Registered: Sep 2000
Location: Chelmsford, Essex, UK
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Done a good job nailing the look, no doubts there. And it's definitely a film I'll see- I'm just not fully sold on the pitch yet. We don't technically need this story (we know the ending and you don't have to fill in every narrative gap- 'The Rebels won a battle and got the Death Star plans' is all we needed) so I feel it needs a certain something to justify itself better. As it is, it just looks like the old-fashioned 'rag-tag group of weirdos and anti-authority types take on the bad guys'. Which isn't bad but... flat.
Also no lightsabres of course...
__________________
"We've got maybe seconds before Darth Rosenberg grinds everybody into Jawa burgers and not one of you buds has the midi-chlorians to stop her!"
"You've never had any TINY bit of sex, have you?"
BtVS
Last edited by Ushgarak on Apr 7th, 2016 at 05:14 PM
Registered: Sep 2000
Location: Chelmsford, Essex, UK
Co-Admin
They've done a good job with Mothma, too.
Just because it is important in the in-universe history that doesn't necessarily make it a worthwhile story to tell. You are kinda up against it when doing a story where people know the end. I just want to see a bit more to it than just being, basically, a generic sci-fi action story.
Vader, of course, is always welcome- but is he going to do any more than just look threatening and follow a fleeing shop at the end?
I'd like to learn more about the Rebellion (outside of the tv series, because I think the films should constitute their own whole) and this could have been a vehicle for that, but I suspect it won't do that.
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"We've got maybe seconds before Darth Rosenberg grinds everybody into Jawa burgers and not one of you buds has the midi-chlorians to stop her!"
Well as is the case with most stories, you know the heroes are going to win in the end. Its how they achieve that victory that's more important. And I'd infer from the dialogue that what the film will focus on the cost of the Rebel victory.
Noting that the ultimate fates of these new characters is entirely up in the air.
Not sure how Vader will play into this, but he's been done well in Rebels.
Yes, but to truly understand the Star Wars lore, one must study all its aspects.
It looks to be a fun sci-fi romp. I hope it does explore the Rebellion some, but based on the trailer, I can see where it could fall flat. We already know that an imminent weapons test IS carried out (the destruction of Alderaan) so while they do succeed in getting the Death Star plans, they also don't actually stop the threat before it hurts anyone.
Registered: Sep 2000
Location: Chelmsford, Essex, UK
Co-Admin
I don't think it's the job of a film to exhaustively cover all aspects of Star Wars lore. It's more its job to tell a worthwhile story- that is where I am unconvinced.
And there's a massive difference between the generic 'heroes tend to win in films' vibe (though not always a guarantee in Star Wars) and actually specifically knowing the exact outcome of a story. That's something that has always made a big difference when trying to do prequels in any medium. I'm less invested in the story itself as a result, so my investment needs to be found elsewhere. Plenty of prequels-type stories have pulled that off (for example, right now, Better Call Saul is doing a great job of justifying itself), but I'm not quite seeing that here yet.
If it ends up as just a romp, then fine... but that's a limitation to it.
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"We've got maybe seconds before Darth Rosenberg grinds everybody into Jawa burgers and not one of you buds has the midi-chlorians to stop her!"
I saw alot of pessimism and vitriol in the comments of that video. "The girl is just a Katniss clone." "We have to have women and blacks in the lead now because of stupid reasons herpa derp."
And I thought I could be hard to please. I liked that trailer. Got the look and feel without going full retro, got some interesting looking characters and settings. Limited CGI. Forest Whitaker. And I think I saw Wedge in one shot.
(please log in to view the image)
That explains all those banned members over the years...
__________________ Recently Produced and Distributed Young but High-Ranking Political Figure of Royal Ancestry within the Modern American Town Affectionately Referred To as Bel-Air.
Last edited by Lord Lucien on Apr 7th, 2016 at 07:43 PM
I want Vader to be a background villain. Like the one who commissioned the hunt for the main character, or something. Like he shows up once or twice to speak to the main villain to reprimand him or give him info. I don't wanna see a TFU-esque storyline where you're just waiting for the ultimate showdown with Vader, and knowing he's gonna survive.
No Force powers, no latent Jedi potential in the main character, and no f*ckin lightsabers. And no revisiting all the same worlds from the other films. More new places!
__________________ Recently Produced and Distributed Young but High-Ranking Political Figure of Royal Ancestry within the Modern American Town Affectionately Referred To as Bel-Air.
Same. One of the understated treasures of the franchise.
__________________ Recently Produced and Distributed Young but High-Ranking Political Figure of Royal Ancestry within the Modern American Town Affectionately Referred To as Bel-Air.
Registered: Sep 2000
Location: Chelmsford, Essex, UK
Co-Admin
Star Wars loses something without lightsabres and the Force. It was the mix of sci-fi and fantasy that gave it its distinctive edge. The lack of them creates a gap that needs to be filled. I have plenty of franchises I can watch for straight sci-fi.
And the anti-authority type is the most tedious and overused hero trope going, which is why it gets parodied so much. I like to see some measure of originality in personality. That whole 'This is a rebellion, I rebel' thing- if that's the extent of her personality, then she's crap.
Still, it's just a brief glimpse of her from a trailer. I liked Rey as a lead; we'll see what they do here.
__________________
"We've got maybe seconds before Darth Rosenberg grinds everybody into Jawa burgers and not one of you buds has the midi-chlorians to stop her!"
"You've never had any TINY bit of sex, have you?"
BtVS
Last edited by Ushgarak on Apr 8th, 2016 at 08:50 AM
I tend to agree with Ush's concerns. The movie does feel like exposition we don't really need to see. I sure hope getting the DS plans will be more of a McGuffin to get the real story going. Because if not, we already know how it ends.
As for the lightsabers, to be honest I'd be happy to see NO lightsabers.They were overused in the PT. And now it some people tend to condors a lightsaber so myhtical that only a Jedi is able to wave them around.
Frankly, if SW is worth a damn as geofiction, lightsabres don't define the SW universe and we can certainly do without.