Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Originally posted by CPT Space Bomb
The vocal minority can bash JJ all they want, he did what he was asked: Deliver a Mega Hit Star Wars movie.

I could say the same about Lucas and The Phantom Menace, but people never stopped bashing him and that movie, so I wouldn't expect people to stop bashing on JJ and this movie either.

Every new generation of SW movies will upset some fans from a previous generation of SW films because it's not what they were expecting. Especially when the movie is as hyped up as TFA is now, and TPM was back in the day. Just the way it is.

But the fans of those movies need to accept that no movie is above criticism. Especially Not TPM or TFA because neither are perfect movies tbh.

Originally posted by CPT Space Bomb
The vocal minority can bash JJ all they want,

Originally posted by Nephthys
You're overstating that. As Astner points out, Finn and Poe aren't tied down in nostalgia outside of their superficial trappings as a Stormtrooper and X-Wing Pilot. They, along with eventually Rey, represent the future, not the past. And yeah, the film doesn't think all nostalgia is a bad thing. Because it isn't. Obsessive, destructive nostalgia's are shown to be negative while things like Rey and Finn's reverence for the old heroes are positives to be celebrated.

Rey's struggle throughout the movie is based around her conflict with the past. She's introduced scavenging from the relics of the past and in her leisure we see that she owns a Rebel pilot helmet like Luke's and a doll resembling him as well. She also keeps track of time like a prisoner would, scratching days on her wall. She strands herself on Jakku willingly in the delusional idea that the past will come back to her and refuses to create a new future by letting go of that. When she experiences her visions she's confronted by scenes from her past that pain her to revisit as well as horrible events tied to the lightsabers history. When Maz forces her to accept that the people from her past aren't coming back she's distraught yet when told to embrace her destiny/future she flees instead. The rest of the movie shows us Rey overcoming this and changing into a hero in her own right. When the First Order attacks, she fights back. When Kylo Ren interrogates her, she turns the tables on her. Instead of reject her Jedi powers, she explores them. Finally she stands against evil as a Jedi Knight. She's successfully moved on and the film ends with her willingly walking towards her destiny. I disagree that she's forced to do anything. She chooses to protect BB-8. She chooses to fight to protect him. She chooses to use the Force. She chooses to go train with Luke. Just like Finn chooses to be a hero and Ren chooses to be a monster. She's not living up to Luke's legacy, the things she does, she does by herself.

During the final confrontation Kylo Ren says two important things: "Han Solo can't save you now" and "It's just us now." The climax of the movie is Kylo Ren and Rey completing their evolution and establishing themselves as the new future. Ren rejects his past as Ben Solo and irrevocably establishes himself as a monstrous force of evil in his own right. He's not playing at being Vader anymore. His mask is off for the fight. It's all on him. And Rey isn't playing at Han Solo or Luke Skywalker. Han Solo is dead and Luke is absent. When she fights Ren she stands there in her own right, finally accepting her own power and destiny without anyone to rely on but herself. The torch has been passed and will continue to be so in Ep 8. The film succeeds (imo) in this aspect. It celebrates the old while highlighting why it's time for something new and skillfully sets up the new characters to take up the mantle.

Very well said and you bring up a few points I didn't actually think about before. Kudos!

Originally posted by Darth Thor
I could say the same about Lucas and The Phantom Menace, but people never stopped bashing him and that movie, so I wouldn't expect people to stop bashing on JJ and this movie either.

Every new generation of SW movies will upset some fans from a previous generation of SW films because it's not what they were expecting. Especially when the movie is as hyped up as TFA is now, and TPM was back in the day. Just the way it is.

But the fans of those movies need to accept that no movie is above criticism. Especially Not TPM or TFA because neither are perfect movies tbh.

2) You really shouldn't compare TPM to TFA. One has a chance (though not likely) to be the best selling movie ever, while being a critical success as well. TPM, to it's credit, did sell alot of tickets. But it's no where near the critical success that TFA is.

3)I totally agree. In fact, there really isn't a perfect movie; let alone a perfect Star Wars movie. As I said I have a laundry list of complaints about TFA. However, said list didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the movie much at all.

TFA blows phantom menace out of the water. Darth Thor is just a hater and hates the new Star Wars.

Originally posted by Astner
My problems is not with J.J., it's with his movie.

Shut up vocal minority, your opinion doesn't matter. Abrams brought that cash money. Like Stephanie Meyer.

Originally posted by Astner
My problems is not with J.J., it's with his movie.

Lol.

Lemongrab is awesome though

Ray sucked.

Haven't watched nearly enough Adventure Time to appreciate the similarities. This on the other hand deserves all the love.

I read a good chunk of them. I will conceded to Love to HATE them.

Stopped reading after "depressed lamp shade", that one wasn't bad.

Rey is hawt.

I've noticed after watching it again, that the Skywalker theme was playing in the background when Rey was fighting Kylo. And R2D2 re-activated only when Rey went to the Resistance camp. She's Luke's daughter alright.

That's not the Skywalker theme, it's just the force theme. Luke’s theme is the main title theme.

So I guess it's a negative to not get absorbed in the Disney/Star Wars hype train. Also I can't tell whether or not this movie is successful because of its quality or mass marketing/consumerism. Wonder if Disney are going to mess with the two future directors for the rest of the trilogy.

Originally posted by wakkawakkawakka
Also I can't tell whether or not this movie is successful because of its quality or mass marketing/consumerism.

Couldn't it be all three

Probably...though if JW is anything to go by TFA didn't have to be great in order to make its money.

Originally posted by Robtard
Couldn't it be all three