tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post3974851031314397212..comments2023-08-18T04:37:47.001-04:00Comments on Byzantium's Shores: chronicling the misadventures of an overalls-clad hippie: Thoughts on THE FORCE AWAKENS, Episode II: Wait, what?! (or: Stop me if you've seen this movie before!)Kelly Sedingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10704114189919711467noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post-79470438398320708752016-03-26T00:02:46.018-04:002016-03-26T00:02:46.018-04:00"Oh yeah, that guy. Who's he? Dunno. Heav..."Oh yeah, that guy. Who's he? Dunno. Heaven forbid the <i>movie</i> tell us."<br /><br />Your points are well taken, but this entire entry was just hilarious. I laughed until I cried. <br /><br />The guy who played General Hux, Domhnall Gleason (as well as Oscar Isaac, unrecognizable in a full beard), was in a creepy little indie sci-fi movie, Ex Machina, that came out last year. I don't know if you've ever seen it, but I rather wish Alec Garland (the writer and director of Ex Machina) had taken the reins of The Force Awakens. Bonnie McDanielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03844134292228113704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post-81370309866450740952016-03-22T22:30:36.080-04:002016-03-22T22:30:36.080-04:00I'm pretty much with you on all points here. T...I'm pretty much with you on all points here. The only exception is the "things which are not explained" bit. I'm OK with being left in want of more information as long as that information promises to be forthcoming. Clearly Rey's identity, and Snoke's, and probably Maz' will be explained in upcoming films, and I'm OK with that. As for why Maz has the lightsaber, I suspect the answer to that is because J.J. started with the final scene of the movie already in his head, regardless of whatever story was necessary to get to that point, and had to get the lightsaber into Rey's hand somehow.Call me Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17704646008578216859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post-46433898362741296692016-03-22T16:52:03.917-04:002016-03-22T16:52:03.917-04:00Tayna: I don't think there's NO chemistry;...Tayna: I don't think there's NO chemistry; I think there's some, but there could be more...but there shouldn't be TOO much, because that relationship HAS to be one-sided. The romance stuff didn't bother me all that much, except for the fireplace scene, which should have been handled MUCH differently (see my Fixing The Prequels posts for details!). And I like the assassination attempt; that makes sense, and in fact, I think there should have been <i>another</i> one later on. (Again, see Fixing the Prequels for details!)<br /><br />STAR WARS wasn't fairy tale at first; it was myth. But it does seem to be shaping in the direction of fairy tale. I like fairy tales just fine, but this shouldn't be one.<br /><br />BTW, did you ever notice that all of Quill's quips in GOTG are taken from the years he was on Earth? He's not up with anything recent, so he quotes nothing recent! I love that. Good thought put into the script, there -- such as calling Rocket "Ranger Rick". I love smart writing!Kelly Sedingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10704114189919711467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post-87965482159317965932016-03-22T12:10:42.274-04:002016-03-22T12:10:42.274-04:00Kelly: It was the romance aspect of Ep. 2 that rea...Kelly: It was the romance aspect of Ep. 2 that really got to me. It felt forced, there seemed to be zero chemistry between Padme and Anakin (which oddly was gone by Ep. 3 when they seemed comfortable with one another) and the whole attempted assassination of Padme was just terrible. It felt like an excuse to get two Jedi guards (Anakin and Obi-Wan) to hang out with her. Anni was a giant whiner until exciting things happened and Obi-Wan suddenly having an issue with flying were things that made my eyes roll.<br /><br />Anyway, back to 7. You're not the only one who saw The Princess Bride. I have a feeling that scene was SUPPOSE to invoke it. It's been an ongoing theme in movie making to toss in pop references that your audience will get. It works in certain films, like Guardians of the Galaxy but it made sense for our would be hero to make quips like those. It wouldn't surprise me if a starship design or two was plucked from Trek or GotG if you look closely enough. <br /><br />Honestly, I wish it WERE more Firefly and less fairy tale, because that's what it feels like. In fairy tales you don't ask questions about how birds talk and bears have cottages. They just do. Star Wars begins exactly how a fairy tale would start 'Long Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away...". Fairy tales is what Disney does. It's really all it has ever done well over the decades and that's what they want Star Wars for. When you think about it, purchasing Lucasarts wasn't much of a stretch. Ep. 7 was the start of Princess Rey's story. She'll be in a glittery gown and crown/headpiece at some point and look very uncomfortable with it, just you wait.mylittlegeekeryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17862659550865655060noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post-90679046639987218292016-03-22T09:54:15.501-04:002016-03-22T09:54:15.501-04:00You cover pretty much all of my issues with TFA, w...You cover pretty much all of my issues with TFA, which are too enormous for me to offset with the positive stuff. The more I've thought about it, the more I've decided it's actually the shitty movie everybody has spent years claiming the prequels were, and there are exactly two reasons why it's so bad:<br /><br />1. The makers were soooooo determined to erase the prequels and "recapture the feel" of the original trilogy that they were willing to abandon logic, e.g., we need rebels vs. Empire, so we get Resistance vs. First Order. How does that work? Who cares, it's kewl!<br /><br />2. JJ Abrams. Seriously, why do people praise this hack? He's a sloppy storyteller who covers up his shortcomings with all that blather about mysteries. The macguffin in TFA isn't a mystery, it's a gaping plot hole. Anakin/Luke's lightsaber? Gaping plot hole, but I'll have somebody make a cute quip about how there isn't time to explain and everyone will buy it. The truth is, we don't get these answers because JJ doesn't have them. And moreoever, he doesn't frickin' CARE. He relies on the speed of pacing, slamming us from one action set piece (which I'll grudgingly admit he's pretty good at) to another to keep us distracted from asking questions. ARG. The man has single-handedly brought down two of the franchises that shaped my entire imagination. If the word goes out that he has anything to do with Indy V (which I'm already dubious of), I think I'll scream.Jasonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11001416935247782462noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post-73745861309288843442016-03-22T06:07:58.754-04:002016-03-22T06:07:58.754-04:00Tayna: Agreed on most points, except for your eval...Tayna: Agreed on most points, except for your evaluation of Episode II! That movie does seem to be the most polarizing of the Prequels, for some reason (I'm guessing it's the not-quite-done-right romance aspect of the thing).Kelly Sedingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10704114189919711467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post-52838145451600175482016-03-22T01:29:27.332-04:002016-03-22T01:29:27.332-04:00There is so little explanation for anything in thi...There is so little explanation for anything in this movie, I had no idea that the planet destroyed <i>wasn't</i> Courescant. My head continued to swirl around wait, what? This can't BE that planet, right? I mean, we have no idea who any of these other worlds are so it can't be Courescant. But where the hell are we? How is the Republic letting this happen? The Order is actually the resistance this time around, right? (Except its not? WHAT?!) They KNEW that the Order was building this thing... right? Not exactly a small structure on a whole planet as a hidden base. Their base/weapon WAS the planet. <br /><br />The story was just sloppy. It was. I was entertained with it far more than Episode 2, which I found utterly unwatchable more than once, but at least the prequels had a flow and logic in the storyline. This had none of that. Yeah, I found some things annoying in Ep. 1 & 3 but I simply can't think about Ep. 7 at all without making my head hurt...<br /><br />Oh and the only thing Poe was missing was a literal sparkle come from his teeth when he hopped out of his X-wing for the first time to be a standard hero Gundam pilot. Just saying.mylittlegeekeryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17862659550865655060noreply@blogger.com