Disco Stu 15,495 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 When she demands Finn stop grabbing her hand, the audience cheered/laughed at the screening I went to. Me too. It's a great moment. John and Bilbo 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Yep. It works. A lot of those little moments work in that film, actually. Bilbo and Arpy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Yeah, but it happens more than once and for me its just a tad too much. Again, not something that really hurts my enjoyment of the film, but a small flaw nonetheless. 27 minutes ago, Stefancos said: I agree Chen. Independent woman are a problem. No, but subtlety is an important element of film language. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manakin Skywalker 4,891 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Ew, women are icky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 1 minute ago, Stefancos said: Yep. It works. A lot of those little moments work in that film, actually. Yeah it's how you build a character, by far the greatest strength of that film (and JJ generally). Not Mr. Big and John 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post #SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted October 2, 2017 Popular Post Share Posted October 2, 2017 Just now, Disco Stu said: Yeah it's how you build a character, by far the greatest strength of that film (and JJ generally). My fav little moment is when Rey is polishing the scrap metal she found and she briefly looks up and sees a very old lady do the same. It's fleeting, and it works. Arpy, Pieter Boelen, John and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post BloodBoal 7,538 Posted October 2, 2017 Popular Post Share Posted October 2, 2017 Pieter Boelen, Arpy and Will 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Most cinema audiences are actually pretty quiet here in my experience. This was opening day of The Force Awakens though. That audience was amped! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 4 minutes ago, Stefancos said: My fav little moment is when Rey is polishing the scrap metal she found and she briefly looks up and sees a very old lady do the same. It's fleeting, and it works. That's great. For me, when I think about a character building moment for Rey, its that quiet moment of her wearing the helmet, and looking wistfully at the sky. Also great. But not everything in the movie is like that. Arpy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 2 minutes ago, Stefancos said: My fav little moment is when Rey is polishing the scrap metal she found and she briefly looks up and sees a very old lady do the same. It's fleeting, and it works. A great moment as she contemplates her likely future 1 minute ago, Chen G. said: For me, when I think about a character building moment for Rey, its that quiet moment of her wearing the helmet, and looking wistfully at the sky. Now that's great. A great moment as she contemplates the future she wishes she could have Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 And those moments are very unlike JJ's oeuvre. While its not shot like the original Star Wars, I do appreciate that JJ slowed his camera-work enough for us to take-in more of the world. crumbs 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 2 minutes ago, Disco Stu said: Most cinema audiences are actually pretty quiet here in my experience. This was opening day of The Force Awakens though. That audience was amped! same here! I went at 10 AM. earliest showing in my city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 I saw it mightnight, 10am, 2pm, and 5pm opening day. Crowd was pretty pumped for all showings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 I could never do that, do you even have time to process what you have seen? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 The second time I watched the film was on a plane so the audience was quite docile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 16 minutes ago, Stefancos said: I could never do that, do you even have time to process what you have seen? Yeah. Different parts come into focus with each viewing. Dont know now if I could do it for anything other than Star Wars but it was a lot of fun. I might try and do it for VIII this year but it’s a big undertaking and a day of eating breakfast. I had a barrel of coke and a big bag of M&Ms for breakfast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 5 minutes ago, Bilbo Skywalker said: Yeah. Different parts come into focus with each viewing. I've always said that to properly critique a film, two viewing are required. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 11 was probably a tad excessive though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Yeah. Unless I'm just awe-struck by the movie upon my first viewing in the theater, I'll usually wait and get it on Bluray and than rewatch it. If its a truly good film, It'll work on the small screen just as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will 2,215 Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 It's almost halftime of Monday Night Football, which means.... Only one week till the trailer!!! John 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpy 4,145 Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 I saw TFA three times on release, spread out of course, and it helped that it was in cinemas for an incredibly long time. I think by the third time (which was a month or two after it came out) I was a little bored after the Jakku sequences tbh. I was mostly going for Rey and the score Bilbo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 That's another issue that I have with the film. I've said before that it copied the original Star Wars' narrative structure, i.e. a long first act and a late-in-the-game introduction to the protagonist. Which, of course, isn't a problem; Lots of films do that, particularly when they want to evoke an "epic" vibe and let you appreciate the world: Braveheart did it, Fellowship of the Ring did it, An Unexpected Journey did it, even Titanic had a long framework story. The first two Harry Potter films tried to do that, too. The thing that made it work in Star Wars (and most of the aforementioned movies) was that, while long, the first act started in an action scene and continued to have action, spectacle and suspense peppered throughout. It did so in the original Star Wars, Phantom Menace, Revenge of the Sith and now with The Force Awakens. Its true of a lot of good movies, that they don't follow the classic narrative structure or rising tension and action, but rather start with a big action setpiece (a-la James Bond), mellow down, and than start the narrative proper. See Indiana Jones films, for instance. And The Force Awakens does that well enough. The only probelm, and one that adds to the third-act lag of this movie, is that the most exhilirating action sequence happens early on in the film: With the Millennium Falcon flying through the Jakku junkyard. That's always a problem when the biggest action scene isn't the one to close the film. Its not that it makes or breaks the film. Hell, The Dark Knight did it, and its still a critical darling, but it certainly does detracts from the experience, I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John 2,032 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 On 10/3/2017 at 5:49 AM, Chen G. said: And The Force Awakens does that well enough. The only probelm, and one that adds to the third-act lag of this movie, is that the most exhilirating action sequence happens early on in the film: With the Millennium Falcon flying through the Jakku junkyard. That's always a problem when the biggest action scene isn't the one to close the film. Its not that it makes or breaks the film. Hell, The Dark Knight did it, and its still a critical darling, but it certainly does detracts from the experience, I think. I don't see how the Falcon chase scene detracts from the overall experience of the film at all. It's just a fun action sequence; it's not even a scene that is vital to the continuation of the plot. The entire movie is sprinkled throughout with standout action scenes, and while the Falcon chase may be the most "exhilarating", I would certainly say it's certainly not the only exciting action scene in TFA. It's not like after that sole moment, the rest of the film is a boring slog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 True, but you want the film's level of spectacle and action to follow the narrative structure: start strong, hold there for a short while, subside, and than start rising progressively towards the climax. You generally don't want the film to peak (in terms of action) before the climax, although some films can make it work reasonably well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crumbs 14,306 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 The film grinds to a halt when Han re-enters the story, ironically enough. The succession of scenes from there on (the Rathtars, Takodana and Maz's Castle) fall a bit flat and probably have the worst direction in the film. Even the attack on Maz's castle is a fairly unexciting setpiece. There was a lot of bombastic music changed/dialled out in this section as well (Finn's saber battle & Hux's speech). Wonder if that contributed? Will 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 I wouldn't say it grinds to a halt. Yes, the Rathtar sequence (from when they are unleashed untill Finn is rescued) is loathsome, and Maz delivers a lot of uninteresting exposition, but Han Solo is charming enough to make that whole part of the movie work very well, to me. As for the score, love it as I do, the general thinking is that when you want to make a visceral fight scene, you take out the music. Music in action scenes works when they're more stylized and swashbuckling (see the Falcon chase) or when its a scaled-back, emotional show-down, see the final duel with Kylo Ren. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 7 minutes ago, crumbs said: The film grinds to a halt when Han re-enters the story, ironically enough. The succession of scenes from there on (the Rathtars, Takodana and Maz's Castle) fall a bit flat and probably have the worst direction in the film. Even the attack on Maz's castle is a fairly unexciting setpiece. There was a lot of bombastic music changed/dialled out in this section as well (Finn's saber battle & Hux's speech). Wonder if that contributed? I made this point on Twitter during the week. The film isn’t going great and then Han shows up and the film becomes about him and it goes from the search for Luke Skywalker to “we need to go to see Maz for plot reasons even though she doesn’t actually contribute anything essential aside from a lightsaber which doesn’t really make a difference and if they had just gone straight to the resistance it would have been fine?” before hastily going back to the Luke thing at the very end because JJ’s little nostalgia fest had to do something to justify another two movies. Give Han a much smaller role and have him still part of the Resistence and we get a better movie! crumbs 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Interesting. I do recall that section of the film being nigh dominated by Han's charming persona. I do however think that, while Rey, Finn and Kylo were good characters, JJ was concerned with putting the weight of the whole film on their shoulders. And maybe he has a point: maybe we like them because they're given to us in moderation? If you think about the quirks that give them their character, than they are things that can easily be overdone, e.g. Kylo's anger outbursts or Finn's scared-out-of-his-mind demeanor. Which is to say nothing about Poe not-really-in-the-movie Dameron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John 2,032 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 18 minutes ago, Chen G. said: No, but you want the film's level of spectacle and action to follow the narrative structure: start strong, hold there for a short while, subside, and than start rising progressively towards the climax. You generally don't want the film to peak (in terms of action) before the climax, although some films can make it work reasonably well. That type of logic is certainly not an essential that a film is required to pass. The The Falcon chase, in my opinion, isn't even the most spectacular scene in the film; the scenes on the Starkiller, the final battle, and the last few scenes on the island of Ach-too are what stand out to me most, when it comes to an overall epic tone and standout VFX. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chen G. 3,949 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 No, its hardly an essential. Other succesful films have done that, as well. But as it is, it remains a structural problem in the film, along with the lacking third act. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex 2,835 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 I'm still wondering why they completely wasted the talent of Max von Sydow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Because "Wow! They killed a famous actor in the first scene he appeared in! It means anything can happen! Any character can die! It's like Game Of Thrones, only grittier!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 I think you would be depressed if we could know the percentage of the audience that knows who Max von Sydow is. toothless and mstrox 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bespin 8,480 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 I'll say it clear. Kill Chewie and I'm out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 1 minute ago, Disco Stu said: I think you would be depressed if we could know the percentage of the audience that knows who Max von Sydow is. He was Esbern in Skyrim!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex 2,835 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 No, that was Christopher Lee! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Mr. Big 4,639 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 1 hour ago, BloodBoal said: Because "Wow! They killed a famous actor in the first scene he appeared in! It means anything can happen! Any character can die! It's like Game Of Thrones, only grittier!" Exactly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 20 minutes ago, Alex said: No, that was Christopher Lee! Wasnt he the bald guy in the wheelchair in the X-men movie? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 And wasn’t he the butler in the last Batman thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 That was Judi Dench greenturnedblue 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 OH I loved her as Prof McGonagle in Harry Potter! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Sigh. That was Bill Nighy. Come on Bilbo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Bill Nighy.... that’s that old guy that has all those random cameos in the Marvel movies? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holko 9,525 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 No, that guy just died this week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Tom Petty? I thought he was a musician or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 He was the voice of Luanne's husband on King of the Hill too! He was great in that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo 3,709 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 So he's the guy that gets killed at the start if TFA? You guys made this way way way more complicated than it needed to be! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now