Rather startled Star Wars reaction

[sabotabby]

I genuinely liked it. As in into every second of it and applauded various creative decisions and almost, almost forgive J.J. Abrams for screwing up Star Trek.

I had zero expectations, as part of the generation that was betrayed by the prequels, and even though it had good reviews, I did not believe it would be good until:

• Opening crawl with no mention of trade federations or taxes or anything.


• No fucking green screen CGI bullshit.


• Completely ignores the existence of the prequels.


• Stormtrooper with PTSD.


• Actual blood when people die! Violence has consequences and it's not a mindless cartoon.


• The setting felt lived-in, and like they were picking up from the fallout of the first three. I particularly loved Rey living in the ruins of an AT-AT.


• Lucky for Poe that he found the one Stormtrooper with a good aim.


• There were nods to the originals, but also subversions. While Rey is Luke's daughter, probably, you got to know the characters as people rather than Chosen Ones. Very little mystical bollocks. They destroyed the Starkiller by utilization of everyone's knowledge base + lots and lots of firepower, rather than one special guy turning off his targeting system and trusting Space Jesus.


• I really loved the new characters. I was predisposed to like Finn because of Boyega's role in Attack the Block, but they were all good, and quite decent acting from everyone involved.


• Minimal silly alien shit. The new droid and new little alien were cute but not cloying, like they are marketable as toys but also not annoying for adults.


• Leia. Unapologetically old and not thin and she's still a total badass and I love her.


• Roles for Han and Chewy that felt necessary and not like fanservice.


• Bechdel win. Places where you would expect a bit character to be male (or white) and then they weren't.


• Rey not getting shunted aside so that one of the dudes could have the crowning moment of badassery at the end. Nope, she's the heroine. Awesome.


• The Triumph of the Will scene, in case you weren't sure if the Empire were supposed to be Space Nazis.


• Your latest favourite Twitter account: Emo Kylo Ren.

Anyway really happy to be wrong.

Comments

[mle292.livejournal.com]

Excellent points, I agree wholeheartedly.

Thanks for the Emo Kylo Ren recommendation. Best tweets I can't share.

[sabotabby]

Yeah, now I'm sitting on spoilers until the internet deems it socially acceptable to say things again.

Mildly Entertaining

[seldonp38.livejournal.com]

I first saw the Original movies when I was a kid. I saw the Prequel movies when I was in my late twenties. Needless to say, I enjoyed all six films, but I had an easier time with embracing the Prequel movies than I did the Original films.

Like you, I believe J.J. Abrams had screwed up the two Star Trek movies that he did. Unlike you, I was not impressed with "The Force Awakens". Mind you, I found it entertaining. But its slavish remake of "A New Hope" and some further vague writing left me feeling unimpressed. I only hope that Rian Johnson does better than this.

Re: Mildly Entertaining

[sabotabby]

I didn't think it was a remake. It certainly echoed the notes and structure of the first one, but it felt more of a response than a rehash.

[karinmollberg.livejournal.com]

Really?
That would mean, I can see(z) as in seize it with the kids? I tend to avoid doing that but Princess Mononoke was a nice surprise (and I share your reluctance because I have the same difficulty relating to animated figures unless really, really well made and she and the story was) and they've seen Tolkien, Monty Python's Graal and stuff like that so are no whiners; they can actually be good fun at times like these and invading the house today (say no more) but you never know...hope so; I'm going to see some films (apart from Holmes of whom I'm now tired;) but this means, one has to go outside and then to a cinema, right?
I always liked the actress who does Leia and after not only that Blues Brothers scene (where I love her looks&acting) she sure needs her revenge!

[sabotabby]

1/1 7-year-olds interviewed by a friend reportedly declare it to be the Best Movie Ever.

[50-ft-queenie.livejournal.com]

The 9 year old I saw it with gave it two thumbs-up and declared it *awesome!"

[karinmollberg.livejournal.com]

Sounds promising enough!

[kryss-labryn.livejournal.com]

My ten-year-old loved it and also declared it "Best movie evar!1!"; the six-year-old would have liked it better if she hadn't decided she was terribly, terribly thirsty twenty minutes in (we didn't get snacks as we'd JUST eaten and it was too riveting to take her for a drink--she'd had drinks with her food but I guess didn't actually, you know, drink it).

But yeah, the kids should love it too. :)

[outcastspice.livejournal.com]

Yes!! Great summary. :)

[sabotabby]

Thanks!

[smhwpf.livejournal.com]

All of this. Like I said in the other place, it took me back to the '70s (I saw the UK premiere!). But it was still fresh.

Rey and Finn both awesome. Loved that they have as one of the main heroes a soldier who refused to kill.

[sabotabby]

Yes! Amazeballs and very unexpected.

[mistersmearcase.livejournal.com]

I don't have a lot of investment in the old ones (saw them in the theater as a kid, liked them, saw them later and got that they were a couple of good movies and a not so good movie) and I only saw the first of the terrible new ones because I'm not a masochist. Yeah, I had a great time at this one. A few of the fanservice moments were clumsy and the Han/Leia exposition was not the most convincing thing, but I just...wasn't ever bored. I did have a moment of WTF when Rilo Kiley took off his helmet and was the funny-looking creep from Girls. And yeah it was genuinely nostalgic to see the people from the originals. The main thing was the tone/feel of it was right.

What's disappointing is it sounds like now they're set up to just keep bringing out sequels and prequels forever. The next one is apparently something right before Episode IV but with all new characters. I'm only interested if they get Tom Stoppard to write it and it's effectively Rosencrantz & Gildenstern in Space.

[sabotabby]

I would actually love Rosencrantz & Gildenstern in Space. It's the main ground that needs to be broken in Hollywood movies—fantasy that is not about special people.

[jvmatucha.livejournal.com]

The overall feeling aI have when thinking about the new movie is "derivative".

Seriously.

http://jvmatucha.livejournal.com/590897.html

[sabotabby]

I saw it more as "riffing off" than "ripping off." But also, New Hope is my favourite one, and the more like it, the better.

[kryss-labryn.livejournal.com]

I went into more detail in my LJ, but I don't think they could have done anything but go back to the original with this one. We have collectively been burned so badly on the prequels, that we really needed them to go back to the original and do it right. Not to necessarily remake ANH; but definitely to bring it back to the foundations of what Star Wars is all about. It's not shiny new stuff and trade negotiations and terribly, terribly boring CG battles for stakes you don't care about with unexciting music over them. It's Star Wars! Crappy old lived-in, used tech, stuff that feels real. Space battles! Exciting fights with real actors with laser swords! Music that echoes the action on screen and has you on the edge of your seat! Characters you actually give a damn about, because they have character! Personality!

I think they needed to keep it this close to the core of what the OT was in order to win our trust, so that we would be willing to follow them further into new territory for the next ones. They've shown that they understand the roots, that the get what Star Wars is in a way even George Lucas seems to have forgotten about.

I can't wait for 2017. :D

[sabotabby]

Agreed. It was also a graceful way to introduce the new generation; the parallels and differences with the old cast are made explicit. Much as I'd initially wanted the new ones to have nothing at all to do with the Skywalkers, I thought it worked really well.

[kryss-labryn.livejournal.com]

OMG OMG OMG!! XD Emo Kyle Ren is fucking hilarious. Like, hilarious. But, dude, here's a tweet from the 24th:

dear diary
hux and i have made livejournal accounts
his name on it is starkiller and mine is xXxVaderxXx
7:41 AM - 24 Dec 2015

But get this. LiveJournal doesn't recognize the name.

He made a joke about it but didn't do it.

.
.
.

We could do it. :DDD

Anyone feel like grabbing it and channelling their angsty inner teen? Maybe write some bad poetry? :DDD

[sabotabby]

You should! I might have taken on a few too many lulzy projects for the new year already.

[ironed_orchid]

I loved that Rey gets to be the New Han Solo and the New Luke Skywalker, leaving Finn and possibly Poe to be something completely different which should involve lots of kissing they might get to figure out for themselves.

I am still on adrenaline high and reading everyone's weeks old star Wars posts, will get around to appreciating your Atlas Shrugged post soon.

[sabotabby]

Yeah. I don't want them to align perfectly with the legacy characters. I want them to do their own thing (and also kiss a lot).

[ironed_orchid]

ALL THE KISSING while Rey gets on with saving the galaxy.

[sabotabby]

C'mon. They can help save the galaxy and make out.

[ironed_orchid]

It's true. Although Finn may be busy looking after the rebel's sanitation needs.