The Gang of Five
Beyond the Mysterious Beyond => The Arts => Silver Screen => Topic started by: F-14 Ace on December 19, 2015, 01:57:04 AM
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Ok, so who has seen it and who plans on seeing it? I'm going to go see it this coming Tuesday. Reviews thus far have been overwhelmingly positive and people I know who have already seen it said it's amazing and that it really recaptures the feel and charm of the original trilogy. All in all, this sounds very promising. I'm definitely hyped.
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It could be a few weeks before I see this one. I'll try to catch it by the end of the year.
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i'm going to see it around Christmas
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I saw it when it came out on the first day and I'll tell you it is Awesome!
It was such a great movie, with topics that one wold not originally expect as well as few prev ideas from org trilogy. I find it was also the right length of time with many scenes emotional as well as amazing action packed scenes. Can't wait for episode 8 to come out. Trying not to spoil it as much as I can.
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I'll pirate it in a year or two (it's safer to wait a few years before downloading something that just came out). If it's good, I'll buy the blu-ray or something. Honestly I don't have to have the latest and greatest. Even as a star wars fan, I can wait a few years. It's better than wasting $20 on movie tickets and/or buying the movie just to find out its crap. I do the same thing with games. I'm still playing new PS3 and Xbox 360 games. I don't want to waste the money on new stuff when it can be all new to me later down the road for either free or 1/4 the price.
The one exception is LBT movies. I'll buy LBT 14 as soon as it comes out to show my support. Even if it's crap, it will be worth the investment.
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I'll pirate it in a year or two (it's safer to wait a few years before downloading something that just came out). If it's good, I'll buy the blu-ray or something. Honestly I don't have to have the latest and greatest. Even as a star wars fan, I can wait a few years. It's better than wasting $20 on movie tickets and/or buying the movie just to find out its crap. I do the same thing with games. I'm still playing new PS3 and Xbox 360 games. I don't want to waste the money on new stuff when it can be all new to me later down the road for either free or 1/4 the price.
The one exception is LBT movies. I'll buy LBT 14 as soon as it comes out to show my support. Even if it's crap, it will be worth the investment.
Or you could watch it with a friend once they buy a copy instead of going about it illegally.
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^^He's an avid pirate. They tend to pirate first just to see if it's any good. If it is, they'll likely buy it if they can afford it.
I seriously don't see him changing anytime soon. :)
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That is nothing to smile about or encourage.
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Or you could watch it with a friend once they buy a copy instead of going about it illegally.
Nah, I've been burned too many times by crappy movies and software (I don't listen to music). I buy movies and software, but only once I'm sure they're decent. I can't tell you how many software programs I have to pirate in order to find something decent. When I do, I buy it. The last movie I bought was the Angel Beats series, but I pirated it and watched it first. Since then I've pirated about 20 different movies/tv series and they were all crap so I deleted them. If it was like $1 or $2 for a movie (like it should be), I wouldn't bother. But $20 to $70 for a movie/tv series is asinine if it turns out to be crap. Most people my age are doing the same thing.
I used to rent movies before I bought them, but that doesn't exist anymore. You've got Redbox, but the selection is limited. Netflix isn't great either. Netflix will probably get this new Star Wars movie in about 5 years and by then 2 more will have come out.
Why do you think they don't let you return movies to the store if they're crap? They claim it's because people will just copy them and then return them, but the reality is, the movie studios produce such crap content nowadays if they allowed returns, they'd go under. Sure you have binge movie watchers that just watch a movie one time and then never watch it again, but they're in the minority.
They claim that ever time a movie is pirated, it's a lost sale. That's total BS. If I couldn't pirate, I wouldn't own 1/10th of the movies I do. I have a conscience. The copy of Angel Beats I purchased hasn't even been opened. Why would I bother? I don't even have a DVD player anymore (except in my computer). Haven't for many years. I bought it because I wanted to show my support to the movie studios, not because I wanted or needed the DVD.
I'll do the same thing with LBT 14. I'll probably pirate it first because it's quicker than buying the movie in the stores. But I'll buy it a few days later when I see it in Target or wherever.
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we dont condone piracy here lbtlover. you know that. is piracy a problem? yes. is it worth changing copyright law and narrowing fair use exemptions? imo, no. however we dont want to give the impression that we condone in any way what you are doing. I trust you understand this.
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I gotta agree with Nick on this one. Seriously, just watch the film with a friend over at their house after one of them have bought their own copy of the film. Or you could borrow it at your leisure for free. I fail to see how that is asking too much. If it sucks, he or she can just turn the blasted thing off and you can watch something else.
Does piracy really HAVE to be your only option?
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Just got back from seeing it. Let me just start by saying that this totally makes up for the disappointment of the prequels! They took everything that made Star Wars great and fun and brought it back in a new and refreshing way. Sure, there are some old cliches but they're done well. This movie truly recaptures the feel of the old Star Wars movies. On top of that, it's an entirely new story. With the prequels, we all knew how they would eventually end. With this, there's no telling. The movie also has some shocking twists that I won't spoil. But yeah, Star Wars is back and it's kicking butt again. Do yourselves a favor if you haven't seen it yet. It's worth every penny.
PS: Never piss off Chewie.
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Just saw it yesterday with some friends. I gotta say, I definitely enjoyed it. While it wasn't an absolutely stupidly awesome movie, I'd give it a solid B+ to A-.
Lots of fun, classic Star Wars feel with a modern twist and Kylo Ren's lightsaber kicks ASS. I'm sorry. :lol
Similar enough to the original trilogy to stay true to it but takes its own direction often enough with regards to presentation and structure that I can overlook the blatant similarities. Overall definitely worth my time and a solid addition to Star Wars. :)
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Haven't had the urge to go to a movie theater in over a year, but I risked it for this one, and it was well worth it. The mix of practical and special effects was beautiful, and it's so nice to see a movie that has something to say, but doesn't take itself too seriously.
I even went to see it a second time, though I mainly just focused on the shot composition and set design on that run :yes
Also, has anyone else watched the Clone Wars TV series? Kylo Ren and Rey's dynamic reminds me a lot of The Daughter and The Son. I am interested to see where they go with the next two movies :smile
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Saw the film. Just the mouthwash the dentist ordered to get the bad taste of the prequels out.
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Saw the film. Just the mouthwash the dentist ordered to get the bad taste of the prequels out.
The force is strong with that response. Well-put.
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Sorry for being such a party pooper, but here is something everybody should see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNAy7yCMyBw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNAy7yCMyBw)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPgtvVTmJMg (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPgtvVTmJMg)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sp3DievQvdw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sp3DievQvdw)
Not trying to ruin everybody’s experience on the movie here, but you should give them some serious thought here.
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Sorry for being such a party pooper, but here is something everybody should see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNAy7yCMyBw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNAy7yCMyBw)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPgtvVTmJMg (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPgtvVTmJMg)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sp3DievQvdw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sp3DievQvdw)
Not trying to ruin everybody’s experience on the movie here, but you should give them some serious thought here.
Yeah, no. The prequel fanboys dissing this movie are a very small minority. The second video comes off as particularly pretentious, with all the crap about "true fans" and whatnot. I'm suddenly reminded of all the rabid Star Trek fanboys I've encountered raging about how you're not a "true fan" if you like the reboot or how "true fans" don't watch Enterprise, among other such nonsense.
Here's a comment from the person who posted that video replying to someone in the comment section that demonstrates exactly why I despise these types of hipster fanboys.
If you like TFA then fine. More power to you. TFA does have all the gleam which appeals to the short attention spanned masses with cookie cutter characters, dumbed down screenplay and fast paced action sequences. The prequels may have been awkward, but they have something TFA does not have and that is soul.
I just love it when these self-righteous, elitist snobs go on some spiel about "the masses" as if they somehow think they're better than everyone else. My usual response to people like this is to verbally flip them the middle finger and add them to my "ignore" list. I certainly hope you're not one of those types.
EDIT: Somebody tried to say that this movie sucks because all the reviews for it on IMDB were overwhelmingly negative. Well, after looking through the negative reviews on IMDB, I find that most of them consist of butthurt fanboy rage regarding a character death, some people whining about affirmative action and political correctness, people whining about similarities to A New Hope, and just a bunch of crap in general. Few of them make any valid points for why they think the movie is actually bad and most of them are just mindless nerd rage.
As for the people claiming that the prequels were better for being "original", give me a break! You can't seriously sit there and tell me with a straight face that you think Waaaaaaaanakin, the cringe-worthy dialogue, the in-your-face CGI and green screens, the lifeless narrative, and that insipid pile of fail that was Jar Jar Binks is somehow better than what the new movie delivered.
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A rather bold claim, Ace. Perhaps you would be willing to back it up?
I may not know how many prequel fans there are in comparison, but I will tell that there are those who accept it and the originals as canon, along with a few with the Expanded Universe. Here is something you should see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLUG1tIbBLg (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLUG1tIbBLg), so that you can see why the prequels are deeper than you think.
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Hey, ARAJediMaster, I refuse to watch those videos. And Ace is exactly right. The new film is excellent while the prequels were terrible. Deal with it. You have no right to try to dampen anyone's enjoyment of this film, regardless of how butthurt you are. The only documentary I am willing to listen to regarding the prequels are the Red Letter Media ones.
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Hey, ARAJediMaster, I refuse to watch those videos. And Ace is exactly right. The new film is excellent while the prequels were terrible. Deal with it. You have no right to try to dampen anyone's enjoyment of this film, regardless of how butthurt you are. The only documentary I am willing to listen to regarding the prequels are the Red Letter Media ones.
I should have expected that you would reply like that. It goes to show how little you truly know. Star Wars is a far larger galaxy than you know, and these links will help to explain:
http://swforce4continuity.info/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/why-it-exists/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/why-it-exists/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/the-eras-of-star-wars/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/the-eras-of-star-wars/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/cultures/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/cultures/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/heroes/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/heroes/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/the-fringe-characters/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/the-fringe-characters/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/imperial/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/imperial/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/defenders-expanded-universe/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/defenders-expanded-universe/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/videos/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/videos/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/arguments-and-counters/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/arguments-and-counters/)
http://swforce4continuity.info/star-wars-continuity/ (http://swforce4continuity.info/star-wars-continuity/)
http://www.coffeewithkenobi.com/missing-th...-by-daniel-noa/ (http://www.coffeewithkenobi.com/missing-the-point-an-analysis-of-star-wars-the-force-awakens-part-i-a-guest-blog-by-daniel-noa/)
http://www.coffeewithkenobi.com/missing-th...-by-daniel-noa/ (http://www.coffeewithkenobi.com/missing-the-point-an-analysis-of-star-wars-the-force-awakens-part-ii-a-guest-blog-by-daniel-noa/)
George Lucas personally worked with others help expand and enrich his universe in places where his films could not go. While the focus of the six Star Wars films (six because not only do I refuse the new movie and material produced under Disney as canon, but because the company snubbed Lucas by “playing it safe” with their story and rehashed Episode IV when they said they would have him as a consultant) is not simply about adventure and excitement; it is about society, opposing races setting aside their differences working together for the common good, the corruption of government and the rise of dictators, the conflict of families, the temptation and fall of a hero, how his children learn to cope with their heritage, and how one goes far enough to free his father while keeping his integrity.
I pity you. I do not hate you, only pity you if you refuse to open your eyes to these meanings.
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Alright guys calm down. we;re not going to have a flame war over this. if this does not stop I will be forced to lock this thread. yes 7 was partly a rehash of 4 and 5, and yes the prequels stunk. Robot Chickens Emperors Phone Call sketch put things perfectly on that score. The thread is to discuss the film ,not whether Disney is a money-counting machine or whether JJ Abrams ruined the series. it is supposed to be carried out in a civil manner, and I trust everyone here understands that.
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You're right, arguing with something like ARAJedimaster is beneath me.
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I just hope everyone can remember one thing:
Movies are an extremely subjective art form. Your opinion is not the defining factor of a movie's worth. Whether you liked the movie or did not, you need to respect other people who feel differently than you do. Saying that you 'pity them' for liking something that you don't is condescending and childish.
Was The Force Awakens the most original movie ever? No. I love it for the character chemistry and art direction, and because I am very much hoping that they will delve more into the balance between the light and dark sides of the force, and why both of them are necessary. I also feel like they might be heading toward some kind of revelation in regards to the circular nature of the light/dark struggle- possibly why Luke ran off so quickly. He saw history repeating itself and just couldn't take it, felt like all of their sacrifices had been meaningless.
Also, news flash, episodes 4-6 are not terribly original or plot-driven. They're pretty much just recycled from Akira Kurosawa's films. They're still awesome, though :D
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I've seen it three times and i still enjoyed it every viewing. I wanna read the new material that builds up to the movie before episode VII comes out. Empire still remains my favorite but this is in my list of favorite Star Wars films. While it was not original at all it gives the studio the opportunity to go their own way with VII and IX. I've developed many theories about some of the characters.
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I just hope everyone can remember one thing:
Movies are an extremely subjective art form. Your opinion is not the defining factor of a movie's worth. Whether you liked the movie or did not, you need to respect other people who feel differently than you do. Saying that you 'pity them' for liking something that you don't is condescending and childish.
Sadly, Darkwolf, this is how most Star Wars fan act.
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I'm wondering if I should start a second topic to discuss spoilers or just discuss them here. After all, the movie has been out since before Christmas and if someone hasn't seen it yet, that's their own fault.
Also, I'll just leave this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbpgM-JTang) here. :D
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I personally liked it, though in my opinion it could have been a bit more original. Also, I hated the death of a certain character, and the fact that another character didn't appear until the last seconds of the movie. However, it was pretty good overall, and it was nice having a girl being the main protagonist for a change.
Personally, I would rank my favorite Star Wars movies as:
Empire Strikes Back
Return of the Jedi
A New Hope
Revenge of the Sith
Force Awakens
Attack of the Clones
Phantom Menace
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Hmm, if I had to rank the movies from favorite to least favorite I'd probably go with:
Empire Strikes Back (this movie just got everything right)
Return of the Jedi (The scenes with Luke vs Vader with the emperor are some of the most powerful in cimena history)
A New Hope (Hard to find fault but plays it a little safer than Empire Strikes Back)
Force Awakens (lots of fun, never felt bored like in the prequels. Fantastic potential for sequels)
Revenge of the Sith (borderline actually good. I didn't hate it, it started off very engaging and had some genuinely very interesting moments. A handful of moments left me quite bored though)
Attack of the Clones (Almost as painful as Phantom Menace. Almost. I swear, I can watch this 3 or 4 times and still not know what the hell is going on. It's just all over the place)
Phantom Menace (I really can't find anything redeeming in this movie except the lightsabre duel and the podracing scenes. I couldn't care less about the story. The whole movie ends with a stroke of dumb luck and it's just a painful trainwreck to sit through. The Episode 1 Racer game was fun....)
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Careful, ARAJediLoser doesn't like it when people say nice things about stuff he hates.
My list:
Star Wars
The Force Awakens
The Return of the Jedi
The Empire Strikes Back
and those are the only Star Wars films in existence as far as I'm concerned.
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DVD came out today. I went and picked up a copy. It was just as awesome the second time around.
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I also already bought a copy of the film on DVD, likely despite the wishes of a certain cretin who will remain nameless.
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Terribly sorry for recalling this thread back from oblivion, but since I saw Rogue One this Monday I've dedicated some time to rewatching episodes four through seven in succession and this in turn gave me a lot of food for thoughts some of which I would like to share with you, people. ;)
So, after sitting through Force Awakens a second time yesterday I actually... Came to like that movie a lot more. Surprising, I know. The first time around once the euphoria of seeing a new chapter in the Star Wars saga settled down I've started to notice just how similar the new movie looked to New Hope and - to be honest - felt kind of cheated because of that. Now however I've uncovered a deeper kind of appreciation for episode VII and its characters. For instance I've heard people voicing opinions about Rey being a Mary Sue and such, but come on - Luke's been living his whole life prior to the original Star Wars movie in the safety of his uncle's farmstead and then when the moment arrived suddenly discovered he can handle firearms better than specially train military personel, pilot X-wings as well as any Rebellion veteran and deflect blaster fire with a lightsaber blindfolded after only a couple of days spent with Obi-Wan... But Rey being able to fight or pilot spacecrafts well is definitely overpowered. We're only talking about a girl who lived her entire life on a hostile planet with no infrastructure and had to either fend for herself or die of thirst and starvation. :p
I also begin to think that Kylo Ren is an underappreciated character. Die hard fans call him "Darth Whiny" and think he's a bit of a joke, but that's actually kinda the point: he's not supposed to be the next Darth Vader, the movie makes it clear that Ren is just a confused young man who's being manipulated by the Dark Side of the Force and just pretends he can be "as cool as grandpa". He's an imitator with a tragic backstory and not a bad focus for a new fable about the eternal struggle of good versus evil at that.
However the biggest problem with Ben's character as well as with the entire movie is bad presentation and complete and utter lack of any sensible universe building. I think everyone agrees on this part: we're shown and explained almost nothing about what's going on when the movie starts. The viewer knows absolutely nothing about the First Order or the Ressistance going in and why the New Republic doesn't really interfere in their conflict. We know very little about our new protagonists or the bad guys, we're given only the tiniest bits of information here and there and as a result can't embrace them as fully developed characters. I understand where J.J. Abrams was coming from with this: it's the same as in New Hope, where very little detail about anything was communicated to the audience and the story kept intentionally simple, but it's the seventh movie in the series - there's a galaxy of established lore and mythos, you can't just expect people to gulp down everything without asking any questions.
Take the Starkiller base for example - it's an extremely important plot element for Force Awakens, yet it just comes out of nowhere and noone in the movie itself bother to explain anything about it. They never tell you that it's an improved design compared to the previous Death Star weapon or that it's cheaper to build (what's easier to do: turn a planet into a weapon or build an entire planetoid from scratch?) or that the method by which it operate is completely different. Neither do they elaborate on that it has no reactor that can be blown up, but that a leak has to be caused in its stars consuming center to make the weapon implode on itself... No! They just do it and it goes out with a blast. This is an example of a huge missed opportunity on director's and Disney's part to invest the viewers in what was going on in a new Star Wars movie and the recently released Rogue One movie just makes it too darn obvious what the flaw with this one was. :(
And yeah, as of right now my top 5 favourite SW movies list looks as follows:
1. Empire Strikes Back - the absolute masterpiece;
2. New Hope - the one that started it all;
3. Rogue One - the best representation of many aspects of the series to date;
4. Return of the Jedi - the first half of it is a mess, but the ending is just iconic;
5. Force Awakens - kinda screwed up, but can still grow into something amazing. Only time will tell!
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I watched Force Awakens a few days after it premiered. I gotta say- I really enjoyed it.
Sure, it borrowed quite a bit from A New Hope, but it also developed its own unique
story and introduced well-developed characters. I can tell fans were pleased with
the old characters such as Han Solo and Chewbacca coming back.
The character that intrigued me the most was Supreme Leader Snoke. I can't wait to see
more of him in the Last Jedi this year.
Top 5 favorite Star Wars:
1. A New Hope
2. The Force Awakens
3. The Empire Strikes Back
4. Rogue One
5. Revenge of the Sith
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I still haven't see it yet my life is very busy but I'll see it soon.
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To be honest, I didn't like the film at all. It had severe shortcomings in originality but the greatest problem to me were the characters. Rey is a Mary Sue if I ever saw one, Finn has no personality at all and Kylo was just... annoying and unbelievable. There were some nice-looking scenes like the last fight in the snowy forest but that was very little compared to the problems. The main characters completely ruined the film for me and unless I hear something truly encouraging about the Last Jedi, I'm not going to see it. I could go on far longer about the things I didn't like but most people seemed to like it so I'll just stop here.
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By your post I'll see it and make my own review on the movie.
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I think they completely ruined the characters everyone has come to love over the years. Luke wouldn't run away and hide like a coward, and Han's development was ignored to make him a smuggler again. Leia was much better as a chief of state and Jedi Knight the way she was before. Disney should have stuck with the original canon, it was far better than anything they've come up with to date. I think people should support the drive to get them to publish new books in the Legends timeline.
And no, the prequels were NOT terrible. They could have been better, but the hate is totally unwarranted. The only thing I dislike, personally, is that they overshadowed the EU works coming out at the time and we didn't get nearly as many EU characters made into figures and merchandise as we should have.