Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Go! A satisfying homage to the original trilogy.
Galactic good versus evil...Again.
It’s been shoved down our throats, in our ears and up every other available orifice since Disney bought the rights in 2012. The new Star Wars flick is finally here. For three years, questions have raged over how good or terrible it will be – would it match the worshipped but overrated original 70’s/80’s trilogy (Episodes IV – VI); or is it Jar Jar Jinxed to follow the underrated but derided 90’s/00’s prequels (Episodes I – III)? Now, we know.
Normally I would outline the plot with a certain amount of detail, but there seems to be a consensus that revealing even the smallest clue about the story would be a crime worse than confusing the Starship Enterprise with the Millennium Falcon and turn you into a more deplorable person than a troubled lovechild of Donald Trump and Katie Hopkins. I shall therefore simply say what you may already know – It involves a moralistic storm trooper, Finn (John Boyega) who, along with poor-scavenger-who-becomes-increasingly-important, Rey (Daisy Ridley) joins superstar X-Wing Fighter pilot, Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and a whirring ball droid called BB8 as part of a resistance army against the menacingly named First Order (NB: not an express delivery company). They are controlled by Dark Side aficionados, Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis). full-of-himself General Hux (Domhhall Gleeson) and red lightsaber-wielding, mask-wearing Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). Han Solo the Grey (Harrison Ford) and clearly-dyes-his-fur Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) reluctantly get involved by accident, and there is a thousand-year-old, wise alien named Maz (Lupita N’yongo) to help things along. Things happen. Some people die, some people don’t. Then it ends.
Phew. Don’t sue me.
Normally I would outline the plot with a certain amount of detail, but there seems to be a consensus that revealing even the smallest clue about the story would be a crime worse than confusing the Starship Enterprise with the Millennium Falcon and turn you into a more deplorable person than a troubled lovechild of Donald Trump and Katie Hopkins. I shall therefore simply say what you may already know – It involves a moralistic storm trooper, Finn (John Boyega) who, along with poor-scavenger-who-becomes-increasingly-important, Rey (Daisy Ridley) joins superstar X-Wing Fighter pilot, Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and a whirring ball droid called BB8 as part of a resistance army against the menacingly named First Order (NB: not an express delivery company). They are controlled by Dark Side aficionados, Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis). full-of-himself General Hux (Domhhall Gleeson) and red lightsaber-wielding, mask-wearing Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). Han Solo the Grey (Harrison Ford) and clearly-dyes-his-fur Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) reluctantly get involved by accident, and there is a thousand-year-old, wise alien named Maz (Lupita N’yongo) to help things along. Things happen. Some people die, some people don’t. Then it ends.
Phew. Don’t sue me.
If that thin outline sounds familiar, that’s because it is. Following the incessant whinging about how flawed Episodes I – III were, the most sensible option for new director, J. J. Abrams (Star Trek) was always to begin with an effective remake of the originals, but disguised as a completely new and progressive film. That is what largely appears to have been done, but however derivative it may be, the sensible decision has also been the right one. Abrams has made a film that has the potential – given time – to be looked on as the best “film” of all seven (if perhaps not the best “experience”).
The original Episodes IV – VI were seminal for their time. The imagination and depth behind the entire macrocosm was as outlandish as it was fully-formed, using realistic and detailed special effects beyond anything ever seen before to tell a complex tale based on simple human ideas. There was a dynamite combination of philosophy, theology, technology, guys with capes, alien cabaret and a sexually-active giant slug. Equally intelligent and silly, it was endlessly accessible. Even so, the unequalled adulation they receive seems less warranted with every passing generation. They are still incredibly charming, witty and seductive films, but now crave tweaks and modernisation more than ever.
Episodes I – III attempted to do this, and were actually pretty decent, youthful films. However, they lacked the exacting combination of ingredients craved by the greying, passé, middle-aged fans of IV – VI. Throw in some glaring casting and character abominations and the universal wrath they attracted was inevitable, even if undeserved. Too much changed: Episodes IV – VI were three layers of a delicious, well-measured cake. Changing the recipe even slightly was always going to be perilous.
Episodes I – III attempted to do this, and were actually pretty decent, youthful films. However, they lacked the exacting combination of ingredients craved by the greying, passé, middle-aged fans of IV – VI. Throw in some glaring casting and character abominations and the universal wrath they attracted was inevitable, even if undeserved. Too much changed: Episodes IV – VI were three layers of a delicious, well-measured cake. Changing the recipe even slightly was always going to be perilous.
Enter, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens. It does everything a Star Wars film should, to a level of precision that exceeds all of its predecessors. Advances in CGI, choreography, stunts, filming techniques, and even race and gender enlightenment are all accounted for. They bring the film series into the 21st Century; learning from sci-fi and fantasy movies of the past decade, but retaining the layered themes of the 70’s and 80’s that so successfully analogised the human condition. It is beautifully shot, on a fantastically expansive scale. The original mechanical griminess of the machines has returned in place of the glossy upgrades of Episodes I – III. The action set pieces are thrusting and frequent. The saber to saber combat has more power and pi-“zwwaw zwwaw”-zazz than ever before. There are no distracting, long-tongued idiots. The story is efficient and loyal to what has come before, with nostalgic nods, retrospective references and character cameos everywhere. Finn takes over from Han as the source of charismatic comedy, while Rey replaces Luke Skywalker as the beaming heart of the film. Kylo Ren is even the nefarious Sith Lord we deserved instead of the whiney scarecrow of Anakin Skywalker we got in Episodes I – III. He may even be more compelling than Darth Vader. There are goosebumps. There are as many twists as a princess Leia hairdo and an intense, open-ended and exciting conclusion. It is practically perfect – Star Wars by numbers. Chewie, we’re back up to light speed...
...Or are we? To disagree with Fairground Attraction, it is a shame that it is 'perfect'. Unlike the quirky originals and flawed prequels, The Force Awakens doesn’t take any major risks, so doesn’t break any new ground. The cake is back with better icing, but if you wanted a taste of something novel and different – to feel the same excitement as a kid in 1979 seeing the first ever lightsaber battle or hearing, “No…I…am your father”– you will be disappointed. It is a long way from George Lucas coming up with Star Wars just out of his 20’s and crafting a spectacular new world that has persistently influenced modern culture over the past 40 years. The franchise is a victim of its own success, and the lack of true innovation in The Force Awakens is a reflection of the incredible impression made by the originals. It is sad to think that if a 30-year old guy named George was to pitch a similarly unique idea now, he would probably not be given the same opportunity of invention. Instead, we prefer to rinse the existing, tried and tested concept through our bank accounts once again, making it billions and billions of dollars and cementing Star Wars as a monument of modern culture, yet simultaneously symbolising how much of it we lack.
Nevertheless, we’re ultimately all predictable drones shuffling along to the beat of the dark Disney Empire. We will absolutely stuff ourselves with The Force Awakens until it is splattered all over our gluttonous faces and has become a $3 billion movie and the biggest in cinema history. It may be a familiar and guilty feed, but goddammit, it’s still a delicious one.
So go, if you haven’t already. We should expect much more from the next instalment, but for now, it’s everything we think we want and probably a little more.
Nevertheless, we’re ultimately all predictable drones shuffling along to the beat of the dark Disney Empire. We will absolutely stuff ourselves with The Force Awakens until it is splattered all over our gluttonous faces and has become a $3 billion movie and the biggest in cinema history. It may be a familiar and guilty feed, but goddammit, it’s still a delicious one.
So go, if you haven’t already. We should expect much more from the next instalment, but for now, it’s everything we think we want and probably a little more.
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