Star Wars: Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)

[dimejinky99]

I dunno..it was opening day here today and i sat in a sold out theater about 2pm (no costumed superfans) and everyone cheered when the intro&fanfare hit, when the falcon appeared, when each of the characters we know were revealed...it was fun

[Norah]

I dunno..it was opening day here today and i sat in a sold out theater about 2pm (no costumed superfans) and everyone cheered when the intro&fanfare hit, when the falcon appeared, when each of the characters we know were revealed...it was fun

that sounds awful

[dimejinky99]

I dunno..it was opening day here today and i sat in a sold out theater about 2pm (no costumed superfans) and everyone cheered when the intro&fanfare hit, when the falcon appeared, when each of the characters we know were revealed...it was fun

that sounds awful

Normally i'd agree! its like those people who applaud when the plane lands!! spastics!!

but it was justified and felt right today...we've waited too long for Star Wars to be great again.

[Monkey_Driven]

hate when people make me realise shit...

the whole sequence with Han, the two gangs and the dangerous animals..that whole sequence serves no purpose really..except to establish Han is back being a scoundrel, but the story didnt need it at that length

That sequence was so short it didn't really bother me.

[Sgt. Crackpot]

I hated the Falcon reveal. So telegraphed.

shut it..that reveal was amazing...it's visible in the periphery for a couple of shots if you look for it..

but that reveal was perfect..pure star wars

It would have been great without the whole
"What about that ship... No, its garbage" part.

I disagree. I thought that was a brilliant way to reveal it. It was unexpected, and on par with the humour.

[Sgt. Crackpot]

Snoke isn't that big. He's just projected at that scale.

I think this as aswell. It'll turn out he's quite small, maybe Yoda size or even smaller again.

[dimejinky99]

I hated the Falcon reveal. So telegraphed.

shut it..that reveal was amazing...it's visible in the periphery for a couple of shots if you look for it..

but that reveal was perfect..pure star wars

It would have been great without the whole
"What about that ship... No, its garbage" part.

I disagree. I thought that was a brilliant way to reveal it. It was unexpected, and on par with the humour.

agreed..

weird nobody has noticed she's clearly tinkered on the ship before for however long it was sitting there, and didnt know it was the millennium falcon..

that whole bit with Han...'youre THE Han Solo?? this is the millennium falcon???' and knowing about the kessel run..THAT was a bit of a clanger

a leap..

[dimejinky99]

Mel Brooks confirms development on Spaceballs sequel, hopefully with the original cast
http://www.blastr.com/2015-2-6/mel-broo ... ginal-cast

[dimejinky99]

new behind the scenes featurette
http://www.starwarsunderworld.com/2015/ ... cenes.html

[Monkey_Driven]

I liked how Rey recognized him as Han Solo the smuggler while Fin as the Rebel General.

[Sgt. Crackpot]

I hated the Falcon reveal. So telegraphed.

shut it..that reveal was amazing...it's visible in the periphery for a couple of shots if you look for it..

but that reveal was perfect..pure star wars

It would have been great without the whole
"What about that ship... No, its garbage" part.

I disagree. I thought that was a brilliant way to reveal it. It was unexpected, and on par with the humour.

agreed..

weird nobody has noticed she's clearly tinkered on the ship before for however long it was sitting there, and didnt know it was the millennium falcon..

that whole bit with Han...'youre THE Han Solo?? this is the millennium falcon???' and knowing about the kessel run..THAT was a bit of a clanger

a leap..

I'm not sure that that particular design of ship is unique in that universe, although not often seen. What makes the ship unique is perhaps the modifications.

Or, maybe she didn't know what the Millennium Falcon looked like? And only knew that that was the name of the ship. Being apparent folklore, it's possible that the "Chinese whispers" had distorted the perception of what type of ship it was. i.e. she wasn't expecting something that looked like a piece of junk.

[lowlight79]

Just got back, first off, I was pretty high as we ripped bong hits it the parking lot and I haven't smoked in about two years. But anyway, it's a good start, I figured we would only see a little of Luke. I felt Adam driver was very good. I wish the first order, the republic and the resistance were a little more fleshed out. Other than that, dos they destroy couranstant?

[dimejinky99]

I hated the Falcon reveal. So telegraphed.

shut it..that reveal was amazing...it's visible in the periphery for a couple of shots if you look for it..

but that reveal was perfect..pure star wars

It would have been great without the whole
"What about that ship... No, its garbage" part.

I disagree. I thought that was a brilliant way to reveal it. It was unexpected, and on par with the humour.

agreed..

weird nobody has noticed she's clearly tinkered on the ship before for however long it was sitting there, and didnt know it was the millennium falcon..

that whole bit with Han...'youre THE Han Solo?? this is the millennium falcon???' and knowing about the kessel run..THAT was a bit of a clanger

a leap..

I'm not sure that that particular design of ship is unique in that universe, although not often seen. What makes the ship unique is perhaps the modifications.

Or, maybe she didn't know what the Millennium Falcon looked like? And only knew that that was the name of the ship. Being apparent folklore, it's possible that the "Chinese whispers" had distorted the perception of what type of ship it was. i.e. she wasn't expecting something that looked like a piece of junk.

well i guess so...all that and the fact that it was stolen so her boss/(slave owner?) wouldnt volunteer that info maybe..

[dimejinky99]

Just got back, first off, I was pretty high as we ripped bong hits it the parking lot and I haven't smoked in about two years. But anyway, it's a good start, I figured we would only see a little of Luke. I felt Adam driver was very good. I wish the first order, the republic and the resistance were a little more fleshed out. Other than that, dos they destroy couranstant?

its not Coruscant...its perhaps JJ flipping the bird to the prequels in the design of it..

[dimejinky99]

I know they wont, but lads, open this...I hope the story stays here for a while w/Luke&Rey...its perfect as an ancient jedi temple(the first?)
Irish monks lived here for hundreds of years totally isolated & keeping the written word alive while Europe was in the dark ages..that rhymes with the Jedi story for me

have a look
https://www.google.ie/search?q=skellig+ ... 0Q_AUIBigB

[Strat]

For stip:

A review written by my friend with some comments about his kid he brought with him. Non spoiler review!

Spoiler: show

Alright! I am exhausted but also a bit amped-up! So here's my spoiler-free (I promise) reaction to the movie.
1. The movie was great. It's too early on to rank it against the other 6 but it is very, very good. The plot was relatively simple but it had several subplots/threads within it that made the movie very intriguing. The original movie (Ep IV) had a simple plotline of good versus evil and this one had that same simplistic quality about it that makes it easy for a young kid to sink its teeth into.
2. While the movie overall arc was direct, it had several threads quite nicely fit into the film for the adult SW fan who needs more than this good guy fighting that bad guy and lernin' people with light sabers.
3. As far as taking kids to the movie: It starts off very fast and grabs you right away. There's a slower middle part that was necessary where they had to set up characters and explain what all has happened for the last 30 years. That middle part was a challenge for Zachary, but when the action took off again he was all in. There is violence but nothing as graphic as what we saw at the end of Revenge of the Sith. I felt comfortable with Zachary seeing it and I don't have any fears of him having nightmares or anything.
4. The several threads set up are in my opinion set up for the next two films. The movie ends with more questions than answers and an incredible cliffhanger, but it was very satisfying with a defined ending. I want to know what happens next but at the same time I didn't feel like "Oh man, why did it end there?" Very well done! That would be hard to do.
5. The acting was the best of all 7 movies. I can't see how anyone can disagree with that.
6. There is a part towards the end of the movie that really, really pissed me off and I couldn't believe they did it. Ballsy, but it hurt the movie.
7. Seeing the Falcon, Han & Chewie, Leia, C3PO, R2, and Luke brought a huge wave of nostalgia over me. I saw all three original films as a young boy and to see these characters 30 years later looking 30 years older was pretty special to see.
8. We have humor again and lots of it Thank God. The prequels were so serious it was pretentious. Han really delivers in this regard.
9. Speaking of Han, he nails it and was the best character of the movie. I can't say enough good things about him. Leia was great as well. They are older, more mature versions of themselves. Abrams didn't write them as characters as if they would be the same at 60/70 as they were at 30/40.
10. Be ready for lots and lots of trailers. The official start time was 7pm but it was 7:20 before we saw "LUCASFILM" on the screen. Oh, it was odd not hearing the 20th Century Fox theme before the opening crawl/Star Wars theme we all know so well. Makes sense as Disney distributes the film now instead of 20th Century Fox. But still, odd.
11. Speaking of the crawl, it was direct and dramatic, just like the original trilogy. Nothing about taxes, embargoing blockades, trade disputes or arguing congressmen. It puts you right where the films starts, simple and direct.
12. The way people talk in this film is very modern and reflects now. There's a part where a black actor says "DROID, PLEASE!" as if he were Chad Johnson saying "CHILD, PLEASE." There are other examples "I know, right?!?!?" etc etc. It's 2015, I get it, not saying anything good or bad but it was something I noticed. Part of getting older is noticing how the youngin's talk, ha.
That's it! Avoid spoilers and go see it.

[dimejinky99]

Cool review:)

your pal is right

Han owns this movie..Brilliant performance from Ford. 'Cept it's not Ford..it's Han..100%

[LetMeSleep]

Loved it. At first I thought Abrams was going to do 270deg rotates all the way through but that only happened 3-4 times throughout, 2 in the first 5 minutes. That long battle scene on the ground without a cut was great too. Nice POV feel to it. I can't really fault any of the production, graphic or audio choices in the film except maybe as Sarge said Ren's helmet voice seemed a bit off (thinking about it it's close mic'd and amplified which is exactly what it would be. The problem lies with no ambient room atmosphere to the voice).

Rey is brilliant. So glad that there's a female lead with charisma. She's magnetic, the camera loves her, the kids will love her, damn I love her. She's vulnerable now but she has so much scope to grow. And her voice is beautiful.

Finn. Great that his accent is even throughout (that goes for all). It's a difficult role as we can all speculate on how a trained stormtrooper set free would act. He nails the unbridled joy/fear/anxiety. He's complex but hasn't got much to work with as SW films usually aren't dialogue heavy.

Poe again has magnetism. He will shine in the next 2.

Ren again is a complex character with little scope to shine. He comes across as striving to be what he wants to be but falls prey to bouts of tantrums. It's perfect. His face and voice are perfect. He needs screentime so the Rickmanisms can shine/flow.

BB8 is great too. I prefer him to R2D2. C3PO is as annoying as ever but he does what he does. Clumsily gets in the way and works as a scene changer.

I particularly like how the stormtroopers have some humanity both in the movements and reactions. As a kid I don't think I ever thought that there were actual people in there. Of course I knew it but I never questioned why? The blood on the helmet really worked visually. Ren's struggles helped that too. The attention to detail with costumes with dents, mud/blood or even dust really brought reality to the dark side. The OT has everything pristine.

I would have liked about 10 mins more dialogue throughout the whole movie. That'll be a directors cut I'm sure. Overall the movie was exciting and never let up. It was exactly what we all wanted and needed. Sure it was ANH with ESB and ROTJ hints and production.

ESB
ROTJ
TFA
ANH

[BurtReynolds]

[southp]

Guys... I cried. There, I said it.