Anchorhead

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_oLKupaubo

JediZombie said:

 I found it a little condescending.

 I've found a great deal of your behavior to be condescending. However, since you've only been here a short while, I've given you time and room to find your way.   Perhaps if you were a little less abrasive, we could avoid any future misunderstandings. 

darklordoftech said:

That's like calling...

 JediZombie said:

Not it's not....

darklordoftech said:

What needs to stop is zealous KOTOR fanboys...

JediZombie said:

Where does it say that Star Wars must have...

Girls,  reel it in.

 "Who's scruffy-looking?"

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2709106/An-island-far-far-away-Filming-Star-Wars-Episode-7-takes-place-remote-Irish-island-veil-secrecy.html

Dont know how trusted a source the Dailymail is, but it looks interesting as a location alright.  Might be some place where you could discover an old Jedi hermit.

ObiWanKennerobi said:

He's on record that he...

 With regard to anything Lucas says about Star Wars77, I'll read or listen only to what he said around 1977.  After that, his quotes and stories are completely meaningless.  He started to revise history as far back as the early 1980s.

It's impossible to track the number of times his versions of Star Wars history have changed and continue to change.  As I've said before, whenever an interviewer asks him questions, he should just answer by burping the alphabet.  His responses are that meaningless.

-or-

To paraphrase Apocalypse Now;  The bullshit piles up so fast with Lucas, you need wings to stay above it.

In Splinter she has a thorough understanding of her ship and how to pilot it. No mention of combat flying.  In Star Wars77 and Splinter it shows her as someone who is generally collected under pressure*, so seeing her as a fighter pilot isn't really a stretch.

*That said;  Probably my favorite part of the novel (Splinter) involves a scene where she has a sort of break down\mental release from having maintained control under duress.  It's a very well written passage where she has a sort of primal scream moment. 

That hits close to home for me because I know of a woman who also has to maintain that same strict composure under incredible pressure and responsibility.  I've been privy to some of those breakdowns when she's safely away from the source.  That passage in the novel is an excellent representation of what some people have to endure and how they rise to the challenge.

 I must have sat in the theater at least twenty five times in 1977. Add to that the  repeated viewings of my laser disc in the 1980s and I've heard the line where  Leia mentioned the clone wars more times than I can count.  I never once gave it a moment of thought.

 It was something from the past that only she understood. It wasn't integral to the adventure I was on in the theater, nor was it of any importance to the people in the story.

It was there to establish that Ben was someone from her father's past.  It didn't need to be explained.  Fortunately for me, thirty seven years later it remains an unimportant mystery.

unamochilla2 said:

New Mark Hamill interview: http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-28475959

 He always comes across as a very humble and generous person.  That is my favorite part of him being involved again.  

bkev said:

Hijacking Tobar's JJ post from the Trek thread over in off-topic because I feel it's relevant here.  Allow me to direct you to the original theatrical trailer for Star Wars.  Pay close attention to a particular quote from the narrator: "The story of a boy, a girl, and a universe."  Sounds pretty simplistic, right?  There's not much depth to the trailer... and, ultimately, I feel the same way about the film itself.  At its core, Star Wars 77 really is a movie of style over substance.  It's the movie George Lucas made because he couldn't get the rights to Flash Gordon.  It gives you everything you want from a blockbuster film - easy to follow plot, endearing characters played by actors with chemistry, etc. - but goes above and beyond due to (well, I personally attribute much of the success to these factors) the editing and iconic musical themes throughout.  I must admit, in my time here, Anchorhead's love of '77 rubbed off on me.

While I said it gives its audience what it wants, that doesn't necessarily mean it entirely lacks what they need.  Star Wars manages to balance the two well enough that the movie never feels like it's missing something.  The two main protagonists*, Han and Luke, have character arcs.  They develop.  Han has a change of heart, and Luke is suddenly thrust into adulthood and responsibility following the death of Ben Kenobi.  In that sense, it satisfies both needs and wants - you feel like there was a greater purpose to the story than the action, even if that's what your attention focuses on.

I personally believe Empire has the stronger story given that everyone, including Leia, develops in that film.  But Star Wars '77 has more style.  To me, it's a pretty damn good standalone film - I don't know if I could say that about Empire.  By the time I saw Empire I had already grown attached to Luke & Company.  Without that bond, I don't know if I would have cared about the characters as much.  Because I knew where they started, the development felt more organic. Also, I'm not sure if it balances needs vs wants as well as Star Wars itself.

What does this have to do with JJ?  I return to my point on style.  The man certainly has some, even if you don't care for the other aesthetics of his films/media projects that come with his role as an auteur.  I trust him to make a simple, fun movie that satisfies both my needs and wants as a filmgoer.  So far, he's managed to (particularly with Super 8) -- although note that I haven't seen Into Darkness, and that I never had much fondness for the original Trek (I started on TNG.)

To close this mouthful of a post, I'll talk about what happens when substance takes over style: the prequels. Trade disputes? False flag terrorism? On their own, fine - even interesting, particularly the latter - concepts. Just not in the Star Wars universe. It bogs down the moments where style succeeds in the prequels, like the establishing shots of Theed. Ultimately, there needs to be a balance between the two that can't just center around having both as in-your-face as possible. That's what the prequels did, and failed. I think Abrams can manage balancing these two factors, at the very least, better than Lucas... and that's me downplaying my affinity for him as an auteur.

Excellent points, many of which occasionally get lost in the noise this franchise has become.  Along with a myriad of other inabilities and demons Lucas was tangling with, he never understood what made Star Wars77 connect with the audience.  Like you pointed out, it was the simplicity.  It was fun.  It was an escape.  It wasn't a government\economics course.

Even in 1977 he had to be guided by Marcia and Gary (among others).  He just didn't get it.  Once he became the sole decision maker, the franchise was doomed.  The decision to eliminate any checks and balances was a terrible idea.  One that gave us (arguably) four bad films. 

I too trust Abrams to understand what made 1977 work.  If we've seen anything so far, it's that he's a fan of the 1977 universe. 

Again, excellent post bkev.

Really nice job on the teaser.  Love the openness and fan inclusion with Abrams.

No doubt a call-back to the McQuarrie designs, including the colors.  Even a nod to the original film with the tiny Death Star droid.  They've really made a point of getting the 1977 vibe. 

Handman said:

If Disney is going to do this right, they need to enlist people like Harmy, Adywan... basically the regulars of OT.com. You know, the people who live and breathe Star Wars.

 No doubt, Disney would do well consulting people here for the minutiae.  That said; If Disney were to move forward on a proper release of the 77\80\83 theatrical versions, I believe they have people on board who know the state of the mess and the history of the films.  If not, they'll find them.

Disney is a much more professional corporation than Lucasfilm ever was.  They understand how to cater to various fan bases and the importance that carries in success.  Lucasfilm, in spite of what a few people in the inner circle said at the time, was a monocracy.  The result of that structure is the mess the franchise is today. 

I think they're going to great lengths to right the ship.  As someone pointed out earlier, they aren't concerned with someone's personal demons from the 1970s.  They're interested in the product on the screen. There were times the past several years where Lucas clearly did things solely to prove he could. 

He repeatedly ignored the opinions of his peers and continued to poorly alter the films in ways he knew would upset the fans. Going so far as to design, market, and publicly wear T-shirts mocking the fans for being upset at his destruction of the film and the story.

I'm still shocked that there is even a single person who has any respect what so ever for him after he did that.  He ruined the scene and the character, then chose to make money off of people's hatred of it. That was unconscionable.

He also continued his decades-long tradition of blatantly lying about all of it.  Disney wouldn't even consider going to war against the very people they stand to make millions from.  Lucas' behavior was the that of someone suffering from megalomania. Disney's actions so far are those of a professional corporation. Even at this stage, the new film has a very 1977-centric feel, as does everything surrounding it. 

I highly doubt that they'll ignore the prequels.  They know that story is also also a huge revenue stream TFN-wise.  However, it certainly feels like they're concentrating on first getting the franchise corrected and back to its roots. 

"Don't Know What It Means", by Puss N Boots.

Two thoughts. 

1. There is no way this is the original theatrical release being restored properly.  If it ever happens, it won't be leaked in some sort of cryptic restoration services ad. 

2. It still shocks me that there are people who actually believe Lucas has any say so what so ever in anything related to this franchise. Final cut rights, creative authority, OOT release veto power, etc, etc.

Disney doesn't give someone 4 billion dollars and then allow that person to continue making business decisions for them.  Yet there are people here, in the above article, and all over TFN who think he's still part of the franchise. 

When Disney and Abrams say Lucas will be consulted, they're just being polite. 

What the...?

Desktop

Laptop

iPad

Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes

No spoilers.

Outstanding.  To me this was much more engaging than Rise, which I also really liked.  Dawn is a much darker film and story.  Set ten years after Rise, it's a completely different world out there.  This is about how I would expect things to go in a situation like this.  Fear and panic driving many decisions. The phrase often mentioned when discussing this is "an uneasy peace". That's actually a perfect description of the entire film.  Everything about it is uneasy and tense.

The film is very much a story seen from the apes' point of view.  Humans in this case are the secondary players.  They don't really need names because they aren't important to the ape world or nearly any of the apes themselves.  It's not unlike the 1968 film where they're just a generic species to the apes.  They're just humans.

It's reminiscent of the structure of Battle for the Planet of the Apes.  Obviously done on a much larger, much darker, and much more realistic scale.  It had a few scenes that reminded me of particular scenes in Battle.  That's not a criticism. This film feels like a Planet Of The Apes film.  

A part of that is the score, which also deserves a mention. Giacchino did a fantastic job.  It's a deliberate nod to the 1968 film and fits perfectly in what is now, like the 1968 film, an ape society.

Saw it in 3D and was again very happy with it.  Not at all distracting, and really made me feel like I was in the film.

No doubt about it, I'll see it again in the theater and have it on DVD as soon as it's available.  Already have the soundtrack. Listening to it now, in fact.

Dawn gets an easy 5 out of 5 messenger bags.

FanFiltration said:

Now here is some old school Star Trek. Anyone else here that is old enough to have played this classic game on a dos box?

Get it FREE

 I played a Star Trek game in the late 70s that was mainframe based.  The monitors were in a room adjacent to the mainframe, but I can hardly remember it. I was 16 or 17.  I do remember it being very simple on the screen.  Just a small vector line or two and some text of power left or something.  

We had to program in distances to bases and fuel?  Seemed like there may have been a screen similar to that DOS game that you either toggled to or was resident on a portion.

I've looked around for information on it before, but no luck.  My friends dad took us to his work and set it up for us.  We played that thing for hours at a time and it felt like we were in deep space. 

Huge fan of the franchise, as you already know.  With that in mind and the opening today, here's a link to three short films looking into the ten years since the last film (in-story). 

I found them to be very interesting and very well done.  Appropriately dark considering the story.

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/three-dawn-planet-apes-short-film-prequels/

Ryan McAvoy said:

 However there is one moment where the guy in charge of the book done f**ked it up, see if you can spot it ;-)

 "...On the original three films, New Hope Star Wars, Empire, and Jedi"

DuracellEnergizer said:

It's times like these where I take smug, self-satisfied pride in the fact that I haven't seen even one of Michael Bay's movies.

 Same here.  Unless he's done something years ago I didn't realize was him.

*opens Google in another tab*...

Wait...I was wrong.  I saw The Rock in the theaters.  One viewing only, remember nothing about the film or the story. 

No doubt about it, that exhibit borders on macabre.  However, this is comic gold...

I'll take Toy Sales for $600, Alex.

That's exactly what I'm talking about.  A smaller, fully functioning version of the previous enemy.  Still fundamentally disagreeing with the way things should be, yet not declaring war over it.  We live that scenario every day.

Verboten said:

 ... that the Empire is still around 30 years after Jedi, just seems stupid.

 Enemies or peoples with different ideals don't automatically cease to exist after being dealt a blow in warfare. 

North Korea is still a functioning country (and threat) 61 years after the end of the Korean War.  Japan and Russia, among others, are also fully functioning nations and people 70 years after WWII.  The Cold War also.

I think it's completely plausible that factions of the Empire would still be operating after Return.  Mild threat, an uneasy peace, occasional terrorism, etc.  That, to me, is another area where Zahn handled the sequels perfectly. The Empire isn't gone.  It's just weak and angry.