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

[DiFabio]

Damn, a Middle-Earth land would be awesome.

And while I'm burned out by all of Star Wars' merchandising, I'd love to see Hot Toys Lord of the Rings Or NECA Lord of the Rings. That's just the thing though, the Tolkien estate has always been at odds with the film owners when it came to making stuff from this.

 

[pixletwin]

Well, if that's the case, in a way those fans are the franchise/brand's worst enemy. And if the person who owns the brand thinks the same way, then they're not seeing the big picture. Would Tolkien fans be against a theme park ride or "land" in some theme park too? That in no way adds anything new to their precious canon.

I do believe many would see that as a "cheapening of the brand".

 

[Khev]

I do believe many would see that as a "cheapening of the brand".

And rightly so. I'd love to see LOTR figures from HT but I'm totally fine with there not being an inundation of things like backpacks, coffee mugs, shampoo bottles and whatnot. I just wish people would acknowledge the films themselves more when talking movies.

 

[Star Puffs]

But not straight fantasy like LOTR. I wonder if that will ever change.

Game of Thrones has changed that. When it first hit there were smug, dismissive review that I remember at Slate and the NYT. Both rippied on fantasy as a genre with specific derisive references to LOTR as I recall. The NYT piece further sneered at the notion that women would have any interest, which obviously touches on the male nerd stereotype. A lot of women with interest in fantasy were outraged by that review, justifiably so in my view, because it dismissed decades of work by female authors on top of a sizeable female fan base. Then GoT became a big hit, a show like Mad Men or Breaking Bad that people watched to be culturally relevant. In fact I've discussed it with people who watch it, but can barely remember any of the characters' names.

 

[The Clown Prince of Crime]

And rightly so. I'd love to see LOTR figures from HT but I'm totally fine with there not being an inundation of things like backpacks, coffee mugs, shampoo bottles and whatnot. I just wish people would acknowledge the films themselves more when talking movies.

They will, when they're drinking coffee from their Frodo mug, and washing their hair with Legolas scent shampoo That's how easily people are influenced

 

[Khev]

Game of Thrones has changed that.

Oh wow, has it ever. Totally forgot about GoT but you're right. I don't watch it so it didn't come to mind. I guess LOTR wasn't smutty enough.

 

[Prime Clone]

Where did they get the resources and money to build the First Order, but an even bigger third Death Star!?

The Empire was never fully destroyed, just weakened and in disarray. It would still have controlled many planets and resources. Snoke and Kylo were the unifying "Force" that allowed it to rise again as the First Order.

The "Shattered Empire" comic fills in some of the gaps immediately post-ROTJ (including Poe's parents, who fought at the Battle of Endor).

Spoiler

It also introduces the rumoured "Force tree" from Ep VIII.

 

[Centurion]

These SW threads sure bring out the LOTR in some people.

 

[ZaCHw117]

These SW threads sure bring out the LOTR in some people.

so true.

 

[Star Puffs]

Definately great post by Star Puffs...but honestly the level of narrative nuances you're seeking just on general hux alone, forget the other characters, would require an entire movie to explain.

I think you can convey basic believability with proper casting and writing. I don't know Tarkin, Piett, or Veers' backstory; they're archtypes. I'm just asking that the actors and dialogue convey the right feel of a senior military officer in an authoritarian government.

Generally that comes with an actor who is better than the support role they are being given. Oscar Issac is a good example. Poe is a supporting role that feels higher quality because Issac is a good actor, a better actor in my view than Boyega, which is why I think swaping the actors might have worked better.

If i'm seeking a deep examination of morale implications i'll probably go watch Dr. Zhivago before I go watch a Star Wars movie.

Wow. I LOVE Dr. Zhivago. It's my favorite Russian novel and the film is brilliant.

I realize Star Wars seeks to appeal to children. I think you can do that while having a well-thought-out plot and world-building.

 

[The Clown Prince of Crime]

The Empire was never fully destroyed, just weakened and in disarray. It would still have controlled many planets and resources. Snoke and Kylo were the unifying "Force" that allowed it to rise again as the First Order.

The "Shattered Empire" comic fills in some of the gaps immediately post-ROTJ (including Poe's parents, who fought at the Battle of Endor).

Spoiler

It also introduces the rumoured "Force tree" from Ep VIII.

So Luke sort of failed and the celebration at the end of ROTJ was premature

These SW threads sure bring out the LOTR in some people.

It's all we have now. The LOTR threads are dead and buried.

 

[jye4ever]

Love LOTR.

Could care less about GOT.

LOTR provides all the fantasy i'll ever need.

 

[DiFabio]

These SW threads sure bring out the LOTR in some people.

so true.

This is the only instance where I've seen LOTR brought up in a Star Wars thread.

 

[The Clown Prince of Crime]

Love LOTR.

Could care less about GOT.

LOTR provides all the fantasy i'll ever need.

Hmm...

GOT has naked chicks, ex porn actresses, a dragon or so I've heard ...and Aquamomoa killing fools with his hands.

 

[ZaCHw117]

Could care less about GOT.

Jye.

WATCH IT.

 

[DiFabio]

Hmm...

GOT has naked chicks, ex porn actresses, a dragon or so I've heard ...and Aquamomoa killing fools with his hands.

That's why you just watch those scenes online by themselves.

 

[The Clown Prince of Crime]

That's why you just watch those scenes online by themselves.

I'm thinking of doing the same with the Negan scenes.

 

[jye4ever]

I think you can convey basic believability with proper casting and writing. I don't know Tarkin, Piett, or Veers' backstory; they're archtypes. I'm just asking that the actors and dialogue convey the right feel of a senior military officer in an authoritarian government.

Generally that comes with an actor who is better than the support role they are being given. Oscar Issac is a good example. Poe is a supporting role that feels higher quality because Issac is a good actor, a better actor in my view than Boyega, which is why I think swaping the actors might have worked better.



Wow. I LOVE Dr. Zhivago. It's my favorite Russian novel and the film is brilliant.

I realize Star Wars seeks to appeal to children. I think you can do that while having a well-thought-out plot and world-building.

I hear ya, fair enough.





*Note to self, never watch ANH/ESB with Star-Puff, movies will be torn to shreds. lol

 

[ShadowX81]

I think you can convey basic believability with proper casting and writing. I don't know Tarkin, Piett, or Veers' backstory; they're archtypes. I'm just asking that the actors and dialogue convey the right feel of a senior military officer in an authoritarian government.

Generally that comes with an actor who is better than the support role they are being given. Oscar Issac is a good example. Poe is a supporting role that feels higher quality because Issac is a good actor, a better actor in my view than Boyega, which is why I think swaping the actors might have worked better.

I agree 100% in switching Oscar Issac in as Finn.

I always thought that the idea for Finn was a great one. A stormtrooper who grows a conscience and defects? Could have been a really great character.

But instead we got the very friendly looking John Boyega, who played Finn as an everyman instead of the trained killer raised in a militaristic environment so strict that even first names were considered too extreme an expression of individuality. A man that just recently abandoned that life. It didn't help that they wrote the character largely as a bumbling goofball, constantly screwing in up and saying the wrong thing in order to make Rey and Han look cooler.

Finn should have had an edge to him. A strength and layer of darkness reflecting the life that he was raised in and only just recently abandoned. Maybe even a bit of an anti-hero quality similar to Han in ANH. IMO Oscar Issac could have sold this brilliantly.

 

[Sachiel]

I agree 100% in switching Oscar Issac in as Finn.

I always thought that the idea for Finn was a great one. A stormtrooper who grows a conscience and defects? Could have been a really great character.

But instead we got the very friendly looking John Boyega, who played Finn as an everyman instead of the trained killer raised in a militaristic environment so strict that even first names were considered too extreme an expression of individuality. A man that just recently abandoned that life. It didn't help that they wrote the character largely as a bumbling goofball, constantly screwing in up and saying the wrong thing in order to make Rey and Han look cooler.

Finn should have had an edge to him. A strength and layer of darkness reflecting the life that he was raised in and only just recently abandoned. Maybe even a bit of an anti-hero quality similar to Han in ANH. IMO Oscar Issac could have sold this brilliantly.

This. All of it.