Thoughts about Star Wars: The Force Awakens (with spoilers)
I finally watched Star Wars: The Force Awakens last week after getting every single spoiler I could. I buddy watched it with tiuneo, since I don't usually have the patience to watch movies. Turns out it was, for me, the best movie in the series.
First of all, let me tell you that, although it may not seem, I'm not the biggest fan ever of Star Wars. I do enjoy the lore and I did watch all the movies (including the awful new trilogy), but I only did it relatively recently. I'm not a hardcore fan, I did not watch the movies when they were first released (although I do have a vague memory of watching The Empire Strikes Back on TV) and I did not explore the Star Wars universe as much as hardcore fans did. I did not play all the games, I did not read all the books and comics and I didn't watch any of the animated series. Nevertheless, I enjoyed all movies, I do own a couple of Star Wars goodies and I definitely plan to watch all the movies that are about to be released from now on.
That being said, I really LOVED The Force Awakens. So far, it was the best movie I watched this year (not that I've been watching too many movies). I thought it was one of the most refreshing movies I have watched so far, and perhaps for all the "wrong" reasons.
I didn' t love the movie because I thought the plot was particularly explendid or because it blew my mind or because it was something completely different from everything I've ever seen before. In fact, even the fighting scenes weren't THAT impressive, specially compared to the fighting sequences of the new trilogy. But I liked it because of small things that should be part of a bigger amount of action movies nowadays but are not.
First of all, I adore the diversity of the movie. I feel kinda silly talking about diversity, be it racial, sexual or whatever, but it is something I really appreciated. It felt so good to see a girl main character who also happens to be badass and did not need to be saved during the movie. I felt so happy to see a black man being a Jedi and being in the main role. It is so cool to finally see a gay main character playing a meaningful role. But the best of all? There was an Asian girl who was a badass pilot!! That was so cool!! Is that how you feel when there is a character on-screen that represents you??
This may sound like a trifle thing, but I grew up in a time when I could only play the princess role when I was playing with my friends. It was boring. You don't get to do the fun stuff, fight the villain, cause some damage and emerge victorious. As a princess, you just have to look pretty and wait for your prince charming to rescue you. And you know what? It sucks. Yes, some girls like the idea. Some women like the idea. But other grisl and women just want to grab a sword and fight alongside their heroes. And seeing exactly this in The Force Awakens, seeing Rey handling the Millenium Falcon, then fighting Kylo Ren (gosh, that part when the lightsaber flies to his direction and she happens to be the one who grabs it) felt like sweet victory. It felt more rewarding than the ending of the fight itself.
I'm obviously not removing the importance of Leia as the commander and leader. She does kick ass in her own way. But she has been tempered by the conflict for years. Rey is still young and still has lots to learn. I find it easier to connect with her than Leia (although Leia being a badass was one of the reasons why Return of the Jedi had been my favorite movie of the series so far).
I thought that the plot brought everything I was expecting. It felt good to see the characters that played a big role in the previous movies once again. BB-8 was absolutely adorable. The ending closes the story wonderfully at the same time it puts between the lines that something big is about to happen.
I wasn't much of a fan of Kylo Ren, but Captain Phasma was also pretty cool. I wish there was more of her in the movie!
So yeah, I loved The Force Awakens and I can't wait to see the next movies!
First of all, let me tell you that, although it may not seem, I'm not the biggest fan ever of Star Wars. I do enjoy the lore and I did watch all the movies (including the awful new trilogy), but I only did it relatively recently. I'm not a hardcore fan, I did not watch the movies when they were first released (although I do have a vague memory of watching The Empire Strikes Back on TV) and I did not explore the Star Wars universe as much as hardcore fans did. I did not play all the games, I did not read all the books and comics and I didn't watch any of the animated series. Nevertheless, I enjoyed all movies, I do own a couple of Star Wars goodies and I definitely plan to watch all the movies that are about to be released from now on.
That being said, I really LOVED The Force Awakens. So far, it was the best movie I watched this year (not that I've been watching too many movies). I thought it was one of the most refreshing movies I have watched so far, and perhaps for all the "wrong" reasons.
I didn' t love the movie because I thought the plot was particularly explendid or because it blew my mind or because it was something completely different from everything I've ever seen before. In fact, even the fighting scenes weren't THAT impressive, specially compared to the fighting sequences of the new trilogy. But I liked it because of small things that should be part of a bigger amount of action movies nowadays but are not.
First of all, I adore the diversity of the movie. I feel kinda silly talking about diversity, be it racial, sexual or whatever, but it is something I really appreciated. It felt so good to see a girl main character who also happens to be badass and did not need to be saved during the movie. I felt so happy to see a black man being a Jedi and being in the main role. It is so cool to finally see a gay main character playing a meaningful role. But the best of all? There was an Asian girl who was a badass pilot!! That was so cool!! Is that how you feel when there is a character on-screen that represents you??
This may sound like a trifle thing, but I grew up in a time when I could only play the princess role when I was playing with my friends. It was boring. You don't get to do the fun stuff, fight the villain, cause some damage and emerge victorious. As a princess, you just have to look pretty and wait for your prince charming to rescue you. And you know what? It sucks. Yes, some girls like the idea. Some women like the idea. But other grisl and women just want to grab a sword and fight alongside their heroes. And seeing exactly this in The Force Awakens, seeing Rey handling the Millenium Falcon, then fighting Kylo Ren (gosh, that part when the lightsaber flies to his direction and she happens to be the one who grabs it) felt like sweet victory. It felt more rewarding than the ending of the fight itself.
I'm obviously not removing the importance of Leia as the commander and leader. She does kick ass in her own way. But she has been tempered by the conflict for years. Rey is still young and still has lots to learn. I find it easier to connect with her than Leia (although Leia being a badass was one of the reasons why Return of the Jedi had been my favorite movie of the series so far).
I thought that the plot brought everything I was expecting. It felt good to see the characters that played a big role in the previous movies once again. BB-8 was absolutely adorable. The ending closes the story wonderfully at the same time it puts between the lines that something big is about to happen.
I wasn't much of a fan of Kylo Ren, but Captain Phasma was also pretty cool. I wish there was more of her in the movie!
So yeah, I loved The Force Awakens and I can't wait to see the next movies!