Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

Discussion in 'Movies, TV & Music' started by Bamul, Nov 28, 2014.

  1. Bamul

    Bamul S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
    Regular

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2011
    Messages:
    3,865
    Likes Received:
    0
    So, the teaser for the new Star Wars movie is finally out.

    [YOUTUBE]?v=erLk59H86ww[/YOUTUBE]

    In my opinion it looks very unremarkable, but most teasers are fairly crap so there is still hope. Besides, there's no point in coming out with a judgement about a future work's quality so early. That said, the trailer on its own isn't that good at all. I did like that there seemed to be some on-location stuff, though I won't be surprised if most of the film will be shot on a green screen. :eek:hwell: What do yous think?

    ---

    New trailer arrived two days ago:

    [YOUTUBE]?v=ngElkyQ6Rhs[/YOUTUBE]
     
    #1 Bamul, Nov 28, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 18, 2015
  2. Autumnal Wanderer

    Autumnal Wanderer Level 28 Ranger

    Joined:
    Sep 16, 2014
    Messages:
    116
    Likes Received:
    0
    I never was a SW nerd at all, I do like it, but that's all. The teaser has good moments though, notably the freaking bad-ass Sith Lord. I would watch the movie because that guy.
     
  3. George Lucas' Special Edition trailer:

    [YOUTUBE]v93Jh6JNBng[/YOUTUBE]
     
  4. Skaara Dreadlocks

    Joined:
    Sep 23, 2011
    Messages:
    3,714
    Likes Received:
    0
    @Komodo's lolwat :lol:

    Well.... I've been a star wars fan since I was a little kid. It started with Lego Star Wars 1 and 2 on the old Xbox that I still have. Then the movies, then Battlefront 1 and 2, then Jedi Academy, Force Unleashed, and I have a Jawa plush sitting beside my PC screen. But in recent years, I haven't been any active about it at all. Star Wars was more part of my childhood. Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to the seventh episode, despite being produced by Disney.
     
  5. Bamul

    Bamul S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
    Regular

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2011
    Messages:
    3,865
    Likes Received:
    0
    This is pretty great.
     
  6. NuclearWastE3

    NuclearWastE3 The Toxic Avenger
    Regular

    Joined:
    Jan 4, 2013
    Messages:
    1,390
    Likes Received:
    2
    I watched some of the star wars movies when I was very young, but, unfortunately, I don't remember them very well to form a plausible opinion on them. Once in a while though, on television, I see that some star wars movie is being shown (in Spanish most of the time), and I think a lot of the CGI looks pretty low budget. This leans more toward the newer movies, of course, since they actually had use live figurines and puppet animatronics for the older movies (which, for some reason, I prefer over the CGI).

    I'll probably go and watch this anyway with a friend of mine who's a huge fan of the franchise. Of the two trailers, I hope that the movie will be more like the one Komodo put up. :p
     
  7. Zigrus

    Zigrus Member

    Joined:
    Feb 16, 2015
    Messages:
    13
    Likes Received:
    0
    I have watched all star wars movies, I thnik this new episode will be cool
     
  8. Bamul

    Bamul S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
    Regular

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2011
    Messages:
    3,865
    Likes Received:
    0
    I've updated the first post with the second teaser that was released recently, feel free to share your thoughts. I might pop in later too.
     
  9. Have you seen Indiana Jones at the end? :laugh:
     
  10. DaDeadlyCheese

    DaDeadlyCheese Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 27, 2015
    Messages:
    152
    Likes Received:
    0
    Man I loved star wars as a kid, so many hours spent on battlefront 1 & 2,I honestly think that they were some of, if not the, best games that came out during my lifetime
     
  11. Potarto

    Potarto Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Apr 28, 2013
    Messages:
    1,015
    Likes Received:
    0
    "The Force is strong in my family. My father has it. I have it. My sister has it."
    [​IMG]
     
    #11 Potarto, Apr 19, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 19, 2015
  12. Bamul

    Bamul S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
    Regular

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2011
    Messages:
    3,865
    Likes Received:
    0
    [YOUTUBE]OJcXImXONYY[/YOUTUBE]
     
  13. Bamul

    Bamul S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
    Regular

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2011
    Messages:
    3,865
    Likes Received:
    0
    So I went to see this film and I have very mixed impressions. On the one hand I can’t deny that from a technical point of view it is a well-made production created with love for the franchise, but on the other hand I am deeply disappointed by it. However, practically all the things I disliked about the new Star Wars were related to the plot and characters, so I will leave my full impressions in a spoiler tag below (please do not open it unless you don’t mind having the story utterly ruined for you before you watch it).

    SPOILERS!!!


    Alright, I think The Force Awakens can be summed up as a very expensive but uncreative piece of Star Wars fan fiction. I was enjoying the initial set-up and mostly ignoring the obvious fan service playing on people’s nostalgia, but then came that part about disabling the shields of the Death Star Starkiller Base and hitting a tiny part of it to explode the whole thing… at that point I was saying: “no, no, no!” in my mind, and as expected it only went downhill from there – moreover I was no longer so blissfully ignorant of other extreme similarities to the original trilogy.

    Luke’s role from the original trilogy was basically split into three “new” characters here: Rey, Finn and Poe. They are all quite cool, especially the first two as they are more developed, but it is literally as though J.J. Abrams took the ideas that Luke Skywalker was made up of and divided them across this lot; Luke Rey is naturally talented and capable, but stuck on the desert backwater of Tatooine Jakku and waiting to fulfil her destiny; Luke Finn is slightly clumsy at times, clearly a newbie, but he is a fast learner and has a tremendously likeable personality (if a little naïve) as he basically just wants the best for everybody; Luke Poe is the best pilot of the Rebel Alliance New Republic who delivers the killing blow to the planet-annihilating Death Star Starkiller Base. To be fair, Finn is probably the most original out of this trio thanks to his backstory as a stormtrooper-turned-rebel and his temporary desire to get away from it all instead of fighting, but in the end he clearly has some of those Luke elements too.

    I’ll continue in a similar manner to show you these painstakingly crude parallelisms between all three films of the original trilogy and Episode VII (sorry for not being chronological here, though to be honest the way these story aspects are taken from the previous films and incorporated here is a real mishmash too):

    • A father vs. son conflict is played out between the main characters of the dark side Darth Vader light side Han Solo and light side Luke Skywalker dark side Kylo Ren/Ben Solo. The two confront each other on a bridge and eventually one of them falls to his apparent death. Darth Vader Kylo Ren can now report a success to his physically-disfigured master Darth Sidious Supreme Leader Snoke, who leads the Galactic Empire First Order from behind the scenes.
    • Luke’s Rey’s mentor Obi-Wan Kenobi Han Solo is slain by Darth Vader Kylo Ren.
    • Tie-fighters and X-wings take part in a huge battle over the freezing cold landscape of the Hoth system Starkiller Base system.
    • Before being captured by the enemy, Leia Organa Poe Dameron gives essential classified info to his trusty astromech droid R2-D2 BB-8 so that he may deliver them to his allies.
    • The protagonist Luke Finn flees from Tatooine Jakku with the help of Han Solo Rey, who pilots the Millennium Falcon.
    • Dagobah Takodana is a green swampy planet; Maz Kanata’s castle is basically a strange mix between some temple and the Mos Eisley Cantina.
    • Grand Moff Tarkin General Hux is seemingly the only imperial commander who can challenge Lord Vader Kylo Ren without paying for it with his life.
    • Yoda and Obi-Wan Supreme Leader Snoke tells Luke Skywalker Kylo Ren that he must resist the call of the dark side light side of the force and continue his training by killing his father.
    • Master Yoda Luke goes into exile at a secret location after feeling that he has failed in his mission to save the Jedi.
    • Luke Rey travels to a distant planet to meet Yoda Luke so that he may help the Resistance by passing on the teachings of the Jedi.
    I could go and on about these tropes, you can find plenty more. On top of that there are some gaping plot holes and confusing story elements (how does Rey even know about Jedi mind tricks, let alone how to use them? How did this First Order manage to build something even more powerful than the Death Star when they supposedly don’t control the galaxy? Why is the New Republic’s military still called a Resistance if they won thirty years ago on Endor?). There’s also the fact that of all the Star Wars episodes this one has the weakest and most incapable villains – copies of Sidious, Vader, and Tarkin in appearance and style, but not ability. But this post is already too long.

    So, to finish on a more positive note, I will say that Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens was still an enjoyable blockbuster to watch. I think basically everything apart from the plot (the character/environment design, use of props and CGI, acting, how the scenes were shot, and so on) is great. In addition, I gotta say that I’m really glad they tried to make their own variations of the old themes rather than reusing the same music all the time, except for a few scenes where it felt right anyway.

    It does pull on those nostalgia strings, but Abrams’ overuse of this and lack of originality are what make this film ultimately a disappointment. All the unique stories (such as Finn’s stormtrooper origins, how Luke tried to restore the Jedi Order, Rey’s family roots, etc.) are wedged in the backseat and barely touched upon in comparison to the amount of screen time that all those references to the previous movies get. My only hope is that they are manipulating the audience’s expectations carefully to take us by surprise in the next film by Rian Johnson, which I want to be something truly fresh… if they keep playing it so safe then I doubt the next two movies will be able to keep people excited off of nostalgia alone.
     
  14. Skaara Dreadlocks

    Joined:
    Sep 23, 2011
    Messages:
    3,714
    Likes Received:
    0
    I see all your points, Bamul, and most of them I actually did notice while watching the movie. I might even say that I understand how it makes you disappointed. But I personally don't feel the same way though; despite using old used-up characters and plots, they used them in a kind of refreshed way and played around with it. I think staying this close to the previous Star Wars plot was the best way for the new producers to actually live up to the expectations, because it gave that real down-to-earth definite feeling that this is Star Wars.

    But I do agree that they could have toned it down a bit, rather than over-doing it. I suppose that was their way of being entirely sure that they were "doing it right".

    I, like many others, would like to see something new and different, but I think the majority of Star Wars fans (people who aren't really that into it, but still like it) would be thrown off and thought it was weird if Disney created a whole new and different setting on whole new and different planets with whole new and different characters in a whole new and different plot.

    I guess you can sum it up by saying that they did a bad job at doing something new and original, but they did one hellova job at resembling the original Star Wars. -And that's what they were settling for, so I'm still majorly impressed :)

    Yet, like you, I also look forward to the next one, hoping that they'll go into deeper grounds this time and try to do something original.

    Also, has anyone ever played Jedi Academy, and notice a difference between that and a bit of the plot from the movie? In Jedi Academy, Luke Skywalker is a Jedi Master who has started a... well.. a Jedi-Academy, just like they said he had done in the movie. And in the game, if you choose the dark side, your character turns on Luke and the whole jedi-academy by leaving it for the dark side and the lust for more power for yourself, and destroy the academy while doing so.. just like in the movie.
     
    #14 Skaara Dreadlocks, Dec 30, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 30, 2015
  15. Jul 'Mdama

    Jul 'Mdama Member
    Regular

    Joined:
    Nov 7, 2015
    Messages:
    16
    Likes Received:
    0
    I really enjoyed this movie. The feels toward the end really tugged my heart strings.
     
  16. NuclearWastE3

    NuclearWastE3 The Toxic Avenger
    Regular

    Joined:
    Jan 4, 2013
    Messages:
    1,390
    Likes Received:
    2
    Well, as a person who was too young to remember much (six years old) and never really saw the entirety of the Star Wars movies, I say it was a good enough movie to watch if one really doesn't know a thing about the franchise -except for lightsabers, darth vadar, and laser pistols. I know the general plots from the originals, but not enough to tie its relations with the new movie. Bamul's in-depth analysis pointed out a lot of similarities between the originals and the new movie (a lot that I would have never known). So, I guess this new star wars movie is a remake of the originals put together all-in-one? Nontheless, I thought it was a good movie and my hard-core, starwars fanatic friends thought the same.
     
  17. DaDeadlyCheese

    DaDeadlyCheese Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 27, 2015
    Messages:
    152
    Likes Received:
    0
    Amongst the die hards, it's kinda like Marmite, they either love it our hate it. I quite enjoyed this film, but I went in with incredibly low expectations for it. I probably didn't like it as much as the empire strikes back, I liked it more than the phantom menace. I'd say I like it at about the same levels as revenge of the sith (I'm one of those guys that liked that one :p). But yeah, overall, good enough for me, especially the characters, I quite liked them.
     
  18. Bamul

    Bamul S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
    Regular

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2011
    Messages:
    3,865
    Likes Received:
    0
    I watched it a second time with Polish friends during my holiday and I gotta say that this time - knowing not to expect anything really new or groundbreaking - I enjoyed it a lot more. Also, I learned some interesting fan theories that explain some of the silly plot holes, but most of them are too far-fetched.

    Skaara, I'm guessing they took a bit of inspiration from the Star Wars Expanded Universe stuff. Disney said it's all non-canon after acquiring the franchise, but they probably won't let it all go to waste.