SIGNIFICANT STAR WARS: Episode VII

THE FORCE FINALLY AWAKENS

                                                                     

(And it's more woke than ever before)

Welp, it's here kids; It's finally happened. We finally got new Star Wars for the first time in 10 years and for some, the first time in 32 years. Star Wars has not only returned to form, just the way you remember it, but it's arguably better than it's ever been (I'm not exaggerating).

  By crushing all-time box office records in just a matter of days, it's never been a more exciting time for this franchise from a far, far away Galaxy. Because you see, unlike 1999, a new chapter of Star Wars has begun and is far from a disappointment, proving to be one of the most rewarding films not just of the entire Star Wars franchise but of the entire year (maybe longer). After now having seen the film twice, I am confident in my words on the new film. Taking it all in after one viewing wasn't enough to justify the excitement my body felt upon first glance; the hype was just too strong. Now that I've (kinda) calmed down a tiny bit and having viewed the film a second time, I can view it through a fittingly appropriate lens and though I still have that Star Wars high; I still blindly stand by the film. I will preface by saying that I accept the new film and any of its flaws based on the simple fact that this isn't Citizen Kane folks; it's Star Wars... Let's be honest (Citizen Kane is overrated AF).

  Now sit down and shut up; turn on your lightsabers and listen to my rant if you will. I have a feeling the Force will be very strong with this one.

*SPOILERS THROUGHOUT, HEED MY WARNINGS*

Now THIS was the film we were looking for; a Star Wars movie that was FUN again (and almost completely void of politics... sounds just like my style); a Star Wars movie filled with brand new characters that fit snug into this galaxy (Rey's Daisy Ridley might have become every young-male-nerd's newest celebrity crush in record time, and who doesn't love BB8?), while paying tribute to the old characters and giving some of them a teary-eyed but fitting send off (DAMN YOU HAN WHY); a Star Wars movie that actually FEELS like a throwback to a wild western romp of the glorious days of John Wayne but in space, filled with a motley crew of irresistible gunslingers, despicable villains, lovable comic-reliefs, crystal clear nazi themes, and the cliche power of good triumphing over evil, holy Santa Claus shit, THESE... these are the droids we're looking for.

  Had I known I'd have had to wait 10 years for a movie of this caliber, I would have hyped it up even more than I already have these last few weeks. I would have literally died of anticipation.

  I've always been fond of JJ Abrams but the man's done it now. Some how he's done it. He's revived both Star Trek and Star Wars for a modern day big screen audience and he not only made them NOT suck, but he made movies that pay phenomenal tribute and homage to their fore-fathered predecessors while still kicking MAJOR ass on their own two feet. The man is a cinematic genius, if only on a popcorn-movie level, and might officially be the ultimate king of the nerds. He knew exactly what to do in order to make a true Star Wars movie while still making a modern day movie audiences could eat up (and swallow) in 2015; by God, he's really done it.

He plans to rule us all.

  We begin with the intro titles; The "20th Century Fox" logo fades into that iconic green "Lucasfilm" logo and chills go down my spine as the 38-year old intro smacks us in the face to what is arguably John Williams' most iconic score the man has ever made. And something happens...

  The opening crawl: Nothing about politics or trade federations or queens being senators. It's just about Luke, who seems to be playing galactic hide-and-seek; a tough game to conquer when you can hide on literally whatever planet you want. And it's not that things are dumbed down, but they're right to the point; a preview of what the entire film would eventually entail. And then it happens; We go to sand-planet Jakku (or Tatooine 2: Electric Boogaloo); Oscar nominee Max Von Sydrow mumbles some mystifying stuff about Kylo Ren's family and the atmosphere instantly stands out; the dialogue is sharp, the actors seem like they mean it; the cinematography is edgy; the film is a radical change from the last (at least the last SW movie, which was the last prequel); Oscar Isaac gets in a Rebel ship; Vader 2.0 shows up, captures Poe; Villainous Kylo Ren stares blankly through his dark mask. Isaac opens his mouth after an intense silence... "So... Who's gonna talk first. You're gonna talk first?" (HUMOR) ACTUAL legitimate humor from a Star Wars movie; this hasn't happened in over three decades... and suddenly, somehow, I know everything is going to be okay.

On second thought, it might be a little TOO okay.

  I can't explain what it is, whether it's Abram's obvious love for the craft (the man originally refused to agree to negotiations for the film because the source material was too important to him) or the fact that his love for the craft made everything that's exceptional about the original films stand out tenfold, improving upon almost any aspect you can think of, but the movie got comfortable and quick because of the sole fact that THIS was truly Star Wars; and not just true Star Wars but Star Wars with a new paint job. It all suddenly clicked; everything fell into place and just made sense and scene by scene things kept happening that were blowing my socks off; puppets, actual set pieces, real authentic costumes, creature effects, PUPPETS (PUPPETS)! 

Big, disgusting, actual puppets

The movie breezed along at such a pace that I couldn't even keep up with the brilliant use of practical effects; it was ASTOUNDING. Every scene connected to the last; my pulse was pounding; not because of the intensity but holy shit, THIS was ACTUAL Star Wars and I could never really put my finger on what that meant until I saw this movie.

  Let me preface what I'm about to say with something else, and it really has nothing to do with the new movie but my view on this franchise has been much more realized upon viewing it and that aspect is the prequels and more importantly, who George has become as a filmmaker and as the ultimate author of the Star Wars universe.

The worst is truly behind us.

  Ultimately what separates the new film from ANY of the prequels is the proof that there IS such a thing as "too much" and for George and his new world of computer generated effects, he was given all the creative liberty to do SO much with the new prequel trilogy that in the end, it was ultimately too much without being enough (too much exposition, not enough characterization) and it all almost drove the franchise into the ground (general consensus, of course) and honestly, as much of a genius George is for creating this universe, after the prequels, the best news about continuing our story after Jedi is that he wouldn't be touching it. And with him not touching it, it shows; it shows from just ONE movie and that's what blew my mind.

  I had this epiphany, about 15-or-so minutes into the film; Finn and Poe steal a tie fighter, crash land on Jakku; Finn meets Rey, the two run off together as they're being attacked by tie fighter ships; they plot to steal a ship as they run: 

  "How bout that one!?" Finn yells, regarding an off-camera ship, "that one's garbage!" Rey yells; the ship they head towards explodes in a fiery blast; a beat in the script as the characters watch the flames... "The garbage will do." Rey comically states. They run in the opposite direction; camera pans to the Millenium Falcon; the audience in my theater ERUPTS with thunderous applause.

  Here's the point: The movie was FUN. And like I stated, I give the prequels their own credit where credit was due but it hit me; for the first time upon their release, it hit me like an Ewok dropping a boulder on my head were I an aimless, wandering storm trooper; I realized that all three prequels combined weren't as fun as this movie alone already was, all by itself, in just 15 minutes. And that was how I knew it was all going to be okay; I had a good feeling about this.

Don't we all

  And what a roller coaster this all was; from being fun to funny to tense to tragic and never skipping a beat, being about as exciting as humanly possible (for a Star Wars fan). Like I've said (and gotten very excited about), the film isn't shy to showcase its use of practical effects, puppets and costumes and as little CGI as possible (unless needed of course) and it instantly makes the film stand out above the prequels. One of the best aspects about the look of the new movie is that dirty, dingy atmosphere as opposed to the all-too-clean, smooth, shiny look of the prequels (and I get it, life for the prequels was supposed to be a time before shit hit the fan with the Republic, and things started blowing up everywhere, but it's still a little too cleanly) where HERE, Jakku looks even filthier than Tatooine, the new bar (Cantina 2.0) appears even more risky and dingy than its original counterpart; even all the costumes and set pieces appear to be as if they've been hanging around in the dirt for three decades. The only set pieces that looked clean and almost untouched were those inside Kylo Ren's bases of the First Order, and that's fine because that legion has always been atop the food chain in this universe. All it to say is, the movie is fun again and the set design is impeccable.

  But let's get to the nitty gritty and the reason any of us are here; the story and the characters that help tell it.

I

  To say that the new film passed the torch beautifully would be an understatement. Everything about it is as fitting for this day and age as the original was fitting for 1977. And yet, in some absolutely bizarre fashion, Abrams picks up the pieces from Jedi and continues the franchise as if the last film in the saga was just taking a quick 30-year intermission. Like I said, the personality of the film already alone separates it from any prequel but it's the STORY and these characters that drive this Millenium falcon of a film; it's instantly likable and the kinda thing you not only wanna see again the second it's over but the kinda thing you feel like you've seen before... Many, many times before... In a past time period far, far away... And if you feel that way, it's because as much of a sequel the movie is, it can easily stand alone as a VERY small reboot; a reboot of the 1977 original.

  See, when I call the film a reboot I'm not saying it's pulling a Star Trek and literally recasting characters with younger faces, but if there's one thing JJ LOVES doing it's respecting the old and using that old to influence the new. His black hole/time travel explanation for the new Star Trek universe existing entirely on its own AND being in a realm of the original films is a theory that's both ludicrous and acceptable. For every diehard fan who deems it a copout, there is a fan who is having the best of both worlds and is more than okay with that. With Star Wars it's a little more tricky because the new film is very explicitly a sequel; literally Episose VII; quite literally the NEXT chapter in the saga, but what a better way to introduce new fans to this galaxy while maintaining the old? Use the original classic as inspiration of course. Now, the film doesn't play out beat for beat as A New Hope does, but the original bone structure of the 1977 script is the most obvious influence over the new and ALL the major events happen exactly as they do in the original; maybe not in sequential order but fill in the gaps with new characters and plots and it's ALMOST the exact same movie:

  We start our story with orphaned teen who is rescued from deserted sand-planet, meets up with comical droid(s), sidekick, and a wise stubborn old man on a quest to find more answers about themselves, while simultaneously, a villainous threat in black cloak and mask KILLS the old man from his own past (for his own stupid selfish "dark" reasons), while his legion of nazi-like followers plot to have a giant moon-sized weapon blow up other planets and by the end of thefilm they're stopped by rebel pilots who plot to blow it up; our hero learns to use the Force for the first time to help complete the mission (it's the same movie).

  Twist it just a bit and it's almost identical. Even swap out small, wise, old-as-f**k alien creature who's whimsical and goofy and you've got your new Yoda. Of course what separates TFA from the original is the differences; Rey is the first true female lead in the franchise (and she's arguably stronger than Luke is when he starts out on Tatooine), Kylo Ren is NOT Vader (and very upset about it); he's clearly not in control of his dark powers and has MAJOR anger issues/teen angst (nice touch with him wreaking havoc on equipment with his lightsaber and having the storm troopers comically hold back when he's thrashing in the next room); the film is bleak, dark, and even when it's a laugh-out-loud romp, it's still filled with pain and agony; Han's death by Ren Ben (named after Kenobi of course... don't cry... don't cry) is heartbreaking tenfold to Ben Kenobi's death because reality is, by A New Hope no one really knows who Obiwan IS. And I'm not referring to the characterization McGregor gave the him in the prequels; I'm talking about from just his only appearance as old man Obiwan in the original film; it's the first time he impacted audiences and his death came before we really got to know him; this is HAN we're talking about; a man who's chances have been based on luck, smooth talking his way out; for THREE movies; almost FORTY YEARS (WHOOAAAA)! And it's not okay. Han dying is NOT okay nor will it ever be. I can't even look back on the original character anymore without thinking of his fate. 

  In fact, looking at ANY of the old characters and where they stand now is like someone shattering your grandfather's priceless mirror he stole in WWII... It's a legend with a rich history and it's been permanently cracked. Leia and Han's relationship was torn apart because their twisted son turned to the dark side. And worse, Luke tried to train him and FAILED and Luke went into EXILE because of it. the film capitalizes on the fact that the Ewok-filled happy ending at the climax of Jedi is all a LIE; we can no longer believe that Luke, Leia and Han live happily ever after because they DON'T; that's not how life works, not on planet Earth and not in a galaxy form a long time ago, no matter how far, far away. And it sucks... But I understand... the torch has been passed. And though it's bittersweet, the passing of the torch is significant, inevitable and ultimately a nice push for what's to come. JJ did an interview after the film's release stating that he had to kill Han to prove that the movie had the balls to be threatening. Without Han's death, Harrison Ford is pretty much useless and nothing more than the equivalent of carrying around luggage; a "sexy piece of luggage," as stated by Abrams himself. And he's right. The movie had to up the stakes and as hard as it is to accept that the old trilogy has been tainted by bleakness, it's one of the main reasons we can move forward in a new story.

  And what a new story it is. No matter how much it follows the same beats as ANH, The Force Awakens is enough of its own beast to become a phenomenal film all by itself (like I said, could even act as a reboot or standalone film) and the reason it works on its own is because it's completely piggybacking off the nostalgia of the glory days of storm troopers and Death Stars; the escape from Tatooine Jakku, the infiltration of the Death Star Star Base Killer; the inner conflict between Obiwan and Darth Vader Han and Kylo Ren, the doubting ability that the Force is strong with young Luke Rey Skywalker Skywalker??? (LESBIHONEST. SHE'S A SKYWALKER); It's ALL echoes of the past and it's ALL the reason this movie works so damn well.

  It's all proof that an old formula clearly isn't broken and clearly isn't in need of fixing. Everything about it just WORKS. It's just like watching old GOOD Star Wars but updated for a modern age. And for the people who complain about the modern flaws? OPEN YOUR EYES.

  People complain that Finn isn't a great character or doesn't work; he's a phenomenal supporting lead and has plenty of room to grow; some people say Poe is useless. How bout the fact that JJ was gonna kill him off until he MET Oscar Isaacs? They literally wrote him into the last act because Isaacs is JUST that likable, and Adam Driver's Kylo Ren? He's SUPPOSED to be a whiny teen and the ending CLEARLY leaves it open with dialogue stating that he's going to be trained to become even better (let's not undermine the fact that he's the only person able to twist the Force to be able to stop laser blasts and read people's minds). People complain that the last lightsaber battle wasn't "good enough" when in reality, the only truly BELIEVABLE lightsaber battle. Where the prequels featured choreographed dancing with sabers, here the audience truly FEELS like Rey and Ren don't exactly know what they're doing; they struggle; they miss; the breathe heavily; they contain REAL fear and their battling skills aren't very equipped and that's the POINT; Rey is gonna train with Luke and become the first badass female Jedi and Ren will train with Snoke (btdubs, nice touch Andy Serkis) and has potential to grow into a truly great villain and this is only the start; people seem to forget that this is only the BEGINNING. Let's also not get TOO excited for a moment that we have ACTUAL top of the line special effects in a Star Wars movie; brilliant homages to the past in storytelling and in visual/audio (those laser blasts and sound effects are unbearably astounding), believable characters, Storm Troopers who can ACTUALLY FIGHT BACK (when the one pulled out that electric arm-sword thing to fight Finn, I was blown away); We're literally only just getting started folks and JJ has set up the film in such a glorious way that it's almost impossible for them to screw it up from here on out (I won't get too hopeful... Most people drop the ball by the time act three rolls around [and I'm sure I'm not the only one nervous about Colin Trevorrow's Episode IX: Jurassic Wars]).

  

ANYWAY, all it to say is this has never been a more exciting time for fans; we FINALLY have good Star Wars again! It's a surreal, mind blowing experience and our bodies have been ready; our expectations have been met; the stage has been set and like I said, it can literally only get better from here. Seeing as Empire Strikes Back is not only the best Star Wars sequel, best Star Wars movie and arguably the best movie of all time, period, it's gonna be VERY difficult for Episode VIII to live up to. As long as it's not a carbon copy of Empire, we'll be good. I understand using A New Hope as a launching pad for Awakens' script but copying the other movies here on out will be completely and utterly unacceptable. For me, the optimistic crazy man I am, I have lots of new hopes. For one, Episode VIII is to be directed by Rian Johnson who helmed glorious neo-noir Brick and 2012's Looper, AKA my favorite movie of 2012 and one of the best sci-fi movies I've ever seen (finger's crossed that JGL shows up in the next one). For another, the rights to Star Wars have finally been placed in proper hands again. When George sold the company to Disney for $4 billion he made for one of the most genius investments in cinematic history (call me crazy now because it only just happened a few years ago) and my reasoning is this: look at The Avengers; look at what's been happening to the Marvel Cinematic Universe since Iron Man in 2008. Not only has it become THE most successful Capitol for comic book movies but it's DAMN good storytelling (bash the movies you don't like all you want [i could care less for Iron Man 2], but as a whole the Avengers movies are essentially "getting it right") and for the first time in Star Wars history, for a modern age, since 1983 (arguably earlier if you're one of THOSE people who bash Return of the Jedi) someone is finally "getting it right" with Star Wars.

  The CEO of Disney announced, upon acquiring the rights, that they plan to keep Star Wars alive for the next 100 years (again, that's ONE-HUNDRED YEARS) and if they produce ANYTHING for this franchise like they've been doing for Tony Stark and the crew, then we're gonna be just fine. And if they produce anything HALF as good as The Force Awakens, I think it will finally be okay to not only publically be a Star Wars fan again, but Star Wars JUST might become bigger than it ever was; bigger than it was in 1977 and bigger than any of us could ever imagine. 2015 will go down in history as the year Star Wars made a comeback, and being the #2 movie of all time (just needs to beat Avatar, which is so absurd if it doesn't), THIS is the reason why everyone's talking about Star Wars again. It's better than it ever was and its just. that. good. It's a time to be alive.

Don't miss it. Do or do not... There is no try.

May the Force be with you.

*wookie chant*