If you haven’t watched Star Wars then stop reading now. I’m going to talk about the end. I’m going to talk about all of it and break own what changed from the Lucas years and what I think Abrams is up to with his take on how things should be moving forward….
SPOILERS, man!
Ok. Lets begin:
This movie was not going to ever let me down. I say that because I’d already heard Lucas review it (he isn’t a fan) and the commercials left me very flat. I went into it expecting Abrams to be average at best and campy at worst. After all, he is the guy responsible for Alias and partially to blame for Armageddon. Please don’t misunderstand my language here: These were decent shows and movies, but as a Star Wars fan and a Christopher Nolan fan, I have extremely high standards for someone stepping in and taking over a franchise. After the second Star Trek (we shall not speak of the third) remake, I believed the dude had the chops to do it.
I’m convinced I was right, but I am afraid he aimed a little low brow on this one. See, the first two trilogies were essentially the hero’s journey over and again. I get it. The originals (4-6) did a bang up job of portraying that and they represented a moment in time for me. The first three basically showed how that Hero’s cycle began. It is for that very reason that I expected Abrams to step away from the formula and do something new and exciting and engaging.
But, he’s not Nolan.
Abrams gives us the best possible version of that same old tale, but adds something that makes the whole thing a surpassing commentary on fan expectation and the modern society. At least, I think he did.
Here is my take: The new trilogy introduces a cast of characters that are shades of their historical counterparts. The major proof of this is a weak-knee Kylo Ren who prays to a false idol and is only ever going to be a shadow of the man he believes he understands but really doesn’t–Vader. Now tell me that isn’t a social or political commentary. ‘You will never be as good as your grandfather, because your grandfather was a real man and part of the greatest generation. Yet, you will continue to try and look like a fool and be exposed for doing so.’
If I am right, the Kylo portrayal, the death of Han Solo (kill your old heroes to make space for new ones), and the utterly expected reveal of Rey and Luke (and Mara Jade?) Skywalker’s daughter is merely a passing of the torch to a series that will move away from expectation much in the way that Star Trek II-B moved away from the standard Enterprise stories. But where is it moving to?
Well, we know Snoke is going to complete the boy’s training and we know that Finn really has no story arc yet. We also have the promise of a powerful cast and the return of the Jedi order for the second movie, not to mention a First Order on the ropes and a galactic republic wiped off the board. I say we have a lot of new space to work with….
However, if I see Justin Lin anywhere near the set I’m going postal.
Some Thoughts:
- Jumped back on the writing train today and it went just about as well as can be expected for day one. I grew tired far too quickly, I didn’t get a lot done. I got even less of value accomplished, and my mind wandered quite a bit. In other words, I made progress! It doesn’t seem like much on the surface, but much of the early part of any writing project for me is diving deep into the work. This starts that process. I wish I could learn how to stay submerged in the writer’s world forever.
- Eagles v. Redskins tonight. An Eagles win means the Giants still have a shot at the playoffs, which at this point seems like a lark at best. I think they have the best chance of any team to actually be successful in the playoffs, but they need a lot of help to get there. A Redskins win means the Giants are looking towards the postseason as a time to recoup and plan a way to win more games–kinda like the Cowboys have been doing.