@LN78@KALofKRYPTON@RogerRoger I daringly treaded online to see early reactions and fortunately didn’t see any spoilers, but yeah — early impressions are more positive than expected. I saw quite a few journalists say it was pretty dense and very emotional. Of course opinions are mixed out there, but no one I saw was wholeheartedly negative about it. I’m going to have to try to keep myself from further reviews lest I stumble into a spoiler.
And I saw another trailer last night and had some better vibes from it compared to the earlier trailers. I’m much more hyped now than I was.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@Th3solution from what some stuff has said, it very much looks like the last round of leaks were spot on.
So, it has the flash and excitement of a JJ film, but the plot and writing is disjointed while recycling as much of the previous trilogy for fan service as possible. Very much a sequel to TFA rather than TLJ. Which is actually an incredibly easy thing to envisage, since the only real consequence of TLJ in practical terms is Kylo taking over the first order.
There were pictures taken at the screening including the opening crawl.
@LN78 its interesting. For the most part, the blue-tick shills are busy shilling. If TROS performs badly, I'm pretty sure the narrative will be that the film is what it is because of the fans general dislike of TLJ and Disney's reaction to that being to run back to JJ.
PSN: KALofKRYPTON (so you can see how often I don't play anything!)
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"Fate: Protects fools, little children, and ships named Enterprise." - Cmdr William T. Riker
@Th3solution I've had to tell my news feed that I'm not interested in some of the things I am interested in, just to avoid spoilers. And only watch/read reviews after I've watched the film, if only to avoid the spoilery titles in the reccomendations.
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@LN78 Hmm... was it the same reviewer? I know a magazine or website will usually have a solitary identity and stay within a common persuasion, but a lot can depend on the individual. If it’s the same person, then this could bode well for those who disliked the prequels, especially with AotC being typically considered the weakest outing, perhaps Rise will resonate with the fandom seeking more distance from the prequels? I haven’t read the article, and probably won’t until after I see the film, but it sounds like the opinion of the magazine may be a deviation from the norm if they were so high on Episode II.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@LN78 Oh, ok - I see your point. I was looking at it from a “those who like the prequels tend to dislike the new trilogy and vice-versa” approach.
If Empire is known for being particularly forgiving to the big budget blockbusters, then it is scary to see them be down on the film. But I think @RogerRoger has a good point that it’s hard to sift through the reviews as many might be reactionary to The Last Jedi and none of the critics want to jump out and make the same mistake again of giving in to hype too early and being too over exuberant with positive vibes before the inevitable hardcore fan backlash sets in. Can’t wait to read some actual normal fan reviews on here, which will be much more telling to me.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@LN78@RogerRoger@Th3solution
I think one of the most telling comments I've seen from the premiere was "... Video game plotting". Now for us, we know that's likely from a person who probably hasn't played a video game in the vein of a single player experience from the last couple of generations, but it lends a lot of weight to the narrative mcguffins spoken of in the spoilers that speak of a couple of items that boil down to being fetch quests to aid exposition.
While TROS is clearly in the same ball park as TFA, I still can't really abide Palpatine's return in the manner it has been handled. It obviously wasn't ever the plan and whole thing will no doubt be the most cynical feeling of the sequel trilogy.
PSN: KALofKRYPTON (so you can see how often I don't play anything!)
Twitter: @KALofKRYPTON (at your own risk, I don't care if you're offended)
"Fate: Protects fools, little children, and ships named Enterprise." - Cmdr William T. Riker
A 27-disc 4K box set of the nine Skywalker Star Wars movies is arriving around Easter, in USA at least. The only film missing is Rogue One which apparently will be released separately.
@RogerRoger I’m slightly relieved to read your initial thoughts. I’ll take a lukewarm reaction at this point. And I found it interesting how you said it — like a piece of perspective art, what the individual viewer gets out of it might depend just as much on what bias is brought in. I can live with that. Sure, I’d love a film that is deemed a hands-down masterpiece to all comers, but the two previous films (and to a lesser extent the 8 previous films) have painted it into a corner where that is likely an impossible task; the best I expected is the situation you describe — that is, a film that is fun and at least gives service to the long-standing Star Wars fan, and glosses over the areas that are just not fixable due to past decisions. Maybe I’m reading into your thoughts a little too much, but that’s what I’m anticipating. In other words, I plan to put on my Star Wars fanboy glasses and not dissect the film apart too much and hope to come out at the end with some giddy midichlorian induced endorphins.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@RogerRoger Nice write up. Yeah, I largely stopped posting the spoiler stuff as it was just coming from different cuts. From what I've seen so far, the later stuff I saw was largely accurate.
Is the Leia thing of characters expositing towards her as jarring as some make out?
Also, B-Wings... Just the trailer shots or do we some good action with them?
@RogerRoger Nice. You've made me a bit less apprehensive of the film. When I saw it was getting slammed, almost the first thought that popped into my head was: "watch this be the first decent mainline SW movie since the OT." It really is incredible how, as you put it, elitist and out of touch the press (in America, especially) is, and how that keeps being reflected in wildly different audience and critical reactions to films.
Granted, I'm not as down on TLJ as everyone else is (I still like it more than TFA or the prequel films, honestly), but it's nice to see Disney not doubling down on ruining the franchise for a lot of long-time fans.
My favorite review so far starts out as such:
"The Rise of Skywalker is the internet’s reward for complaining about the ingenuity, progress and power of director Rian Johnson’s previous Star Wars entry, The Last Jedi.
"Which is to say: it is an act of cowardice that sees a beloved nine-film saga sputter to a hugely disappointing and unaffecting end. Congratulations, internet. You killed the thing you, ahem, loved."
I've seen a few reviews calling out Rise of Skywalker for basically ignoring The Last Jedi.
Haven't watched Last Jedi myself (But the few things I've heard do sound bad) and don't plan to see it or the new one.
I watched The Force Awakens and ended up thinking it was too long winded and couldn't get over it just aping the originals tit for tat.
And then I watched Rogue One and... I got so very bored. The forgone conclusion just made me not give a hoot in slightest and I don't think the film actually added anything interesting to the table at all regarding it.
So I went back to the original like a month later.
... Couldn't get into it at all.
Used to really like the original trilogy films as a kid. Even the ewoks (kinda). The prequels... uhh... General Grevious was kinda cool I guess? 😅
Buuuut yeah... I think I'm over the series and tbh... I don't really mind either
Just saw Star Wars Episode IX: Rise of Skywalker. It's undeniably messy, and it's entirely obvious that it was never the plan to finish the trilogy in this manner. After the dismal The Last Jedi I'm not sure that's a bad thing, but when it's noticeable on screen, there's perhaps a problem. Despite this, I found I really enjoyed the film and feel it's a satisfying ending to what's been an otherwise underwhelming trilogy. It's made to be a fan pleaser and thus ticks an awful lot of boxes. I love Palpatine, so that alone is enough to elevate it. He's awesome! There are moments that feel epic and moments that are poignant, but also plot holes, scenes that feel shoehorned in and occasionally strange character motivations. A particular plus point is that screen time is more balanced across the main players - Poe Dameron and Finn especially benefit from this. They're charismatic and likeable, and their banter is fun.
It's always been particularly difficult for me to warm to Rey as a character, because Daisy Ridley is a pretty crap actress and generally has the charisma of a cardboard box that's been left out in the rain. Angry Rey makes an appearance (perhaps Daisy took inspiration from Angry Lorraine Kelly, who knows) and is much more interesting. I even rooted for regular Rey during the final battle. Her counterpart, Severus Snape, I mean Kylo Ren, is a better character and his inner conflict is believable. Rey is fighting her genetic destiny whereas Kylo's conflict stems from coming to terms with the terrible things he's done. Neither need define who they are. In the end, after spending half the film hunting Rey down it doesn't take much for Kylo Ren to return to the light side of the force and near the film's conclusion the two end their bizarre love story by snogging.
As a J.J Abrams film the production is slick and flashy and you can practically see every dollar of the gargantuan budget. Foxy would surely be proud of the lens flare. The camera work is sometimes a little "off" in certain shots, for want if a better word. Although I prefer the space battles to the light saber duels, the film is exciting in the places it needs to be.
In all I consider this to be the best of the trilogy. It's flawed, but my emotional reaction was positive and I came away having enjoyed it.
@RogerRoger Yeah, I'd say our thoughts are generally aligned. The film is certainly flawed, but for me it was surprisingly easy to look past them and enjoy it, because the plus points matter more.
Now I read my previous post back that sounds much more venomous than I'd intended. This is Daisy Ridley's best performance in the trilogy and in the end I did root for Rey, but yeah, overall it's been hard to connect with the character. In the immediate aftermath of the final battle I felt sad when she collapsed lifeless, though when Ben crawled over, I knew what was about to happen and then didn't want him to die.
I welled up when Carrie Fisher appeared. I agree with you that she doesn't really fit in the film, and Leia's exit is bizarre, but I can understand why the producers wanted to give her an on-screen send-off.
That Forbes quote might be one of the most ridiculous things I've read; what a bizarre leap in logic. I guess they want clicks and then outrage driving more clicks.
@RogerRoger Well said, on your assessment of the journalist critical escalation. Perhaps these writers are aspiring for positions in the political newsrooms where such over-reaction and hyperbole is celebrated even more so. Heck, they’d actually make good politicians themselves — honing and perfecting the skill of creating division and controversy where there is none.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
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