John Doom

JawsTDS said:

Here’s the link for the stream:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YI5QodTtlME

Thank you! 😃

😄 This thread is turning more and more into “The Force Awakens: Official Reviews & Reviewers Review Thread”.

lovelikewinter said:

nickyd47 said:

I’m pretty sure there’s more bonus material for the prequels in the complete saga Blu Ray set

That could be a matter of them being made in the DVD age where special features are planned for. That didn’t exist in 1977-1983.

Do the fans who really like the PT care about the other cuts? Aren’t they usually the ones who prefer the SEs, or whatever Lucas’ vision is this week?

I’m under the impression they probably just don’t know much about the changes they’ve made to the movies throughout the years.

Actually, I liked that title not because of the fart joke, but because of how it twisted both the original title and the iconic “in a galaxy far far away”…

TV’s Frink said:

John Doom said:

P.S.: number 4’s title is hilarious 😄

Ah yes, “The Fart Awakens And Stinks up The Galaxy Far Far Away” is quite the comedic gem.

…Says the guy who made “The Ridiculous Menace”, “Attack Of The Ridiculousness” and “Revenge of the Ridiculousness” 😃

Darth Id said:

^ Wow there’s some electronic overachievers on this chat bored…

:\ I was just trying to be funny. I had this idea after reading your reply and I just couldn’t resist the urge to share it as a gif 😄

NeverarGreat said:

It’s cool right now to hate on Finn, but without him, the movie would be rather…rudderless. * ducks *

I don’t hate on Finn :\

Alderaan said:

7 of the last 10 reviews on IMDB:

1. “The Worst of the Very Worst, Should be Forbidden”
2. “This Movie Is Stupid”
3. “Leaves A Lot To Be Desired”
4. “The Fart Awakens And Stinks up The Galaxy Far Far Away”
5. “So bad I had to create a review account”
6. “Imagine if someone gave you money for presenting someone else’s work/script/idea”
7. “Not terrible, not great either”

Which one is your favorite?

Number 3? (Do I win something? 😄 )
P.S.: number 4’s title is hilarious 😄

EDIT: speaking of Finn’s character depth, by making him into a gif, unfortunately I altered his depth to only 256 colors… :\

Shouldn’t we be grateful for their (his?) restoration efforts, though…? (Am I missing something?)

Darth Id said:

John Doom said:

Darth Id said:

I agree: Finn was both expandable and expendable.

😄 Sorry about that, I just noticed it. Now I wish I could go back in time and fix what I wrote!

Why man? Go with it. When the typo fits, let the ex-stormtrooper wear it!

Good idea!

I think this definitely adds depth to his character 😄

TV’s Frink said:

“Really, he acts nothing like an ex-stormtrooper.”

But ok.

Don’t worry, I’m going to quote only what we said about Finn and his character development, so you can read and understand our discussion:

John Doom said:

Dirge said:

John Doom said:

[…] I know this is very unpopular, but I think Finn’s role in the movie feels, unfortunately, expandable. If you look at what he does in TFA, the only two things which move the plot forward are saving Poe (another hit-and-miss character, especially since he wasn’t originally supposed to come back in the third part of the movie) and helping Han find the panel to lower Starkiller’s shields. That’s it. The writers even struggled to make him relevant in the final duel, making Ben use the force to make Rey unconscious (he doesn’t do it anymore later) so Finn could fight him alone.
They could’ve switched him with another character and it still wouldn’t have really affected the plot, which I think is unfortunate: being a former stormtrooper, he could’ve been the best character in the movie, especially if they fleshed out more his internal conflicts. As he is now in TFA, he could’ve died and it would’ve still been alright, bacause he feels expendable (to me, at least).

The problem with Finn is that he’s really just a former stormtrooper-ino (in name only). Really, he acts nothing like an ex-stormtrooper. He’s just some dude (just a likeable goof who bumbles his way through the film). Which is indeed unfortunate because a former stormtrooper as a character has a lot of potential for exploration and development. But Finn’s lack of depth really is just a symptom of the bigger problem. […]

So true. I know other people are ok with all of this, but I definitely think TFA could’ve used more character development. […]

I don’t mind if you disagree on what we said, but it wasn’t about Finn being a rookie, it was about the way his character was handled and his role in the plot.

Dirge said:

John Doom said:

darthrush said:

CHEWBAKAspelledwrong said:

So after watching this again, I’m wondering if the ending would have been better had Fin died. Probably not a popular opinion, but it would have been a powerful event for his character, and I’m struggling to think of what kind of unique role he could play in the rest of the trilogy. His arc seems kind of complete already.

Not a crazy proposition. This thought has crossed my mind many times since I first saw it.

I thought that too, but it’s partly for another reason: I know this is very unpopular, but I think Finn’s role in the movie feels, unfortunately, expandable. If you look at what he does in TFA, the only two things which move the plot forward are saving Poe (another hit-and-miss character, especially since he wasn’t originally supposed to come back in the third part of the movie) and helping Han find the panel to lower Starkiller’s shields. That’s it. The writers even struggled to make him relevant in the final duel, making Ben use the force to make Rey unconscious (he doesn’t do it anymore later) so Finn could fight him alone.
They could’ve switched him with another character and it still wouldn’t have really affected the plot, which I think is unfortunate: being a former stormtrooper, he could’ve been the best character in the movie, especially if they fleshed out more his internal conflicts. As he is now in TFA, he could’ve died and it would’ve still been alright, bacause he feels expendable (to me, at least).

The problem with Finn is that he’s really just a former stormtrooper-ino (in name only). Really, he acts nothing like an ex-stormtrooper. He’s just some dude (just a likeable goof who bumbles his way through the film). Which is indeed unfortunate because a former stormtrooper as a character has a lot of potential for exploration and development. But Finn’s lack of depth really is just a symptom of the bigger problem. Which is the disappointing reality that The Force Awakens is actually a pretty shallow movie. Mostly, it’s just your typical mediocre Hollywood Sci-Fi action film with only the trappings from the original Star Wars trilogy to raise it’s profile. It’s not that it was horrible (they did manage to avoid the overt stupidity of the prequels), but the film played it too safe (mostly consisting of a steady procession of OT characters/vehicles/themes that would conveniently pop up between/during the many action scenes…"Oooo, look! It’s the Millennium Falcon! pause for applause…Oh, and there’s Han Solo! pause for applause…And look there! Another Death Star…but BIGGER! crickets chirping).

Now the film wasn’t WHOLLY inadequate. There were a few decent parts too. For instance, I mostly liked what they did with Kylo Ren. But then all the time they spent developing his character is wasted when he eventually comes across Rey and her whole waltzing through the movie doing her “anything you can do, I can do better” routine. I mean, really…You’re going to have the obligatory lightsaber duel in the finale feature three characters, only one of which has any training with an actual lightsaber (and he still loses because, you know, there’s this certain protagonist that happens to be naturally great at just about everything…on demand). I guess J.J. knew he wasn’t going to be around for the following films. So, he wanted to have the payoff for her character at the end of this first film (but it just seems all too easy and unearned).

Unfortunately, the Force Awakens has taken most of the wind out the sails of my anticipation for Episode VIII.

So true. I know other people are ok with all of this, but I definitely think TFA could’ve used more character development. In this regard, it’s still better than, say, TPM and AOTC, but still… it could’ve been much better, it could’ve used more time and depth. It was a wasted opportunity, to me.
Regarding Rey’s payoff, I’m not sure it’s Abrams’ fault: I usually don’t like his kind of movies, but I think this was probably a mix of marketing decisions and the need to follow this trilogy’s general outline (I still wonder who wrote it).

Darth Id said:

I agree: Finn was both expandable and expendable.

😄 Sorry about that, I just noticed it. Now I wish I could go back in time and fix what I wrote!

darthrush said:

CHEWBAKAspelledwrong said:

So after watching this again, I’m wondering if the ending would have been better had Fin died. Probably not a popular opinion, but it would have been a powerful event for his character, and I’m struggling to think of what kind of unique role he could play in the rest of the trilogy. His arc seems kind of complete already.

Not a crazy proposition. This thought has crossed my mind many times since I first saw it.

I thought that too, but it’s partly for another reason: I know this is very unpopular, but I think Finn’s role in the movie feels, unfortunately, expandable. If you look at what he does in TFA, the only two things which move the plot forward are saving Poe (another hit-and-miss character, especially since he wasn’t originally supposed to come back in the third part of the movie) and helping Han find the panel to lower Starkiller’s shields. That’s it. The writers even struggled to make him relevant in the final duel, making Ben use the force to make Rey unconscious (he doesn’t do it anymore later) so Finn could fight him alone.
They could’ve switched him with another character and it still wouldn’t have really affected the plot, which I think is unfortunate: being a former stormtrooper, he could’ve been the best character in the movie, especially if they fleshed out more his internal conflicts. As he is now in TFA, he could’ve died and it would’ve still been alright, bacause he feels expendable (to me, at least).

Anjohan said:

I find it funny, that out of all the OT practical effects in Jabba’s palace, I find Jabba the most convincing and every single other Rubber-mask alien completely unbelievable, whilst in A New Hope I don’t.

I’ve come to the conclusion that this might be due to a bigger focus on “bigger, better, more” in RotJ, whilst in ANH it was the little things that mattered.

Any thoughts on this? Is it just me? Am I alone?

I agree with you. With ANH, Lucas had to manage everything with a very tight budget, so they had to focus on what little they could do. They felt forced to hide in the background or rethink what they knew wouldn’t work.
For ROTJ, instead, they were working with a very high budget and could even use assets from TESB. You can see their special effects, both optical and practical, had improved a lot, but they probably overdid in some cases, like you said, and this could’ve led them to rush some of effects to make it on schedule.

rogue1-77 said:

Back to the topic of 4k restorations, another factor will be if the UHD format survives or catches on.

There are signs that the whole US home entertainment industry is in decline:

http://www.nscreenmedia.com/us-home-entertainment-spending-q4-2016/

One of the key points was :

2016 saw big growth in the number of 4K televisions in consumer homes, and the introduction of the 4K Blu-ray disc. DEG says there were 10 million 4K UHD TVs sold in the US last year. As well, 300,000 4K UHD Blu-ray players were sold. By the end of 2016, there were 110 UHD Blu-ray titles available, with another 250 promised by the end of this year.

Despite all this positive news, disc sales and rentals continued to plummet. Disc sales were down 9.6% on the year (to $5.5B), a slightly better performance than the 12.5% decline in 2015. However, physical rentals were dramatically lower, with store rentals down 21% and kiosk transactions down 17%. Last year they both fell 11% and 9.5% respectively. The entire physical disc rental market spend was $2.5B, down from $5B in 2011.

R1

😃 This shouldn’t be a problem: it probably means that more people are spending on digital downloads rather than on physical media, but 4K movies will still be released no matter what.

TFA’s low-budget teasers by Dumb Drum 😄
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eNr5U9cOyQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fDlPI1vI2A

SilverWook said:

Yes. Really! Yes. The CGI Wookiees stick out like a sore thumb.
[…] You’d think they would shoot the practical Wookiees from as many angles as possible, swap around their gear to make them look different each time, and build up a crowd shot that way.

😄 They look like screenshots from the “Star Wars Battlefront” video game series! I guess it was “good enough” for GL, as he used to say 😉

I just can’t believe she died…
My favorite Princess Leia moment is when in TESB she’s forced to watch Han being frozen in the carbonite, which is also one of the best scenes in the OT. btw here’s a transcript of the day they shot the scene, with the actors discussing how to perform it (and with Fisher slapping the scene out of Billy Dee Williams 😄 ).

Moth3r said:

[…] There are even early hints of the affair with Harrison!

On top of that, I remember she strongly wanted to be Han Solo’s wife in the new trilogy 😃

ray_afraid said:

“That log had a child!”

!?

You took the words right out of my mouth! 😃

My favourite lightsaber color is green or, even better, cyan. Red also looks very good and elegant, I’d always choose a red one in KOTOR2 (even when playing as a jedi).
I can’t decide on the worst one, though. Maybe yellow?

poita said:

I got a weird message from a user I won’t name saying that he/she was calling BS on this scan, that it was clearly just the GOUT with noise added […]

What!? How could anyone compare your meticulous work with a blurred laserdisc master? 😄 This is outrageous!

ray_afraid said:

Frank your Majesty said:

MathUser said:

Seriously, Vaders breathing didn’t get explained in movies till 20 years after there was 3 movies of him breathing. So what’s the big deal that Grevious coughs? Anyway, that was explained in the first clone wars cartoon. I checked out the dvd and saw it myself. Mace windu crushes his chest with the force.

I probably wouldn’t mind Grevious’ coughing, if Vader hadn’t had it before. Two villains with the same kind of breathing problems is simply unoriginal.

See, before I saw the movie (or maybe early into my viewing of it), I liked the cough. I thought Grevious was gonna be Maul on life support with robot legs. Kind of a beta-Vader that didn’t work as well yet. I would have kinda liked that. But, no.

I think I remember Lucas clearly stated in the commentaries that Grievous is a “beta-Vader”, an omen of what Anakin would’ve later became.
:\ I don’t like that his coughing was used mostly for comical purpose, though. What’s with him and Palpatine playing as silly villains in ROTS?

poita said:

Generally the colour isn’t too far off, but the skintones are a little pink and the blacks are crushed.

It certainly isn’t graded to the print, but overall, there isn’t a monster colour shift from the preview, the preview is a bit dark all round, which makes the colours a bit more saturated and pushed, so the colour is off a bit, but not drastically so. For example, the blue scenes would not be grey/white on the print, but might be a little less saturated with a bit of a balance change when graded to the print.

Thank you for your quick reply 😃
P.S.: your corrected frame looks really beautiful!

JayArgonaut said:

RooBee said:

The better versions of the prequels…

Can you elaborate please? I’d like to know more as to why the 35MM versions are superior to the other releases.

Swazzy said:

It’s a matter of opinion, simply because they have grain and filmic contrast. I don’t believe that’s what it takes to make them look as if they were actually shot on film, however (emanswfan elaborated on this somewhere in his thread), and according to Roger Ebert there’s a noticeable dulling of detail and saturation.

Since it was shot and edited on digital, wouldn’t these prints be of a lower generation anyway, even compared to the BDs (which AFAIK have the same resolution of their “negatives”)? But they could be useful for their roughly filmic look and their original unaltered scenes (like the one discussed here).

poita said:

The only grade I will be doing will be to match it to the print. The reel posted is a little crushed, and the colour doesn’t quite match the print but the rough colour is correct.
[…]
In short, it will be how it looked in 1980, colour, neg dirt, grain warts and all.

I’m curious to know if this means that the colors we’ve seen in your uncorrected preview are also (roughly) representative of how they looked like in 1980. I understand you usually don’t take feedbacks from those without a properly calibrated monitor (like me 😄 ), but I have an unprofessional feeling that the skintons look too purple to be true, even for its blue grading, especially during Leia’s kiss scene. 😄 They look so purple (to me, at least), that in comparison it makes the 2004 DVDs’ notorious purple skintons look just fine, so I’d like to read your opinion on this: is it my monitor, the uncorrected preview or the original grading?

Thanks for your preservations efforts, it means a lot 😃