The winter of 2015 has been amazing for the box office, granted this whole year has been inundated with blockbusters with Jurassic World, Spectre, Mad Max and Avengers: Age of Ultron (just to name a few).
But all pale in comparison when it comes to December 18th- the day that my inner child woke up from his long- standing Carbonite sleep, grabbed his lightsaber and jumped in his X-Wing.
Star Wars made a truly spectacular comeback, with JJ Abrams at the helm to lead this latest installment of the franchise in a box office smash hit. With a great ensemble of actors, another score for John Williams and a hoard of practical effects, this episode is ready to propel the new trilogy into lightspeed.
At first, like many fans of Star Wars, I was rather skeptical about the new film. Where would it go from Jedi? Would it just be a repeat of the godawful prequels? Why would anyone take the weight of this behemoth of a film series? Well Phantom Menace this ain't.
From the moment that the opening sprawl hit the screen and the bombastic theme tune rang through my ears, I could feel myself smiling, excitement rushing through me.
There will be no spoilers in this post so no need to worry.
Before I go any further I just want to focus on the cast. The addition of Rey (Daisy Ridley) Finn (John Boyega) and Kylo Renn (Adam Driver) as well as the fully functioning, not-CGI BB-8, is something that couldn't of been any better. The acting and characters pretty much make the film, for a new generation of Star Wars fans, the casting was spot on. Oh and Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaacs), for the short time he actually features in the film (hopefully with more to follow over the next two).
The opening scene set the mood instantly, introducing the audience to the fresh faces that are now going to be on the covers of every film magazine for the next 4 years.
30 years after a group of Care Bears defeat a galactic evil empire, the galaxy has a new threat in the form of......well, essentially the Empire once again, but with a more of a Nazi-like name- The First Order. Every cast member from episode six that reappears have inescapably aged, some better than others, with the comforting fact that Peter Mayhew can still hold his own as Chewie.
Throw in mysterious figures, strange new aliens and some fantastic cameos, The Force Awakens is the Star Wars film that fans have been waiting for ever since Return of the Jedi was released.
The new version of the Death Star is also something quite spectacular. A friend and myself argued quite bitterly over the originality of the plot, but as the old saying goes 'If it ain't broke don't fix it'.
More fool George Lucas for multiple reasons, for speaking out against the film, for making the hideous prequels and tarnishing the franchise he created in order to make a quick buck.
Let us wait until Episode VIII!!!!
May the Force be with you.
No comments:
Post a Comment