but accepting a lightsaber from a new character? And Han Solo is sacrificed for that? I've heard of rumors that The Force Awakens would involve the protagonists finding Luke's lightsaber, but I didn't think that Luke himself would not appear in the actual film. If this rumor is true (and Making Star Wars' rumor track record doesn't look very good), then it will disappoint so many fans, that in Episode VIII, Disney will have to do some serious backpedalling. Killing off Han Solo was bad enough, but not featuring Luke Skywalker AT ALL during almost the entire movie? That's unforgivable.

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 48

J.J. Abrams to Direct Episode IX?

     Spoiler rumors get old after a while, and after several weeks, there is no longer any shock value to be had. That's why I will ignore this weeks "ANOTHER major character dies!" rumors, because they are all circumstantial, regardless if they're true or not. But that doesn't mean nothing happened these past few weeks on the Star Wars front.

     First, Disney announced a 20 new books to be released this fall, directly before the release of The Force Awakens. These books go into detail about what happened after the Battle of Endor. The first book, titled Aftermath, will pick up after the fall of the Empire. No wonder all of the EU was scrapped. It would be interesting to see how it would differ from the EU, but also the similarities between the two. It's more money in the bank. Milk that $4.5 billion dollars for all it's worth! Merchandising! If Disney wants to appease EU fans, the books they release should rival the quality of the Thrawn trilogy and other Expanded Universe classics.  If the Disney books flop, it might have a negative impact on the enthusiasm for the film to devoted fans. But would it affect ticket sales? It would depend on how bad the books are. But who reads, right?

     We know that Rian Johnson is directing Episode VIII, and its release date is May 26, 2017, almost exactly 40 years after Star Wars was released, off by one day. The first spinoff, Rogue One, scheduled for December 2016, is directed by Gareth Edwards. But the sequel to The Force Awakens doesn't have a director named. granted, it's over four years away from release, but surely one must be chosen. There were rumors that Abrams would kick off the series, but then Rian Johnson would take the helm for the next two movies. However, Latino Review reported that there were some rumors that confirmed that the Disney team watched some footage from The Force Awakens, and that they were very pleased, and are considering Abrams for the role of the director in the ninth installment (not counting the spinoffs). Now this sounds very convincing, but remember that tensions remain between Abrams and Disney, who have numerous creative differences. Abrams himself said that his job was extremely stressful an that he was under a lot of pressure. Even if Disney did want Abrams to direct Episode IX, would he accept? Will J.J. Abrams rise to direct two Star Wars movies? It depends on the response to The Force Awakens And that remains to be seen.

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 47

Harrison Ford Crashes Plane

     Yesterday, at about 4:30 P.M. Pacific Time, Harrison Ford radioed the Santa Monica airport traffic control tower, after taking off in a vintage, WWII era airplane. He requested immediate return and was given permission to land. Shortly after that, he lost altitude, clipped a tree, and crashed into the eighth tee of a golf course. He was pulled out of the plane, and early reports say he has deep gashes on his head, and may have broken an ankle. Later, it was confirmed that he had suffered "moderate injuries", but it was not specified what kind of injuries. His son said that he was "battered, but ok". Ford was praised by a witness of the crash, who noted that if the plane had gone down just thirty yards ahead, it would have plowed into the suburbs. It is unknown whether or not Ford chose to bring it down over the sparsely occupied golf course or if he just lost control. His injuries are not life threatening, and he should make a recovery.

     Why am I mentioning this? First of all, it's concerning. An actor was injured and could have possibly been killed. But I also mention it because this incident occurred just 9 months after Harrison Ford was injured on the set of The Force Awakens. This incident could change how the production team at Disney views the original cast, if they haven't done so already. Disregarding rumors that Han Solo dies for now, we could assume incidents like these have set off warning lights at Disney, as they realize that the actors can't be milked for a dozen sequels. Another event that could lead Disney to reconsider the role of the original actors in the trilogy is the death of Leonard Nimoy last week. He won't be in the third Star Trek. Disney, if it hasn't done so already, may either significantly lessen the roles of the original actors, or kill them off. Now, this assumes that that hasn't already happened, which I suspect it has. But if it doesn't occur in The Force Awakens, it It might occur in one of the sequels. Now, I am definitely not stating that one of the actors will die before filming of the trilogy ends. I'm just saying this incident may change the game as far as Disney is concerned. It might be too late in the game for Episode VIII, but by Episode IX you can bet that at least one main original trilogy actor will be getting the axe, and we all know who it will be.

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 46

J.J. Abrams: Some Rumors Are True

     With only 295 days until The Force Awakens comes crashing down on Hollywood and outgrosses Fifty Shades of Grey (and every other movie) by about fifty times, the trickle of news of the first few years of production has given way to a steady stream. As more and more of the mainstream media picks up this topic, it will draw increasing amounts of people who are hungry for a particular thing: spoilers. They've received plenty in the past few months. But none of it has been sanctioned by any of the companies involved, making them easy to write off. But according to J.J. Abrams himself, you can't write all of them off.

     In an  interview with BBC, Abrams said, "We did the best we can to preserve the story for the audience, but it doesn't always work. "There are a ton of rumors - some true, some false. But I'm grateful for everyone who would want to read a spoiler because it means that they care and want to see the movie. I know what it feels like, as an enormous Star Wars fan myself."

     Whoa, hold up. What happened to J.J. Abrams massive amounts of secrecy in the production of this project? He strives harder than most directors to keep almost every aspect of the film secret (perhaps that's why Disney chose him). Why would he give credence to ANY rumors regarding The Force Awakens? What is he thinking?

     Well, it could be an honest mistake. The pressure must've gotten to him. He probably deals with hundreds of questions from fans and reporters, and he let it slip out accidentally. He cracked. That must be it.

     A reason why that explanation doesn't make sense is because he didn't tell which rumor was true. He's teasing his fans. Of course, he probably expected them to draw battle lines, and let them argue about which rumors are true and which ones aren't. And his ploy worked. Some people believe that he was referring to the Han Solo death story, and others believe he was talking about the "evil Luke" scenario. Nothing has been accomplished.

     Has The Force Awakens reached a tipping point? That's the point at which the film has gained so much attention by the mainstream media as the release date approaches that major spoilers are inevitable. If this is the case for The Force Awakens, with still almost a year before its release, then J.J. Abrams must seriously be considering an earlier release.  If it's not released earlier, then possibly a massive set of leaks could ruin the entire plot before anyone steps foot inside a theater to watch it. Those seem to be the only two options, with the trickle of information turning into a flood. Will the film stay to its original release, and possibly be ruined, or will it move earlier? Which sounds more reasonable?

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 45

Han Solo WILL Die

     When I first speculated that Han Solo would bite it in The Force Awakens, it was based purely on the fact that Harrison Ford didn't like the character of Han Solo and wanted him to be sacrificed in previous films. It didn't have any solid evidence to back it up. I myself found it difficult to believe. It still doesn't have any solid evidence to back it up. But this next bit of information may be worth looking at.

     Making Star Wars has come out with an article that deals with the death of Han Solo. Before unleashing the bombshell, the author repeatedly states the accuracy and legitimacy of the sources he received: his "friend" who apparently has led many of MSW's rumors. He then states the impact the news will have on fans. Oh yeah, spoiler alert. After a rambling about how amazing this source is, the author says this: "The facts are this was shot at Pinewood: This sequence takes place on the ramparts of The Evil Castle. Han Solo is hiding. He decides to reveal himself to Kylo Renn. Finn, Rey, Chewbacca and BB-8 stop in their tracks. They watch as Han Solo confronts Kylo Renn. Kylo Renn silences the conversation forever. Chewbacca lets out of a barrage of angry roars and laser blasts. Kylo Renn flees the scene. Explosions. Stormtroopers file in and Finn and Rey are forced to flee. More explosions. BB-8 and Chewbacca flee to the Falcon. Han Solo is never in a scene after this. Those are the facts."

     Well, time to riot.

     As someone who doesn't appreciate spoilers, I'm disappointed that they would so openly leak it. I know I leak (potential) spoilers, but only if they've garnered enough attention so that they've already blown up. I try not to give credence to unfounded rumors. At first glance, it seems like an unfounded rumor. Who is this "friend" of Making Star Wars? Why are hearing about this now, after filming has already stopped? These excerpts were not stated as from the script, but from written descriptions of what was shot at Pinewood. Also, why come out with this after the characters have been officially named? Why not also have the names revealed at an earlier date? This can be explained by the source not gaining access to the files until recently. But it still sounds fishy. But bear in mind Making Star Wars has led to some actual facts in terms of The Force Awakens news. But not all of the information has been accurate. It is convincing enough for me to pay attention to. Personally, I think that Han Solo will most likely die in The Force Awakens, just because of how Harrison Ford feels about Han Solo, how the trilogy will involve the passing of the torch to a new generation, and how Disney wants to make an impact on the audience. It might not occur in the exact way Making Star Wars says it will, but in all likelihood, it will be inevitable. But the funny part is, even armed with this in mind, I will still be shocked when it happens when I watch the film. I will still be sad.

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 44

The Force Awakens to be Released in the Summer?

     Well, here we are again. When I started this in August of 2013, It was regarding this exact same topic. When I first heard about the possible winter release of The Force Awakens (then just called Episode VII) from BadAssDigest, I was skeptical. December 15, 2015? How crazy is that? All Star Wars movies have been released in May! I still don't know how they were able to get that information, or how they were able to pinpoint the correct date with surprising accuracy (December 18, not 15, is the official release date). But when it was confirmed by Disney in November, it surprised everyone. So December has been the official release date for over a year now, and it even appeared in the trailer for the film. However, according to iKwiz, J.J. Abrams himself wants it moved back to summer. During the 2015 Visual Effects Society Awards, Abrams reportedly vented his frustration, telling people that he wants Disney to move the release to the summer, so that, with less time, there would be fewer leaks, and therefore, the movie would not be ruined. Too many leaks makes the audience anticipate every move in a film, and, understandably, Abrams wants to cut back on the time in which spoilers and more photos can leak. But Disney won't move the date, right? I mean, they have everything planned out! They even put the release date on the trailer!

     But the weird part is, the article is suggesting that Disney is also worried about leaks and is listening to his request. But if you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Disney wants to protect secrecy at all costs, attempting to purchase anti-drone equipment, disguising actors with heavy robes, making them sign confidentiality contracts, issuing subpoenas, and much more to maintain a heavy veil over the production and plot of The Force Awakens. How far will Disney go? Maybe, just maybe, they'll move the release date up (Poor post-production team!). Maybe not to May, that will probably kill the editors, but sometime in the summer. A problem is that it will be competing with so many more movies than with a December release date. But the advantage? It's freaking Star Wars. It will beat all the competition, even Age of Ultron. Just because it's Star Wars. It's going to make two billion dollars either way. But can the move be worth it?

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 43

It's Not Just A Movie

     This week was more fruitful in terms of Star Wars news than the previous two. To begin, Nicholas Cage spoke to IGN over his role in the movie Outcast, in which he stars alongside Hayden Christensen, and said some interesting things. When asked about Christensen's performance in the prequel trilogy, he said, "And so, I watched George’s movies, and the work Hayden did with George, and I was very impressed with Hayden’s sort of edgy, dangerous, dark and still soulful performance. I thought it was superb. And so I really connected with him. Plus he has a look in his eyes that I respond to, because it almost feels like a familial, he's got that sad thing going on that I've always been accused of having in my eyes, so I thought we would be a good match together..."
     That's really creepy.
     But besides that, I'm not sure that he's completely serious. I know it's popular to be "edgy", but that's not what Christensen was during the prequels. He was dark, sure, but only in the sense of skulking around most of Attack of the Clones (and maybe occasionally slaughter a Tusken Raider village). His performance in Revenge of the Sith was better, but stilted. Fans didn't like the character of Anakin Skywalker in he way that the character of Anakin Skywalker didn't like sand. He was coarse, rough, irritating, and he got everywhere (because we weren't allowed to forget that trilogy of movies until the Lucasfilm acquisition). For Nicholas Cage to say that, and then compliment his eyes, is a joke.
     J.J. Abrams spoke to Collider, and he was asked about the new lightsaber design and the to use it, he offered, "I will say that what’s been funny is, since the lightsaber’s come out, I cannot tell you how many contradictory emails I have received from people who have both defended it with unbelievably detailed graphics…I’ve gotten things that are nuts, and I've gotten people who’ve shown how it’ll kill you and how it doesn’t make any sense. It’s been the funniest thing to see the arguments that have developed over this thing." While this may be true, I would think that J.J., as a Star Wars fan himself, would understand. As any member of a "fandom" (that word makes me shudder) knows, if part of your world is attacked, you defend it, being plot holes or lightsaber designs. But it is pretty hilarious.
     Something big happened in the world of Star Wars leaks. On the website ImageShack, a certain user "Darth-Simi" posted about three hundred photos concerning details from The Force Awakens, including officially released ones. But some were blurry shots of the set, and one in photo in particular, apparently there was a figure with the same lightsaber from the trailer, viewed from the front, wearing a metallic face mask. Now, I haven't actually seen the pictures, after what Disney did next. They ordered ImageShack to delete the photo, which they promptly did, but also began a hunt for the identity of the user "Darth-Simi", issuing a subpoena. Disney also ordered that the user account be deleted, which it was. If the identity of the person who leaked the photo is discovered, this could end in a $150,000 lawsuit. Disney isn't messing around. It's odd. By the description, it's nothing we've never seen before. A cloaked figure with a metallic mask and a crossblade lightsaber has already been leaked. This either means that Disney cracked down on leaked images all of a sudden or this picture was legitimate. I think the latter.
     Mark Hamill had some thoughts on the eagerness of fans to want more. He told the Los Angeles Times, "We had problems before with people leaking stuff, but I was saying to them, 'Is it really necessary to put on this giant robe with a hood that hangs down to your chest to go from my trailer to the soundstage?' They said, 'Drones.' I said, 'You’re kidding! Really?'… I wish people would just relax. We’re not trying to play games with people. We just want to maximize their experience at the movies where it should be seen and not have it leaked over the Internet. Believe me, it will be here before you know it. Forget about it, that’s my advice. Look forward to all the summer movies. I’m telling you, it’s just a movie. These people that build it up in their minds like it’s going to be the second coming of, I don’t know what — they’re bound to be disappointed."
     Just a movie? Just a MOVIE?! Mark Hamill, of all people calls TFA just a movie, and he misses the point. Of course it's just a movie, but it is much larger than that. It is a continuation of what ended thirty-some years ago, impacting millions of lives. Star Wars has had such a huge impact on culture and movies and people in general that to call the long awaited next installment "just a movie" is insulting. When he said that people are expecting a second coming, it's because they are. A second coming of the adventures of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia, even if other characters play a larger role. It's not fine to just FORGET about the sequel to the movies that had a huge impact on how we watch movies today. And while it's true people might set expectation too high, it's not at pre-Phantom Menace levels. Slightly disillusioned, the Star Wars fan base is expecting something great to help them remember what it was like to be a child, watching Star Wars for the first time. Whatever happens December 18, it will change the face of Star Wars forever.
     Just a movie, huh?

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 42

Ewan McGregor is Jelly

     This was a painfully slow week in Star Wars news, with only two tidbits of "news". First of all, on the Late Show With David Letterman, in an interview with Oscar Isaac, Letterman said he had been given actual footage from the trailer to show on TV. After Isaac started to look terrified at the prospect of witnessing a leak, ending his career, a clip from the 1940s of some guy in a rocket suit came up. I guess it was supposed to be funny, but it spared Isaac the fate of having to witness a leak of The Force Awakens on live TV. That's how you know this has been one slow week.
     The second piece of information came from Vanity Fair, which interviewed McGregor about his new movie. Naturally, the conversation turned to Star Wars. When asked about his possible involvement in The Force Awakens, he said he was "still waiting for the call". He also criticized the new lightsaber hilt, saying: "I was a bit dubious about the hilt on the new lightsaber. It's got a hilt now. It doesn't need a hilt. If you know how to handle a lightsaber, like we did, you don't need a hilt. That's just one thing I think they might have got wrong." Now, this comment might seem innocent (and with good reason) enough, but if you have been intensely following Star Wars news the past 2 years, 3 months, as I have, you will find a pattern with Ewan McGregor. Several times you find him being asked about the possibility of appearing in TFA, and most often he says they still haven't contacted him but he's open to the possibility of appearing. He's been asked these kind of question for over two years, and he just might be tired of it (Note: This, being my opinion, may or may not actually reflect what Hollywood superstar Ewan McGregor actually thinks about his lack of a role in Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens [Produced by Lucasfilm and Bad Robot Productions and distribute by Walt Disney Studios]. Take these words with a grain of salt. For more information please contact my lawyer.). He even got together with Mark Hamill and Samuel L. Jackson to see if he could audition for a character, only half joking. Recently, he told NYLON Guys Magazine that even though he would like to have a role in TFA, filming in tech heavy movies was like "watching paint dry." Sour grapes much? That's not including how practical the film production was, using far less green screen than the prequels. I think this is a very subtle case of jealousy. Because they got the sequels and he got the prequels. It was bad luck, indeed. He isn't a bad actor. He just didn't get to act during the prequels because of all the over reliance on technology. He might feel cheated out of a good Star Wars movie. But he'll keep trying.

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 41

Han Solo Will Die (?)

     Owing to a complete lack of news this week, I have looked into a question that has been bothering fans of Star Wars ever since the new trilogy was announced back in 2012. Will any of the main characters die? Specifically, will any of the original trilogy characters die? Well, I'm not quite sure about the characters of Luke and Leia, but if any one of the main characters bit it in the upcoming installment, it would be Han Solo. It's not because the fans want it. It's not because Disney wants it. It's because Harrison Ford wants it.

     It all started in 1982, when filming of Return of the Jedi had begun. Harrison Ford recalled in the 2004 documentary Empire of Dreams that he wanted Han Solo to be killed for the good of the other characters. Ford said, "“I thought Han Solo should die. I thought he ought to sacrifice himself for the other two characters. He’s got no mama. He’s got no papa. He’s got no future. He has no story responsibilities at this point. So let’s allow him to commit self-sacrifice.". Ford was getting fed up with the reputation of being Han Solo, because he was typecast. He couldn't land any more major movie roles for quite some time. But somehow he broke through, while the other two leading actors, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher, faded back into relative obscurity. Ford, in a 2010 interview with MTV, when asked if he would reprise his role as Han Solo if he had the opportunity, said, "I wouldn't bet on that, no. No, no, no. Han Solo was very good to me at a certain point in my career. But I’m done. I’m done with him."

     How ironic.

     But maybe Ford just said yes to The Force Awakens so he could have the sendoff he always wanted. It's very possible that he could sacrifice himself for some character in the upcoming film. Then he could finally cleanse himself of Han Solo. Fans will stop asking about if he will be in upcoming films. Peace. But money talks. How else did he get into the sequels in the first place? Also, his injury during the summer highlights the fact that he won't be in these movies forever, because the physical toll these movies demand is considerable. That would be another reason to not want to continue for another four years, not including spinoffs. Maybe fans want this. I think they would rather have a Han Solo sendoff than a cliffhanger at the end of this new trilogy, in place just in case another barrage of movies is made. If Disney is fine with it, then why is it bad? It's closing one chapter in the saga and opening another. If he doesn't die in TFA, then he'll most likely die in one of the next two. True, it will be sad to let him go. But I think it will make him, and his fans, happy.