Post by Ryan_MYeah on Nov 11, 2017 5:40:11 GMT
As we’re a month out from The Last Jedi, and I pretty much had nothing to do tonight, I decided I’d give this a go since I haven’t seen it since it’s theatrical run. I actually quite liked this movie when I saw it, even if I felt it was choppy. But with time to think back on it, it just didn’t sit well with me the more time went on. Watching it again, it certainly isn’t as bad as I feared, but for how much promise it had, it’s a wasted opportunity.
I won’t deny that from a purely technical standpoint, the film is a marvel. Gareth Edwards (and whoever else) are so dedicated to recapturing the aesthetic feel of the original film is so obsessive, retaining the worn and torn grime and retro-fi grit, intentionally compressing audio to give the iconic sound effects graininess, and Michael Giacchino does a splendid job of blending his own work seamlessly with Williams’. Not only that, but I’m really happy to see Star Wars make use out of heavy practical and model effects again, which are certainly more pleasing than the inexcusably awful Tarkin and Leia mo-cap recreations.
But really, that only serves to make this movie no better than the Prequels. Granted, this is much better than those movies, but clearly Gareth Edwards shares something in common with George Lucas. Between this and (the still way worse) Godzilla, while he may be great spectacle, he can’t handle decent stories to save his life.
People love to harp on The Force Awakens for how closely it aped A New Hope, but at least that movie had genuine character, and even if it was beholden to following the same beats, Abrams invention and unmistakable stamp made it forgiveable. On the other hand, the direction and personality of this film is about as bland as you can get. I get that it’s hard to give these characters ample time knowing they have an expiration date, but that doesn’t mean they should be so unwilling to establish these characters beyond what basic role they play. Riz Ahmed; Cowardly defector turned noble. Diego Luna; Asshole commander whose not all bad. Ben Mendelsohn; Whimpering temperamental baddie. Mads Mikkelson; Remorseful martyr. Jiang Wen; Does he even have a character? And do not get me started on Forest Whitaker, who is still every bit as awful now as he was then, who miraculously manages to be over the top cartoonish, and yet relentlessly bored at the same time, sucking the energy and charm out of a room every time he shows up. I fear for Black Panther just because of him.
And the only ones who really come out the other side unscathed are Jones, Yen, and Tudyk. Jyn is not much else than an obvious Rey clone with some Han Solo thrown in, but it’s only by sheer virtue of Jones’ command, presence, and charisma that she’s the least bit worth remembering. I actually really love Yen here, as I’m fascinated by the spirituality and gravity he brings to the movie, and it feels satisfying seeing him lay the smackdown on Stormtroopers. And K-2SO is... actually pretty incredible. Honestly, he’s one of my favorite Star Wars characters ever. So much sass and so much enthusiasm for something as steely as a droid, ironically feeling more human than the other cast. And Alan Tudyk is a gem. I think I’ve said that before, but it’s always worth repeating. Everything is better with him in it.
Even the action isn’t all that up to snuff, though Edwards deserves point for letting us see the action instead of cutting to Aaron Johnson. Even if this movie gave me reason he invested in these characters, there’s something unspectacular and “been there, done that” to most of the beats here. Honestly, if it wasn’t for the finale on Scarif - where they finally decide to go crazy, I don’t think any of it would be worth remembering, especially thanks to the editing being uncharacteristically disparate and weak. And you know how The force Awakens was careful with how it used fan service and callbacks sparingly and only when it made sense? It feels like this movie is going out of its way to point out every Easter egg and reference to you, and with the exception of cases I can count on one hand, all of it felt forced and unnatural, only further compounding this movie’s issue of whether it has any right to exist.
And one more thing, I’m really glad that Disney is going ahead with Rian Johnson’s new trilogy, because those are the side stories they should be putting all their effort into instead of trying to shoehorn more needless origins and spin-offs like Rogue One into their baskets. You already have the Star Wars name. You’re going to make bank nomatter what, so why not use that as an excuse to experiment and take risks and branch out to other parts of the Galaxy. This universe is huge, and the Skywalkers aren’t the be all, end all of it. I’ll still go see Solo even if it turns out to be a disaster, but I know it won’t be nearly as good as something that’ll actually broaden Star Wars’ horizon, instead of spinning its wheels in the same old ballpark.
But damn it,
I won’t deny that from a purely technical standpoint, the film is a marvel. Gareth Edwards (and whoever else) are so dedicated to recapturing the aesthetic feel of the original film is so obsessive, retaining the worn and torn grime and retro-fi grit, intentionally compressing audio to give the iconic sound effects graininess, and Michael Giacchino does a splendid job of blending his own work seamlessly with Williams’. Not only that, but I’m really happy to see Star Wars make use out of heavy practical and model effects again, which are certainly more pleasing than the inexcusably awful Tarkin and Leia mo-cap recreations.
But really, that only serves to make this movie no better than the Prequels. Granted, this is much better than those movies, but clearly Gareth Edwards shares something in common with George Lucas. Between this and (the still way worse) Godzilla, while he may be great spectacle, he can’t handle decent stories to save his life.
People love to harp on The Force Awakens for how closely it aped A New Hope, but at least that movie had genuine character, and even if it was beholden to following the same beats, Abrams invention and unmistakable stamp made it forgiveable. On the other hand, the direction and personality of this film is about as bland as you can get. I get that it’s hard to give these characters ample time knowing they have an expiration date, but that doesn’t mean they should be so unwilling to establish these characters beyond what basic role they play. Riz Ahmed; Cowardly defector turned noble. Diego Luna; Asshole commander whose not all bad. Ben Mendelsohn; Whimpering temperamental baddie. Mads Mikkelson; Remorseful martyr. Jiang Wen; Does he even have a character? And do not get me started on Forest Whitaker, who is still every bit as awful now as he was then, who miraculously manages to be over the top cartoonish, and yet relentlessly bored at the same time, sucking the energy and charm out of a room every time he shows up. I fear for Black Panther just because of him.
And the only ones who really come out the other side unscathed are Jones, Yen, and Tudyk. Jyn is not much else than an obvious Rey clone with some Han Solo thrown in, but it’s only by sheer virtue of Jones’ command, presence, and charisma that she’s the least bit worth remembering. I actually really love Yen here, as I’m fascinated by the spirituality and gravity he brings to the movie, and it feels satisfying seeing him lay the smackdown on Stormtroopers. And K-2SO is... actually pretty incredible. Honestly, he’s one of my favorite Star Wars characters ever. So much sass and so much enthusiasm for something as steely as a droid, ironically feeling more human than the other cast. And Alan Tudyk is a gem. I think I’ve said that before, but it’s always worth repeating. Everything is better with him in it.
Even the action isn’t all that up to snuff, though Edwards deserves point for letting us see the action instead of cutting to Aaron Johnson. Even if this movie gave me reason he invested in these characters, there’s something unspectacular and “been there, done that” to most of the beats here. Honestly, if it wasn’t for the finale on Scarif - where they finally decide to go crazy, I don’t think any of it would be worth remembering, especially thanks to the editing being uncharacteristically disparate and weak. And you know how The force Awakens was careful with how it used fan service and callbacks sparingly and only when it made sense? It feels like this movie is going out of its way to point out every Easter egg and reference to you, and with the exception of cases I can count on one hand, all of it felt forced and unnatural, only further compounding this movie’s issue of whether it has any right to exist.
And one more thing, I’m really glad that Disney is going ahead with Rian Johnson’s new trilogy, because those are the side stories they should be putting all their effort into instead of trying to shoehorn more needless origins and spin-offs like Rogue One into their baskets. You already have the Star Wars name. You’re going to make bank nomatter what, so why not use that as an excuse to experiment and take risks and branch out to other parts of the Galaxy. This universe is huge, and the Skywalkers aren’t the be all, end all of it. I’ll still go see Solo even if it turns out to be a disaster, but I know it won’t be nearly as good as something that’ll actually broaden Star Wars’ horizon, instead of spinning its wheels in the same old ballpark.
But damn it,
if Vader taking out his lightsaber and going “Fuck you, bitches” isn’t the single most badass moment in all of Star Wars, I don’t know what is!
