Yoda Is Your Father

Alderaan said:

Lord Haseo said:
Kylo Ren masquerades as a badass and even though he has shown great potential the truth is is that he hasn’t completed his training and compared to any Lord of The Sith he is Bantha Poodoo. So him not being as powerful as our first impressions is part of the reason as to why he’s complex

If Kylo were masquerading as a badass (masquerading being the key word) then he would just be a wuss playing cosplay in his outfit. The fact that he did the powerful things he did in the first 90% of the movie means that he wasn’t masquerading. He was actually that powerful by definition.

“Complete his training” is relative. If he’s already enough of a badass to freeze someone in mid-air with his mind at will, or stop blaster bolts in mid-air at will, or telekinetically fling people through the air at will, then you would assume “complete his training” would give him some powers even greater than those, not just help him remember he has those powers instead of forgetting about them when the plot conveniently calls for it.

Maybe he’s strong sometimes and weak other times? During the attack on the village he was totally in control, his troops had the situation well under control, and he was feeling badass, but in the film’s finale he wasn’t. Like how great sports people sometimes choke when the pressure’s on, even if they’ve scored a million goals (touchdowns, whatever) in previous games (or even earlier in the same game). Maybe if he had better training and was more in control of his feelings and powers, he could retain consistency no matter what was going on around him, but he’s not there yet.

Lord Haseo said:

Alderaan said:

TV’s Frink said:
Yep. He’s a complex character, rather than the Vader clone some of you wanted (and would have complained about if you had gotten).

You’re confusing inconsistent with complex.

Kylo Ren masquerades as a badass and even though he has shown great potential the truth is is that he hasn’t completed his training and compared to any Lord of The Sith he is Bantha Poodoo. So him not being as powerful as our first impressions is part of the reason as to why he’s complex

Boom. Nailed it.

Alderaan said:

TV’s Frink said:
My least favorite scene in ANH was when Vader kills Obi-Wan. That scene totally blows because it forced unnecessary emotion on us, because Obi dies with someone he’s only in one scene with.

The scene wasn’t emotional because of Vader/Obi-Wan, it was emotional because of Luke/Obi-Wan. They had a lot of history together, on-screen, and Obi-Wan was Luke’s mentor. As soon as Vader strikes Obi-Wan down, which happens very quickly, there is a quick cut to Luke’s reaction. The director understood that the most important aspect of the scene was Luke’s reaction to his mentor’s death.

In TFA, on the other hand, the director focused almost all of the attention on the interaction between Han and Kylo. The slow frame rate killed the scene. Just brutal. There were cutaway shots to Leia, Chew, and Rey, but they all failed for various reasons.

Chewie’s reaction got me right in the gut. I really felt for the guy.

But I would have liked to see him go more Wookiee, rip some arms out of their sockets and shit.

Bingowings said:

Presumably the BB is because he looks like a beachball and the 8 because he looks like an 8.

Keep 'em coming guys 😃

Alderaan said:

That’s ok, the feeling is mutual. It’s like watching someone eat Taco Bell and call it one of the best meals they’ve ever had. I like Taco Bell once in awhile, but let’s be real.

Another great reply.

Sometimes I just come on here for teh LOLZ.

TV’s Frink said:

My favorite part in ANH is when Han Solo dies. I also like when all the Stormtroopers revolt, how Darth Vader can’t control his emotions, and how Luke never says a word.

Best. Reply. Ever.

Although I could still happily lose Starkiller base 😉

Thanks for posting, I enjoyed reading and am on the same page. Yes, it has a few flaws but it’s a great fun ride. And your point about it only being a rehash on paper - I agree. Yes it hits the same beats (intentionally) and some people don’t like that, but is it the same movie as the original Star Wars? No. New characters, new stories unfolding, new corners of the galaxy explored (admittedly within a similar structure). I’ve seen it 3 times and will be seeing it a fourth.

The first Jurassic Park movie is great. A masterclass in storytelling.

Sorry my bad.

ZkinandBonez said:

all in all the whole scene, Han as a smuggler again, the Rathars running loose, Han having to deal with two criminal gangs at the same time, is a pretty awesome way to re-introduce Han …it kind of summarizes Han’s smuggler life into one compact scene that manages to serve a purpose in the actual plot, rather than drag it out from the main story-line.

To be fair, that’s a solid argument.

TavorX said:

Then it goes even further to let this CGI creation physically drag one of our main characters around in similar manner you’d see in Men in Black as a gag.

That too.

Puggo - Jar Jar’s Yoda said:

Curious - why do people dislike the rathtars?

To me it just felt like a comedy skit halfway through the movie. I never got the feeling any of our heroes were in any real trouble, and the threat of the space pirates was nullified by the monsters.

Plus their design… I dunno. I don’t want to say they ‘didn’t feel like Star Wars’ because that’s not strictly true (trash compactor creature, sarlaac etc) but something about them just felt like they belonged in a different movie… I can’t put my finger on it.

The rathars haven’t bothered me as much on subsequent viewings, but the first time I watched TFA I was like… “could do without this scene.”

Nanner Split said:

Yoda Is Your Father said:

Nanner Split said:

Natural Light has its uses. If I’m working outside on a hot day I’d rather have a Natural Light than any super-dense high gravity draft beer. It’s basically water, but sometimes you might be in the mood for that.

That’s why I like Coors Light. It’s basically yellow water.

Now just imagine Coors Light with even less flavor and you’ve basically got Natural Light

Next time I’m in the States I’ll seek it out.

+1 for Waterworld.

Mark Hamill talking about the prequels on British TV back in 1980:

http://youtu.be/l3lbWba7xjQ

(Also includes Mark Hamill stroking a cat while wearing an awful sweater and Carrie Fisher trying not to laugh at ‘Star Wars Stew’).

joefavs said:

Also, I saw TFA for the fourth time tonight and my enthusiasm just refuses to be deflated. I love this movie, and I’m thinking I might need to embark on a voluntary exile from these boards until passions aren’t running so high, because a lot of you are bumming me the hell out. I’ll be on an island with a bunch of neat stairs and huts and shit lookin’ at the water if anyone needs me. Or the AV Club. Probably more likely the AV Club.

I’ve seen it 3 times and my enthusiasm hasn’t deflated either. I’m saving my fourth viewing for later this week when the back-to-work January blues really sink in and I need a pick-me-up.

Alderaan said:

Yoda Is Your Father said:

TV’s Frink said:

But complaints about “lighting” are silly IMO.

Short of going back in time and shooting the movie in the late 70s, TFA was never going to sit perfectly alongside the OT visually.

If you take out garbage like the rathtars and Snoke, the look of the film was actually one of the very best parts.

TFA looked like a modern Star Wars movie to me.

Exactly. It’s a modern Star Wars movie, it looks as old school and Star Wars-y as it can without looking out of date.

Rathtars… Probably my least favourite thing about TFA.

joefavs said:

Lord Haseo said:

Darth Venamis

No. That can’t be real. Someone tell me that isn’t real.

Actual LOL

Nanner Split said:

Natural Light has its uses. If I’m working outside on a hot day I’d rather have a Natural Light than any super-dense high gravity draft beer. It’s basically water, but sometimes you might be in the mood for that.

That’s why I like Coors Light. It’s basically yellow water.

I might give up sugar.

Looking at those ratings, you my friend are a tough crowd.

Mithrandir said:

TV’s Frink said:

complaints about “lighting” are silly IMO.

Even if no one goes to the cinema and choses the movie based on its lighting; cinema is a visual art which has internal codes that make it a language; and therefore it can be evaluated according to those parameters. So it’s not a silly complaint. It’s just pointing out a detail for those who valorate the importance of details.

Do you think it was casual that the previous shot of Vader saying I’m your father was a contrapiccato, conveying more power, and that the one where he says it is weighted to the left making it unbalanced? That the final celebration in ANH was shot mainly using centered perspectives with bright spots eclipsing the vanishing points, evoking order? Do you think the sensation at the opening of ANH would have been the same had the gigant ship flew below the camera (casting no shadow) instead of over it?

Who needs film school when you can just hop onto /this site/ and learn everything you need to know about lighting, screenwriting and the rest.

Midi, maxi, it’s all bollocks.

Can everybody please stop saying ‘Midichlorians’ please?