Ed's Thoughts - Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Warning – Whilst the minor details discussed here wouldn’t typically be considered *spoilers*, I know some people want to go into this film with as little information as possible. If you want spoiler-free, check out Jack's official review. You have been warned! 

The truth is, I’m not a Star Wars fan. 

Now before you rage-mash your keyboard into a galaxy far, far away let me clarify; I enjoy jumping into the world of the three Star Wars movies just as much as any casual observer, but given the fascinating obsessiveness of the legion of Star Wars fans, I simply don’t consider myself worthy to be classified among their ranks. So what did I – the casual observer – think about Episode VII - The Force Awakens? I’ll tell you as soon as I stop grinning. 

It’s probably best to address those movies that shall not be named right now. I was about the right age when the Prequel Trilogy started to come out - and I had enjoyed the previous ones - but looking back, these films were the reason why I lost interest in Star Wars. Quite apart from the story concerns that more avid viewers so frequently chastise them with; as a general film lover, my criticisms rest with the fact that they’re so blatantly boring and contrived that I find it difficult to sit through even one of them nowadays. The poor CGI and lack-of-hindsight toward shooting a blockbuster solely on digital at such an early stage in its lifecycle also frustrate me – but the visuals are but part of the problem, so let’s just continue to ignore those films for the time being. 

The Force Awakens is another brilliant lesson from J.J Abrams in how to capture the essence of a classic franchise whilst still selectively updating it for modern audiences. From the cheesy transition effects to the myriad of landscapes – J.J has built a time-capsule that will find the most uninitiated viewer fanboying out over even the most subtle nods to the original films. The reintroduction of old characters, ships, worlds and ideologies is handled with the utmost of care and with an emphasis on fun – and boy is this movie fun! From Stormtroopers backing away from Kylo Ren’s temper-tantrums to Han Solo’s greatly-missed running commentary on the ridiculousness of the situation, The Force Awakens puts as much emphasis on humour as it does adventure, with the two intermingling and playing off each other to form what I’d consider the first quality Space Opera since The Fifth Element. I’m also SO thankful that Abrams ditched the obsession with CGI for a focus on practical effects, another major reason that The Force Awakens really feels like it belongs alongside the original trilogy. 

To be fair, the movie does have its flaws. Parts of the story are occasionally rushed through with moments of blatant exposition - particularly during a conversation between Solo & Leia – and in general it feels like they’re trying to cover too much of the thirty years’ worth of changing content, but conflictingly that gracefully-choppy feeling actually brings it more in line with the style of the original trilogy anyway. Supreme Leader Snoke feels slightly out of place in the series as an actual character and whilst he & Nyong’o’s motion-capture is superbly acted out, their heavily CG’d characters stand-out like a sore thumb in a world that feels so real. There’s also not much room for a quick breather in over two hours of action and dramatics, but that’s never hurt the series before and it’s safe to say that the film is utterly exhilarating from start to finish. 

The returning characters grace the screen with ease, as if they’ve actually been off living their own lives these past few decades – something which is extremely difficult to achieve when reanimating a franchise. The old characters perfectly bolster the new, training them up to deal with the threats of the galaxy and preparing the next generation of crusaders. These new characters really do feel like they deserve to take the baton and carry the series to wherever Disney decides to take it. John Boyega’s Finn is funny and instantly charismatic - you do really hope he finds whatever redemption he’s looking for. Adam Driver returns a sinister arrogance to the dark side through Kylo Ren with just a dash of delightful innocence to keep you interested. Issac’s Poe is as cool as he is stylish with his trusty side-kick (and the cutest character since the Ewoks) BB-8. Make no mistake however, Rey is the cone that holds this film together. An extremely capable and thought-out character who’s no doubt destined for great things, just like her actor, Daisy Ridley; who plays her to perfection – Is it weird that I fanboyed more over the fact that she’s related to Dad’s Army’s Arnold Ridley rather than that she’s in a Star Wars film? 

Watching The Force Awakens exudes the same emotions that audiences must have felt watching A New Hope back in ’77. The care taken and consideration for every detail is evident from the opening crawl. Abrams has breathed new life into the dormant series and hopefully Rian Johnson will have as much success with Episode VIII. This isn’t just a tacky opportunity to relive what was lost and revel in nostalgia. The Force Awakens will make you care about Star Wars again.

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens

This is definitely the most anticipated film release of the decade. The Avengers may have come close, but the excitement for this film transcends both generations and levels of fandom alike. A lot of that anticipation also comes from whether or not this film will be a disappointment like the prequels that came before. Well, guess what? It isn't! Yay, I know, how great is that. We finally get a film that one of my friends referred to as what the prequels should have been. It's not my job though to sit and sing the film's praises without having an in depth look at what makes it tick, so let's get to it.

This is usually the part in any review where I would set the scene for what happens in a film, but since a friend told me he would end my existence if I said anything about what happens, I won't. Not even vague details. I guess this is a chance for me to hone my skills as a critic, so I shall. J.J. Abrams had said that this is his love letter to the original films and that really shows. Almost a little too much though. There was a point where I realised that they were following the original film almost beat for beat, but they happen in different places and times. Where this episode differs greatly from the prequels is the fact that there will be an overall narrative. Yes I know they did too, but we knew how they were ultimately going to end.

The nostalgia and name checking is probably the most noticeable thing in this movie and it's not at all a bad thing. The reveals are fun when they could be extremely tacky and little things that will make fans eyes sparkle, do. If we were to place this film on a dark/light spectrum, Empire being the darkest of the films, Jedi being the lightest, it goes further than Empire did by leaps and bounds. The stakes are higher than any of the films and that's great for tension and excitement. Technically, this is a beautiful looking film. The practical effects are amazing and the CGI is seamless. There are no dodgy insertions or anything hastily pasted on. I was always amazed by the lighting and how it reflects on surfaces around it, especially the lightsabers, which were more impressive than in films gone by.

It should be easy for the returning cast members to slip back into character by now (and they do it well), but to bring a new character to the screen and make them likeable is a difficult task, but the young leads do well. Daisy Ridley is phenomenal as Rey and shows incredible promise as a lead for the series and John Boyega will do remarkably well in his supporting role. Oscar Isaac is one of my favourite actors so of course I am going to demand more screen time with him, but I know we'll see more of him in the upcoming films. Both Domhnall Gleeson and Adam Driver play bad guys way too easily if you ask me.

Giving this film seems like a pretty arbitrary task to me, but I have to give it one. I wouldn't go so far as to give the first Star Wars five stars, it gets a 4 1/2 from me, and the next best is Empire, just half a star down. I'm just really justifying my score now. Go out and see it!

Star Wars spinoff news

Punch it, Chewie

In Disney's complete cash-grab that is the Star Wars continuation movies, a series of standalone movies will be produced that take place outside of the main saga storyline, but still take place with in the universe. The first one that is being made is Star Wars: Rogue One and will be released sometime in 2016. It will be about the mission to steal the plans to destroy the original Death Star. The second movie to be announced is a Boba Fett origin story. And now we have confirmation of the third film: Han Solo.

Now before you get excited thinking that this that is going to be a Harrison Ford adventure, well I'm here to disappoint you. It will focus on a younger Han and how he "became the smuggler, thief and scoundrel whom Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi first encountered in the cantina at Mos Eisley." Hopefully we'll also learn how he first met Chewbacca as well.

While no casting announcements have been made (and I'm sure they haven't even started to look for anyone yet), we know that the film will be directed by Christopher Miller and Phil Lord of 21 Jump Street and The Lego Movie fame, while the script will be written by father and son team Lawrence and Jon Kasdan. Lawrence Kasdan co-wrote both The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, as well as the Indiana Jones movies. His son Jon has written mainly for TV with his credits including Freaks and Geeks. This untitled Han Solo movie is due in 2018.

Star Wars Episode VII - The Force Awakens is scheduled for release on December 18, 2015.

The Age of Adaline

I'm not sure where to start with this movie, or how exactly I feel about it. Throughout the film I kept trying to look for a deeper meaning or message the film was trying to push, but it just ends up being a very average love story where the supporting cast is much better than the star.

Adaline Bowman (Blake Lively) was born in 1908, but due to a freak accident involving snow, freezing water and lightning, she somehow loses the ability to age, not just superficially, but all her organs remain intact as well. On New Years Eve 2014, she meets a handsome man by the name of Ellis (Michiel Huisman) who falls for her. Adaline is torn between her attraction to Ellis and the fact that she knows she will never age as long as they are together.

It takes quite a while for this film's plot to get moving into territory where actual events take place. The majority of the first act is made up of conveniently placed flashbacks describing how Adaline got her bizarro powers, all triggered by a newsreel she watches at the San Francisco Public Library where she works. I feel as though these flashbacks were used up all too quickly at the beginning and instead of using them as reveals throughout the film, we are shown others that seem like they were hastily put together and shoehorned in. These are narrated by Hugh Ross, who also narrated The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford, and his inclusion to me seems like director Lee Toland Krieger was somehow trying to elevate this film to something it isn't.

The film also suffers from some perspective issues, as it jumps around a bit and makes the film seem a bit disjointed. The first act focuses on Adaline's past and the second on the present, but the third act shifts to the perspective of a whole different character entirely, Ellis' father William (played surprisingly by Harrison Ford), who had a close relationship with Adaline in the 60s. While this is only a minor problem, it does mess with the structure a bit.

It may come as a shock to some (especially those Gossip Girl fans out there), but Blake Lively can't particularly act. She just kind of chews the scenery and stares blankly at whoever she is sharing the screen with. Luckily the supporting cast does its job. Michiel Huisman is a likeable and charismatic love interest and does well being goofy when he needs to. Ellen Bustyn plays Adaline's daughter and is much more energetic than Lively ever is. Harrison Ford's reveal in the film is almost as shocking as his fake goatee.

The Age of Adaline has many flaws surrounding its shoddy love story, unexplored sci-fi tangents and missed opportunity as an episode of The X-Files set in the 50s. Lively proves that her acting ability is only skin deep and doesn't branch out more than a few sighs and a thousand yard stare.

Harrison Ford to return for the Blade Runner sequel

Whether or not you are fan of the 1982 sci-fi classic Blade Runner (I personally don't see what all the fuss is about), you may be interested to know that Harrison Ford is reprising his role of Rick Deckard in a sequel.

The sequel will be set several decades after the original and is directed Denis Villeneuve, who also directed the Hugh Jackman/Jake Gyllenhaal collaboration Prisoners. Ridley Scott will be serving as executive producer on this film and has said that Ford is very excited about the script.

War Movie Month: Apocalypse Now (1979)

Francis Ford Coppola's epic (and when I say epic, I mean bigger than epic) war film about Vietnam is considered one of the greatest films ever made and after rewatching it for the I-don't-know-how-many time, I am still blown away by the impact it has on me. The film has a storied production, it took 16 months to film and many years to edit, but the film has also influenced pop culture in a way that no other film before or since has done so. The main theme at play is the insanity of war and how that insanity affects the soldiers who fight.

Captain Ben Willard (Martin Sheen) is sent on a mission up the Nung River, where he must locate and kill Walter E. Kurtz (Marlon Brando), a rogue US Army Colonel. Willard is escorted up the river in a Navy PBR led by Chief (Albert Hall) and crewed by famous surfer Lance (Sam Bottoms), Chef (Frederic Forrest) and Mr Clean (Laurence Fishburne).

Aside from being one of the greatest films ever made, Apocalypse Now is also one of the biggest films ever made, not in terms of budget, but more physical scale. Some of the set pieces are truly awe inspiring. There is of course the famous scene in which an air cavalry unit led by Lieutenant Kilgore (Robert Duvall) assaults a river village while Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" is blasted from loudspeakers. But rewatching it this time I noticed a few others which really amazed me and I've seen this movie on the big screen. There is a huge night scene where the crew come across an American outpost under attack from Vietnamese soldiers. The number of explosions and the performance of Sam Bottoms in this scene is amazing.

But in general all the performances in this movie are among the best ever committed to screen. Sheen gives the most convincing performance as a man who is obsessed with achieving his objective, but eventually becomes obsessed with the man he is assigned to kill. Despite all the horror stories about Marlon Brando and his actions on the set of the film, he actually gives a great performance, despite only being in the film for close to twenty minutes. Frederic Forrest gives an amazing performance as Chef, a New Orleans chef who was drafted and chose to be in the Navy because he heard they had the best food. He is probably my favourite character out of the group.

Laurence Fishburne is also remarkable in this film, although I find the story of his casting even more remarkable. He actually lied to Francis Ford Coppola and said that he was 17 when they cast him, but it turns out that he actually 14 when they shot the film. Despite this, his skill at that age is amazing. The other performance that is hard not to talk about is Dennis Hopper's. Hopper plays a character known only as the photojournalist. He lives in the compound with Kurtz and is hypnotised by the colonel's teachings, although when I watch his scenes, I can't help but feel he acts as if Coppola was actually a character in the film (Coppola by the way does have a cameo in the film as a director of a news story).

I would really recommend watching the documentary Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse, made by Coppola's wife Eleanor during the filming of the movie. It covers everything from the immense damage caused by storms to the film sets to the heart attack that Martin Sheen suffered during the production and also a very creepy interview had with Coppola, who is on the verge of insanity.

Like Das Boot, Apocalypse Now has two versions available and I will say to watch them both. There is the the original theatrical cut, which is a clear and concise war movie and then there is Apocalypse Now Redux, which I watched for this review. It adds about 47 minutes of extra sequences including a big scene where the crew on the boat encounter a French family who have been living in a mansion from back in the old French colonial days of Indochina and a slightly over the top scene involving Playboy bunnies who appeared earlier in the film. Unless your unfamiliar with the history of south-east Asia or just like seeing naked ladies, I would recommend watching the original version more.

Verdict: Apocalypse Now is the pinnacle of big budget movies (for the 70s anyway). It has inspired more pop culture moments than anything else and will continue to do so.

Star Wars VII finally gets title!

After months (if not years) of speculation, and now at the end of principal photography, Star Wars Episode VII has finally had its offical title announced as: 'Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens'

Walt Disney Pictures announced the title, and that filming had finished, on Twitter

Star Wars VII is the first in a planned sequel trilogy, that will see the saga rebooted. J.J Abrams is currently directing VII, starring Andy Serkis, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Domhnall Gleeson and Gwendoline Christie. Rian Johnson is rumoured to be taking the helm for Episode VIII.

What do you guys think of the title? Are you excited to see 'The Force Awakens'?

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

I'm going to be upfront, I was never a fan of the first Anchorman film. There were some funny set pieces, like the big fight, but overall I didn't find it consistent. But with The Legend Continues, I feel as though they've made a great comedy from that original concept.

Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) has just lost a promotion as lead anchor on the station on which he works to his wife, Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate). He is brought back from the brink of suicide by an offer to be one of the anchors on the world's first 24-hour news channel. First he must bring his award-winning news team back together; Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), Champ Kind (David Koechner) and Brick Tamland (Steve Carrell). Once they get to New York, the team are confronted by Jack Lime (James Marsden), whom they engage in a battle for ratings with.

Overall, this film is much more consistently funny than the first and although it may not be as quotable, it still will keep you laughing. Much like the first film, my favourite jokes come from Steve Carrell's portrayal of loveable weatherman Brick. James Marsden also gives a hilarious performance as arrogant anchor Jack Lime. There is also a huge range of cameos in this film, with everyone from comedy regulars Tina Fey and Amy Poehler to serious actors like Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson. Even Drake and Kanye make hilarious cameos.

Most of the best jokes in the film are directed at the 1980s themselves. Hilarious jabs at fashion and hairstyles (keep an eye out for those perms) and historical events, such as the trial of OJ Simpson. These jokes fly under the radar and happen very quickly, but if you can catch them, they are very rewarding.

Verdict: A hilarious film that did a lot better than the first with a fantastic concept.

Paranoia

It's always good to see Aussies working in Hollywood, especially when it's an Aussie director working with an Aussie star, but something about Paranoia seems to miss the mark. Maybe it has something to do with an interesting idea not being translated to the screen in a definite enough manner.

Adam Cassidy (Liam Hemsworth) is a young tech guru working an entry level position for technology giant run by Nicholas Wyatt (Gary Oldman). After a night on the town using the office credit card, Cassidy is blackmailed into spying on Wyatt's former mentor, Jock Goddard (Harrison Ford).

The concept behind this film is excellent, industrial espionage that leads to paranoia from the stress of living a strange double life for the young protagonist. However, it might have come apart in the translation of idea to paper or script to screen. I am inclined to say the latter.

I have to admit that I am not all that familiar with Robert Luketic's work, although I did see 2010's spy rom-com Killers. But looking back at his body of work, he seems to be more at home working in the rom-com genre. He did direct 21, but as I understand it, that was more a heist drama than a complex thriller.

One note of praise I do have is for the performances from Liam Hemsworth and Amber Heard. Hemsworth does have actual talent and is not just swimming in the wake of his older brother Thor as some people would believe. I feel as though a performance in an indie film of some sort would do him good to show off this talent rather than a star vehicle orchestrated by a studio to make cash.

Amber Heard also gives a decent performance and has real talent also. I feel as though many model/actresses are hired more for their looks than for having talent, but Heard has both. She has a real presence when on screen and shows that she can play with experienced actors, such as when she shares the screen with Harrison Ford. I am looking forward to seeing her in the upcoming Machete Kills.

As for Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman, this two actors have been working longer than I've been alive and should know better than to take roles like this. I know they only do movies like this for the pay-check, but a feel as though with their experience and age, they can afford to pick the roles that they take.

Verdict: A premise with potential that just crumbled in the hands of an inexperienced director. Stellar performances from the younger cast members can't really save the film.