Wolfman said:
towne32 said:
Also, did everyone else not get trailers? Was this them trying to make it like a 1977 experience? Were there trailers after the film? I was really surprised to have it start immediately after the lights went down.
I thought that my midnight showing was going to actually be just after midnight. In fact we had to sit through a load of crap adverts and trailers, the only trailer worth watching was Captain America Civil War.
The adverts went on and on and people were getting quite vocal about it. When the copyright card came up, everyone thought that the film was going to start…nope, we had another long trailer about some video game. By this time people were shouting to get the film on, enough is enough.
So, about 12:40 the film started. I got home at 03:30.
Thanks Cineworld.
Thankfully our theater had the good sense to start the advertising while they were seating everyone. They tend to go on for about 45 minutes before the film and repeat the same ads at least 3 times, there was so many people talking you really couldn’t hear them last night though. My favourite pre-film conversation had to be the guys directly behind us all trying to quote the “I don’t like sand” line as poorly as it originally sounded.
Now, on to the movie itself. I really, really enjoyed it. Is it a flawless, perfect film? Not by any stretch of the imagination, but the good far surpasses the bad and makes for an enjoyable film experience. The main characters are so likeable and vibrant that it was easy to accept them alongside the returning cast members. The pacing was breakneck, which after the prequels was a warm welcome and worked overall but only hurt a little as a few secondary characters like Poe and especially Captain Phasma were left with little to nothing to do in the script. Daisy Ridley was great as Rey though, she really held the movie together with her performance. It’s also nice to see that John Boyega does a bit more than pants and sweats throughout the film. He’s really funny in all the right ways and charming as Finn. Kylo Ren may be the best character in the film though. The idea of Han and Leias son being obsessed with the dark side and Vader is not wholly original but logical and seeing Adam Driver pull this character off with his struggle with keeping in the dark side while being tempted by the light is a joy to watch. The main thing that really hurt this movie for me was that it really was a glorified remake of the original film. I really wish they could have found a better plot point than yet another planet destroying superweapon, it felt tacked on and not nearly as important as the drama between Han and Kylo and the rest of the cast. This along with a few ‘what a coincidence’ moments and some really sloppy editing in the Han and Leia reunion scene are my only real big complaints with this film storywise. Overall I was really impressed with the cinematography though as the decision to go as practical as possible payed off big time and JJ kept his love of shaky-cam and lens flares in check and we got lots of wide sweeping shots that look fantastic. The use of so much practical effects do make some of the cgi stand way out though. Those creatures on Han and Chewie’s ship stick out and Snoke looked Hobbit level bad, though to be fair he was a hologram through the whole film so I’m hoping they can refine his look when we see him in Episodes 8 and 9. Maz Kanata worked though, she looked great if not 100% past that uncanny valley yet, it’s never jarring though.
Overall, I had fun with it, it was what it needed to be which was good, if a bit safe and overly familiar. I’m going to see it again tomorrow night and see how well it holds up on a second view.
