Anchorhead

liamnotneeson said:

Maybe I’m wrong, and I’m sure I’ll be told that if I am, but I feel like a really good Star Wars movie shouldn’t need multiple viewings to be loved.

I agree fully, for any film. No doubt we’ve all seen the originals many many times, so too with the prequels for some people here. No denying a film can become more endearing and important with multiple viewings, that can often be part of the fun. Personally, with regard to multiple viewings in the theater, I’ve done that with more films than I can count. Sometimes I go a week later, every week, or I can’t wait to get back as soon as possible. That said, one thing I’ve never had to do was go see something a second and third time to decide whether or not I liked it.

These films, any film, shouldn’t be a chore. These aren’t required films and stories. They’re entertainment. If you have to labor at accepting it, something is off with the film or the story. Watch and enjoy what you like, ignore the rest. This whole canon level A, B, C, etc is ridiculous. None of this is real. Again, watch or ignore. You’re a paying customer, not an employee.

Same goes with EU to explain. If you have to buy two novels, a video game, and watch a making of documentary to understand what went on in the film, then the storytellers failed.

I’ve never understood this need to force all these films to work together and make canonical sense. Shame on Lucasfilm for perpetuating that crap with their canon levels and Legacy classifications. These are a series of films spanning 40 years. Enjoy what makes you happy and cut the rest loose.

liamnotneeson said:

Anchorhead said:

I’ve not made any secret of how disappointing she turned out, but I watch the intro to Rey portion of TFA somewhat regularly. For me, best 30 minutes of the ST.

The whole first act of TFA for me. Aside from the McaGuffin, the whole first act of TFA felt like a really original and intriguing story. It seems like after they meet up with Han and Chewy, that’s when things get really unoriginal

Yeah, that’s about where I always bail.

KumoNin said:

I thought the finale had some contrivances that stick out and have been mentioned… Mando revealing his face to the audience for no reason in a drawn out sequence…

I had a totally different reaction while watching. I was glad they got that out of the way and in such a manner where it wasn’t story-altering. We know his name and what he looks like. Now we can get on with the adventure without the distracting tension of will he or won’t he with the face reveal.

He has some work ahead of him next year trying to find out where the baby came from and how to return him safely. I’m much more interested in the weekly adventures than what he looks like under his helmet. We’ve done that with Vader, Fett, and Phasma. We don’t need it here.

We have a deeper story and weekly adventures to worry about. Getting his identity out of the way early in the series (and without drama) is just another way this series distances itself from The Saga.
Let JJ do the mystery box thing. I prefer depth of story.

Loved it loved loved it. Episode 8 as well as the entire season. This is exactly what I’ve wanted for decades. A solid story, not part of the saga. The cast is fantastic, as is the story, the dialogue, the slowed pace, the actors, and the baby. Carano was her best yet in this episode. Really digging the character. Nice touch having her from Alderaan, without making a deal of it.

They’re already through the first week for the next season. Looking forward to it. This will easily be my most anticipated show in 2020.

theprequelsrule said:

I really liked Rey’s Theme. Williams at, or near, the top of his game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65As1V0vQDM

No doubt, one of the best Star Wars themes to come along in decades. A fantastic piece to accompany what I thought (at the time) one of the most interesting characters to come along since I was a kid.

I’ve not made any secret of how disappointing she turned out, but I watch the intro to Rey portion of TFA somewhat regularly. For me, best 30 minutes of the ST.

She was also the executive producer of the NPR Star Wars radio drama.

MalàStrana said:

adywan said:

The problem is that the fanbase has been fractured for so long now there will never be anything that will please everyone.

Or it might just be the movies are awful and dumb and that bear all the flaws of modern blockbusters (unfinished script, phony comedy, lack of emotion, absence of creativity, etc.)… if they wish to please everyone, they should start trying to make good movies. Not good Star Wars. Good movies. You know, what the OT is/was…

Or it might just be that you could occasionally use your inside voice instead of posting an attempt to beat down every opinion that differs from yours.

I’ve read all the spoilers. In part because they’re tough to avoid as a moderator, and because I’ve never been terribly interested in the “who is Rey?” drama. As someone mentioned earlier, that was drawn out to the point of silliness. I thought she was a very interesting character the first 30 minutes of TFA. That faded as the film went on. TLJ completed her path to one-dimensional.

I was going to see this film to see how they handled Rose because she was the only person I found interesting, poorly handled or not. Now that I’ve read the spoilers, it seems she’s handled as an afterthought.

All that said, I still held out hope that Rey could be written as deep and interesting again. Man, from what I’ve discovered, I was very wrong. They answered the question for which I’d held out hope with the polar opposite. All these years I’d hoped it would turn out she was Rey Random. To have her end up being Rey Palpatine?.. FFS, J.J. We’re 40 years in and they’re still shrinking the universe. No thanks.

For the record, I didn’t find The Emperor even remotely interesting in Empire and even less so in Return. In the one prequel I saw, he was even less interesting. To wait the past few years in hopes that Rey was finally a step-out from the shrunken universe only to find out she’s the mother of all universe shrinking was a gut punch.

I’m off the rest of the year, so I have all sorts of time to see everything in the theaters currently. Today, I briefly toyed with the idea of just watching it and getting it over with, enjoying one more trip with Chewie and The Falcon. I went through the listings at the nearest theater, but just couldn’t bother. I rode my motorcycle instead. I might end up going this coming week, but it’s not a priority. Most likely, much more riding and a couple evenings of Ford vs Ferrari and A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood.

Truth be told, The Mandalorian is Star Wars for me now.

Pretty sad actually. I will probably never watch Star Wars77 again. I’ve largely moved on, not having seen it since the GOUT was released, but I always sort of figured Disney would do the right thing. Oh well. Looks like it’s Rogue One and The Mandalorian for me.

act on instinct said:

I may have lost interest in the story being told but I still appreciate the sense of grandeur in the visuals that I wish was closer to where we started.

Interestingly, I’m the opposite. The epic, grand visuals are what put me off. It’s like they’re trying to make an ”OMG It’s Epic!!!” buzz before it’s even released. It looks like the prequel formula of style over substance. We’ll see.

Truthfully, with Mandalorian so perfect as to what I want in a Star Wars series, I’m not terribly engaged in TROS. I’ll see it, of course, but I’m not the least bit moved or excited watching any of the trailers. I’m only really interested in seeing Chewie and Rose. Hopefully they’ve given Ms Tran a deeper role.

Wow. Very cool!

The VP of my dept at work decorates his office every year with Yoda Christmas lights. He’s a huge Star Wars nerd and collects all sorts of nice memorabilia and artwork. I’ve mentioned him and the Yoda Christmas lights before but I don’t remember ever taking a picture of them. This is from earlier today. One of the managers in our dept has a Lego Star Wars Christmas advent calendar. (No pics)

LexX said:
I like to call it a yoddler.

I’m mad at myself for laughing out loud at that. 😉

Ok, not that mad.

oojason said:

‘Josh Gad tries to get answers from Daisy Ridley about Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker’:-

(and some friends too…) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_hnqcqyYxU
 

Awkwafina !!
swoon

Funny piece and some heavy hitters in the industry.

Shopping Maul said:

Luke wakes up in bed back on Tatooine with his Aunt, Uncle, Ben Kenobi, and the droids standing around him. Luke, bewildered, is like “it was…so real…there was a dark lord…a muppet…and you were there, and you, and…”

I would Love that! 😎

There is no way they paid four billion without taking total control. If I had to speculate on the killing-off of characters, it would be more toward the actors of the OT being 70 years old or at least crowding it. They’re bringing back The Emperor, so I would think that would largely dispel the royalties argument. I don’t follow every branch of the Star Wars tree, so there may be some I don’t know.

SO nice to see Mos Eisley back to proper 1977 form. I thought this was a bit stronger than four. I liked four, but this was more my style of a lone bounty hunter. It remains to be seen what he plans on doing with the baby but he seems to want to leave it somewhere safe, as he was trying to do in the last episode.

I also think it was Mando going back for her at the end. If not her body, then something she may have been carrying that the other guy overlooked.

There was a nice shot of Mando on the Dewback that matches the picture on the bottom of my lunchbox. The original was used in other memorabilia back in 77. An obvious inspiration for the shot in this episode. I’m really digging that attention to detail. I don’t have my lunchbox handy, but I’ll take a pic when I can.

I’m not seeing the forced female agenda on this show at all. With the ST, yes, but I’m not bothered by it. With this show, I’m not getting that vibe at all.

oojason said:

80’s style Mando:-

https://imgur.com/gallery/oZUNwRT

That is perfect! 😃

oojason said:

‘Colin Trevorrow Donating ‘Star Wars: Rise Of Skywalker’ Residuals To Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice’:-

https://deadline.com/2019/11/star-wars-rise-of-skywalker-colin-trevorrow-donating-star-wars-rise-of-skywalker-salary-alexander-devine-childrens-hospital-1202795416
 

Damn! Awesome news!!!

I’ll watch again this evening, but I got the impression they weren’t near the ship when they were in the village. Not sure why. Maybe a long trek to keep from drawing attention to the village.

TavorX said:

Don’t have issue with the action, as it’s miles better than the fast pumping action in the ST. I’m appreciating the quieter moments between characters.

+1
I’m really enjoying that we can get deeper into the story & characters with dialogue and long takes. The insane CGI action that has become the norm these days, to me, is exhausting and often often feels like spectacle in place of substance. It remains to be seen how much is in TROS, but the trailers are leaning that way.

I agree with all three of the above posts (Joe, Humdinger, and Rock). This continues to be a breathe of non-Saga fresh air. The world building I posited in my first episode review is proving to be a strength. Loving it so far. My favorite thing since 1977.

I also agree on the critique of the rushed pace. This could have easily been spread across two episodes. Another cool thing, I thought, was that Cara doesn’t automatically join some sort of team/partnership with him. She helped, he thanked her, they wish each other well as they travel their separate journeys.

Loving the High Plains Drifter vibe. Another strong effort and well done Ms Howard.

This is what worries about whatever it is they’re following in this screen-grab: A UFO that size couldn’t get this deep into space on its own. It must have gotten lost, been part of a convoy or something. I just hope it isn’t headed for a small moon.

oojason said:

Fiona Hill - with a beautiful northern accent still, too.

I’m not afraid to admit that I have a bit of a crush on Dr Hill. I find her intoxicatingly intelligent, a sexy as hell bob, quite attractive, and Oh My God that northern accent. swoon

https://youtu.be/C_5ldESIguc

I listened to every hour of her testimony last week and would again. It is my sincerest hope that she is eventually our Secretary Of State. To say we would be in great hands would be an understatement.

act on instinct said:

Broom Kid said:
Star Wars fandom is a very small percentage of the general audience, and the percentage of that fandom who is adamant about boycotting is a tiny fraction of THAT already small percentage.

If we’re going to be throwing the word percentage around it should come with a rough number and not just some vague idea of percentages. We don’t know how many even of the general audience also wouldn’t be going, that’s making the same mistake made with the fandom that they’d show up for any new release. We can only speculate until the facts roll in.

I’m with Broom on this one. Just going on what I see as a mod here, the vitriol and hate around here comes from the same 5 or 6 people who shit on everything Disney. They do it without seeing it, often times we’ll in advance of release, and they revel in their dislike and snarkiness. I largely ignore their posts outside of cursory looks for personal attacks.

I have no doubt they’ll boycott the film. If you want actual numbers, that’s as close as I can get. Percentage-wise, they are infinitesimal to the movie going public. Star Wars is a long-standing mega property with millions of fans, casual or nerdy. I have no doubt the film will do very well. The boycotters will still be here telling us how wrong we are.

That said; I may be off on their power. We’ll know in a month.