Star Wars 8

[jpmcwjr]

Right up there with "Blackadder".....

 

[perdurabo]

I want to spoil but I'm not. Last year I got in trouble around these parts for my opinions, At this point, I like you guys enough to forget the opinions and just keep it civil. I'm watching Smokey right now, and its way better than Sw7&8. I was once a freak fan, getting all treky about it. Now? As long as my kids enjoy it, it's done it's job. But SW 1-6 can't be beat.

 

[darthpipe]

I saw it twice within 15 hours of each other (yea, I’m that guy). It was good, not better than 7 but better than episodes 1-3. There were defintely parts that weren’t needed, it action was amazing as well as the story

 

[mso489]

I might see SW8 at some point as undemanding guilty-pleasure entertainment. I thought the first Star War movies were visually beautiful, richly creative, but as narratives fairly light weight mythology. I was disturbed when some of my friends took them as religious parables. Oh no. Perspective, please, perspective. George Lucas gave us the essence, and the rest is all echo. But I sure don't begrudge anyone some fun. Also, I really lit up with sables' remarks applicable to film almost entirely. Where the hell are the film editors? Movies drag on until you begin to look around the theater and think about tomorrow's schedule. Not to stray too widely, but the same is true of book editing these days. The high art of literary editing is frail and fading. Quite good books could be great, but they are diminished by lack of editorial input. So, Star Wars Eight, maybe.

 

[brightleaf]

From the feeling I get reading your posts mso489, a play such as A Christmas Carol would be time better spent on undemanding guilty-pleasure entertainment. I watched it because a friend invited me, but for those familiar with a lot of stories there is no need to go out of your way.

 

[bigpond]

Saw it Sunday. Kids didn’t melt down, wife had fun...so I consider it a success. 15 minutes after it ended I could recall the plot of the geico commercial we had to sit through in greater detail.
And I still can’t recall the name of “new emperor” was...was it snopp...snope...I dunno....

 

[jravenwood]

SPOILERS
Rianne Johnson who wrote and directed this one along with Lucas really just made a Disney movie, not a Star Wars movie. The humor is out of place and overused. 50% of the movie with regards to Skywalker and Rey is entertaining, while the other 50% is basically a slow car chase. Why couldnt the giant first order ship just speed up slightly to catch the rebels? The whole trip to the casino was a complete waste of time and pointless. Also we have a new Jar Jar binks, the chubby girl who has a crush on Finn.
Lazy story writing and more plot-holes than an average movie experience. There was nothing bold about this story at all. Mark Hamill has said in interviews that he disagreed with Rianne Johnson's take on Luke Skywalker, and Last JEdi reveals that Hamill was spot on. Skywalker was built up so much over the movies and we all were hoping to see a culmination of his power here and we got nothing. The final fight scene could have been so much more. Then he dies in the end. Its just a shame. I could go on and on but I wont. It looks like the next one will go back to JJ Abrams who wrote and directed the force awakens which wasnt amazing but it was at least entertaining and made sense.

 

[dottiewarden]

May the force be with you!

 

[alexnorth]

Speak the truth you do

 

[swhipple]

I'm 48, so I saw the first Star wars when I was a kid and it had a huge influence on my childhood. I think this movie was intentionally aimed at younger fans and purposely written as a big F you to folks like me. It will probably be the last one I'll see in the movie theatre. You can treat me like an old guy that doesn't matter but I won't pay you to treat me that way.
That said, if you just like cool visuals and space battles then it's alright. If you are looking for heroes to cheer for and bad guys to root against then there isn't much here. I agree with the comments that the movie was too long. This was due to the useless side trips. I found the Casino planet trip a complete waste of time and even Rey's search for Luke was mostly boring.
By the time the movie was finally getting to the climatic battle scene I was starting to root for the bad guys. My thinking is if they can kill all the rebels off maybe we can just be done with the saga.

 

[plugugly]

Lately the series really does feel like a middle finger to the old fans and not so much a "passing of the torch". Can't help but suspect that that deep Disney purse helped the old crew "endorse" the new order.

 

[lasttango]

I am blown away with how good these are. Other than the Laura Dern role and how the "resistance" was portrayed, I thought that the latest Star Wars film was very well done.
I'm 47 and the first three movies had a huge influence on me as well. I think the latest round of Star Wars films are a great homage to the originals. I was very worried that they would be as stupid as the round that was released in the late 90's early 2000's... Phantom menace etc. These films were the ones that insulted me. Too many muppets and story lines aimed at 12 year olds.
I think these new "Disney" versions were aimed at a more mature generation. There were less muppets, less weird squeaky things and less focus on children in general.
I loved that many of the main characters were virtual unknowns. They didn't try to bait their audience with a red carpet hotlist.
I'm going against the grain here and saying a big thank you to the corporate giant for allowing Star Wars to be cool again.
Star Wars completely lost me with the Phantom Menace.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I really enjoyed 8 too, though Snoke's performance was only half of what it was in 7.

 

[samcoffeeman]

I enjoyed it despite the poor/weak plot. Seriously, noone ever tried to light speed kamikaze a huge ship before? Wouldn't they be prepared? Wouldn't the shield have some effect? Movie looked incredible though.

 

[seacaptain]

I'm tired of being disappointed in Star Wars movies. The first three will remain in my mental library as the only three, and I will just save my money this go around.

This is where I'm at. I didn't even bother seeing the latest one. Although I'd probably add Rogue One to the original three.

 

[cigrmaster]

I am 60 and when Star Wars came out it was mind blowing. Nothing like it had ever been done. The visuals were off the charts and the technology that was used to create the graphics led to every CG movie that has ever been made. Industrial Light and Magic is the reason we have the movies of today. Lucas is a genius and everyone who poo poo's him is not being fair in my opinion. I saw the movie somewhere around 4-5 times before it left the theaters and dropped a hit of blotter acid for one of the shows. The acid version was totally off the charts, one of my best trips ever.

 

[saltedplug]

I the first Star War movies were visually beautiful, richly creative, but as narratives fairly light weight mythology.

msg nailed it with this, I think. While I loved the first movie, those subsequent did little for me, perhaps because I saw them fully stoked with Mary Jane. Creative and fun, but not much more than a wafer to chew on afterward, but I was wowed when I saw the visual of the jump to hyper-speed incongruously possible from Han Solo's two-bit craft. I watched a few last year and had enough. Now "Blade Runner", "Blade Runner 2049", any of the "Alien" series, "Avatar" and and the "Terminator" series have the plot, character and visuals that stand up to revisits.
The internet says that George Lucas is worth 5.2 billion. Not bad for a guy who started small but envisioned a series capable of generating a fortune!

 

[brightleaf]

The story of Luke, Darth Vader, the Dark Side, the Force, the journey to becoming an adult while rebelling from the father, these ideas may be light-weight mythology, but their inclusion is why I think the series was successful. More abstract or veiled mythology can be boring without good directing, and even then does not get mass appeal.

 

[brightleaf]

The story surrounding Ahsoka Tano in Star Wars The Clone Wars The Clone Wars is one of the better ones I have seen on TV. Following her development from prideful and arrogant, becoming an eager believer in the Jedi creed, finding the manipulation of the senate and how her friends lie to her in political maneuvering, struggling with her identity, realizing how the Jedi are hypocrites and mercenaries (joining freedom fighters on one planet, then fighting terrorists on the next), being set up as a traitor and murderer, and eventual forced exile (after escaping Anakin and the army) are paths of life that don't usually see exposure on a television show.

 

[deathmetal]

I avoided "Soy Wars 8," but the last few had been sort of lame so it was not a struggle. Lucas had one great idea, and everything since has been a mess, and his idea seems to have only developed well because of the people working with him.