Star Wars 7 - The Spoilers Awaken :)

[brettc1]

I dont know if this thread is necessary, and if not the mods can just fold my thread into another.

But this thread WILL have spoilers for the new movie. You have been warned!

If you dont want to see spoilers TURN BACK NOW!!!

And my first comment is - I give it an 8. It was pretty good, and I laughed out loud in many places and enjoyed the fan service.

But as an honest question, how many time are the bad guys going to try the same dumb plan before they realize it just doesn't work?!

The next planet destroying super-weapon should be called "The One-Shot."

[brettc1]

I do like Kylo Ren more than Anakin in 2 and 3.

Both are pretty whiny, but at least Ren is SUPPOSED to be whiny. You don't have to look at him and say to yourself "THIS is the guy who became Darth Vader? Seriously?"

Of course he is also well on the way to becoming the most hated character in the franchise. Possibly even more than Jar Jar. But again, with the virtue of it being deliberate and not just because of not so great story telling

[Hiromi]

he really didn't strike me as whiny,he was easily the most imposing villain we've seen Vader in Empire, VERY easily superior to any of the villains we saw in the prequels, everything from his movement, body language, his style of speech, the voice modulation(which i think aided a LOT), etc

I really loved all the new characters, Ren, Finn, Rey, BB8, and Poe. The next movie needs more Poe.

[Don C]

I liked it a lot. Yeah, the final act is basically a third (fourth if you count The Phantom Menace control ship) Death Star run. I would have preferred something different for the super-weapon. But you need some kind of big, end battle and that fit the bill.

My biggest complaint is that Han dies weakly. He's Han Solo. He deserved a more heroic death than what was on the screen.

[brettc1]

I liked it a lot. Yeah, the final act is basically a third (fourth if you count The Phantom Menace control ship) Death Star run. I would have preferred something different for the super-weapon. But you need some kind of big, end battle and that fit the bill.

My biggest complaint is that Han dies weakly. He's Han Solo. He deserved a more heroic death than what was on the screen.

I kind of agree. Han basically becomes a prop for Kylo Ren's charcter development.

See - that's why you ALWAYS shoot first!

Which is why Luke looks so depressed at the end. He knows his fate is to train Rey and then get bumped off so she can replace him

[brettc1]

he really didn't strike me as whiny,he was easily the most imposing villain we've seen Vader in Empire, VERY easily superior to any of the villains we saw in the prequels, everything from his movement, body language, his style of speech, the voice modulation(which i think aided a LOT), etc

I really loved all the new characters, Ren, Finn, Rey, BB8, and Poe. The next movie needs more Poe.

Totally agree about Poe. But I cant see how Kylo can rate above Dooku. Christopher Lee is just too cool.

[Hiromi]

I love Christopher Lee as an actor and still mourn that we won't see him in another movie, but no Dooku was so under utilized and weakly written he in no way shape or form measured up to Ren. And this is where you see the difference a director can make in a film, Ren's body language was AWESOME for a villian, the way he stalked when he moved, the standing still and nonchalant only to explode with quick decisive movement(it also hurt Dooku that Lee really wasn't all that mobile in that stage of his life). That makes for a GREAT villain. Also my mouth fell open when he stopped the blaster bolt in the opening scene, THAT was impressive.

[DrNewGod]

I kind of agree. Han basically becomes a prop for Kylo Ren's charcter development.

See - that's why you ALWAYS shoot first!

Which is why Luke looks so depressed at the end. He knows his fate is to train Rey and then get bumped off so she can replace him

WE could see it coming, maybe even he could too, but ... the parable of the prodigal son my friends.

[PretenderNX01]

Both are pretty whiny, but at least Ren is SUPPOSED to be whiny.

Yeah I thought that was an interesting choice, he's basically failing a lot as a villain and trying to be badder but we and he knows it's not enough.

I really loved all the new characters, Ren, Finn, Rey, BB8, and Poe. The next movie needs more Poe.

Marketing basically set them up like the new trio but Poe wasn't in it too much other than to provide BB8 and then save them at the end.

My biggest complaint is that Han dies weakly. He's Han Solo. He deserved a more heroic death than what was on the screen.

I kind of like that they gave him a more personal send-off. Star Wars has had the "still good in him" moments before and Han really still loves his kid and it cost him.

With all the Star Wars A New Hope parallels, I thought not only the father/son stuff seemed like Empire Strikes Back but also Finn being "on ice" so to speak at the end. Rey says she'll see him again like Leia and Han have an exchange before he's frozen in carbonite.

I still hope that the "awakening" is all the new trio being Force sensitive. I think it's be hard to drag out Rey v Kylo for 3 movies but who knows? Also I think it's a probability that Rey is Luke's daughter maybe he hid her when Ben/Kylo was turning?

[Mormel]

I liked it a lot. Yeah, the final act is basically a third (fourth if you count The Phantom Menace control ship) Death Star run. I would have preferred something different for the super-weapon. But you need some kind of big, end battle and that fit the bill.

My biggest complaint is that Han dies weakly. He's Han Solo. He deserved a more heroic death than what was on the screen.

Yeah, I also thought the Deathstar's gotten a bit overutilised here, and it's got me to thinking just a little bit about the First Order's politics/'diplomacy'. Sure, they're an Evil Empire(tm), but, aside from the horrible tragedy of snuffing out four inhabited worlds killing billions, in doing so they also kinda snuffed out four potential 'markets' for commerce with other parts of their intergalactic territory, destroyed natural resources, possible recruitment areas for augmenting their Stormtrooper armies... To me it seems it's not only an act of incredible cruelty, but also of incredible stupidity, if the First Order wants to establish any sort of hegemony over these star systems. Sure they're showing off their muscle with their WMD, but it also gives the remnants of the Republic and other free worlds the incentive to infiltrate the Order and sabotage/undermine it because there's a nutcase with his finger on the red button.
Not a complaint, just a musing.

I understand how you feel about the way Han went out, then again I saw it as a parallel with what happened to Ben Kenobi in A New Hope, though Ben had a fight with Vader just before. Han's death was also incredibly telegraphed; when Kylo said 'I know what I must do, but you gotta help me', I knew where it was going, and the music and lighting changed... I saw it coming, but it was like Gwen falling in ASM2. When it happened, I covered my mouth and could only sit their motionless, and to me it felt a bit like losing an old friend. So even if Han didn't exactly go down in a blaze of glory, I commend Abrams for making me feel the emotional impact of his passing.

I love Christopher Lee as an actor and still mourn that we won't see him in another movie, but no Dooku was so under utilized and weakly written he in no way shape or form measured up to Ren. And this is where you see the difference a director can make in a film, Ren's body language was AWESOME for a villian, the way he stalked when he moved, the standing still and nonchalant only to explode with quick decisive movement(it also hurt Dooku that Lee really wasn't all that mobile in that stage of his life). That makes for a GREAT villain. Also my mouth fell open when he stopped the blaster bolt in the opening scene, THAT was impressive.

I'm inclined to agree with you on Kylo. Right after viewing, I did feel as though he lost some of his threat after the first half when the mask comes off, but thinking about it a bit more, the hissy fits and the veneration of Vader work out all right. Kylo is more of a 'warped child' sort of character, though we don't know yet what got him there.
Yes, that blaster stopping feat was amazing, such a cool effect and firmly establishes Kylo as a force (ha ha) to be reckoned with. He's a lot younger than Vader was in A New Hope, so he's not quite as much a seasoned veteran of war who's set in his ways and absolutely convinced of the 'justness' of the path of the Dark Side of the Force. So excited to see where they'll take him.

[Hiromi]

I'm glad they never came out and confirmed that Rey was Luke's daughter, I feel it's almost certainly leading that direction, but good on JJ for keeping some mystery to it.

Also Luke has much better taste in planets to be exiled to than Yoda did. That scenery was friggin beautiful, eat **** blue screen planets from the prequels

[Mormel]

I'm glad they never came out and confirmed that Rey was Luke's daughter, I feel it's almost certainly leading that direction, but good on JJ for keeping some mystery to it.

Also Luke has much better taste in planets to be exiled to than Yoda did. That scenery was friggin beautiful, eat **** blue screen planets from the prequels

Anyone know where they filmed that? That looked amazing. Was it all location, or did they build a set?

EDIT: I mean build props/set on location.

[BAMF]

Okay, I saw it. My force awakened, all right. Nerdgasms all up and throughout.

Non-spoilers. The movie is total fanservice, but I wouldn't necessarily say it's a bad thing. Star Wars nerds are sensitive. Overly so, IMO. The fandom will never let go of those prequels. One thing this movie had that didn't exist at all in the prequels was a personality. The characters popped. Everything about those prequels was so dry.

Abrams had to make sure he gave the nerds everything they wanted, which resulted in a fairly predictable -- yet awesome -- outcome. The new characters are amazing editions to the mythology. You ultimately have a female protagonist and a Black right hand, and I feel like these are two huge talking points.

Kylo is already my favorite.

The passing of the torch was evident. Han had to die to propel Kylo as a villain. I loved the scene between them on the bridge. Kylo is going to be my Zuko, for all the Airbender fans. I'm sure he's irredeemable after killing Han, but he'll no doubt be in a constant tug of war throughout the series. He's clearly conflicted. I love his armor design...evokes Vader, but more modern.

Rey was awesome. Abrams was somewhat predictable with this movie, so I want to say she'll be Luke's daughter. Another outcome could be her being a Solo. They could play up some sort of sibling rivalry between her and Kylo. Doubt it, though. She's an amnesiac, but I doubt Leia or Han would forget they have another kid.

Her knowing how to fight didn't phase me. There's clearly some memory loss. It's possible she trained as a child.

Finn was great. I liked his origin as a Stormtrooper deserter. He and Poe make for a great two man show. I hope they get more scenes in future films. I loved the fact that Brienne of Tarth didn't get out of that armor at all. She could've telephoned in her performance.

Those legacy characters, though. They did just enough. When I saw Luke standing there at the end? !!!

[Hiromi]

I've got to say I haven't seen Harrison Ford try this hard in a role in years, this is so much better than his last Indiana Jones performance.

[Mormel]

Those legacy characters, though. They did just enough. When I saw Luke standing there at the end? !!!

Curious thing at my screening: when Han and Chewie first came into view, there was wild cheering in the audience. When Leia first appeared, there were some cheers and a general rustle of approval. But when Luke showed up at the end: nothing. Silence. Didn't seem to be an 'awed' silence either. I was tempted to applaud and/or cheer, but decided it would be silly to be the only one. Oh well!