Welcome.

I'm glad you stopped by. I hope you'll stop by again.

Monday, January 11, 2016

Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens


poster from IMDB

After much anticipation, my family and I finally saw the new Star Wars movie. The Michigan contingent saw it first. The rest of us, a couple of weeks later. When the 6-year-old Star Wars fanatic found out he couldn’t reveal any spoilers, he refused to talk to us. The 8-year-old said, “You’re going to cry.” No spoiler there. Still . . .

I deliberately avoided any news about the movie after it came out. As much as I wanted to join an online discussion group of science fiction romance writers, I refrained. Talk about sacrifice. LOL Finally, Son, DIL, Hubs, and I went to the show. When the familiar music opener and crawl began, I got chills. Just like I did with A New Hope back in 1977. Much of the movie brought back memories of that first film. Big ships, Stormtroopers, desert terrain, rebels, and villains. Old characters and new.

Old characters: Han Solo, the irresistible smuggler; Leia, without the cinnamon buns over her ears; Luke Skywalker, who wasn’t seen until the end. Like all of us, they’ve aged. The droids are back—C-3P0 and R2D2.

New characters: Finn, a former Stormtrooper who sees the light; Kylo Ren, Darth Vader wannabe; and Rey, a kick-butt heroine and my favorite character. Unlike in A New Hope, we get little backstory on the new characters. But we do get some insight. I wanted to know more, of course.

Oops, almost forgot the new droid BB-8, cute and fast. Hubs, the engineer, and Son tried to figure out how it worked. On the way home, the four of us talked and talked about the movie, each of us taking guesses on where the next movies will go and what surprises are in store for us. 

I can’t say I was as enthralled with this movie as I was with the original three (Episodes IV, V, & VI), but it’s a different time than post-Viet Nam/post-Watergate. Back then, we didn’t know what to expect and were blown away by an old-fashioned Good versus Evil movie. This time around, our hopes were high. I’m glad they put a lid on the trailers—not giving away too much. I loved what J.J. Abrams did with the Star Trek reboot, so I was anxious to see what he’d do with Star Wars. I’m pleased that he’s done a great job.

I’ve mentioned before that I need to watch a movie more than once to “see” everything. I can’t wait until Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens comes out on DVD. Of course, I could return to the show and see it again.

Have you seen The Force Awakens? What’s your opinion? Please, no spoilers.


14 comments:

  1. I haven't seen it, but probably will at some point, if my husband wants to. :)

    It depends on the movie, but I like seeing some more than once, too, because it really helps with picking up on nuances etc.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know what you mean about picking up on nuances 2nd time around. I miss so much 1st time.

      Delete
  2. Hubby and I finally saw it last week. We both loved it and can't wait for Episode 8. I teared up when the Star Wars appeared on screen and the music started. I wasn't alive when A New Hope came out, but I do remember the excitement about Episodes 1,2 & 3 and how they all ended up being a bit meh.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yeah, I saw it. Twice. It was okay. I mean, it entertained but I didn't need to see it a second time. I suffer from over-hype.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I haven't seen this yet, but it's on my to do list for this week. Would you say it's okay for kids, despite its pg13 rating?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My daughter & her husband took their 6-yr-old boy & 8.5-yr-old daughter (who both couldn't wait to see it). At one point the boy said "this movie is too violent, we should go." But then he changed his mind and wanted to stay. It is more violent than Episode 4 (A New Hope) but not as bad as Episode 3. I guess it depends on what your kids are used to.

      Delete
  5. Haven't seen it yet. Who knows tho...maybe. Not a huge movie buff LOL
    PamT

    ReplyDelete
  6. I saw it, and I left sad. No spoilers. :'(

    But it was a good movie, for sure. I'm hoping the next one is less nostalgia and more new content.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree, Shannon. I'm curious in which direction they'll go.

      Delete
  7. I am with Shannon, but I think we may be in the minority. A bit of nostalgia is fine, good even. But a complete rehashing of the plot is a little overkill. I understand they had to do some setting up for the next movie, but I wanted to see a little the innovation that made the earlier movies magic. I will say, I am thankful for the original films as they made anticipating this release so much fun. Like you, when the music began and the opening words started scrolling along the screen, I felt a little teary. And there is nothing that beats looking down the line of seats and seeing your kids' faces lit up both by the screen and from their excitement. Great post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I really wanted to see my grandson's reaction to the movie. Didn't happen. Maybe with the next movie.

      Delete

Love getting your comments. BTW, your comment won't show up until you refresh the page. Isn't that a pain? Thanks for stopping by.