Star Wars

[Gabz Girl]

As long as this doesn't have wooden acting, CGI everywhere and a horrible script like the prequels then I'm in for a treat! I know one of the biggest complaints about the film is that it references A New Hope way too often, but I don't care too much about that. That reminds me..

What I'm most concerned about is if John Williams score will be as memorable and epic as the other films! 

[Marcello]

There's actually a decent amount of CG in the movie.

Other spoilers I wanted to mention that only have a little to do with that:

I've forgotten to say this in my last two posts, but why is Lord Voldemort in the movie and why does Kylo Ren serve under him???

And there were quite a few really funny parts in the movie. Like when Ben was slicing up the room after Rey escapes and then it skips to two stormtroopers coming down the hall until they see sparks flying from the room and just turn around and go in the other direction.

Or BB-8's lighter thumbs up. 

[Gabz Girl]

Oh I know that, I just meant CGI in literally everything a la the prequels; landscapes, creatures, the ground these characters walk upon. XP I know there's plenty of puppets and animatronics used.

[pppp]

What I'm most concerned about is if John Williams score will be as memorable and epic as the other films! 

Actually that is one complaint that I do have that I forgot to mention. Aside from themes reused from the original trilogy, none of the score stuck with me. John hasn't been that great for years(His last great score if you ask me was 2011's War Horse), but I was hoping this movie would be his return to form. After all even the prequels had fantastic music. Ep7's music is just kinda there for me though.

[Gabz Girl]

Actually that is one complaint that I do have that I forgot to mention. Aside from themes reused from the original trilogy, none of the score stuck with me. John hasn't been that great for years(His last great score if you ask me was 2011's War Horse), but I was hoping this movie would be his return to form. After all even the prequels had fantastic music. Ep7's music is just kinda there for me though.

Argh, that's a shame. D: I really liked the music he did for Tintin, but anything after that has been admittedly forgettable and I was hoping this would be a return to form for Williams. Oh well, I'll keep an open mind and maybe give the soundtrack a chance after watching the film.

[sonicgirl313]

Is it wrong that when I watched Kylo Ren in the movie all I could think is "He's like a bratty kid throwing a temper tantrum. XD"

[Penny]

Okay, so I just got back from the theater.

 

My thoughts?

 

It was pretty dang good. Definitely worthy of being called a Star Wars movie, I'll say that much. I'm not gonna go too in depth and stuff, but there were definitely some really cool scenes, and the new (and old) characters were great, especially Finn and Han, who were my personal favorites. The movie definitely felt like an extension of the OT, and all the little call backs were neat. I do think the story strayed a bit too close to A New Hope, but it was certainly different enough to where it didn't feel like a rip-off. Also, that one scene towards the end (if you've seen it, you know what I'm talking about), ripped my heart out, even though I started suspecting it would happen.

 

So how does this movie rank in terms of the whole series? Well, okay, I'm just gonna say that I prefer the PT to the OT, so my rankings are definitely gonna be very different than yours lol. But I'd put this new one up towards the top. Here's my rankings and shit:

 

III > V > VII = II > IV > VI >> I

 

Yeah, I'm weird lmao. The Force Awakens isn't nearly as good as Revenge of The Sith or Empire Strikes Back, but it's definitely a great movie that almost, but not quite, edges out Attack of the Clones. So, again, it's a great movie that deserves its praises.

 

[Linkabel]

Oh I know that, I just meant CGI in literally everything a la the prequels; landscapes, creatures, the ground these characters walk upon. XP I know there's plenty of puppets and animatronics used.

I think there's a post in this thread with a link that shows this CGI prequel complaint is bullshit. You'd be surprised how much of it is actually practical effects (and TFA does the same too)

I liked TFA a lot, but it does relied too much on the originals and it makes it too predictable. It also throws a lot concepts that never get mentioned again (or don't matter anymore because of how it ends)

It's also the first Star Wars where it's really necessary to read some of other non-movie material. Why is the Resistance called that and not the New Republic army? How does the First Order relate to the old Empire? Finn's stormtrooper origins? The guy at the beginning that with Poe? How does the New Republic  work and why the First Order is trying to exploit that?

All questions that come out during the movie but never get answered because  they get answered in Aftermath, Lost Stars, Shattered Empire and the  Visual Guide. World building is a big weakness this movie has.

Another thing that I found weak were the villains. The Empire as whole looks more threatening and competent than the old one. But Kylo Ren, Snoke and Phasma are so boring and not iconic.  I feel like Kylo has the potential to be something more but there's not enough context on why he is doing what's he's doing and his looks are really lame and doesn't give him the same weight as  Vader or Maul/Grievous. Adam Driver was also disappointing but the rest of the cast is awesome.

Overall the movie was 8/10 but I'm looking forward more to Episode  8 because of the people in charge of that one and it looks more daring just following the casting calls and rumor leaks.

 

 

[ThePrinceOfSaiyans]

Ok, now that I've got some sleep I'll give my thoughts on The Force Awakens:

-First, I just wanna say, the way Han was killed off was great. Han tried to bring his son back, but the Dark Side was just too much for Kylo Ren. It's sorta a shame that Han had to be killed off, but Harrison Ford has wanted him dead since Jedi, so it's really no surprise that he was killed off. You have to wonder though, how long is Chewie gonna last?

-I freaking knew Kylo Ren was Han's kid.

-The first order doesn't fuck around, man. They actually blew up Coruscant if I'm not mistaken.

-I love the 3 main protagonists. Poe, Rey, and Fin are all great. I love how much of a smartass Poe is .

-Kylo Ren was alright, but you can tell, he's going to develop as a character. I love his little rage fits .

-The action and sounds in this movie were phenomenal. Blows any other Star Wars out of the water. The lightsaber duel between Rey, Fin, and Kylo was pretty intense. 

 -I love how funny this movie was.

Now for the negatives

-Captain Phasma was very underutilized.

-The CGI stood out like a sore thumb.

-I'm not a fan of the fact that Snoke is CGI

-The ending of the movie dragged a little. I feel where it ended is where episode 8 should have started.

-The story is pretty much note for note A New Hope.

Overall, a fantastic film. Easily my second favorite Star Wars film.  

[Linkabel]

Ok, now that I've got some sleep I'll give my thoughts on The Force Awakens:

Hidden Content

Overall, a fantastic film. Easily my second favorite Star Wars film.  

It wasn't Coruscant, it was Hosnian Prime. The capital of the Republic now moves to different planets through elections to show good faith and prevent another crisis like the Clone Wars. The Republic fleet  also stays with the capital so that was destroyed as well. It's interesting info that the movie never mentions at all.

[MightyRay]

Saw it last night with my Dad. It was great! It didn't feel rushed out or overstayed it's welcome. Also I want a BB-8 now. That droid was adorable through the whole film!

So glad Flynn didn't get killed. He kind of reminded me of my partner so I got nervous when 'Ben' cut him up with his sabre. I thought they were going to kill him off for Rey to get 'character drama development'.

[DarkRula]

It definitely was a great film. Even with the mirrors to A New Hope, it still felt like its own film. It delivered powerful scenes, great characters and interesting dynamics between them, and had some good gritty combat scenes. Also - that moment. So well done, and perfectly reverses the dynamic between two certain others in Return of the Jedi.

[Agie]

I wanna get my mind off the negative things I got to see in my absence...by posting the positive.

I saw this in the IMAX theater. It was my first time really going to one, and honestly, it was amazing. So was the theatergoing experience. I wanna tell you all the positive things.

The screen was really big, for one. Biggest I've seen yet, and it was impressive. They also gave use the coolest looking 3D glasses I've seen yet, and I was sad to have to return them after the movie.

Then there were the crowds. They cheered every time a character from the original trilogy appeared, and while some might be annoyed, it made me smile. Admittedly, it was nice to see those guys on the big screen again.

The area where you get the popcorn was pretty cool in itself, too, kinda fancy.

But I haven't even gotten to the film itself. Now, I wanted a Star Wars Episode VII when I was a kid, but me and my siblings were kinda convinced it wouldn't happen, though Dad insisted it would. Then ten years later, it did happen, and Dad got to pull the "I told you so!" card on us, which actually made me laugh.

Was it worth the ten year wait?

Yes. Yes it was. I loved almost every minute of it. Almost everything was well done, from the characters to the scenes and the special effects, it was great.

It was great to see many of the Original Trilogy cast return in an actually new film, and the new guys were quite loveable.

I especially loved BB-8. What a cute little ball droid.

That scene in the beginning with Finn going to his Stormtrooper comrade? I had to admit,  even in spite of what they were doing, that actually got something in my eye.

And yeah, I admit, I was saddened by some other scenes. Spoiler below, for your warning.

Han's death hit me hard. I admit, I was spoiled on it, and for me, it still packed a punch.

My only negative; the lack of the 20th Century Fox logo and fanfare, though in this case, it was unavoidable. Still, it was strange not seeing it there, but I can get used to it. And why a name like Snoke? And Kylo Ren's name is all to easy to make Ren & Stimpy jokes out of.

So yeah, I absolutely loved the film. Wish I had a time machine to send  the film back to ten years ago, because it was definitely worth the wait. Can't wait to see what they got cooking up!

Edited December 20, 2015 by SurrealBrain

[188Eternal]

I finally watched Episode7 this morning (December 20th), and I consider myself very lucky for being able to enjoy it properly without stumbling upon any spoilers to ruin the suspense of the experience. And now, without giving away any spoilers myself, I'll just say that the film exceeded my expectations in the sense that the plot was actually moving in the general direction that I wanted it to move instead of moving in a direction that would've hurt the feelings of a lot of the diehard fans of the EU.

So interpret that statement as you may, and go enjoy the film properly if you haven't done so already.

Let me know when it's safe to drop spoilers and we can discuss our opinions in full details. Peace.

[Phos]

Saw it, I wasn't crazy about it...

TIE fighters never came across as atmospheric capable, and I found it distracting for that reason.  

Who was the old guy with the map to Luke?  I guess they wanted an old guy to be like Obi Wan, but man was that rushed.  Well, it was all rushed.  Ray figures out the force on her own partly off screen over the course of about 15 minutes of run time so they can have a light saber fight.  Poe makes it back to base off screen so a bunch of hijinks can happen.  Then there was that weird scene where Kylo has Ray on the ropes and mentions the force, and she has this (I guess?) soul searching moment before going on the attack again, and I swear they reused that shot of Ray going for that two handed stab like four times over the course of that scene.  

Which reminds me... the prequels did this as well, but if you stab someone with a lightsaber, it isn't going to stick in them like an ordinary blade, a body presumably provides very little resistance to a lightsaber, it's going to move around in there.  

Darth Ben is conceptually interesting, that he isn't self assured and thus wears a scary mask to be more intimidating and look more like Darth Vader, but this movie does everything it possibly can to undercut him as a credible villain.  Major Hayden Christensen flashbacks were had.  His flying V also looks really silly.  

Poe seemed in way too good of spirits considering how the battle went.  The resistance forces now consist of 5 X wings.  Everyone else is dead, or so it seems.  

This movie never takes a break for a moment, even when it really should, and by the end of it, it seems as though we've gone through two movies worth of plot. A massive weapon was introduced and destroyed the republic, and is then destroyed itself, Han died, Fin was introduced developed and then rendered comatose, Luke is back, Kylo Ren is introduced, his lineage revealed, and a personal rubicon is crossed, Ray learns to use the force, am I missing anything?  

 

Edited December 21, 2015 by Phos

[Johnny Boy]

Saw it yesterday and I really loved it.

 

Though I have to say that I did feel like some parts of this movie felt too much like "A new dawn". And I rest didn't like Kylo Ren all that much

 

But regardless, I'm really excited to see how the rest of this trilogy will play out.

[ThePrinceOfSaiyans]

I'm honestly pretty surprised people are so quick to dismiss Kylo Ren as an unlikable character. I enjoyed his presence immensely. We got to know him a little as a character, and it's pretty clear he's only going to get better from here. His struggles make him far more interesting IMO. 

[Tailikku]

Is it me, or does Ben's face look a lot like Mozenrath's?

Also, most of the "glaring" CG wasn't CG at all:  it was practical effects.  There are a few good chunks dedicated to those effects in the credits including the Creature Shop

 

Also the Daniel Craig cameo, his ID is JB-007.  Even funnier since I have also just seen SPECTRE, like literally yesterday

[Kevin]

Now that I've had a chance to digest everything after seeing the movie, here ae my thoughts:

Star Wars is back!

I can't even begin to describe how amazing the film was! Right from the opening credits, the sold out theater I was at was clapping and cheering. The humor was great and gave everyone a lot of laughs and as soon as Hans Soloand Chewie appears, everyone was cheering! Kylo Ren was a pretty cool villian and I really loved Rey as a character! 

I'll tell you, I was not expecting Han Solo to die! As soon as that scene happened, the whole theater gasped! I'd say it's probably the biggest twist of the movie!

The music....oh man did John Williams deliver! The movie's visuals were also amazing the see as well!

The climax with the lightsaber duel was a little flashy, but nowhere as bad as the prequels' duels. 

Lastly, I just want to say how amazing that final shot with Luke Skywalker was! As soon as he appeared, everyone was clapping and cheering! It's a real shame the film ended right after that, because I just didn't want to end. I'm disappointed that he never spoke a single line though and that we'll have to wait until the next episode 8 to see what happens with him.

Overall, this is my second favorite Star Wars film after The Empire Strikes back! It's so refresh to see something great after how bad the prequels were!

[goku262002]

Yeah so de-railing from the Episode 7 talk:

George Lucas is an idiot.

Also I wonder if BF3 will ever be leaked or found 1 day? a 99% build is just begging for it to be released online someday soon.

[Ratcicle King]

Alright, saw it tuesday, and took a while to gather my thoughts on this one.

It was a great movie, as someone who pretty much binge watched all Star Wars movies to watch this one, it fits perfectly into the universe. 

For starters, I got spoiled from the get go about Solo dying, Kylo's parents and Luke appearing in the end, but that's the thing tho', I didn't watch ANY trailers, so everything else was a surprise, I didn't knew who the main character was, who were the supporting cast, what was the plot, honestly, I finished the original six movies like two days before watching this, and it was very refreshing. Han dying honestly was better to know beforehand, I was able to check the reaction of the theaters when it happened. People were fucking shocked, it was amazing.

Kylo Ren, I find him a loser, but I think that was the point, he looks like a nerd, I'm not even kidding, he looks like a guy you'd find on an anime convention chillin' discussing how Saitama would wreck Goku's shit. Not only that, but his entire character seems like he was trying to make himself cooler, like, I'll have this epic cloak, and this cool big mask, and I'll talk about how I'm the legacy of the biggest villain in the Galaxy, who talks to me in my head, and I have this cool Lightsaber with three blades that looks like it's made of fire instead of being a beam of light! I think that was the point, to not make him a vader-level badass yet and evolve him as the movies progress, the best thing they could've done was have him throw a hissy fit at the beginning, so it would set our standards for the character on another angle, as instead of being this epic Vader guy, now we see he's also pretty childish and petty, so we change our expectations with him. And if in the end we see him evolve like Anakin, only with a better pace, I'm all in for that.

Han and Leia had some great moments, it's great to see that they're still the same but older and wiser, it fits them really well, they've been through so much shit in their whole lives, and it shaped their characters as who they were in the classics, so to see that even after more struggles they haven't changed, only became wiser when handling all this, is pretty interesting, you can see Han is in pain because of his son, but he'd still kick some ass and pull his old stunts in a heartbeat, Leia still seems strong and rebellious, but also a bit tired and broken from all the shit she went through. There wasn't even a single moment where I saw those two and didn't see Young Han and Young Leia, it was perfect.

Now for something people are complaining: The Force.

I loved the way they handled it here, why? Because there ISN'T anyone to teach Rey about her powers, she has to figure them out on her own, and it's interesting because that's never been done before, she's literally figuring out on her own that she's a jedi and using the force powers by what she knows from legend and by watching Ren using his own. Heck, considering how subtle the movie was during most of the scenes involving the force, I wouldn't be surprised if she was being trained by a Force Ghost we couldn't see. That's other thing I love, the force is subtle here, it's not on your face or explained. It's a mystical thing, a life changing experience, a cosmic energy that some special beings can control. That's a new take on the force we haven't seen yet. Not only that, they took full advantage of today's effects and the fact that we already know everything about the force, it doesn't NEED to be explained, everyone and their mother knows what the force is, so not being on your face with it is perfect.

Also that vision Rey had was beautiful, it was like she was being called by both the ghosts of all Jedi and the ghosts of all Sith, you could feel her struggle between the dark and the light side of the force, like both sides knew there was a new powerful warrior being born at that moment, and they wanted her on their side.

Was it too similar to the old movie? Yes, but honestly guys, It's the first Star Wars movie in pretty much more than a decade, playing safe here is allowed. And I enjoyed it, because it felt like how the original Star Wars would be like if it was made today, Special Editions be damned, it FELT like Star Wars from beginning to end, no politics or any of that shit. Even better, the characters weren't space badasses, we have a Jedi with zero training or skills, who has to learn how to even use the force by herself a freaking Stormtrooper, the very soldiers we mocked through the entire franchise, using his training and knowledge to his advantage, heck, even going full on into danger when he knows he could very well die, and an Ace Pilot who's pretty much the new Han Solo, but a lot more friendly. It was a nice change of pace, the scenes where the characters were trying to figure out on their own how to deal with problems, working off eachother, was amazing, both funny and clever, since you could see their train of thought, you could see them grasping at straws, you could see every single thing they knew at that very moment, setting the tone for them and their friendship that would move the entire plot.

Also that final scene, God fucking Dammit, it was beautiful. No dialogue, no music, just a silence, as you feel the weight that set up brings to the entire Star Wars universe, Luke Skywalker, the hero of the galaxy, the man who had nothing but tragedy in his life, the last Jedi, meets the last of a new generation of Jedis, just like he was. You could see the recollection on his eyes, heck, he LOOKED like Obi Wan on that scene, and I'm hyped to see that training, as we could never see a REAL Jedi training, as the older movies just skipped it and the prequels didn't even bother showing it.

Overall, I loved it, it's a great way to begin the new Star Wars universe, it felt fresh but nostalgic, new but also old. 

Also Rey is Luke's daughter or the sister of Ren, calling it now.

 

[Agie]

Honestly...

I actually kinda hope Rey isn't related to the Skywalkers by blood; of course, it's only because I find the idea that she is to be too predictable. I won't complain if she is, but still.

Edited December 28, 2015 by SurrealBrain

[Linkabel]

no politics or any of that shit.

You know, I'll never really understand why people think politics in Star Wars are so bad. I mean, the very first scene of a New Hope has Vader screaming for the ambassador and talks of the Imperial Senate.

And while I know it's not as severe as the prequels, I honestly don't know how you can tell a story about the fall of a government that it's literally called the Republic and don't have politics being involved. I'm honestly scared for Episode 8 since it seems it's going to involved politics going on the little things that they have  said and casting calls.  

 

[Ratcicle King]

You know, I'll never really understand why people think politics in Star Wars are so bad. I mean, the very first scene of a New Hope has Vader screaming for the ambassador and talks of the Imperial Senate.

And while I know it's not as severe as the prequels, I honestly don't know how you can tell a story about the fall of a government that it's literally called the Republic and don't have politics being involved. I'm honestly scared for Episode 8 since it seems it's going to involved politics going on the little things that they have  said and casting calls.  

 

My problem isn't the politics themselves, it's how they babble about it nonstop and most of it barely makes any sense, they don't feel the need to slow down and explain how things work, they just assume you do. Honestly Revenge of the Sith did it best, it had politics, yes, it explained all it had to explain about it and showed how and why everything that was happening was happening, It's a case of show don't tell, they show us very little of what is happening and spend most of the movies just going on and on about the politics, not explaining how they work, just explaining what is happening. I wouldn't care if it weren't literally most of the movie and the rules and laws weren't so different.

Meanwhile in Attack of the Clones, honestly I don't even know what the struggle was, they made it as confusing as possible, the bad guy wants them to take the clone army, and they know he wants them to take the clone army, so they take the clone army and the clones... Save their ass and help them a lot? Oh no, that's... bad...

Instead of pressuring Palpatine to ditch the clones once the crisis is averted they keep them knowing very well they are involved in SOME plan against them, but nah, we're buddies now. Then there was that whole Jedi Council VS The Senate subplot that literally had no purpose other than to make Anakin have to choose between his masters and Palpatine 

And that's not mentioning how Padme was an elected Queen who became a part of the senate and gave away her powers to Jar Jar, just going ''hey you're on my place now, later'', no paperwork or anything official. AND THEN JAR JAR'S VOTE WAS THE DECIDING ONE TO MAKE PALPATINE THE LEADER. Considering this was a controversial matter, instead of not counting his vote because he's not even an official replacement as far as the laws should go, they take it as official and allow him to let the good jolly DARTH FUCKING SIDIOUS to take control of the Senate.

[Linkabel]

My problem isn't the politics themselves, it's how they babble about it nonstop and most of it barely makes any sense, they don't feel the need to slow down and explain how things work, they just assume you do. Honestly Revenge of the Sith did it best, it had politics, yes, it explained all it had to explain about it and showed how and why everything that was happening was happening, It's a case of show don't tell, they show us very little of what is happening and spend most of the movies just going on and on about the politics, not explaining how they work, just explaining what is happening. I wouldn't care if it weren't literally most of the movie and the rules and laws weren't so different.

Meanwhile in Attack of the Clones, honestly I don't even know what the struggle was, they made it as confusing as possible, the bad guy wants them to take the clone army, and they know he wants them to take the clone army, so they take the clone army and the clones... Save their ass and help them a lot? Oh no, that's... bad...

Instead of pressuring Palpatine to ditch the clones once the crisis is averted they keep them knowing very well they are involved in SOME plan against them, but nah, we're buddies now. Then there was that whole Jedi Council VS The Senate subplot that literally had no purpose other than to make Anakin have to choose between his masters and Palpatine 

And that's not mentioning how Padme was an elected Queen who became a part of the senate and gave away her powers to Jar Jar, just going ''hey you're on my place now, later'', no paperwork or anything official. AND THEN JAR JAR'S VOTE WAS THE DECIDING ONE TO MAKE PALPATINE THE LEADER. Considering this was a controversial matter, instead of not counting his vote because he's not even an official replacement as far as the laws should go, they take it as official and allow him to let the good jolly DARTH FUCKING SIDIOUS to take control of the Senate.

I get what you mean about the politics being a bit too simple but I think some of your complaints are actually explained. For example, the Padme/Jar Jar thing is super easy because while Padme is a Senator, Jar Jar was a representative of Naboo. So that made him an official, it's not like he was a nobody tagging along. And it's not far fetched that he could make decisions when Padme was out of the picture, just like how we have laws for that and that no one needs to sign anything. Another thing is that he was not the deciding vote either, he simply proposed the vote on the Senate floor and the rest of the senators fell for Palpatine's trap. This happens in Episode 1 as well when Padme calls a vote to change the chancellor and we get an explanation that they're voting on it, not that hers was the deciding one. Also, it's kind of silly to say that they should've pressured Palpatine to ditch the clones at the end of Attack of the Clones since the crisis wasn't averted. In fact it got worse because now it was a full scale war. That's not even counting that the Jedi found out the truth about the clones later on during the war and chose to keep it a secret during TCW. Though by the Revenge of the Sith the council and some in the Senate were pressuring Palpatine to give back his powers but it was too late by then.