I'm a Doctor Who fan so I've seen a lot that sort of thing.
JJ is a friend of Lindelof and made STID so anything can happen.
It could be the best things since sliced George Osborne or it could be worse than Superman IV.
luckydube56 said:
Bingowings said:
It's called Star Wars not Star Tea-dance. It can't and shouldn't be a 'feel good' movie though it could have upbeat moments (just hopefully not so many goofy slapstick comedy moments).
I'm not talking slap stick per se but I do think it will very much have that same feel in the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls movie where Indy, at every step, begins to realize he is just getting too old.
There will be action and there will be comedy and depending on how much of each they use, it could be really good and it could be really bad.
I expect this movie (Ep 7 only) to serve two purposes:
1.Service the fans who miss the characters even if they're old.
2.Ween the fans off those characters and onto new ones by playing the 'they're just too old' card.
Anyone who hasnt paid attention wouldn't realize how much of the comic element there is in the films. The whole notion of "out of the fryer and into the frying pan" is going to be played out with a crew of geriatrics. Why do you think they're being asked to get into shape...to watch them sit on their duffs and give counsel?
In fact something tells me the old cast will be in some way directly though inadvertently responsible for the perils the younger cast will face.
The sole purpose of the movie should be to be a great movie in the spirit of the original movies.
Obvious jokes are not funny. It makes a mockery of the story to put people in a movie just to constantly talk about how they're old. I think they should go out of their way to avoid age jokes.
We know there was humor in Star Wars. From little things like Chewbacca yelling at the mouse droid, R2's idle whistles, to comments about Luke being short for a Stormtrooper from a woman who was tortured, her home planet destroyed, and then awaiting execution. It was not the fans who missed the prevalent humor. A bunch of jokes about Han Solo being older than "space dirt" will not be a service to anyone who likes Star Wars. We don't need to be "weened" off of any characters, we need to enjoy the new ones and appreciate the story arcs of all of them. We don't need to be convinced to not care about the old characters.
I avoided commenting on this once, having a good chuckle at SilverWook's good response, but you're on the wrong track.
The blue elephant in the room.
Star Wars Expendables will finish me of.
But ignoring their age would be to ignore the obvious. That in itself would be a disservice to fans. There was nothing more ridiculous than seeing Yoda in the prequels fighting Count Dooku (spelling?).
And at the same time, anyone thinking their role in this film would be to sit in the background and give counsel on occasion is ignoring the obvious signs. They're being asked to get in shape so they can go on the adventures themselves. And in doing so they will realize they can no longer be tip of the spear.
For those resistant to the idea, I've got more bad news, the Millenium Falcon is going to be really old too and breaking down even more than it was before.
And if the rumoured title is indeed "A New Dawn", it just reinforces my idea it will be about turning the reigns over to more physically capable heroes.
SilverWook said:
We needed a new thread for this?
Merge please.
Yes Christopher played Duke Dooku Spelling (brother to the guy who created Alexis Colby).
luckydube56 said:
But ignoring their age would be to ignore the obvious. That in itself would be a disservice to fans. There was nothing more ridiculous than seeing Yoda in the prequels fighting Count Dooku (spelling?).
And at the same time, anyone thinking their role in this film would be to sit in the background and give counsel on occasion is ignoring the obvious signs. They're being asked to get in shape so they can go on the adventures themselves. And in doing so they will realize they can no longer be tip of the spear.
For those resistant to the idea, I've got more bad news, the Millenium Falcon is going to be really old too and breaking down even more than it was before.
And if the rumoured title is indeed "A New Dawn", it just reinforces my idea it will be about turning the reigns over to more physically capable heroes.
Nobody advocates hiding their ages and of course they are making new/younger characters the main focus. The only objection is to making a whole joke out of the thing or making a constant or overt point.
Obi Wan said, "I'm getting too old for this sort of thing." It wasn't supposed to be funny; it wasn't funny. It was a simple statement of truth that wasn't harped on. And he continued on his merry way. Yoda surely showed his age but it wasn't the focus, except for when he was on his deathbed.
What you're saying about the new storyline is surely basically right. It's the comedy and overt recognition of age (as if they've suddenly discovered it when the cameras turned on for E7) you're raising that is objectionable.
Think of King Theoden riding out to war. We didn't need him pointing out how old he is or questions raised about his fighting ability. The audience surely understood as an older man he wouldn't have the strength of a younger man. That is how you handle it. Nobody has suggested hiding their ages or that we believe they are the main focus, continuing their own personal stories.
The blue elephant in the room.
Mrebo said:
Obvious jokes are not funny. It makes a mockery of the story to put people in a movie just to constantly talk about how they're old. I think they should go out of their way to avoid age jokes...... It was not the fans who missed the prevalent humor. A bunch of jokes about Han Solo being older than "space dirt" will not be a service to anyone who likes Star Wars. We don't need to be "weened" off of any characters, we need to enjoy the new ones and appreciate the story arcs of all of them. We don't need to be convinced to not care about the old characters.
This 100%.
And this;
Nobody advocates hiding their ages and of course they are making new/younger characters the main focus. The only objection is to making a whole joke out of the thing
There is a big difference between Indiana Jones comedy and Star Wars. I have ZERO interest in a comedy film set in the Star Wars universe. Considering what a huge fan Abrams is of the original, I have to think we don't have to worry about a comedy or age jokes. He's keenly aware of how Lucas trashed the franchise. I suspect he'll try to right the ship.
I concur. However, if Disney does an animated Tag & Bink Are Dead movie on the side, I could live with that. :)
Where were you in '77?
Well characters such as Han Solo and Boba Fett are getting old in this new timeline but for example, Indiana Jones,s son was Henry Jones the 3rd AKA Mutt Williams so they will also do similar things for the Star Wars characters and as I said before if Benedict Comberbatch was going to be in the movie he would look great as Boba,s son with the mandalorien armour and all.
What’s worse George Lucas changing the OT or selling the rights to Disney
^I'd prefer not to see a third generation of Fett in the ST, and I don't think we're going to. Aside the main characters of the OT and their offspring, I don't think we'll be seeing a strong connection to any other characters in the entire saga (with the possible exception of Palpatine, although I'd prefer a fresh villain).
No return of Maul, no children of Dooku or Tarkin or Fett, none of that nonsense. It's too contrived and unimaginative. I'd even be disappointed if they give us something relating to Plagueis. He was just a sith who Palpatine deceitfully glorified for the sole purpose of influencing Anakin.
Now that I've had my short rant, I will add this: If they MUST bring back Palpatine, I hope they do so in a Voldemort type manner - an object or location that contains his soul, which he then uses to manipulate a good character (against their will/knowledge) in an attempt to return to the living. I would love to see a character that doesn't realize what they are doing and can't control it, while being utilized for evil, i.e., what Anakin's story should have been. If Anakin didn't constantly admit that he knew everything he was doing was wrong, the story of the prequels would be 75% better.
On the whole age issue, there is no doubt that the original cast will take somewhat of a backseat to the new younger cast members. That being said, we are most certainly going to be given some time for the older cast to hold the mantle. They were asked to get in shape (to a degree) for a reason, and although it would be silly to see them jumping around in the same manner as their old antics, that doesn't mean they wont see action. They will, and I trust Abrams fully in making it tasteful.
There was a great wart-n-all documentary I was watching about the Disney renaisance. It describes Michael Eisner's (Who had previously been forcing Disney away from it's core-animation brand and into all these other areas and sh*tting all over the animation department) revelation that if they made new high quality animated films it would give them new intellectual properties to exploit. The perfect marriage of commerce and art. So Eisner got back behind the animators (And became there biggest champion ironically) and truckloads of Oscars followed by huge profits ensued.
Disney now need to remember this lesson with Star Wars. For example, there are only so many Vader mugs that they can sell in a year. Sticking a resurected Vader in the new films won't really increase the sales of those mugs. But if they can create a whole new cast of characters that we love as much as all the OT crew then they'll have just doubled the size of their profits.
Sadly under the new management I feel that Disney has forgotten Esiner's philosophy, with them now churning out animated sequel after animated sequel instead of investing time and money in new ideas. The last new hand animated film being the brilliant 'The Princess and the Frog' from 4 years ago... with no new traditionally animated films planed. Sigh.
VIZ TOP TIPS! - PARENTS. Impress your children by showing them a floppy disk and telling them it’s a 3D model of a save icon.
It might be fun to see Boba briefly, *if* there's a logical reason for him to be in the movie, (he could have information our heroes need for a price) and leave how he escaped the Sarlacc to the imagination.
Han needs only glare at him and say nothing.
Or have him exposed as a Dread Pirate Roberts type of fellow, cashing in on on the late Fett's reputation.
Where were you in '77?
I hope Boba doesn't show. The fact that they're going to do a standalone film for him probably means my hopes will come true. We just don't need to see him again as a background character. Why not IG-88 or some new bounty hunter? Why does it always have to be a Fett?
Didn't IG-88 get married to the second Death Star and explode on his honeymoon or something?
That was one heck of wedding night! ;)
I'm all for Bossk in a tuxedo though.
Where were you in '77?
georgec said:
http://comicbook.com/blog/2013/09/14/mark-hamill-in-training-for-star-wars-episode-vii-according-to-his-friend-robert-englund/
Sometimes Star Wars scoop comes from the most unusual of places. Robert Englund, who is best known for playing Freddy Krueger in the Nightmare on Elm Street series, is good friends with and even a former roommate of Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars series.
While appearing at the Nashville Comic Expo, Robert Englund talked about how both he and Hamill have done a lot of voice work for animation. He also let slip out a big secret in regards to exactly what Hamill is up to currently. “Mark now—they’ve got Mark in the gym, because Mark’s coming back as Luke Skywalker. They’ve got him doing his sit ups,” said Englund.
this is great, mark really let himself go the last few years.
Bingowings said:
Didn't IG-88 get married to the second Death Star and explode on his honeymoon or something?
Well if you want to get all EU on us...
The IG-88 in ESB is killed on Cloud City by Boba Fett. His boss, another IG-88, however, did that weird DSII thing that you reference, as part of his master plan to lead a droid uprising and rule the galaxy.
Guys, the EU is weird.
If the goofier elements were chucked and enough difference were injected from the BSG/Terminator stories I think a droid revolution would have been a nice background detail to a trilogy if Lucas hadn't made such a pig's ear out the Clone War battledroids.
I'm surprised a Battledroid didn't pull a Wookiee's arm out his socket when they lost that war.
They couldn't, they were all shut down. ;)
It was a serious missed opportunity not making the battledroids all like IG-88. An army of those is a lot more scary than the mechanical ducks we got..
Where were you in '77?
I could be on board with Luke saying mostly to himself and with a smile, "When 900 years old you reach look as good you will not." Remembering Yoda's words, having that sense of humor/humility and recognizing his Yoda-like status would be good. It would be less about admitting infirmity but recognizing what youth meant - something plenty of us non-octogenarian fans have been learning. It could show that kind of reflection.
Getting in shape is for general appearances as well as physical action I imagine.
I was thinking Benedict Cumberbatch would be a compelling son of Tarkin, but I agree we shouldn't go much in that direction. In my fantasy world, Cumberbatch would have played Doctor Who and instead of Star Trek would have some role in Star Wars.
The blue elephant in the room.
Christine Ecclescake nearly got the role as Young Tarkin.
He looked the part.
Bingowings said:
Christine Ecclescake nearly got the role as Young Tarkin.
He looked the part.
Putting aside the link fail...that name can't be any more real than Benedict Cumberbatch.
Mrebo said:
luckydube56 said:
But ignoring their age would be to ignore the obvious. That in itself would be a disservice to fans. There was nothing more ridiculous than seeing Yoda in the prequels fighting Count Dooku (spelling?).
And at the same time, anyone thinking their role in this film would be to sit in the background and give counsel on occasion is ignoring the obvious signs. They're being asked to get in shape so they can go on the adventures themselves. And in doing so they will realize they can no longer be tip of the spear.
For those resistant to the idea, I've got more bad news, the Millenium Falcon is going to be really old too and breaking down even more than it was before.
And if the rumoured title is indeed "A New Dawn", it just reinforces my idea it will be about turning the reigns over to more physically capable heroes.
Nobody advocates hiding their ages and of course they are making new/younger characters the main focus. The only objection is to making a whole joke out of the thing or making a constant or overt point.
Obi Wan said, "I'm getting too old for this sort of thing." It wasn't supposed to be funny; it wasn't funny. It was a simple statement of truth that wasn't harped on. And he continued on his merry way. Yoda surely showed his age but it wasn't the focus, except for when he was on his deathbed.
What you're saying about the new storyline is surely basically right. It's the comedy and overt recognition of age (as if they've suddenly discovered it when the cameras turned on for E7) you're raising that is objectionable.
Think of King Theoden riding out to war. We didn't need him pointing out how old he is or questions raised about his fighting ability. The audience surely understood as an older man he wouldn't have the strength of a younger man. That is how you handle it. Nobody has suggested hiding their ages or that we believe they are the main focus, continuing their own personal stories.
Well hold on now mrebo. I'm not suggesting they turn Ep.7 into a comedy. But there will be a sense of nostalgia and I see this next film being much more light hearted than any of the prequels and more light hearted than Empire Strikes Back. It will very much be in the tone of a New Hope which, if you havent guessed, is my favorite movie. Sure there will be poignant moments but there will be moments of light heartedness. And that has been a common contradiciton and change of pace in all the Star Wars movies. They certainly dont have to change things up and become Lord of the Rings and be unilaterally serious to the point of being mentally draining.
I'm not suggesting or hoping for the line "I'm too old for this" to repeat itself constantly or even be so overt but the fact they are can be used to comic effect. And there was, whether you admit it or not, a sort of bumbling nature regarding Han Solo. Its that whole out of the fryer and into the frying pan thing I mentioned and that Lucase himself has mentioned and in fact used again to great effect in the Indy series. Han cant fix the Falcon? Han chases a trio of stormtroopers only to run into a battalion of them on the Death Star? Han say "Hey it's me" as he sneaks up on a scout only to step on a twig and get smacked? He is admirably fool hardy and it belies the notion that Han Solo is a one dimensional dark and brooding badass that the fans so obsess themselves with when they talk about who shot first.
Regarding Harrison I think "Crystal Skull" is probably a template for the way they might handle his age (and hopefully not a template for anything else). Although I've gotta say that there were a few too many "bumbling around" moments for Indy, I preferred that they pretty much had comments about his age come from other characters than him (and then have him kick ass to prove them wrong).
The bumbling qualities of Han were only introduced with ROTJ, which was a bit more lighthearted in that regard, but it's hard to say how much of this should be kept. It's kinda like Marcus Brody turning from a smart-yet-too-old-for-adventure character in Raiders to a bumbling idiot in Crusade... just because it happened, doesn't mean it was the right choice for the character.
