Over all, I had a very good time watching this movie. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys superhero movies, though you have to take it with a grain of salt. There's a bit of a mess with plots and subplots, and some characters are far too little background, or screentime.
Things I liked:
The music: All the pieces I heard within the movie were awesome. They fit the scenes very well, and helped to enhance the movie, rather than distract from it. I heard several of my favorite songs in the movie, which made it a lot of fun.
The actors and actresses: I don't have any complaints about any of the portrayals, but one, which will be in the spoilers review. Three for me really stood out. Will Smith as Deadshot was amazing. He has a talent for being a badass, yet still being able to portray the more human side of a character. Viola Davis as Amanda Waller was a fun character to watch, especially when she was in the process of manipulation whomever had something she wanted. And finally, Jay Hernandez as El Diablo. You find out more about his story, and his character throughout the movie, and his ability to portray the character was really fascinating to watch. Close behind those three was Margo Robbie as Harley Quinn. And I have to admit that I was very wary at first about her portrayal of the character. But I was won over by the end of the movie.
The Special Effects: There wasn't a lot of CGI through the majority of the movie, with a few big exceptions. What there was however was great. Nothing felt terribly out of place, and it only enhanced the places of the movie where it was present. This bleeds into the action scenes, which were also quite enjoyable.
Things I didn't like:
Chaos: There was a lot that just didn't have enough background. There were characters that felt out of place, mostly because they weren't explained, or there was nothing to tie them into the Squad. They just kinda felt like they were there to be another name in the movie. There were a few jumps in logic and some of the scenes that felt a bit confusing as well.
Jared Leto: Without spoiling anything, I wasn't a fan of his version. There was none of the charisma or personability that could be found within his character. The only thing I did like was his laugh. That was creepy as hell.
But all in all, it was definitely a good time, and I think it's certainly worth seeing. If you go, definitely stay through the credits, there's a fun scene about half way through!
Friday, August 5, 2016
Thursday, June 9, 2016
WARCRAFT!
Just to give a fair warning, this review WILL have spoilers. YOU ARE WARNED!
Holy shit, I LOVED IT!!! I was honestly worried about how well this would turn out, given some of the previews. I still want to know what the hell they were thinking in the trailer that had the dubstep music. But my fears were laid to rest in the first five minutes. I had ordered some onion rings to munch on, and... I almost forget I had food in front of me. Warcraft caught my attention, and held it from beginning to end.
But I do have to say this. If you're not a fan of the Warcraft franchise and at least passingly familiar with the lore, there are things that won't make sense. It will likely feel like a semi-generic Lord of the Rings ripoff, and not a very good one. But the movie wasn't made for general audiences. It was made for the fans, and this fan absolutely loved it.
The settings were amazing. It was fantastic to see Stormwind, Ironforge, Karazhan, the Black Morass, Blackrock Mountain, the Burning Steppes, and even Dalaran brought to life on the big screen. These are places I've been running around and seeing in-game for over ten years now. I could tell were pretty much everything was taking place, and it made me giddy to see it done so well in a film.
I really enjoyed the characters, as well as seeing the actors and actresses portraying them. Durotan and Draka were fantastic, their relationship was portrayed very well, and in a realistic manner. The friendship between Durotan and Orgrim was also very well done, with some suiting comedic moments at times. Gul'dan was properly evil and sinister. I loved watching Khadgar every time that he was on screen, the actor did a very good job of portraying a young mage still learning about the world. I loved Medivh's performance as well. I was very curious as to how he would be done, if they would show his corruption. And they did. There were many times he was quiet and thoughtful, but there was always something lurking behind his expressions. Something was just not quite right with him... I enjoyed all the actors and actresses that portrayed the human roles as well. Llane Wrynn was a man who was shown to do anything for his kingdom, and Lothar was shown to be loyal to the end. Queen Taria was a good foil for the men. Something I VERY much enjoyed was that the humans were not white-washed. There were quite a few different skintones in all the human parts of the movie. Something else that was great is that both men and women were shown to be fighters on both sides.
The CGI was great. With how the orcs were done, it looked amazing. The armor that the humans were looked fantastic as well, and like something straight from WoW. If I do have any criticism, the wolves looked a bit wonky at times. But I'd imagine it's a bit difficult to fully integrate a wolf the size of a draft horse into a film where the rest is pretty much life action. Another note on the orcs, if you're familiar with the clans, you will see them within the Horde. And Gul'dan... damn. His CGI was great. It was clear how much more corruption he had taken on in how different he was from the other orcs.
To go along with that, any time there was a fight scene, I was entranced. It was absolutely brutal. You felt every bone crunching moment of it. Every time someone went flying into a tree or a rock, I had to cringe. Each fight was a grimy, bloody mess, like a proper war between orcs and humans.
The magic was wonderful to watch. It was clear that spellcasting took something out of each mage, and that it was no simple thing. There were many instances of runes being drawn on the floor, spells being held with concentration, and it's what I want to see in a movie. I don't expect a mage in a movie to just be spitting out spells every five seconds like in the games.
The music. Oh man, the music. I am buying the soundtrack with my next paycheck. I love it. The character themes suit each one so very well. The music for battles set a good background, and it would fit well in any of the Warcraft games. There were several points where I could pick out themes from either World of Warcraft, or the bits I've listened to from the older games. It's quite clear that the conductor did his research.
The movie takes place a ways into the Warcraft story, after Gul'dan has taken over from Ner'zhul. The orcs are already corrupted, and Draenor is dying. Medivh is in contact with Gul'dan in order to open the Dark Portal. The basic storyline that we know from the games and books is intact, though there are some small differences. But most of them, I really liked. It fit that Gul'dan would order a purge of the defiant Frostwolf Clan. It was heartbreaking to watch Durotan battle him to try and save the heart and soul of his people. He kept getting up, time and again, even though he knew he was going to die. But Durotan died to show his people just who exactly they were following. Draka died defending and saving her son. The meeting between Llane and Durotan was pretty cool, and definitely not something we would see in the game, beyond some manner of cinematic. I don't think that would have been done justice in that manner.
There were some injokes and fan service that greatly amused me. There was a murloc in the perfect place. The comment that Khadgar made about the polymorph spell lasting for a minute made me giggle. I'm sure there are others I am missing (I'm tired, lol), and I will likely remember them later.
I do have a few little issues with the movie. There are quite a few things that were glossed over. Like the demon that possessed Medivh does have a name, and it's a huge one for the franchise. It felt like Ironforge was thrown into the beginning as an excuse to make it look awesome (which it did), and to show why humans have guns. We never returned to it, and only saw the dwarves twice more throughout the movie. High elves are shown, though only twice, and they are nothing more than a diplomatic delegation. In the scene with the council table, I would have liked to know a bit better which human nation was which, it wasn't very clear. One story change that I didn't really like... Garona is only really shown as being subservient to Gul'dan. In the lore that I'm familiar with, she was essentially brain-washed into being his tool. He forced her to kill Llane, rather than it being Llane telling her to do it. But... a minor knitpick. Other than it being a part of Ulduar.
But I digress!
All in all, I had an absolute blast. There was never a dull moment, and I know I had a huge dumb grin on my face throughout the whole thing. I really, really, REALLY want another movie. Duncan Jones, I have to thank you. You did a great franchise justice with your movie.
Holy shit, I LOVED IT!!! I was honestly worried about how well this would turn out, given some of the previews. I still want to know what the hell they were thinking in the trailer that had the dubstep music. But my fears were laid to rest in the first five minutes. I had ordered some onion rings to munch on, and... I almost forget I had food in front of me. Warcraft caught my attention, and held it from beginning to end.
But I do have to say this. If you're not a fan of the Warcraft franchise and at least passingly familiar with the lore, there are things that won't make sense. It will likely feel like a semi-generic Lord of the Rings ripoff, and not a very good one. But the movie wasn't made for general audiences. It was made for the fans, and this fan absolutely loved it.
The settings were amazing. It was fantastic to see Stormwind, Ironforge, Karazhan, the Black Morass, Blackrock Mountain, the Burning Steppes, and even Dalaran brought to life on the big screen. These are places I've been running around and seeing in-game for over ten years now. I could tell were pretty much everything was taking place, and it made me giddy to see it done so well in a film.
I really enjoyed the characters, as well as seeing the actors and actresses portraying them. Durotan and Draka were fantastic, their relationship was portrayed very well, and in a realistic manner. The friendship between Durotan and Orgrim was also very well done, with some suiting comedic moments at times. Gul'dan was properly evil and sinister. I loved watching Khadgar every time that he was on screen, the actor did a very good job of portraying a young mage still learning about the world. I loved Medivh's performance as well. I was very curious as to how he would be done, if they would show his corruption. And they did. There were many times he was quiet and thoughtful, but there was always something lurking behind his expressions. Something was just not quite right with him... I enjoyed all the actors and actresses that portrayed the human roles as well. Llane Wrynn was a man who was shown to do anything for his kingdom, and Lothar was shown to be loyal to the end. Queen Taria was a good foil for the men. Something I VERY much enjoyed was that the humans were not white-washed. There were quite a few different skintones in all the human parts of the movie. Something else that was great is that both men and women were shown to be fighters on both sides.
The CGI was great. With how the orcs were done, it looked amazing. The armor that the humans were looked fantastic as well, and like something straight from WoW. If I do have any criticism, the wolves looked a bit wonky at times. But I'd imagine it's a bit difficult to fully integrate a wolf the size of a draft horse into a film where the rest is pretty much life action. Another note on the orcs, if you're familiar with the clans, you will see them within the Horde. And Gul'dan... damn. His CGI was great. It was clear how much more corruption he had taken on in how different he was from the other orcs.
To go along with that, any time there was a fight scene, I was entranced. It was absolutely brutal. You felt every bone crunching moment of it. Every time someone went flying into a tree or a rock, I had to cringe. Each fight was a grimy, bloody mess, like a proper war between orcs and humans.
The magic was wonderful to watch. It was clear that spellcasting took something out of each mage, and that it was no simple thing. There were many instances of runes being drawn on the floor, spells being held with concentration, and it's what I want to see in a movie. I don't expect a mage in a movie to just be spitting out spells every five seconds like in the games.
The music. Oh man, the music. I am buying the soundtrack with my next paycheck. I love it. The character themes suit each one so very well. The music for battles set a good background, and it would fit well in any of the Warcraft games. There were several points where I could pick out themes from either World of Warcraft, or the bits I've listened to from the older games. It's quite clear that the conductor did his research.
The movie takes place a ways into the Warcraft story, after Gul'dan has taken over from Ner'zhul. The orcs are already corrupted, and Draenor is dying. Medivh is in contact with Gul'dan in order to open the Dark Portal. The basic storyline that we know from the games and books is intact, though there are some small differences. But most of them, I really liked. It fit that Gul'dan would order a purge of the defiant Frostwolf Clan. It was heartbreaking to watch Durotan battle him to try and save the heart and soul of his people. He kept getting up, time and again, even though he knew he was going to die. But Durotan died to show his people just who exactly they were following. Draka died defending and saving her son. The meeting between Llane and Durotan was pretty cool, and definitely not something we would see in the game, beyond some manner of cinematic. I don't think that would have been done justice in that manner.
There were some injokes and fan service that greatly amused me. There was a murloc in the perfect place. The comment that Khadgar made about the polymorph spell lasting for a minute made me giggle. I'm sure there are others I am missing (I'm tired, lol), and I will likely remember them later.
I do have a few little issues with the movie. There are quite a few things that were glossed over. Like the demon that possessed Medivh does have a name, and it's a huge one for the franchise. It felt like Ironforge was thrown into the beginning as an excuse to make it look awesome (which it did), and to show why humans have guns. We never returned to it, and only saw the dwarves twice more throughout the movie. High elves are shown, though only twice, and they are nothing more than a diplomatic delegation. In the scene with the council table, I would have liked to know a bit better which human nation was which, it wasn't very clear. One story change that I didn't really like... Garona is only really shown as being subservient to Gul'dan. In the lore that I'm familiar with, she was essentially brain-washed into being his tool. He forced her to kill Llane, rather than it being Llane telling her to do it. But... a minor knitpick. Other than it being a part of Ulduar.
But I digress!
All in all, I had an absolute blast. There was never a dull moment, and I know I had a huge dumb grin on my face throughout the whole thing. I really, really, REALLY want another movie. Duncan Jones, I have to thank you. You did a great franchise justice with your movie.
Wednesday, June 8, 2016
Some Thoughts on Video Game Movies
I'm going to be seeing Warcraft tomorrow night, and I couldn't be more excited. I know that the critics don't like it, but I think I have a pretty good idea as to why.
One big problem with movies like this is that directors have to balance a mass appeal with pleasing the fans. And all too often, it seems like the mass appeal wins out. Something like that leads to a mediocre movie, with little to no fan appeal. In some cases, it's barely recognizable as being even related to the video game it's based on. A great example is the Mario Brothers movie. It barely resembled anything coming from the Mario games, other than the names.
Another aspect is that quite a lot of fantasy movies are going to be compared to Lord of the Rings. But I know that it just won't live up to that standard. It's too high of one to pass. It's not that video game lore is bad, but it's just not the same as a book series.
But even with all the criticism I've see, I am hopeful for the Warcraft movie. The many critics who have seen the movie dislike it, but the people who have actually played the Warcraft games, and are familiar with the lore, are enjoying the movie. I'm also looking forward to seeing the visual effects, which have been widely praised. I'm looking forward to hearing how the music is integrated into the film. The soundtrack is available on the WoW site for listening, and it is AWESOME. I had shivers listening to it.
So I'm going into seeing it with exceptions of seeing some of my favorite lore come to life on the big screen. I'm looking forward to seeing the places I've been playing in for over ten years being up on a big screen. I want this to be a movie for the fans, and not for mass audiences. Because we the fans will be the ones to bring their friends into the movie, and we can explain the lore and such so it makes sense to our friends.
One big problem with movies like this is that directors have to balance a mass appeal with pleasing the fans. And all too often, it seems like the mass appeal wins out. Something like that leads to a mediocre movie, with little to no fan appeal. In some cases, it's barely recognizable as being even related to the video game it's based on. A great example is the Mario Brothers movie. It barely resembled anything coming from the Mario games, other than the names.
Another aspect is that quite a lot of fantasy movies are going to be compared to Lord of the Rings. But I know that it just won't live up to that standard. It's too high of one to pass. It's not that video game lore is bad, but it's just not the same as a book series.
But even with all the criticism I've see, I am hopeful for the Warcraft movie. The many critics who have seen the movie dislike it, but the people who have actually played the Warcraft games, and are familiar with the lore, are enjoying the movie. I'm also looking forward to seeing the visual effects, which have been widely praised. I'm looking forward to hearing how the music is integrated into the film. The soundtrack is available on the WoW site for listening, and it is AWESOME. I had shivers listening to it.
So I'm going into seeing it with exceptions of seeing some of my favorite lore come to life on the big screen. I'm looking forward to seeing the places I've been playing in for over ten years being up on a big screen. I want this to be a movie for the fans, and not for mass audiences. Because we the fans will be the ones to bring their friends into the movie, and we can explain the lore and such so it makes sense to our friends.
Monday, November 16, 2015
World of Warcraft: Legion Cinematic and Features Trailers
Everything I have seen about Legion makes me more interested... and these trailers is no exception.
The features trailer comes before the cinematic in the timeline, and I absolutely love how it mirrors the cinematic of Warcraft III with Medivh attempting to warn King Terenas III that the Legion has retuend. We see Khadgar flying in much the same manner as his mentor did, though we also see Varian and Anduin speaking before the wizard makes his appearance. With his shapeshifting abilities, this makes me thing that Khadgar has taken on Medivh's mantle of Guardian, something interesting that could come up later in Legion. Khadgar even strikes his staff against the stones of the court in the same manner as Medivh did when he was trying to get the King's attention. But this time, it works.
There isn't very much to it that we didn't really already know shown in the cinematic, so I will just be focusing on Varian and Sylvanas for the cinematic trailer. They fight an infernal together on the airship, which is really cool to see.
It opens up with Varian Wrynn writing a letter to his son Anduin, admitting that he might not return from this fight with the Legion. He speaks of how he has always fought, alludes to his past in seeing kingdoms burn, and brave men fall. I have to say that I love his look in this cinematic. He looks weathered, beaten, but still with plenty of fight to give. And it is clear he will do anything to defeat whatever foes face Azeroth and its people. He is riding on one of the Alliance airships, headed for the Broken Shore with a huge army of what I am guessing to be both Horde and Alliance ships. After the airship gets blown out of the sky, it appears Varian is drowning, though I know that they wouldn't kill him so easily. An interesting note is that once he gets to his feet, he fights with two swords that come from his greatsword.
Sylvanas is also featured heavily in this trailer, suggesting she will play a large part in this expansion. Which only makes sense, given that her undead state would not exist without the Legion. If I was her, I'd want to kick as much demon ass as possible. Her look is interesting, something about it seems odd to me. But when she's in motion, you see her high elven agility kicking high gear. I love that it shows her helping Varian, it shows that she is still willing to fight for the world itself, and not her selfish purposes. I'm sure those selfish purposes are around somewhere, but I think that Sylvanas know this is not the time to work on her agenda.
The huge column of demonic energy spewing into the air makes me think shit is truly about to get real. And I cannot wait to see just what is in store.
All in all, I am rather eager to see what all is in store once the beta starts. And I cannot wait to get my hands on the next expansion. I just hope that Blizzard has learned lessons from Warlords of Draenor...
The features trailer comes before the cinematic in the timeline, and I absolutely love how it mirrors the cinematic of Warcraft III with Medivh attempting to warn King Terenas III that the Legion has retuend. We see Khadgar flying in much the same manner as his mentor did, though we also see Varian and Anduin speaking before the wizard makes his appearance. With his shapeshifting abilities, this makes me thing that Khadgar has taken on Medivh's mantle of Guardian, something interesting that could come up later in Legion. Khadgar even strikes his staff against the stones of the court in the same manner as Medivh did when he was trying to get the King's attention. But this time, it works.
There isn't very much to it that we didn't really already know shown in the cinematic, so I will just be focusing on Varian and Sylvanas for the cinematic trailer. They fight an infernal together on the airship, which is really cool to see.
It opens up with Varian Wrynn writing a letter to his son Anduin, admitting that he might not return from this fight with the Legion. He speaks of how he has always fought, alludes to his past in seeing kingdoms burn, and brave men fall. I have to say that I love his look in this cinematic. He looks weathered, beaten, but still with plenty of fight to give. And it is clear he will do anything to defeat whatever foes face Azeroth and its people. He is riding on one of the Alliance airships, headed for the Broken Shore with a huge army of what I am guessing to be both Horde and Alliance ships. After the airship gets blown out of the sky, it appears Varian is drowning, though I know that they wouldn't kill him so easily. An interesting note is that once he gets to his feet, he fights with two swords that come from his greatsword.
Sylvanas is also featured heavily in this trailer, suggesting she will play a large part in this expansion. Which only makes sense, given that her undead state would not exist without the Legion. If I was her, I'd want to kick as much demon ass as possible. Her look is interesting, something about it seems odd to me. But when she's in motion, you see her high elven agility kicking high gear. I love that it shows her helping Varian, it shows that she is still willing to fight for the world itself, and not her selfish purposes. I'm sure those selfish purposes are around somewhere, but I think that Sylvanas know this is not the time to work on her agenda.
The huge column of demonic energy spewing into the air makes me think shit is truly about to get real. And I cannot wait to see just what is in store.
All in all, I am rather eager to see what all is in store once the beta starts. And I cannot wait to get my hands on the next expansion. I just hope that Blizzard has learned lessons from Warlords of Draenor...
Friday, November 6, 2015
Coming Soon!
I have two reviews planned once I have some breathing room. I will be taking a good, close look at the World of Warcraft: Legion trailer which was released at BlizzCon. And I will also be taking a look at the Japanese trailer for Star Wars. Keep an eye out!
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Star Wars: The Force Awakens Official Trailer Review
Oh.
My.
GODS.
I just sat staring at this trailer when it finally came out. I know I had this huge, stupid grin on my face, and I am GIDDY to see the film looking so good. It looks real, and it sounds right. I am going to take a few minutes (and another dozen viewings) to break this thing down, scene by scene. It's at 21 million views in about a day's time, and websites were crashing when people tried to buy advanced tickets. This is going to be amazing.
The first scene has Rey scavenging around in what looks to possibly be the crashed Star Destroyer that we saw in a previous trailer. What's really curious here is it looks like she's wearing goggles very similar to the Snowtroopers in Episode V. A voice comes out, asking her "Who are you?" and changes to Rey walking across the desert with BB8 and her staff. to which Rey replies "I'm no one". Which I do not believe for one second. The next cut is a ship of some kind launching, but what really interesting is it looks like there's a foot from some kind of Imperial Walker in the foreground. Rey is watching the ship, and tinkering around with something. This made me curious, since it reminded me a bit of Anakin in Episode I. Very interesting.
The next scene is one of the First Order, with a high ranking officer giving orders to a number of Stormtroopers. And here, we are introduced to Finn, who pulls off his helmet and looks like he's trying to catch his breath. Possibly having a moment of crisis as well. "I was raised to do one thing. I've got nothing to fight for" is spoken by Finn as it shows a TIE fighter spiralling down towards the planet's surface. Looks very deserty, very familiar... Then we see Finn standing on a ridge looking over... what looks like Mos Eisley, and he's carrying a leather jacket of some kind. Definitely doesn't look like Imperial issue, which makes me wonder where it came from.
Our next seen looks like it's on the bridge of an Imperial ship of some kind, and we see Kylo Ren. "Nothing will stand in our way. I will finish what you started" he says and it cuts to VADER'S burned and twisted helmet. Now this raises a couple questions. Where the hell did he get the helmet in the first place? And just what is he talking about finishing... Then Kylo Ren is holding his hand in front of someone's forehead, and that man starts screaming, I'm guessing in pain. It then cuts to a forest exploding, in a very similar red light to what we saw on the bridge of the ship that Kylo was just on. Related? Quite possible.
And then the moment that made me grin like a big idiot. The motherfucking Millenium Falcon flying around some crashed Star Destroyers being chased by TIE fighters. Rey speaks "There are stories about what happened", and Han Solo himself replies "It's true. All of it." as we see Rey, Finn and Solo all on the Falcon. The ship is then seen traveling through hyperspace, which looks awesome!
Then the classic Star Wars theme starts playing, and we see Kylo Ren once more, though this time he's surrounded by a number of troops. He's the only one with a lightsaber out, which is a bit interesting. Makes it seem like Force uses are still rather rare in this time. Then we get this huge scene with X-wings, TIE fighters, Stormtroopers and Rebel forces all going at each other. And Han Solo is narrating over it. "The Dark Side. The Jedi. They're real". Very amusing turnabout for someone who once said "Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid". But that being said, Han has been through some shit. Big time. we also see Finn and a X-wing pilot have an interesting moment, where the pilot hits him on the shoulder in a friendly manner, and Finn just turns and stares at the guy. Kinda wondering if that pilot was the original owner of that jacket? Then we have Rey and Finn running across the desert, having to stop for a huge explosion. Then they're at some kind of big building with a droid walking behind them. Interesting point here, if you look carefully at the building among all the banners, there's a Mandalorian symbol on the building. when Han says "they're real", we see the shot of R2D2 and what was implied to be Luke Skywalker with his mechanical hand on the droid.
Then it cuts to an Imperial shuttle landing, with Stormtroopers running all around. Captain Phasma in all her glory is also shown for a few moments, then we see Kylo Ren once more slashing down on someone. Then we see Rey crying over someone we can't see, then a cut to Finn, Han and Chewbacca surrendering. Interesting note here, Chewie has a band-aid on his arm. Then the female voice from earlier speaks again. "The Force. It's calling to you". We briefly see BB8 being used as a droid in an X-wing over a snowy planet as well. And there is some kind of MASSIVE trench in the ground, definitely manmade since it is far too straight to be made by nature. More TIE fighters and X-wings fighting over that planet as well, then a shot of Rey shooting at someone with a blaster, interspersed with more Stormtroopers. Though the planet for the last bit is more forested and less snowy than the dogfighting of moments ago.
Then a lot more fast shots, the Falcon again, Han seems to be comforting Leia, Kylo Ren Force-pushing someone/something away. Then we see Finn holding a blue lightsaber with Kylo Ren coming straight for him. This raises a couple of interesting questions. One, where's he from, that he would be Force sensitive, but not trained in that way? It could be implied that his abilities with the Force are what made him a TIE pilot, but also what caused his crisis in trusting the New Order. Second, where did he get the lightsaber? Was it scavenged, was it a gift, is he trained with it? If he has been trained, it hasn't been for long, because Finn almost looks terrified when Ren starts swinging. Then that female voice speaks again and says "Just let it in" and we see the title.
First question on my mind. where the hell is Luke Skywalker in all this? We've got one possible shot of him, and it's very brief. we don't even get to see his face. Second, that female voice without a body, who is she, and what does she have to do with Rey? It seems like they are speaking throughout the trailer, which leads one to believe that Rey is Force sensitive as well. Second thing on my mind, it's clear while the Rebel Alliance won the battle at the end of Episode VI, they didn't win the war. Or even if they did, the Galactic Empire made a comeback in a huge way. I'm not familiar with the Extended Universe, so I can't draw anything from there.
All in all, I'm still very excited for this movie. I cannot wait for December. If I get the chance, my ass is going to be at a midnight showing. In costume. Everything that I've seen from Abrams I've enjoyed, and I truly hope that he continues this trend. It's a very good sign to me when I show the trailer to my mother (who saw the originals when they came out I believe) and she's even excited.
Abrams, you had best not screw this up. We're all counting on you.
My.
GODS.
I just sat staring at this trailer when it finally came out. I know I had this huge, stupid grin on my face, and I am GIDDY to see the film looking so good. It looks real, and it sounds right. I am going to take a few minutes (and another dozen viewings) to break this thing down, scene by scene. It's at 21 million views in about a day's time, and websites were crashing when people tried to buy advanced tickets. This is going to be amazing.
The first scene has Rey scavenging around in what looks to possibly be the crashed Star Destroyer that we saw in a previous trailer. What's really curious here is it looks like she's wearing goggles very similar to the Snowtroopers in Episode V. A voice comes out, asking her "Who are you?" and changes to Rey walking across the desert with BB8 and her staff. to which Rey replies "I'm no one". Which I do not believe for one second. The next cut is a ship of some kind launching, but what really interesting is it looks like there's a foot from some kind of Imperial Walker in the foreground. Rey is watching the ship, and tinkering around with something. This made me curious, since it reminded me a bit of Anakin in Episode I. Very interesting.
The next scene is one of the First Order, with a high ranking officer giving orders to a number of Stormtroopers. And here, we are introduced to Finn, who pulls off his helmet and looks like he's trying to catch his breath. Possibly having a moment of crisis as well. "I was raised to do one thing. I've got nothing to fight for" is spoken by Finn as it shows a TIE fighter spiralling down towards the planet's surface. Looks very deserty, very familiar... Then we see Finn standing on a ridge looking over... what looks like Mos Eisley, and he's carrying a leather jacket of some kind. Definitely doesn't look like Imperial issue, which makes me wonder where it came from.
Our next seen looks like it's on the bridge of an Imperial ship of some kind, and we see Kylo Ren. "Nothing will stand in our way. I will finish what you started" he says and it cuts to VADER'S burned and twisted helmet. Now this raises a couple questions. Where the hell did he get the helmet in the first place? And just what is he talking about finishing... Then Kylo Ren is holding his hand in front of someone's forehead, and that man starts screaming, I'm guessing in pain. It then cuts to a forest exploding, in a very similar red light to what we saw on the bridge of the ship that Kylo was just on. Related? Quite possible.
And then the moment that made me grin like a big idiot. The motherfucking Millenium Falcon flying around some crashed Star Destroyers being chased by TIE fighters. Rey speaks "There are stories about what happened", and Han Solo himself replies "It's true. All of it." as we see Rey, Finn and Solo all on the Falcon. The ship is then seen traveling through hyperspace, which looks awesome!
Then the classic Star Wars theme starts playing, and we see Kylo Ren once more, though this time he's surrounded by a number of troops. He's the only one with a lightsaber out, which is a bit interesting. Makes it seem like Force uses are still rather rare in this time. Then we get this huge scene with X-wings, TIE fighters, Stormtroopers and Rebel forces all going at each other. And Han Solo is narrating over it. "The Dark Side. The Jedi. They're real". Very amusing turnabout for someone who once said "Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid". But that being said, Han has been through some shit. Big time. we also see Finn and a X-wing pilot have an interesting moment, where the pilot hits him on the shoulder in a friendly manner, and Finn just turns and stares at the guy. Kinda wondering if that pilot was the original owner of that jacket? Then we have Rey and Finn running across the desert, having to stop for a huge explosion. Then they're at some kind of big building with a droid walking behind them. Interesting point here, if you look carefully at the building among all the banners, there's a Mandalorian symbol on the building. when Han says "they're real", we see the shot of R2D2 and what was implied to be Luke Skywalker with his mechanical hand on the droid.
Then it cuts to an Imperial shuttle landing, with Stormtroopers running all around. Captain Phasma in all her glory is also shown for a few moments, then we see Kylo Ren once more slashing down on someone. Then we see Rey crying over someone we can't see, then a cut to Finn, Han and Chewbacca surrendering. Interesting note here, Chewie has a band-aid on his arm. Then the female voice from earlier speaks again. "The Force. It's calling to you". We briefly see BB8 being used as a droid in an X-wing over a snowy planet as well. And there is some kind of MASSIVE trench in the ground, definitely manmade since it is far too straight to be made by nature. More TIE fighters and X-wings fighting over that planet as well, then a shot of Rey shooting at someone with a blaster, interspersed with more Stormtroopers. Though the planet for the last bit is more forested and less snowy than the dogfighting of moments ago.
Then a lot more fast shots, the Falcon again, Han seems to be comforting Leia, Kylo Ren Force-pushing someone/something away. Then we see Finn holding a blue lightsaber with Kylo Ren coming straight for him. This raises a couple of interesting questions. One, where's he from, that he would be Force sensitive, but not trained in that way? It could be implied that his abilities with the Force are what made him a TIE pilot, but also what caused his crisis in trusting the New Order. Second, where did he get the lightsaber? Was it scavenged, was it a gift, is he trained with it? If he has been trained, it hasn't been for long, because Finn almost looks terrified when Ren starts swinging. Then that female voice speaks again and says "Just let it in" and we see the title.
First question on my mind. where the hell is Luke Skywalker in all this? We've got one possible shot of him, and it's very brief. we don't even get to see his face. Second, that female voice without a body, who is she, and what does she have to do with Rey? It seems like they are speaking throughout the trailer, which leads one to believe that Rey is Force sensitive as well. Second thing on my mind, it's clear while the Rebel Alliance won the battle at the end of Episode VI, they didn't win the war. Or even if they did, the Galactic Empire made a comeback in a huge way. I'm not familiar with the Extended Universe, so I can't draw anything from there.
All in all, I'm still very excited for this movie. I cannot wait for December. If I get the chance, my ass is going to be at a midnight showing. In costume. Everything that I've seen from Abrams I've enjoyed, and I truly hope that he continues this trend. It's a very good sign to me when I show the trailer to my mother (who saw the originals when they came out I believe) and she's even excited.
Abrams, you had best not screw this up. We're all counting on you.
Change of Format
I cannot keep up with my self set schedule, so I am just going to post as things come to mind. I wish I could do better, but stress from work and such is the quickest thing to kill my writing muse. that being said, I will have something up soon, so stay tuned!
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