I think that's just modern films for you. I did miss the old style pacing and felt that the finale felt underwhelming because of how short and easy the mission felt.

Though it's also the problem with having the two main characters to establish, follow and build rather than just Luke. Things just take more time.

However I expect Rey having a mysterious past/training is going to a subject for the later films, in which case having an extra hour (a really, really long time for a film, incidentally) isn't going to solve much.

Oh certainly not regarding that. It's just a matter of pacing.

I hate that I can't give The Force Awakens a 10/10. But I certainly can't give it anything below an 8/10. For being so ballsy, for representing huge, swinging decisions that take HUGE cojones to make, for being the first new Star Wars film in ten whole years, and simply not sucking, but doing more than not sucking- actually being REALLY friggin' good, and on par with the original trilogy films even in its current state...

That alone deserves above 7 by default. The Force Awakens represents so much.

And I can give it a 9. I can give it a 9 because I love the characters, because I respect the film, because it actually pulled it off... But above all.

I can give it a 9 because of Kylo Ren.


I know, I know! Everything I say revolves around him..! Well, you ought to get used to it- the trilogy is set to revolve around Rey and Kylo Ren. About them, their opposite paths, and what may end up being the most incredible duel in Star Wars history by the time of Episode IX. What a huge, amazing climax that will be.

The Force Awakens sets up so much, and knocks so much down- in a good way..! It's just.

It's just an outstanding film because of what it is. For every tiny pothole or brief loss of balance, it completely makes up for it by simply being so god damned bold.

I love The Force Awakens. It challenges what we know, what to expect, and it does it well.

And god I am SO EXCITED to see what happens in this completely uncharted era..!

However I expect Rey having a mysterious past/training is going to a subject for the later films, in which case having an extra hour (a really, really long time for a film, incidentally) isn't going to solve much.

This is, I'm sure, absolutely the case, but it doesn't need to be explained in this movie, any more than we need to know more about Luke's father in ANH.

What we need is a reason to care about her.

Fin we understand - he's a Stormtrooper with a conscience, trying to do the right thing after starting on the "wrong" side.

Rey ... I've got nothing. We find out she's a good pilot. We find out she's handy with a melee weapon, we find out she's got some serious force mojo, but why should we care about her?

Well, because it's like poetry, it rhymes.

imsosorry

I can give it a 9 because of Kylo Ren.

I'm so with you on Kylo - I was genuinely fearful that he'd be killed at the end.

Well, because it's like poetry, it rhymes.

imsosorry

Made. My. Day.

I can give it a 9 because of Kylo Ren.

I'm so with you on Kylo - I was genuinely fearful that he'd be killed at the end.

Oh god so was I, because it's a trend I've gotten used to. But it didn't happen! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Well, because it's like poetry, it rhymes.

imsosorry

Made. My. Day.

Glad to've done so!

Overall, pretty enjoyable movie. Better combat with Stormtroopers, and dogfights. Will see it in 3D tomorrow to get a better perspective. Best improvement was the dialogue. Liked the lightsaber's action in the snow. I know what it is like to be in the military with a boss who throws...tantrums. No destroyed government property but that awkwardness "holy crap" moment. Liked it. The little dictator.

BUT here are my disappointments

1. For me this was HUGE DOWNER. HUGE DOWNER. Only X-Wing (T-70), TIE/FO, Kylo Ren Command Shuttle, and Millennium Falcon. Where were the new replacement for Y-Wings on a BOMBING run. Did they buy into our modern day F-16 is a CAS platform instead of an A-10 or F-15E Strike Eagle. It is not. This is my biggest disappointment. I expected to see some versions of B-Wings, A-Wings, and Y-Wings or better yet their replacements. What about Capital Ships. Wow....what the heck is FFG going to bring out now. Is Wave 8 the completion of Force Awakens? I am going to go pout and stare at my LEGO B-Wing on my dresser and mourn it's passing in Star Wars lore.

2. Movie Mash up. Didn't feel like much original material added. Saw a review that said too much going on, but it felt more like too much put into the movie and some lacking perspective. Who are these factions and what has been going on with them. Missing some serious plot. See #4

3. Starkiller. Wow. I can think of so many different movies and series that have something better....like E4 and E6. This really was a downer point for me to include the whole look and feel. All that energy and yet did not affect the atmosphere. Talk about climate change issues. Couldn't resist. Seriously thought it felt like a Star Trek moment. Otherwise the planet looked cool from a distance. Have to give it something.

4. Ummm....So we have a base smaller than Yavin? Lots of faces in the scene...but....that is it for military might? Need more back story. I guess that I need to read the comics and books. Not getting anything in the movie. Why didn't they evacuate to capital ships. Was that it...all in the same location. My tactical hairs rose up on what was going on there.

5. Didn't know Gollum was an actor in the movie. If you don't get it, nothing to see. I keep expecting to see the real guy and he is 3 feet tall in a miniature chair.

6. Desert. I hate the desert. Could have spent just a little bit more time on the ship to show loneliness (now that is just being picky). Ok....just being a dork on this one but I really hate the beginning of E4 and E6 because of the desert. Lived in several of them. Not a fan.

7. How is it that Finn and Rey just seemed to know how to use a lightsaber so efficiently. Really. Even Luke had to have training. And Rey, so strong in the Force even with the evil mind control. Just saying.

But even with all this negative I really enjoyed the movie. I hate the ewoks and have grown to like some parts of E3...so debating where it fits. But initial reaction is E5, E6, E7, E4, E3, E2.

You know, I wasn't surprised the evil guys tried making a bigger gun. I mean, the Empire made Star Destroyers, then made bigger Star Destroyers. Then they were like "Well the first Death Star blew up... Best make a second"

After 30 years I can only imagine someone being around the thought process of "But like, what if we made a BIGGER DEATH STAR!" Then everyone patting him on the back.

We do it now-a-days too.

I was interested in two choices:

One, was the choice to use mostly new alien races for the scenes, even the "bar scene". I mean, that would have had been a great chance to throw in an old favourite like a Rodian or something... Oh well.

Two, the ending. I like the move to end it there, it shows J.J. is of the mind to show people "Hey, the search for Luke will not be the main plot of next episode". Instead when can jump into Rey being trained or post trained or whatever. I for one am excited.

If you lose the first two super large weapons...maybe it is not the greatest idea. Just saying. Perhaps some camouflage?

Good catch on the Aliens. They seemed to be more in line with E1-3 type of aliens...but they were different.

I can give it a 9 because of Kylo Ren.

I'm so with you on Kylo - I was genuinely fearful that he'd be killed at the end.

Yeah, I actually agree with this too. My initial reaction was an 8/10 (with Empire on 10 and the other two on 9), but the more I dwell on Ren the higher it gets, so I'll round it up I think.

Saw it just now. A decent film and the closest thing to another Star Wars film we've seen since Jedi (and it's at about the same level of good as Jedi).

Now Ren is how you do whiny emo Dark Jedi! The temper tantrums are great and I can definitely see great things coming from this character. Kinda hilarious that he's basically Jacen Solo if you skip the first thirty-ish years of the EU.

Really wish they'd done something different with Snoke... I kept seeing Gollum every time he came on screen, but not really a big deal.

Shouldn't have explained how Starkiller Base worked, 'cuz it makes no sense when you do explain it. The fact that they could see it in the sky on another planet that probably wasn't in the same system while hitting a small cluster of planets that is probably way out of alignment in a spatial sense was a bit mind-boggling. Don't think the writers thought very hard about how any of that worked, but that's not unusual with sci-fi.

Little bit too much fan service, but most of it was decent, and the dialogue wouldn't be out of place in some of the middling EU novels.

Poe was bloody great all around, and seeing him tear up Starkiller base brought me back to my youth playing Super Return of the Jedi and some of the TIE fighter levels. Dude may be the second coming of Wedge Antilles, but he definitely learned to fly from videogames. Where the hell was Black Squadron, 'cuz Black Leader? Also, Matt Parker in an X-wing? How cool! WTF didn't we get him instead of "Red Ace"?

So... yeah... not too terrible...

I can give it a 9 because of Kylo Ren.

I'm so with you on Kylo - I was genuinely fearful that he'd be killed at the end.

Yeah, I actually agree with this too. My initial reaction was an 8/10 (with Empire on 10 and the other two on 9), but the more I dwell on Ren the higher it gets, so I'll round it up I think.

There's just something about that character that ties it ALL together.

I don't know what it is.

even though the plot was essentially a rehash of Episode 4, I still enjoyed the movie. just wish they didn't reveal as much as they did; Rey is clearly Luke's daughter. I agree with people's comments that they really needed another hour to flesh out the characters and develop the back story a little more. overall, still loved it. the saber fights weren't as pretty as Episodes 1-3, but they had a more genuine feel and emotion behind it.

Man I loved every time a saber was pulled out in this movie.

Because every single time, it mattered. It really meant something.

Man I loved every time a saber was pulled out in this movie.

Because every single time, it mattered. It really meant something.

I really liked the fight choreography, though it does kind of make me wonder if lightsabres still cut through basically everything anymore...

I re-watched the originals and most of the prequels before heading into TFA. Good Christ there is so much poor dialogue in episodes 4-6. And episodes 1-3 are nothing but poor dialogue. Star Wars is great in that it created this amazing thing in our heads. The actual movies are no where near as great as what we fans dreamed.

The force awakens was the Star Wars I had in my head.

Man I loved every time a saber was pulled out in this movie.

Because every single time, it mattered. It really meant something.

I really liked the fight choreography, though it does kind of make me wonder if lightsabres still cut through basically everything anymore...

They do. They were just making lots of surface cuts.

Though if they didn't, honestly it wouldn't be too far fetched. I mean the OT never made what a lightsaber could cut through ridiculous. Not to my memory, anyway.

1.) They seemed to do a better job at the, "These are Nazis, but in space" thing than the original Star Wars movies did. A lot more stahlhelms than just on Darth Vader. A lot more red, white, and black.

2.) Too many quick cuts. If they would have just slowed that crap down it would have felt more like the original trilogy. Especially during the fighter sequences it was too fast.

3.) I can understand a moon sized weapon needing an exhaust shaft and sending a torpedo down it. I can understand destroying the reactor of the second one as it's being built by sending fighter craft into it. But what the **** is that oscillator thing?

4.) I would have rather them just assaulted a third Death Star than super planet sun vaccuum. Not only would it be more Star Wars, it would also look cooler. The SPSV looks too organic, and the cannon muzzle looks too medieval for the Empire.

5.) So one of the vampires from I Am Legend (The Will Smith film adaption) is the emperor now. Why? Why is Star Wars obsessed with ugly people that can shoot lightning from their fingers? Hitler and Stalin were evil and they weren't disfigured. Why isn't there just some cold, calculated Moff Tarkin at the top?

6.) It was still pretty good and definitely better than the prequels. Not as good as the OT. Force Awakens is to the OT as Fury Road is to Mad Max 2 (The Road Warrior), except a notch lower.

Rey ... I've got nothing. We find out she's a good pilot. We find out she's handy with a melee weapon, we find out she's got some serious force mojo, but why should we care about her?

You have to admit that insta-bread stuff looked pretty rank.

For me they did enough with her inner pulling between wide-eyed-wonder at the galaxy and her need to stay at home, hoping that someone was alive and coming back. I don't need all the details yet, but that did enough make me accept her as a character worth watching.

That fight on han's large ship was amazing! I loved the mercs with the red masks.

Interesting.

1. Here was plenty of symmetry in the OT but TFA is much more overt. Maybe because generationally, we are further removed from the source.

2. I really enjoyed the pacing but they could easily have fleshed out some aspects with another quarter to half hour in running time. Conversely I don't think it's the fight or battle scenes that would have benefited but the background lore.

3. Damned if I now. Starkiler base in general was my one real gripe with the film.

4 se 3

5. I'm holding judgement until we see Snoke properly.

6. Best three Star Wars films are now the original, Empire and TFA. I felt this instalment was better than Jedi and light years ahead of the Prequels.

When making serious judgements on Star Wars we should always try to take off the childhood rose tinted glasses we tend to have about the OT. Those 3 mob is have cheese and bad writing a plenty but they have that special charm that was absent from the PT and for me has been rediscovered in TFA.

The Force Awakens would severely benefit from an extra hour.

So much this.

Room to breathe.

I reckon they have the extended Bluray and directors cut already scheduled for release...

No one has commented on Poe's amazing tallon rolls...in atmosphere no less.

Needs more podracing...

Really wish they'd done something different with Snoke... I kept seeing Gollum every time he came on screen, but not really a big deal.

Really? I saw

He's the Vader that didn't stop being a whiny brat.

Well, he is Vader's grandson...