When you've been promised a feast, toasted cheese just won't do - Review of the New Star Wars movie
How something gets judged depends to a large extent on what is sets out to achieve. Which is why for a new Star Wars movie that promises to rejuvenate the franchise, the bar is pretty high.
*SPOILERS*
Two things first:
1) I am not a purist. I accept that in the transition from book to movie or from old movie to new movie, changes are necessary; and as long as those changes are in their majority plausible and as long as the end result roughly matches the spirit of the original, I am rather tolerant. This is why I can cheerfully enjoy Peter Jackson’s LOTR trilogy, because, some silly decisions aside, they capture the essence of Middle-earth in amazing locations and lovingly crafted sets and costumes. Peter Jackson’s Hobbit, on the other hand, makes a charming children’s book feel like an out-of-control computer game.
2) I do not believe that Star Wars is the pinnacle of human achievement, nor do I buy into the notion that the original trilogy contains great spiritual and philosophical depth. Its metaphysics are, albeit plausible, fairly simplistic. What the original trilogy does have is a unique charm, largely thanks to the good vibes between the characters and the unfettered and unabashed enjoyment of the weird and wonderful. This is where the prequels failed, they had weirdness without any wonder, and the vibes between the characters were non-existent.
So, what to make of this latest Star Wars instalment? I think those who say it is brilliant should step back and review the movie in a quiet environment, because they have probably been stunned. Sitting in the cinema, I felt it was good enough, because it’s easy to be dazzled by the spectacle on the screen, and though I had feelings of unease at various points, there was never time to reflect on what caused them. After a few days to digest what I’ve seen, I’ve come to the conclusion that my unease was quite justified. The movie has a very glossy surface, but scratch it just a little and some serious problems come to light.
On the other hand, I think those who call it the worst movie ever and similar hyperbolical epithets, exaggerate wildly and should perhaps be made to watch some really appalling movies in order to recalibrate their reference system. “The Force Awakens” is kind of okay. But being kind of okay is really not good enough in the context. Like the Harry Potter franchise, it is the triumph of the mediocre over the excellent.
There were things I definitely liked about The Force Awakens. The new droid, for example, Rey’s self-baking bread, the wreckages of imperial AT-ATs and star destroyers buried in the desert sand, the terrified people watching the approach of the death ray thingy, the courtyard full of flags at Maz Kanata’s place. All these are mere details, though. Visually, it is pretty good. And it was lovely to see Han and Chewey together, though it should seriously worry the makers if the best thing about their new movie is the guest appearance of the old characters.
So, what happens when we scratch the surface? The most blatant failing of the movie, as lots of people have pointed out, is that it is a shameless AND incoherent rehash of A New Hope. It is so much a rehash that it is not worth bothering to use the new names they’ve invented for things, New Order, resistance, Supreme Leader etc. The second is that, as with most current movies, the makers got carried away with the technical possibilities and forget about such negligible details as allowing the audience to relate to the characters and plot. A few other scratching exercises reveal further problems:
Rey: I like the idea of having a female main character. In the original trilogy, Leia is said to have force powers, but she never gets to explore them. Rey could follow in her path and take it further. The actress made a reasonable job of the role. However, the accusations of Mary-Sueism that have been levelled at the character are entirely justified. She would have been so much better if she had struggled a bit more instead of being instantly perfect at everything.
Finn: I also like the idea of a storm trooper revealing a human face and defecting from the empire. It would have been good if this defection had been better motivated, but the concept as such is appealing. Sadly, this character is spoiled for me because he is so overtly agenda-driven. They might as well have had big flashing arrows over his head with the caption: “LOOK!!!! HE IS BLACK!!!!” Why? This is Star Wars, with countless species from across the universe, so skin colour really isn’t an issue. In fact, one of the main characters of the original trilogy is black, though you may have to stop and think who it is, because you probably didn’t notice. It is Lando Calrissian. Yes, honestly, he is. And I bet nobody ever thinks of him as “the black guy,” because he is just Lando and he is intriguing and awesome and his skin colour is completely irrelevant and that’s how it should be. Obviously there ought to be people of colour in the new film, but they should be there naturally and their presence should not be shoved into our faces like some great moral achievement. But Finn, sadly, has “I’m the black guy” stamped all over his character. It’s a shame.
Poe: He is the one new character with the potential to revive the original trilogy’s charm. He really had a wow factor. Alas, after the opening he disappears for most of the movie, and then reappears arbitrarily but doesn’t play much of a role. What a waste. But then again, we should perhaps be glad we didn’t get a chance to scratch at his surface.
Kylo Ren: He creeped me out big time and I thought it was a great moment when he took his helmet off the first time and his face was so unexpected and striking. But then inevitably one has to ask why he wears a helmet at all, and as soon as his background is established, one has to ask what the deal with him is altogether. The prequels take pains to explain why and how Darth Vader turned to the dark side, and it is more or less convincing, but Kylo Ren’s motivation seems to have been teenage spite. Becoming a Sith lord as the equivalent of slamming your door and sulking in your room? That’s a little hard to buy. Also, he ultimately looks like a Harry Potter character, Snape’s nephew or something like that.
Han: Harrison Ford wanted Han to be killed off so he could be rid of the role. Fair enough. But an amazing and beloved character like Han Solo deserved a much better send-off than what he was given here. He should have died in Leia’s arms (or failing that, in Chewey’s) and after some relevant achievement, and possibly with a nonchalant comment on his lips. His death should have driven the more sentimental members of the audience, e.g. me, to tears. Instead we just have a moment of, Oh, whoops, Han is dead, what a shame, well, on with the movie; and he is chucked away like a piece of rubbish. It saddens me that that awkward and painful embrace is the last interaction between Han and Leia that we’ll ever see. I don’t mean that I want a happy-ever-after. What I want for a character of such importance is an end that is gripping and memorable. Consider the send-off that Loxley was given in the Robin of Sherwood series. Consider, in the Star Wars ‘verse, the death of Darth Vader. That’s how it’s done.
C3PO: Is the republic so impoverished that they cannot give him a colour-matching arm replacement? Or is this just a ploy to sell new action figures?
Luke/Leia: Blink and you miss them. And Leia, who is so endearing in the original trilogy due to her warmth and kindness and open smile, is cold and stony here. It’s no excuse to say, Oh, but her son turned to the dark side. She could be sorrowful and hurting, but remain a living, feeling person, not this walking rock.
The various plot holes, deus ex machina moments and complete lack of reason/motivation for just about anything have been commented on by others, and I won’t list them again, but this one thing I have to get off my chest: Just how stupid is that map? If I’m hiding in Vladivostok and don’t want to be found, I will not tell you I am in Vladivostok. If I do want you to be able to contact me in case of emergency, I can leave you a note that says, “I’m in Vladivostok.” What I will not do, unless I am completely crazy, is to leave you a map of the whole of Asia, with a crooked path drawn from town to town across the whole continent leading to Vladivostok. Because there is absolutely no need for me to visit all those towns; I can go straight to Vladivostok by plane. And in Star Wars, they go via hyperspace. If Luke wanted to be found, he could have left coordinates. And if he really wanted his location to remain secret, he would have kept it secret. What remains a secret instead is why he went into hiding in the first place and why anyone wanted him back. But in this movie, logic is entirely contingent. I’m looking forward to how the Big Bang Theory dudes will ridicule the concept of the star-draining super weapon thingy.
Would I leave the room if this movie was running on the telly? Probably not. Would I spend £40 for our family to see its successor in the cinema? No. What a lot of fuss they made about something that is only kind of okay. It’s as if someone spends five hours in the kitchen, piling up a mountain of dirty pots and pans, and then merely serves up toasted cheese.
*SPOILERS*
Two things first:
1) I am not a purist. I accept that in the transition from book to movie or from old movie to new movie, changes are necessary; and as long as those changes are in their majority plausible and as long as the end result roughly matches the spirit of the original, I am rather tolerant. This is why I can cheerfully enjoy Peter Jackson’s LOTR trilogy, because, some silly decisions aside, they capture the essence of Middle-earth in amazing locations and lovingly crafted sets and costumes. Peter Jackson’s Hobbit, on the other hand, makes a charming children’s book feel like an out-of-control computer game.
2) I do not believe that Star Wars is the pinnacle of human achievement, nor do I buy into the notion that the original trilogy contains great spiritual and philosophical depth. Its metaphysics are, albeit plausible, fairly simplistic. What the original trilogy does have is a unique charm, largely thanks to the good vibes between the characters and the unfettered and unabashed enjoyment of the weird and wonderful. This is where the prequels failed, they had weirdness without any wonder, and the vibes between the characters were non-existent.
So, what to make of this latest Star Wars instalment? I think those who say it is brilliant should step back and review the movie in a quiet environment, because they have probably been stunned. Sitting in the cinema, I felt it was good enough, because it’s easy to be dazzled by the spectacle on the screen, and though I had feelings of unease at various points, there was never time to reflect on what caused them. After a few days to digest what I’ve seen, I’ve come to the conclusion that my unease was quite justified. The movie has a very glossy surface, but scratch it just a little and some serious problems come to light.
On the other hand, I think those who call it the worst movie ever and similar hyperbolical epithets, exaggerate wildly and should perhaps be made to watch some really appalling movies in order to recalibrate their reference system. “The Force Awakens” is kind of okay. But being kind of okay is really not good enough in the context. Like the Harry Potter franchise, it is the triumph of the mediocre over the excellent.
There were things I definitely liked about The Force Awakens. The new droid, for example, Rey’s self-baking bread, the wreckages of imperial AT-ATs and star destroyers buried in the desert sand, the terrified people watching the approach of the death ray thingy, the courtyard full of flags at Maz Kanata’s place. All these are mere details, though. Visually, it is pretty good. And it was lovely to see Han and Chewey together, though it should seriously worry the makers if the best thing about their new movie is the guest appearance of the old characters.
So, what happens when we scratch the surface? The most blatant failing of the movie, as lots of people have pointed out, is that it is a shameless AND incoherent rehash of A New Hope. It is so much a rehash that it is not worth bothering to use the new names they’ve invented for things, New Order, resistance, Supreme Leader etc. The second is that, as with most current movies, the makers got carried away with the technical possibilities and forget about such negligible details as allowing the audience to relate to the characters and plot. A few other scratching exercises reveal further problems:
Rey: I like the idea of having a female main character. In the original trilogy, Leia is said to have force powers, but she never gets to explore them. Rey could follow in her path and take it further. The actress made a reasonable job of the role. However, the accusations of Mary-Sueism that have been levelled at the character are entirely justified. She would have been so much better if she had struggled a bit more instead of being instantly perfect at everything.
Finn: I also like the idea of a storm trooper revealing a human face and defecting from the empire. It would have been good if this defection had been better motivated, but the concept as such is appealing. Sadly, this character is spoiled for me because he is so overtly agenda-driven. They might as well have had big flashing arrows over his head with the caption: “LOOK!!!! HE IS BLACK!!!!” Why? This is Star Wars, with countless species from across the universe, so skin colour really isn’t an issue. In fact, one of the main characters of the original trilogy is black, though you may have to stop and think who it is, because you probably didn’t notice. It is Lando Calrissian. Yes, honestly, he is. And I bet nobody ever thinks of him as “the black guy,” because he is just Lando and he is intriguing and awesome and his skin colour is completely irrelevant and that’s how it should be. Obviously there ought to be people of colour in the new film, but they should be there naturally and their presence should not be shoved into our faces like some great moral achievement. But Finn, sadly, has “I’m the black guy” stamped all over his character. It’s a shame.
Poe: He is the one new character with the potential to revive the original trilogy’s charm. He really had a wow factor. Alas, after the opening he disappears for most of the movie, and then reappears arbitrarily but doesn’t play much of a role. What a waste. But then again, we should perhaps be glad we didn’t get a chance to scratch at his surface.
Kylo Ren: He creeped me out big time and I thought it was a great moment when he took his helmet off the first time and his face was so unexpected and striking. But then inevitably one has to ask why he wears a helmet at all, and as soon as his background is established, one has to ask what the deal with him is altogether. The prequels take pains to explain why and how Darth Vader turned to the dark side, and it is more or less convincing, but Kylo Ren’s motivation seems to have been teenage spite. Becoming a Sith lord as the equivalent of slamming your door and sulking in your room? That’s a little hard to buy. Also, he ultimately looks like a Harry Potter character, Snape’s nephew or something like that.
Han: Harrison Ford wanted Han to be killed off so he could be rid of the role. Fair enough. But an amazing and beloved character like Han Solo deserved a much better send-off than what he was given here. He should have died in Leia’s arms (or failing that, in Chewey’s) and after some relevant achievement, and possibly with a nonchalant comment on his lips. His death should have driven the more sentimental members of the audience, e.g. me, to tears. Instead we just have a moment of, Oh, whoops, Han is dead, what a shame, well, on with the movie; and he is chucked away like a piece of rubbish. It saddens me that that awkward and painful embrace is the last interaction between Han and Leia that we’ll ever see. I don’t mean that I want a happy-ever-after. What I want for a character of such importance is an end that is gripping and memorable. Consider the send-off that Loxley was given in the Robin of Sherwood series. Consider, in the Star Wars ‘verse, the death of Darth Vader. That’s how it’s done.
C3PO: Is the republic so impoverished that they cannot give him a colour-matching arm replacement? Or is this just a ploy to sell new action figures?
Luke/Leia: Blink and you miss them. And Leia, who is so endearing in the original trilogy due to her warmth and kindness and open smile, is cold and stony here. It’s no excuse to say, Oh, but her son turned to the dark side. She could be sorrowful and hurting, but remain a living, feeling person, not this walking rock.
The various plot holes, deus ex machina moments and complete lack of reason/motivation for just about anything have been commented on by others, and I won’t list them again, but this one thing I have to get off my chest: Just how stupid is that map? If I’m hiding in Vladivostok and don’t want to be found, I will not tell you I am in Vladivostok. If I do want you to be able to contact me in case of emergency, I can leave you a note that says, “I’m in Vladivostok.” What I will not do, unless I am completely crazy, is to leave you a map of the whole of Asia, with a crooked path drawn from town to town across the whole continent leading to Vladivostok. Because there is absolutely no need for me to visit all those towns; I can go straight to Vladivostok by plane. And in Star Wars, they go via hyperspace. If Luke wanted to be found, he could have left coordinates. And if he really wanted his location to remain secret, he would have kept it secret. What remains a secret instead is why he went into hiding in the first place and why anyone wanted him back. But in this movie, logic is entirely contingent. I’m looking forward to how the Big Bang Theory dudes will ridicule the concept of the star-draining super weapon thingy.
Would I leave the room if this movie was running on the telly? Probably not. Would I spend £40 for our family to see its successor in the cinema? No. What a lot of fuss they made about something that is only kind of okay. It’s as if someone spends five hours in the kitchen, piling up a mountain of dirty pots and pans, and then merely serves up toasted cheese.