Star Wars: The Force Awakens officially opened in the United States December 18, 2015. The anticipation was HIGH for this movie; in fact it was probably the most anticipated movie of the year. And if measured by both weekend turnout and profits from 12/17-20, the movie was runaway successful. Indeed online ticket sales prior to the opening topped $100 million dollars. And current information suggests the movie is well on its way to topping $300 million before Christmas domestically in the United States, and more than $500 million internationally. It was the movie event of 2015, with nearly three generations of viewers waiting on the edge for their chance to be part of a big production.
But was the anticipation worth the wait? Did the product deliver on the hype?
This series of meditations will take a critical look at Star Wars, Episode VII and answer those questions from the Subspace Meditator's point of view.
From here on out I will be weaving some MAJOR SPOILERS into my critique of this movie. If you haven't yet seen The Force Awakens and don't want to be spoiled, stop reading now. If you don't mind that sort of thing, press forward. But you have been warned!
As stated, I will be weaving plot pointers into my critical review of the story, so do not expect to see a straight-up, linear exposition of what happened from A to B to C. Do not either look to see every detail of the story tied into this analysis. Instead look for what jumped out at me in the big picture with specific events keyed in.
Given J.J. Abrams' idiotic Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan/Into Darkness plagiarism, this mindlessness begs a very serious question: Will Star Wars, Episode VIII be a regurgitation of The Empire Strikes Back too, just with different settings and characters and minor plot adjustments?
Specifically I wish to discuss the male characters in this part, leaving the female ones for part two as I have a definitive reason for separating the groups. Let's start with Han Solo.
Not much needs be said about either of these two iconic characters' backgrounds prior to TFA; they have both been firmly established by Episodes IV-VI, and by various treatments in the Expanded Universe, etc; everyone knows them by now, very well. What we should be looking at here is how the two characters have changed in the intervening three decades since Return of the Jedi and where that leads The Force Awakens. And the answer, I'm afraid, is not very much. If what we saw on the screen is to be believed, somehow neither the galaxy's most famous bad boy nor his ever loyal sidekick have changed nor advanced much since they helped destroy the Death Star in RotJ, overthrowing the Empire and its ruthlessly tyrannical Emperor Palpatine. Having gone from being a general in the Rebel Alliance, after the dust settles, somewhere between evolving from a smuggler to a war hero, Han Solo returns to us, not as a more mature and seasoned man with thirty
plus years experience behind him, but as the same smuggling, conniving,
swindler he was before he joined the Rebel Alliance as a liberator of
the galaxy, and Chewbacca goes with him! I don't know about the rest of you, but this doesn't sit right with me. How does this happen? Why? No logical exposition for this move is made for what happened between Return of the Jedi and TFA so no emotional attachment nor understanding, beyond nostalgia for the characters, can be invested. There is nothing demonstrable in either of these characters' portrayals and thus nothing bold or risky in them either.
Moving on though. Somewhere between RotJ and TFA, Solo loses the Millennium Falcon only to miraculously find it adrift in space thirty years later after a wayward distress beacon is activated by the fumbling efforts of our new heroes, Finn and Rey. This is one of the most unbelievable, Deus Ex Machina moments of the storyline, inserted to ease Solo and Chewie into the picture! We are supposed to believe that in the vastness of interstellar space, one lone homing beacon goes off long enough and far enough that Solo - who is conveniently close enough - receives and recognized it, and comes running across who knows how many lightyears to reclaim his old ship from whoever or whatever has stolen it from him. Never mind the fact that it's never told how he lost it in the first place. Though, yes, it is nice to see Solo and the "big walking carpet" again, this is all a very lazy and unsophisticated plot resolution.
Further, the reunion between Solo and Princess (now General) Leia Organa is rushed, forced, and awkward. In the one and only brief personal scene between them, we are treated to a minor, but cryptic, exposition as to what separated them and how they've gotten along without one another for thirty years. However, this emotional investment is small, and rather than giving these two super iconic people the screentime they deserve together, we are whisked away with Solo again on a mission to destroy Starkiller Base with Rey and Finn. What is of major significance in the reveal of Solo and Leia, however, is that somewhere between RotJ and TFA, they got married and had at least one kid, Ben Solo - who turns out to be the grandson of Anakin Skywalker (recall that Leia is Luke Skywalker's sister), the nephew and once-Jedi apprentice of Master Luke Skywalker, and the primary antagonist of TFA. And this leads us to our next, and to me, most compelling character of the movie.
Easily the most potentially interesting character of The Force Awakens, Ben Solo, aka Kylo Ren, is the powerful Force sensitive bad guy who terrorizes the galactic neighborhood in the name of the Dark Side. Spurred on by his concealed dark master, Supreme Leader Snoke, Ren is the face of the power behind the power, very much as Darth Vader was apprentice and proxy to Palpatine, aka Darth Sidious. In fact it is Darth Vader whom Kylo Ren fancies himself in the shadow of and whom he wishes to emulate. But Kylo is a conflicted being, of himself inexplicably drawn to the Light Side of the Force - and fighting it - but simultaneously trying so very hard to live up to the shadow of a long dead grandfather whom himself renounced the Dark Side at the end of his life. So why is Ren so bent on being a Dark Sider? Is it due to the unyielding influence of Snoke whom himself is also a Dark Side Force master? Or are there different motivations having nothing to do with Snoke?
As compelling as this character first comes across, Kylo Ren, instead of being an intimidating and calculating Dark Sider, soon de-evolves, acting more like a whiny, skulking teenager whose hormones severely unbalance his mental and emotional state. Any strength Ren has in the Force, any skill he wields with a lightsaber, any long-range plans he is to carry out on behalf of his hidden dark master are all eventually drowned out in a wishy-washy emo guy whose trying desperately to get in touch with his feelings. He throws fits when things don't go his way to the point of destroying whole control consoles with his lightsaber in rage-induced cut and slash fests. He miscalculates critical openings in his opponents' weaknesses, leaving himself and the First Order open to obvious gaps in their counterattacks. He is not a mature strategist, Force user, or warrior by any measure. It is clear to see that Kylo Ren, though physically an adult, is a still an adolescent boy whose growth has been stunted by unresolved daddy issues between himself and Han Solo. I think it safe to say that he represents the weakest Sith or Sith-affiliated Dark Sider in the history of the Sith. Indeed, it is my opinion that Darth Maul would have wiped the floor with him, and Darth Sidious would be too humiliated to even speak his name.
Moreover, the actor cast to play Ren, in my opinion, does not at all fit the part. Adam Driver's Ren, sans the helmet, looks more like a teenager pop star idol than a telekinetic sword-fencer bent on intergalactic domination. Mask removed, mechanized voice nixed, and Darth Vader wanna-be killer Kylo instead comes across like someone's little brother throwing a temper tantrum. The power, prestige, and mystique would have been maintained if he'd never taken off the headpiece period. Instead, unlike Darth Vader, who isn't shown for the broken old man he became until Return of the Jedi, we get a premature reveal of Kylo Ren that is bereft of any significant background information that would permit us to give a damn why he's in so much emotional distress and confusion about which path to choose.
And yet with all this weaknut writing, Kylo Ren was probably the most potentially compelling new character of the movie!
Our next discussion on The Force Awakens will center around Finn. And I've chosen to separate this character because my thoughts and insights on him are so long as to warrant a separate section. Until then I leave you with this video review which is one of the best unfavorable critiques I've seen and which concisely articulates many of my own thoughts.
Until next time...
To the upward reach of man.
But was the anticipation worth the wait? Did the product deliver on the hype?
This series of meditations will take a critical look at Star Wars, Episode VII and answer those questions from the Subspace Meditator's point of view.
****WARNING****
From here on out I will be weaving some MAJOR SPOILERS into my critique of this movie. If you haven't yet seen The Force Awakens and don't want to be spoiled, stop reading now. If you don't mind that sort of thing, press forward. But you have been warned!
As stated, I will be weaving plot pointers into my critical review of the story, so do not expect to see a straight-up, linear exposition of what happened from A to B to C. Do not either look to see every detail of the story tied into this analysis. Instead look for what jumped out at me in the big picture with specific events keyed in.
***LAST CHANCE***
SPOILER ZONE AHEAD
NO QUIT? ALRIGHT, HERE WE GO.
The Plot: A New Hope Redux
I'll candidly admit that I walked out of The Force Awakens both satisfied and unsatisfied, that I was somewhat taken away by the fan comradery and my own desire that this be a fun story I could get along with. And so because of that I came out of the theater giving TFA a reasonably positive rating of 3 stars. Sadly, the more I've reflected on it, that rating must be revised downward south of 3.0 to 2.0-2.5, and that's being magnanimous.
 |
| R2-D2 & BB-8 |
The Force Awakens made generous use - if that's the right word - of plot elements from A New Hope and to a lesser degree other aspects of Episodes V-VI. One of the most obvious of these was ANH's use of the droid R2-D2 being sent on a mission by Princess Leia to find the aging Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi in order to enlist his aid in delivering the Empire's plans for the very first Death Star to the Rebel Alliance of the era.
This plot device is practically mirrored by TFA when now-General Leia sends the beach ball-like BB-8 on a mission to find missing Jedi, Luke Skywalker, who has now also ascended to the rank of Master and exiled himself to a remote planet where the very first Jedi temple was built thousands of years ago. Apparently, Skywalker is the key to defeating the First Order, the replacement galactic tyranny risen from the ashes of the old Empire and hellbent on dominating the stars in its shadow. How or why the new First Order has arisen is barely touched upon and is one of a plethora of severe plot holes in the story.
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| Starkiller Base, a frozen PLANET-SIZE Death Star THREE! |
However, this is not the only plot device borrowed by TFA. Just as in A New Hope - and Return of the Jedi - we are given a new, bigger, planet-sized Death Star called Starkiller Base capable of wiping out not just one planet at a time, but multiple ones simultaneously, and from what appears to be dozens, if not more, lightyears away, all by using the energy of a living star which it syphons off using its big red "eye."
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| Starkiller Base from the ground, atmosphere and all |
Yet, somehow, this WHOPPING superweapon is possessed of virtually the same fatal design flaws and weaknesses of the very first Death Star from ANH and is destroyed in virtually the same fashion! And when it comes time to defend this overpowered big boy from enemy attack there appears to be no starfleet in orbit with any capital ships of merit, nor an adequate fighter defense battalion with the shear numbers to make the difference against the meager Resistance space forces. Consequently, just as in ANH, the Resistance attack squadron is able to fly into what is the heart of this base and, with a handful of X-Wing fighters, cripple it to total abandonment. It is like the First Order learned nothing from its predecessor tyranny about creating or defending what is a key piece of space real estate. Quite frankly this was sloppy, unimaginative, lazy writing of which I blame director and co-script producer J.J. Abrams for, a man who is known for creating mindless, dumbed down action without any real purpose or basis behind it. He did it in Star Trek 2009 and Into Darkness and he's done it again here.
On with the show!
This is not all. On a near point-per-point basis, the plot of The Force Awakens is an almost carbon copy of Episode IV, A New Hope:
* A super spaceship looms menacingly over a planet;
* A robot is sent on a secret mission to find a long-missing Jedi master;
* The robot encounters a lone adventure-seeking youth on a remote desert planet;
* The adventurist youth loses their family on the desert world;
* The adventurist youth runs into a rogue pilot and is whisked away on an epic journey that will alter their destiny forever;
* AND ON AND ON!!
I will not catalog every instance of this asinine ripoff because to do so will tax my patience and yours. But this is what fans have so far doled out millions of dollars for - A New Hope (Again) - hardly worth our time, excitement, and most certainly not our monetary sacrifice.
* A super spaceship looms menacingly over a planet;
* A robot is sent on a secret mission to find a long-missing Jedi master;
* The robot encounters a lone adventure-seeking youth on a remote desert planet;
* The adventurist youth loses their family on the desert world;
* The adventurist youth runs into a rogue pilot and is whisked away on an epic journey that will alter their destiny forever;
* AND ON AND ON!!
I will not catalog every instance of this asinine ripoff because to do so will tax my patience and yours. But this is what fans have so far doled out millions of dollars for - A New Hope (Again) - hardly worth our time, excitement, and most certainly not our monetary sacrifice.
Given J.J. Abrams' idiotic Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan/Into Darkness plagiarism, this mindlessness begs a very serious question: Will Star Wars, Episode VIII be a regurgitation of The Empire Strikes Back too, just with different settings and characters and minor plot adjustments?
But let's get on with what I really want to talk about, the true subject of this post.
The Characters
Specifically I wish to discuss the male characters in this part, leaving the female ones for part two as I have a definitive reason for separating the groups. Let's start with Han Solo.
Han Solo & Chewbacca
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| Han Solo & Chewbacca repossess the Millennium Falcon |
Moving on though. Somewhere between RotJ and TFA, Solo loses the Millennium Falcon only to miraculously find it adrift in space thirty years later after a wayward distress beacon is activated by the fumbling efforts of our new heroes, Finn and Rey. This is one of the most unbelievable, Deus Ex Machina moments of the storyline, inserted to ease Solo and Chewie into the picture! We are supposed to believe that in the vastness of interstellar space, one lone homing beacon goes off long enough and far enough that Solo - who is conveniently close enough - receives and recognized it, and comes running across who knows how many lightyears to reclaim his old ship from whoever or whatever has stolen it from him. Never mind the fact that it's never told how he lost it in the first place. Though, yes, it is nice to see Solo and the "big walking carpet" again, this is all a very lazy and unsophisticated plot resolution.
Further, the reunion between Solo and Princess (now General) Leia Organa is rushed, forced, and awkward. In the one and only brief personal scene between them, we are treated to a minor, but cryptic, exposition as to what separated them and how they've gotten along without one another for thirty years. However, this emotional investment is small, and rather than giving these two super iconic people the screentime they deserve together, we are whisked away with Solo again on a mission to destroy Starkiller Base with Rey and Finn. What is of major significance in the reveal of Solo and Leia, however, is that somewhere between RotJ and TFA, they got married and had at least one kid, Ben Solo - who turns out to be the grandson of Anakin Skywalker (recall that Leia is Luke Skywalker's sister), the nephew and once-Jedi apprentice of Master Luke Skywalker, and the primary antagonist of TFA. And this leads us to our next, and to me, most compelling character of the movie.
Kylo Ren
 |
| Kylo Ren, the weakest Sith in history |
As compelling as this character first comes across, Kylo Ren, instead of being an intimidating and calculating Dark Sider, soon de-evolves, acting more like a whiny, skulking teenager whose hormones severely unbalance his mental and emotional state. Any strength Ren has in the Force, any skill he wields with a lightsaber, any long-range plans he is to carry out on behalf of his hidden dark master are all eventually drowned out in a wishy-washy emo guy whose trying desperately to get in touch with his feelings. He throws fits when things don't go his way to the point of destroying whole control consoles with his lightsaber in rage-induced cut and slash fests. He miscalculates critical openings in his opponents' weaknesses, leaving himself and the First Order open to obvious gaps in their counterattacks. He is not a mature strategist, Force user, or warrior by any measure. It is clear to see that Kylo Ren, though physically an adult, is a still an adolescent boy whose growth has been stunted by unresolved daddy issues between himself and Han Solo. I think it safe to say that he represents the weakest Sith or Sith-affiliated Dark Sider in the history of the Sith. Indeed, it is my opinion that Darth Maul would have wiped the floor with him, and Darth Sidious would be too humiliated to even speak his name.
Moreover, the actor cast to play Ren, in my opinion, does not at all fit the part. Adam Driver's Ren, sans the helmet, looks more like a teenager pop star idol than a telekinetic sword-fencer bent on intergalactic domination. Mask removed, mechanized voice nixed, and Darth Vader wanna-be killer Kylo instead comes across like someone's little brother throwing a temper tantrum. The power, prestige, and mystique would have been maintained if he'd never taken off the headpiece period. Instead, unlike Darth Vader, who isn't shown for the broken old man he became until Return of the Jedi, we get a premature reveal of Kylo Ren that is bereft of any significant background information that would permit us to give a damn why he's in so much emotional distress and confusion about which path to choose.
And yet with all this weaknut writing, Kylo Ren was probably the most potentially compelling new character of the movie!
Poe Dameron
 |
| Resistance X-Wing pilot, Poe Dameron |
Poe is probably the most believable character in the story but his screentime is so small that he's underdeveloped and really doesn't matter to the plot much at all. He runs into and out of the movie, possessing, if memory serves, exactly four or five scenes in the entire film. Clearly he's meant to be a hotshot, rogue pilot perhaps in the vein of Wedge Antilles in Episode IV - which itself points again to the derivative nature of this movie - but any emotional attachment we are to have with the character and his ace skills are nixed by the fact that we hardly get to know him. Yes, he smuggles the missing map of Luke Skywalker's location to BB-8. Yes, he leads the attack on Starkiller Base. But so what? We know next to nothing about what motivates him! What is his background? How did he get involved in the Resistance? These are questions, once answered, that will endear viewers to characters.
I've decided to only briefly review the presence of General Hux, yet another derivative character similar in function and position to Episode IV villain Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin, yet inferior in action and performance. The character of Hux left much to be desired as an "Adolf Hitler" photocopy. His speech was shrieking, lacking in both power of delivery and sophistication of content; his mannerisms seemed forced; and his presence as a rival and counterpoint to Kylo Ren ineffective. Hux appeared to be more of a ticked off, privileged frat boy rather than the cool but charismatic and megalomaniacal Tarkin. He was unimpressive in the slightest. And that's all I wish to say of him for now.
I've decided to only briefly review the presence of General Hux, yet another derivative character similar in function and position to Episode IV villain Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin, yet inferior in action and performance. The character of Hux left much to be desired as an "Adolf Hitler" photocopy. His speech was shrieking, lacking in both power of delivery and sophistication of content; his mannerisms seemed forced; and his presence as a rival and counterpoint to Kylo Ren ineffective. Hux appeared to be more of a ticked off, privileged frat boy rather than the cool but charismatic and megalomaniacal Tarkin. He was unimpressive in the slightest. And that's all I wish to say of him for now.
Our next discussion on The Force Awakens will center around Finn. And I've chosen to separate this character because my thoughts and insights on him are so long as to warrant a separate section. Until then I leave you with this video review which is one of the best unfavorable critiques I've seen and which concisely articulates many of my own thoughts.
Until next time...
To the upward reach of man.
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