Star Wars: The Force Awakens (12/18/15)

[Khev]

I think his lightsaber as a reflection of Kylo Ren himself is one of the more clever aesthetics they put into the movie, actually. It looks dangerous, unstable and half put together.

Absolutely. In a way I'm reminded of the final exchange in Steve Jobs.

"Why the hell did you say that to me?"

"Because I'm poorly made..."

Now take a messed up guy with those gifts and give him Jedi skills. Yikes.

 

[YoNoSe]

This is why his outbursts are more scary to me than child-like. This is an unstable dude on the brink of a breakdown.

I think his lightsaber as a reflection of Kylo Ren himself is one of the more clever aesthetics they put into the movie, actually. It looks dangerous, unstable and half put together.

The visual and sound effects of the blade are a perfect echo of his own turmoil and instability. All the details tell the story. Abrams may not be the flashiest or most artful director, but he does think hard about his characters. And I think that's exactly what this first step needed and why it resonates with so many people.

 

[kryptonianmutie]

maximum sadness.

[emoji38]That would've been Sony's attempt at a Carnage movie.

Not me. Never even crossed my mind. It's one of my favorite scenes.

That's fine. I'm not saying anybody is wrong for liking him as a complex character but from my point of view he was an immature snot.

 

[Khev]

Anyone catch the fact that Kylo got his comeuppance for being a **** about the semantics of the officer's report who was advising him of BB-8's escape from Jakku?

"He escaped capture aboard a stolen YT-1300 freighter."

"The droid...stole a freighter..."

But then later when he asks Rey about that same droid she throws his word choice back at him by explaining BB-8's model number, power source, etc.

A couple cool little moments there.

She defeats him with the Force, with a lightsaber and even at the game of being a **** about getting info on BB-8.

 

[a-dev]

She defeats him with the Force, with a lightsaber and even at the game of being a **** about getting info on BB-8.

....but that's a good thing? To undermine the villain at everything? I dunno man.

 

[YoNoSe]

....but that's a good thing? To undermine the villain at everything? I dunno man.

It certainly motivates your villain for the sequel.

 

[a-dev]

It certainly motivates your villain for the sequel.

And sets up our ESB remake, good point...

 

[karamazov80]

I like the Kylo Ren character, for a lot of the reasons you guys bring up. But he also is whiny and petulant. That's OK, though, because it works for making the character more interesting than what we typically see in movies. As someone brought up here, it's what Lucas was trying to do with Annie, but failed spectacularly in executing. He just came off as a weird psychopath who doesn't understand how humans talk or behave.

Superman though. . .also a weird psychopath who says and does very strange things. But understandable since he's just a freaky god-like alien. If I was in his shoes, I would probably also just feel burdened at annoyed that I had to "save" all these people and fight bad guys just to get this one attractive human to keep sleeping with me.

The visual and sound effects of the blade are a perfect echo of his own turmoil and instability. All the details tell the story. Abrams may not be the flashiest or most artful director, but he does think hard about his characters. And I think that's exactly what this first step needed and why it resonates with so many people.

Aaaaand boom goes the dynamite. . .unless you're talking Star Trek: Into Darkness. **** that movie.

 

[Khev]

....but that's a good thing? To undermine the villain at everything? I dunno man.

Oh, well I was basically joking by lumping in the BB-8 stuff with the other things. And I thought the movie did a good job of conveying that Kylo was far from peak capacity when dueling Rey. Without Chewie's blast and Finn's help Kylo could have just sent her flying into the tree and then walked over and casually chopped off her head or dragged her unconscious body to Snoke. Even when they were fighting he (in addition to his wounds) was not really fighting to kill her but to win her over so that he and/or Snoke could train her.

 

[YoNoSe]

I like the Kylo Ren character, for a lot of the reasons you guys bring up. But he also is whiny and petulant. That's OK, though, because it works for making the character more interesting than what we typically see in movies. As someone brought up here, it's what Lucas was trying to do with Annie, but failed spectacularly in executing. He just came off as a weird psychopath who doesn't understand how humans talk or behave.

Superman though. . .also a weird psychopath who says and does very strange things. But understandable since he's just a freaky god-like alien. If I was in his shoes, I would probably also just feel burdened at annoyed that I had to "save" all these people and fight bad guys just to get this one attractive human to keep sleeping with me.


Aaaaand boom goes the dynamite. . .unless you're talking Star Trek: Into Darkness. **** that movie.

 

[rushmore223]

The concept artist who initially painted that "key frame" liked to think of the darkening sun as symbolic of the pull back and forth between the light and the dark side of the Force in those final moments with the dark ultimately winning.

You beat me to it, my thoughts exactly.

I think Ren was torn. I found it interesting that to a Sith, being seduced by the light side was as much a danger as a Jedi falling to the dark side.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Both Kylo and Rey were the two single best new things about TFA.

The rest was either simply repetitive or nostalgic depending on your point of view.

 

[Khev]

I went ahead and read up on some of those interviews that Abrams has done since the release of the film.

I realize this will probably be old news to many of you now but I found it to be an interesting bit about Kylo's table of ashes that he sets his helmet on, that it's the remains of some of the individuals he has killed. That dude really is a sick mofo hoarder of dead things.

And that his comment to Rey that "we've retrieved the rest of the map from the archives of the Empire but we still need the missing piece" is a hint as to where R2 got the same data regarding the first Jedi Temple, that is when he plugged into the Death Star back in 1977. And that when BB-8 approached him and beeped at him he basically said something to the effect of, "Hey, I know you were Luke's droid, do you happen to have the rest of the map to his whereabouts? I have the last piece." And that R2 was so lathargic that it took a few hours to process what BB-8 said. Basically like when your PC monitor goes to sleep and then when you unlock it you get that "Not Responding" for a bit while your browser pages reload. And then it finally clicked with R2 what BB-8 said and he woke up.

I really like how they intertwined the various roles of the new and old heroes with the unfolding story as they wanted to tell it.

 

[Wor-Gar]

I like that JJ apologized for not having a Chewie/Leia moment after Han's death.

Filmmaker f-up, no other way around that oversight. Glad he acknowledged it. Lucas wouldn't have. He'd have some long-winded non-sense excuse.

 

[Cocoboloboy]

I haven't heard any of those things before, Khev. Thanks for posting it. Are those recorded interviews of JJ's or just articles?

 

[Khev]

I like that JJ apologized for not having a Chewie/Leia moment after Han's death.

He shouldn't have. I wish he stuck to his guns. There's no right or wrong way to react to a loved one's death. Anyone who has experienced it firsthand knows. Your mind doesn't immediately go "but does my spouse have a best friend that I've been out of touch with for years that I can comfort right now?" No, you're just in shock, even a daze, and usually blinded with grief. Abrams is a nice guy and is open to being shown where he is wrong but that wasn't the case here IMO.

I get that "fans" want to see their buddy Chewie have a moment but the way it played out on screen worked just fine.

 

[Khev]

I haven't heard any of those things before, Khev. Thanks for posting it.

Sure!

Are those recorded interviews of JJ's or just articles?

They're online interviews posted by Entertainment Weekly:

Ashes: Star Wars The Force Awakens: J.J. Abrams explains Kylo Ren's table of ashes | EW.com

R2-D2: Star Wars The Force Awakens: J.J. Abrams explains R2-D2's closing scene | EW.com

 

[DiFabio]

There's no right or wrong way to react to a loved one's death. Anyone who has experienced it firsthand knows. Your mind doesn't immediately go "but does my spouse have a best friend that I've been out of touch with for years that I can comfort right now?" No, you're just in shock, even a daze, and usually blinded with grief.

That would be all fine and dandy if . . . we didn't see Chewie exit the stage past Leia like a secondary background character only to have Leia hug and comfort Rey.

Chewbacca and Leia have a history, Han, Chewbacca's friend and Leia's ex-baby daddy, have a common bond. It was a mistake not having them acknowledge each other in that moment, he's right. He ****ed up.

 

[Khev]

It was a mistake not having them acknowledge each other in that moment, he's right

Nope, not buying it. Could they have had a moment at some point, possibly off screen prior to Rey and Chewie's departure? Sure. Did it need to happen the second he stepped off the Falcon? No. Leia and Chewie had a prior history, yes, but relationships can change massively over three decades, especially when a divorce or separation occurs and friends have to "choose" one of the spouses. Even when she arrived on Takodana and Chewie hugged her Carrie plays it as kind of her humoring him, she graciously accepts his hug but doesn't put her arms around him and when he steps aside immediately focuses back on Han and the issue of their son.

I get that Leia not hugging Chewie is this new fanboy "thing" not unlike him not receiving a medal on Yavin but it's not something that I see as a problem or mistake at all. Obviously if you want to wish that those scenes were staged differently then go right ahead.

 

[olbertfrog]

He ****ed up big time.
This is not real life this is star wars.
Chewie should have hugged leia.
You ****ed up man , ****ed up baaaaaadddd.