Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

Star Wars Episode VIII: The Force Rolls Over And Goes Back To Sleep

It's been several weeks, and unusually my opinions haven't really changed much. I think the first and most important thing to get out of the way here is that I had a good time in the theater watching this. There was no IMAX or 3D, mainly because I was worried such a viewing option would make me ill considering JJ "Vertigo Man" Abrams was directing. But the visual style, while exhibiting some elements of JJ-isms, was far more in line with the visual styles of the original movies than Star Trek was. So that was good. And I enjoyed the movie.

The question everyone is asking, though, is how does it stack up to the others? Well, I've seen it once. I can, without question, say it's better than any of the prequels. Not a high bar, I know. But I want to see it another time or two before I rank it with the original movies. My gut is that it might be my third favorite. Maybe second. But I wouldn't place it above Empire Strikes Back for one simple reason: the characters weren't handled as well.

To be fair, there's reasons for that. Catching us up with a cast of old-timers we recognized whilst simultaneously treating a whole new cast responsible for carrying the saga forward isn't a simple task. And all things considered, they did that pretty well. But there you go. Not as good as Episode V. And I can't speak to the other two yet.

So general things I liked and didn't like. The script. It was great. If you liked the dialogue of stuff like the Empire Strikes Back or Raiders of the Lost Ark, you'll probably enjoy the dialogue in this movie. There are a few moments where you can tell JJ directly touched the lines, but it's not too distracting, and usually stays pretty well within character. It's punchy and fun, as well as serious and engaging where needed. It sounds natural, and that's probably the biggest relief for all Star Wars fans after Episodes I - III.

The characters and acting. Pretty good all around. There wasn't any particular character I was annoyed with, though there were a few moments I was like "wait, what?" There were also a couple of characters I got the feeling I was supposed to care about that simply weren't on screen enough for me to do so. One of these characters has what is otherwise a very important conversation with one of the main characters, and it fell somewhat flat simply because I didn't really know who this other person was.

Also, BB-8 was clearly supposed to be an R2-D2 surrogate, but his beeps and whistles are way less endearing. Kinda annoying at times, actually.

The 3D hologram technology for long distance communications. They finally fixed it, apparently.

The cinematography. There were only maybe three or four moments when I wanted to stand up and scream "JJ! CALM DOWN!" That is waaaay better than I was expecting, so I guess that's a win. But still, if you've got your camera angle following a ship but rotating in the opposite direction? Not only vertigo-inducing, but it's also a fourth-wall break. Makes it clear you are looking at that ship through a camera, and throws you out of the experience. Fortunately, that only really happened once.

The music. I kinda had to go back and just listen to the soundtrack to hear it, but it's classic John Williams. Just, more along the lines of Memoirs of a Geisha than traditional Star Wars. But I'm fine with that, the score for Memoirs of a Geisha is gorgeous.

The nostalgia. JJ played that nostalgia card HARD, but it worked out pretty well. I think the key to that is that JJ Abrams is an enormous Star Wars fan, and thus he really understood the world and managed to work in and expand that world without screwing up what made people like it in the first place (George Lucas could take a few lessons on that point from him).

All in all I came away from the movie entertained and generally pleased. My biggest gripe is that JJ's Lens Flare Trek didn't get the same loving treatment as The Force Awakens did. And frankly, I may never forgive the man for that, especially since this movie proves he's darn well capable of it.