THIS REVIEW DOES NOT HAVE ANY MAJOR PLOT SPOILERS. IF YOU WANT TO KEEP CLEAR ANYWAY GO AHEAD, BROWSE 9GAG OR SOMETHING. A SPOILER FILLED REVIEW WILL COME OUT ON THE 20th OR THEREABOUTS.
It's Like A Poem, It Rhymes
The Force Awakens borrows a lot of plot elements from other films in the series, but manages to keep things mostly fresh. In a way, the Hero's Journey begins again, as it did with Anakin in Episode 1 and Luke in Episode IV. And looking at this movie in that way, we can see that the three films have definite similarities. In
some places the throwbacks may be a little too strong, but I feel it's
not enough to be as derivative as, say, Abrams' Star Trek Into Darkness. And even if it was, even Episode IV borrowed heavily from The Hidden Fortress, and it didn't make A New Hope any less of a movie.
As with the 2009 reboot of Star Trek, Abrams peppers the films with references and nostalgia tailored for the fans. His calculated balance of CGI effects and practical effects is a far cry from the sterile rooms and locales of the prequel trilogy and more reminiscent of the original trilogy's galactic civilization spanning thousands of years. Nods such as certain creatures or lines of dialog (as well as the Wilhelm scream present in all six previous installments) are present here as well. The film was definitely made with an attention to detail, a sense of exuberance in the filmmaking and a heartfelt sense of respect to the fans.
His greatest asset in the production of this film may be co-writer Lawrence Kasdan, who wrote The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Kasdan settles in comfortably with characters he knows well, and through great performances by all of the cast, they bring us back to a place where it feels like we are with old friends once again. Gone are the overtly political discussions, fart jokes and lame pickup lines about the coarseness of sand. Instead, we get the wittiness and playful banter that made the protagonists shine in earlier films.
In a way the film recaptures the spirit of the old serials that inspired Lucas' Star Wars efforts; it feels like a part of an ongoing narrative with multiple plot threads that will hopefully be continued in future installments. It's peppered with characters old and new, some of whom we will see in a different light down the road. And at its core it's always been a story of good vs. evil, which is story-wise the simplest story ever.
Characters, Characters, Characters
The new characters shine in the Force Awakens, and Abrams really did a good job bringing out their conflicts and personal journeys onto the screen. Many will say that Daisy Ridley's Rey is in line with Luke's archetype, but I find that the film focuses on the stories of three characters, each embodying a facet of the personality of Luke and Anakin (the previous two heroes on a journey). Much like Spock and Kirk's story arcs formed the crux of '09 Trek, I think The Force Awakens focuses on three particular character arcs:
Rey is a fish out of water, ripped from her boring but quiet life on Jakku and thrust into a much bigger world. We share her fascination as we see new locales and meet interesting and legendary personalities. She's also a tinkerer, something we also find with Anakin during his journey and his fascination for making machines, droids and podracers.
Finn (played by John Boyega) embodies the spirit of doing what is right; despite circumstances going against him. He embodies a rebellious spirit we saw with Han, Luke and Leia in the first trilogy. His concerns are self serving at first, but his character grows over the course of the film. His role will only grow in the films to come. Some character angles seem a bit awkward or forced, but hopefully the next few films will sort it out.
And Kylo Ren represents one drenched in the power of the Dark Side of the Force. He lashes out with rage and hatred, embodying the purest principles of the darkness. And in a way he's very much a fan of the dark side, with obsession bordering on worship, yet compounded with fear and apprehension. His character is anything but one dimensional.
Unfortunately, the character centric story leaves the other plot moments dry. The Force Awakens draws from the exciting final act of A New Hope as inspiration for its own final act, but it feels perfunctory and it lacks the insane tension from that movie. Its centered, smaller focus pushes a lot of the stories coming from the bigger picture about the First Order or the Resistance out of the way. At its heart, however, characters have always been the emotional core of the Star Wars series, and not wild spaceship dogfights and magical laser sword wielding wizards and aliens and pew pew pew.
Strong With the Force
There's no doubt that with Star Wars the global cultural phenomenon that it is today, it's taken a life of its own as a brand, what with the gobs of merchandise that Lucasfilm (and now Disney) pushes on us and our kids year after year. It's of course more than the tons of plastic crap or DVDs or what have you. It's an important part of our collective childhoods, a source of nostalgia and wonder we will pass from one generation to another. Beyond its status as a multimedia product, based on my previous three essays (see the Countdown to The Force Awakens posts) I'd like to believe we the fans have partly taken ownership of it as well.
One thing you may hear or read from many positive reviews about this film is that it "feels right" and it "feels like Star Wars." In almost all the ways that matter, that is very much the truth. Abrams' biggest success in making this new Star Wars film is the fact that he made it feel like the Star Wars we love. That it is a perfectly good and serviceable movie is icing on the cake. It reminds me of the time when people rejected New Coke just because it had rebranded itself as something succeeding the old and beloved Coca Cola.
Star Wars The Force Awakens is not groundbreaking cinema. It's honestly a good film, but whether it will stick in our minds like the original films did is still up in the air. It probably won't revolutionize anything. But you know, that's okay. What it probably set out to do is restore faith in a brand that has been tarnished in the eyes of the fans that felt betrayed over six years of disappointing films - and I think in all honesty it succeeded. In the business of making movies, it's a wise decision. I do hope that for the next movie they try creatively experimenting with form and story. In any case, it's going to be one hell of a wait for the next one.
No comments:
Post a Comment