Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens Review

5.0 Stars

Thirty years after the defeat of the Galactic Empire, the galaxy faces a new threat from the evil Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and the First Order. When a defector named Finn crash-lands on a desert planet, he meets Rey (Daisy Ridley), a tough scavenger whose droid contains a top-secret map. Together, the young duo joins forces with Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to make sure the Resistance receives the intelligence concerning the whereabouts of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), the last of the Jedi Knights.

I initially gave Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens a 5 star prediction.  I saw it opening weekend and was blown away from start to finish.  There were so many throw back to the original trilogy, the return of our favorite characters, the introduction to new exciting characters, a great story, stunningly perfect visual effects, and music that moves you from start to finish.  But I had to see it a second time because something was bothering me: was I, at all, in even the slightest way, influenced in my enthusiasm for this movie because of how bad Episodes I through III were?  Would this still be the amazing movie I felt it was had I through III been better, or just not been made at all and we went right from Return of the Jedi to The Force Awakens?

So I watched it again.  And it was even better the second time.   I picked up on a few of what movie fans refer to as Easter Eggs in the movie that I missed the first time.  An Easter Egg is an inside joke or a hidden message that is either delivered by a line, a piece of clothing, or a prop that is usually "hiding in plain sight" that you usually don't see right away.  For example, nearly every Pixar movie will have a reference to A113 in it.  A113 was the classroom number for the graphics design students at California's Institute of the Arts.  The Easter Egg can be a reference to nothing related to the movie, as with A113, or it can be a tribute to previous movies, a foreshadowing of something yet to come, or something that can have a double meaning.  The very first line of The Force Awakens is "This will begin to make things right."  This is easily explained as the missing piece of a map to Luke Skywalker's whereabouts and that finding him will help the Rebellion to take down the newly formed dark side faction called the First Order.  But some fans are taking it as a jab at George Lucas and his defiling of Episodes I-III with his over-use of computer graphics.  Regardless of how it was intended, or how you took it, JJ Abrams has brought Star Wars back in a big way.

There are many things reminiscent to the original trilogy in this movie.  Without giving too much away, it starts on a remote desert planet with an orphaned character named Rey who mysteriously is very strong with the force and, so far, inexplicably has a very strong connection to Luke Skywalker.  The New Order has built a planet-sized space station that trumps the Death Star but still has one weak spot much like their old weapon.  The Millennium Falcon is back.  There is a scene in a bar that is much like the Cantina at Mos Eisley.  Rey has an experience with the force much like Luke had on Dagobah with Yoda.  There is so much smart and appropriate humor.  There is action.  There are twists.  There are questions left unanswered making fans already anxious for Episode VIII.  And the special effects were flawless.  The scenes of X-wing Fighters, the Millennium Falcon, the Tie Fighters in aerial battles were breath-taking and so well done.  

My conclusion after seeing The Force Awakens a second time is that this movie not only stands up to its own hype, not only makes you forget about the disappointment of Episodes I-III, but is the perfect continuation of the Star Wars saga after Return of the Jedi.  I've seen it twice and I will definitely own this when it comes out.  But the big question is, when do I buy it?  It will surely come out on its own.  Then there will most likely be a Trilogy available of VII - IX.  And eventually a box set of all nine movies.  I might just wait for all nine.  Who knows, with the success of these new ones, maybe someone will go back through I - VI and "fix" some of the things that were previously "fixed" that many feel were more detrimental than enhancements.  Regardless of when, I know I will own this movie.  And for only the second time in my movie review career, I'm giving a perfect 5.0 rating.  Only Saving Mr. Banks got that rating before.  So, Oscar season is right around the corner, so I'll be focusing on those movies next.  Which one will be on my mind first?  We shall see.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Preview

Thirty years after the defeat of the Galactic Empire, the galaxy faces a new threat from the evil Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and the First Order. When a defector named Finn crash-lands on a desert planet, he meets Rey (Daisy Ridley), a tough scavenger whose droid contains a top-secret map. Together, the young duo joins forces with Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to make sure the Resistance receives the intelligence concerning the whereabouts of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), the last of the Jedi Knights.

On May 25, 1977, George Lucas unveiled to the world a ground-breaking movie that would span generations and revolutionize movie-making.  That movie, of course, was Star Wars: A New Hope (Episode IV).  He had to create new special effects to even come close to the amazing things that were happening in his mind.  For the first time ever, a film had a musical score accompanying the entire movie.  While no one was quite sure what to expect when they lined up to see the movie, or even what they just saw when the final credits rolled, most were confident they just witnessed history in the making.  Star Wars went on to win 7 of its 10 Oscar nominations and quickly passed Jaws as the highest grossing film of all-time.  The success of Star Wars continued with The Empire Strikes Back in 1980 and Return of the Jedi in 1983.  

It would be 16 years before Episode I would be released, the first of a trilogy of movies that were set just years before A New Hope.  I remember waiting in line anxiously with other Star Wars fans opening night for Episode I: The Phantom Menace; I remember the cheers from the audience as the familiar drum roll and opening score echoed in the theatre before the iconic yellow lettering against the black space backdrop scrolled up the screen; and I also remember how the excitement turned to disappointment less than half an hour into the movie.  While computer animation and technology had advanced light years since the original trilogy, it still wasn't perfect for what Lucas envisioned.  Lucas seemed to think it was good enough and went overboard with his use of computer graphics, something fans were given a clue might happen with his questionable edits of Episodes IV - VI.  Scenes including Greedo shooting at Han first in the Cantina at Mos Eisley, Han stepping on Jabba the Hutt's tail, and an extended musical performance at Jabba's Palace are just a few of the additions that left fans wondering what Lucas was thinking.

One of fans' biggest complaints was a Gungan named Jar Jar Binks introduced in Episode I.  He was designed to be a clumsy entertaining character, but he was annoying and disruptive.  What bothered me the most was that he was a computer animation.  And as good of an animation he was, he was still clearly an animation and it took you out of the story and reminded you that it was all fake.  There were scenes of Jar Jar flipping through the air into the water, Qui Gon catching his tongue, his tongue getting stuck in a podracer; scenes that only served the purpose of showing off how far computer animation has come, but they were more of a reminder that the technology wasn't so good that it could be undetectable.  At the end of Episode I, the Gungans have an epic battle with an army of battle droids, not unlike the Ewok battle against the Storm Troopers on Endor in Return of the Jedi.  When an Ewok died, you felt bad.  When a Trooper died, you cheered.  However, in the battle between the Gungans and Droids ensued, I found myself not caring either way because they were all clearly computer animations.  As annoying as Jar Jar was, I would have found him exponentially more tolerable if it was a man in a costume.  

Lucas continued to disappoint his fans with Episode II: Attack of the Clones.  The message seemed to hit home with Lucas and many felt he made a significant effort to right many of the wrongs with his final installment of Episode III: Revenge of the Sith; however, the debate among Star Wars fans as to which trilogy was the better was overwhelmingly one-sided, unlike those who debate who made the better Batman: Michael Keaton or Christian Bale.  While arguments can be made for both Dark Knights, there is no question for any Star Wars fan which trilogy is clearly superior in every way.

And that's why fans are so excited, myself included, for the release of Episode VII: The Force Awakens.  If you've never seen any of the previous six movies and heard nothing about them, watching the trailer for Ep VII would probably make no sense at all.  There is no plot, there is no context.  There are soldiers in white and black suits of plastic armor.  There are people fighting with glowing swords.  And there are futuristic looking ships flying through the sky.  That's really it.  But for Star Wars fans, the previews say it all: Star Wars is back after ten years, and it looks awesome.  

The Walt Disney Company bought the rights to make the movies and hired JJ Abrams to direct them.  Abrams is an accomplished director but fans are most excited because of the work he has done with the recent Star Trek films.  No, I'm not comparing Star Wars to Star Trek.  Everyone knows that's a cardinal sin to confuse or equate the two.  But seeing what Abrams has done with the latest Treks, gives an insight as to where he would be going with Star Wars.  You can tell already from the brief previews that Abrams shows the restraint in using computer animation that Lucas completely lost his grip on in the Prequels.  You also see familiar faces like the Wookie Chewbacca and the soundrel Han Solo.  

I've never given a 5.0 star prediction before, but I'm going all out and anticipating that this will live up to all the hype that Episode I was supposed to deliver while reminding fans of the joy and wonder they felt when they first watched the Original Trilogy.  I believe Episode VII: The Force Awakens will be the film that has audiences cheering from the moment the lights in the theatre dim to the final notes of the closing credits.  Will this live up to the hype and my anticipation?  Or will it be just a great sequel?  Or worse, will it be a disappointment?  We shall see.

Bridge of Spies Review

3.5 Stars

Set in the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States, Bridge of Spies is based on the true story of New York lawyer James Donovan (Tom Hanks) who is called upon by the CIA to try to negotiate a prisoner trade.  The Americans have a prisoner Rudolf Abel who is a convicted Soviet spy that they are willing to exchange for the release of pilot Francis Gary Powers who was shot down and captured while spying on the Soviets.  The reason why Donovan would be the logical choice for the assignment: he defended the Soviet Abel in court.

This is the fourth collaboration between Hanks and director Stephen Spielberg.  Previously, the two worked on Catch Me If You Can, The Terminal and Saving Private Ryan.  Spielberg won Best Director and Best Picture Oscars and Hanks won Best Actor for Saving Private Ryan and all the early speculation says these two are front-runners for another sweep when it comes to handing out trophies.

Well, I predicted 4.5 stars based on previous collaborations between Hanks and Spielberg.  I knocked it down a full star, not because I didn't enjoy the movie, not because I thought Hanks didn't perform well, but because I was underwhelmed and it's one of those "once is enough" kind of movies. It was an interesting story, well told, but it tended to drag and Hanks was Hanks.  What I mean by that is he was absolutely brilliant, but he was himself.  In Saving Mr. Banks, I didn't see Tom Hanks, I saw Walt Disney.  In Captain Phillips, I saw the Captain of a captive ship.  In Bridge of Spies, I saw Hanks as James Donovan.  He was great, but he was himself.  Now, Mark Rylance (who played the Russian Spy Rudolf Abel) was absolutely endearing and entertaining and completely deserves an Oscar Nomination for Best Supporting Actor.  However, if he doesn't get one, don't be surprised if he's not upset.  If you ask him why, he'll simply ask you in return, "Would it help?"  You'll get it when you see the movie, which I recommend renting or waiting until it's on TV, but I doubt it will make it to my home collection.  So, what movie will be on my mind next?  We shall see.