Coming out of the movie theatre, my mind was still whirling with what I had just seen. I had decided to go and watch it with a bunch of mates and once it was done, we were all hyped up like little children on Christmas eve. Star Wars is back baby, but this time it's personal! Thus, as little children would do, we quickly raided the nearby pub for our post film debrief.
The air was thick with the smell of alcohol, strange foreign music was playing through the incomprehensible chatter of the inabriated patrons. Weaving through the crowd gingerly, I found our little nook at the end of the pub, keeping my cherised beer safe from steely eyed drunks.
I realized that the film was so enjoyable, i was suddenly living it. Sitting down, we discussed for the next four hours about Star Wars and it was awesome. Star Wars is back baby.
So, before I begin, SPOILER ALERT! DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE MOVIE! Watch it, then come back here and read on. Trust me, you won't be dissapointed.
THE PLOT
Going into the movie, I had a few suspicions on what it was going to be about, and unfortunately had a few big things be spoiled for me by shameless media idiots. Yet, the plot was completely unknown to me. So it came as a pleasent surprise. It wasn't wild or different, it actually followed a by the books Hero's Journey so much that the writer in me cringed just a little tiny bit. Good guys trying to find Luke, but so are the bad guys, unrelated teen hero gets thrown in the mix, has a call to adventure, declines, something bad happens, rises to the occasion, bad thing happens, licks his/her wounds rises again, mentor dies, finds his/inner inner strength and is victorious. With the usual tropes added of course. So basically the plot to A New Hope. Or Eragon, or Tron, or Harry Potter, or Hunger Games, or any other movie. Sure, J.J Abrams played it safe. But that is a good thing. Round one you conserve your energy, learn your opponents moves, reactions, weaknesses, a few jabs here and there, then near the end of the first bell, try for a knockout, so that it'll keep your opponent guessing.
I guess movie making is like cooking and boxing!
(I can see a reality show in there somewhere)
You will see alot of familiar things, a lot of nostalgia and links to previous movies. But you are also propelled forward to a new strife. A new galaxy. A new Hope? Damn... I'm getting all deep here.
THE CAST
Holy crap people, they really cast this movie well. Everyone was perfect for their roles. Rey is a great female protagonist, who takes no shit from anybody. With a mysterious past, she is still trying to look for answers and her place in the galaxy. Finn is a great lead as well. A boy who was given all the answers and discovers that they were all lies and now is lost again, finding solace in an equally lost individual. Poe HAS found his place in the galaxy and excels at it. He is cool, funny, suave and enigmatic. Han, Chewie, Leia all know what their place should be in the galaxy and are doing their best to live up to it, and once again show that they still have what it takes. Performance or otherwise. Hux is a Nazi, Phasma is also, played exceptionally well. (although Phasma should have been let out to breathe more, she was seriously under used) then comes Kylo... Whoo boy....
Kylo Ren. Perfectly played by Adam Driver, is the entitled little shit that he has to be. An emotionally wrecked person, who has almost no idea who or what he should be. He is the son of Han Solo and Princess Leia! The grandson of Darth Vader! Holy shit, how can one live up to that? So it seems like he has gone the route of the school shooter. Not in the manner that he was teased or something. Actually, we don't know. He was part of Lukes jedi training afterall. Maybe the girl he asked out to the prom rejected him to go out with a flyboy, or maybe some other jedi's gave him force wedgies because he was Luke's nephew. So you have this really sympathetic villain with anger issues that you can totally recognize. You kinda even hope that he will see the error of his ways. But then... Then he meets his dad. And that moment got me. It was heart breaking, sad, beautiful, and fueled the rest of the movie. Shit just got real.
A word on dialogue. It was great! Snappy, funny, to the point and actually seemed real! It wasn't wooden or stunted at all.
But most importantly, chemistry. MY GOD the chemistry. EVERYONE worked great with each other. You could see the sheer joy everyone had. Even Harrison Ford seemed to be genuinely enjoying himself. The banter was excelent. Especially between Rey and Finn. But also between Poe and Finn. It just seemed so real and solid. These people were giving it everything they got. Even the stormtroopers had some great chemistry. They weren't robots, they reacted to everything and each other. Not to mention having some great moments themselves.
Finally, BB8. Sorry R2, your time is up. As my friend said, he is now the new Wall-E. This little spheroid bastard will be the very reason so many parents are going to be bankrupt this year. He is cute, funny, emotional and collectible!
THE TECHNICAL BITS
This is one hell of a visual movie! You have wide expanses, beautiful vistas and insane ammounts of detail. Everything looks real, worn and lived in. What makes this movie a bit different from the prequels is its reliance to real world sets and effects. Sure there is CGI, but it looks real! There are space battles, but they are amazing not because the're is so much of it, but because there is the right ammount of it. Even when the Starkiller does it's thing, it is just shown for a bit. Not glorified.
J.J. Abrams did his homework and pulled out all the stops. He controlled his lens flares and really let the scenes take center stage.
The sound design was great too, everything sounded heavy and well oiled. Things sounded like the worked. And finally the score. It was great, yet not exceptional. Everyone has their own theme and there is some great music. But we've all heard the same things so often it really didn't seem like that much was added. To be brutally honest, William's best and most audacious Star Wars album still has to be Revenge of the Sith. That has some powerful stuff in it.
WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY? SPEAK YOU FOOL!
This movie is amazing. It's incredible. It's frikking Star Wars, man! But of course it is! I wasn't expecting this to be life changing. I was expecting it to be the best damn entertainment movie of the year, and oooh boy it is. You'll laugh, you'll cry. You'll kiss your fifteen bucks good bye. Then you'll do it all over again. I know I will.
