The one awkward thing there that stands out for me is the re-editing of the Kor Sella scene. Any particular reason for that?
The original editing of the scene had Kor Sella smiling in reaction to Leia’s line ‘Not all the senators think I’m insane’. While that may be a humorous exaggeration, it doesn’t seem like a joke. After her reaction, Leia then says ‘…or maybe they do. I don’t care.’. This seems like the punchline to me, which is why I put her reaction here. It also gives the scene some room to breathe, otherwise it would cut too fast back to Finn and Poe. Of course, this change meant that I had to find some other reaction shot of Kor Sella to place between Leia’s lines, so I took the only moment where she wasn’t talking and slowed it down as much as I dared.
Okay, I get that, but I respectfully think it works much better unaltered. While I like the idea of giving the scene more breathing room, the best way that would have been done would have been to add more dialogue, though obviously that’s not a possibility. As is, extending the pace of the scene just feels artificial and awkward. Also, Sella’s first reaction shot is strange, and the second is obviously slowed down.
I get what you mean about the laughing reaction, but I don’t think there’s anything weird about Sella laughing at “not all the Senators think I’m insane” (I did anyway). And you’re right, “I don’t care” is the punchline, but that’s exactly why the scene should end with it. Putting Sella’s reaction after that just feels unnecessary.
My two cents at least.