Star Wars: Episode VII

[quartermainefan]

I already have my opening night imax tickets and can't wait.  A marathon of all six movies is in order I think to prep for this, even the Jar Jar movie.

[Dion]

Saw this today with my mum and really enjoyed it. Won't say anymore for those who haven't seen it.

[Vee]

Great film.

[quartermainefan]

I go with good , not great.   The new actors are all very likeable, and the characters seem likeable too.   The story is solid and without going into too much detail has some very StarWarsian plot elements.  I loved seeing all the old gang and the references to the old movies.   The audience I saw it with applauded when Admiral Akbar showed his ginormous face.

 

My favorite and most emotionally touching moment for me was R2D2.   I love R2, he is one of my all time favorite characters because he is the most loyal and best friend anyone ever had in all of moviedom maybe.  He was with Luke every step of the way along his journey and he is the only one who Luke has to talk to and rely on along his many travels and battles.  So I found the situation for him so resonant in this film, because I could totally see it being what would happen.   He and 3PO were so great because they were so human.

So why isn't the film great?

Not enough old people.   I'm old,  I saw the originals in the movies.   I understand they need new people and Harrison Ford is closing in on 80, but I can't help it I want to see the old gang every moment I can.  They're the crew that made me go see this very movie and the new guys are technically fine but they just don't put the same smile on my face.

 

John Williams.   Perhaps it is time he hang it up.   His music was just as an important star of the original films as the actors and stories, and forgive my geekness here but the original films wouldn't be what they are without "Binary Sunset", the Imperial March, or Han and Leia's love theme and all the others.   And he scored again with the wonderful love theme for Anakin and Padme in the prequels.   With this film I don't think he crafted a single classic that will rate up there with those musical pieces.   I imagine someone on youtube will eventually edit in the Imperial March onto the New Order scenes of this movie and the difference will be obvious. 

 

The final action sequence:  a iittle too kinetic and modern, and not enough milking of the drama and high stakes.  The original was downright corny and hokey with Obi-Wan talking from beyond the grave to tell Luke to use the force and save the galaxy after he missed with his computers, allowing time for John Williams to ratchet up the melodrama with his music and let everyone have a worried face back at HQ.   This film with the hyper action and faster editing didn't go that route and it never really allowed the stakes to sink in for the audience.

 

Anyway, perfectly fine movie, I am sure to buy it and add it to my collection, but Empire Strikes Back this ain't.

[YRBB]

It was amazing. Exactly what I hoped for it to be.

[Skin]

The film's story premise feels formulaic ( I am pretty sure this new ttrilogy follows the same set from the previous ones), to the point where I already know how everything is going to end up. I know the Star Wars story elements aren't exactly progressive, but it certainly does take away the element of mysticism and intrigue if you already know how everything is going to happen. I felt the characters were a bit to contemporary/conventional, which didn't jive with the time period, and in a way felt a bit too much of an effort to make these characters seem relatable. It's one thing to expect that from The Avengers or any of the super hero films in contemporary time periods quite another to feel that from Star Wars which usually has a bit of an older and more ancient and distinguished vibe to it. 

 

That being said the action sequences were all very enjoyable. But I found the characterization to be shaky at best, these characters never feel like fleshed out characters, but archetypes that have already gone threw this story cycle once before. The acting in some places felt a bit stilted because these characters just felt like mere copies of characters we have already seen, in a similar story template. I'd give it a weak 7 at best. 

[wingwalker]

I really enjoyed the film. It's a solid 4 in my rankings of Star Wars films, close behind the original 3. There's a few things I would have done differently, but I liked the new characters much more than I expected to. I can't wait for Episode 8. 

[quartermainefan]

The one thing most I would have changed would be keeping C3PO and R2D2 as the throughline that links all the movies together castwise.   They didn't need to recast them with BB8 save for the opportunity to sell more toys.

[Chris B]

I thought the way they used C3PO and R2D2 was excellent. I was so excited when C3PO popped up and R2 was crucial to the story. That in addition to the search for Luke left me wanting more. The writer said originally Rey was going to meet Luke early on and he was going to be her Obe, but that is predictable. I'm glad they saved him for the end because that is a HUGE pull for where the next film can go. Plus Rey needed a companion so obviously there was a need to create someone new with BB8. I like that since Han was the one dying that he was given a large showcase. The next film can showcase Leia and Luke more and it'll be more exciting because they didn't blow their wad in the first film. 

[YRBB]

 

Absolutely, 100% spot on. FORCE AWAKENS delivered a lot of what the audience wanted (more Han! More Chewie! More Leia!) but also VERY wisely made you want more from Luke and made us really wait for C3PO and R2 to the point that it was a huge "YES!" moment when they did show up. Now, I'm waiting for the next movie to see more from those three, and that is just a brilliant move on their part. Also, BB8 was fantastic. His role in the movie was crucial, and everyone in the theater LOVED him.

 

Some other thoughts:

 

A multi-faceted, complex villain whose motivation we understand and who will undoubtedly continue to evolve? That's fantastic. Driver was phenomenal.

 

LOVED how strong and amazing Rey was. I was laughing so hard at all those moments early on in the film when Finn was trying to do the stereotypical "let me help you, you're a woman" stuff you see in action movies and she kept looking at him like, "what? What do you mean 'am I okay?' Are YOU okay?" lmao

 

I always liked THAT scene, but the more I think about it, the even better it becomes.

[wingwalker]

From the trailers, I was worried BB-8 was going to replace R2-D2 as well. R2 is my favorite character. Even though R2 didn't get much airtime, I think it worked. BB-8 ended with Poe, while R2 went Rey to find Luke. If Rey is who most think she is, she and R2 should have plenty of bonding in the next two movies. 

[Taoboi]

Saw it.

 

Loved it though I see the flaws. I choose to see it as the writers trying to be retrospective in the plot but modernizing it for the next generation.

 

Love the vision. And the last scene took my breath away. PERFECTION.

 

 

[Cheap21]

I saw it yesterday and quite enjoyed it. With that said it was nothing more than a rehash of the first film. It didnt feel like a sequel; more like a remake. It drew so many elements from the OT and nearly played the same beats. I wish it were more original bc it made for a VERY predictable film

[ChitHappens]

Underwhelming as !@#$%^&*]!  Daisy Ridly's career has already been mapped out due to this film.  She is a fantastic young actress.  John Boyega?  Well, he can tell Tyler Perry I said hello.  Finn could barely be taken serious.  John has the chops, but too bad we were supposed to be laughing "with" Finn 1/2 the time.  

 

The film itself was boring to me.  I binged watched the first 6 because my fella asked me to.  I then couldn't wait to go to TFA because I, too, wanted to be a part of something so big.  Thank Gawd I went to the matinee show and paid 1/2!  

[Toups]

Finally saw it!  I no longer have to be paranoid about someone spoiling the movie for me, not having to quickly divert my eyes or quickly scroll away from anything Star Wars related.  LOL

 

Loved this film! I thought it was better than the original trilogy (I liked episodes 4-6, I just didn't think love it), even though it had a similar storyline pattern.  My favourites were definitely Rey and BB8 (it's cute).   It was great seeing original cast back.  Han :(.......at least he had a big part in the movie.  I'm very much looking forward to the next one - that last scene with Rey/Luke left me wanting more, wanting to see them. 

 

TFA is already going to be the highest grossing film in history and it has mostly positive reviews from critics and fans.  And as a huge JJ Abrams fan, I'm so happy for him.  I hope the film can get an Oscar nomination for Best Picture, like the way LOTR: ROTK and Avatar did.