So I saw this 3 weeks or so ago and it has taken me this long to get through the thread.
I don't at all intend to fight or convince anybody that they are an idiot. However, I enjoy the discussion and discourse here and there are a lot of good points made here. When I watched TFA, I was enamored with seeing it all on screen again, but the thread here helped tighten my view of it. And I very much appreciate it. As such, I feel compelled to share my views on it here.
I enjoyed it very much. Yes it deviated from the norm, but it worked for me. The points it tried to make really resonated with me. (maybe it's because grain prices are in the shitter and there isn't a lot of room for gain, no matter your intention) I appreciate it for making the bold choices. It was far from perfect but did an awful lot well. An awful lot. Whereas all TFA did was successfully bring characters and styles back to the big screen.
The major ideas in the movie are strong throughout. Shit happens. Things aren't as you'd expect.
Anyway, here are my thoughts on the major ideas bantered about here.
Canto Bight/DJ
This is what EVERYBODY hated but I thought resonated. Yeah, the bit with freeing the animals was over the top, but its Star Wars. You know what REALLY sucks about Star Wars? The heros always get
just what they need
just in the knick of time. Never fails. It's an overused trope. Well, you know what? Shit happens. Things aren't as you expect. I watched Clone Wars at some point and that shit is EVERY ****ING EPISODE. It was a nice change.
Also it very successfully added depth to the story by not having a clear good guy and bad guy. Yeah, the people at the casino were war profiteers, but they're just making a living, off both sides. If they weren't selling to the FO they wouldn't be selling to the resistance either. And DJ raised some good points with pointless wars and all. Added some realism to the whole strictly hero and evil villain business, as many good productions do.
It was beautifully shot, advanced the narrative, and developed the characters.
Rey Training
She was super sensitive to the force. Jedi Training is how to become a monk. Not how to fight. Didn't bug me.
The shooting was beautiful the humor resonated, especially the caretakers hating Rey
. Hamill's acting was exquisite. Like the best I've seen from him. Ever. The moments hit hard. I was thinking when she went into the hole, this is going to be LAME. And it managed to do what it needed to do-provide her with no answers beautifully.
Force Stuff
Meh. Whatever. There is no instruction manual on the force. New shit happens in every iteration essentially. Very little continuity across installments. Snokes stuff. Whatever. That's not much of a reach. Yoda. Meh. Also not much of a reach. And it was ****ing hilarious. Force Projection. It was so ****ing cool and well done that it didn't even register on the WTF scale. Leia? Shut the **** up. All this space battle business and THAT is what you couldn't get over? And nobody is saying shit about the same thing happening to Snoke's ship and a ton of people made it out of that.
Luke
Yeah. You know what? Shit happens. Things are like you expect. A council of the most powerful Jedis in the world got their ass handed to them by Palpatine. And you're pissed off that one ****ing guy with a week of Jedi Training who has a history of going off half cocked couldn't restore the Jedi order to glory? Get the **** out of here. Where he ended up made perfect sense in my mind. Again, maybe I'm jaded at the moment and it resonated, but **** man, his story hit hard.
His death made a shitload more sense than him going down guns blazing. Especially after studying the Jedi scrolls and reflecting on the true Jedi way. That was beautiful storytelling IMO. It would have taken me out of it if he saddled up and rode into battle. Did he need to die? Eh. Maybe not. But Disney can't keep rolling out the old stars and keep their new stars viable. If he doesn't go then it will be difficult for Rey to find her own way. It fit IMO.
Snoke
Things aren't like you expect. And it can get you cut in half. Fits the narrative IMO. To be honest, I wasn't really that into him as a character. ANOTHER big bad pulling the strings of an enforcer type? Blech. I for one am glad he's gone and Kylo is the big bad. It will be interesting to see where they go with him. Rather than knowing where they're going to go with him and the "new" emperor.
Slow Chase
Didn't really bother me as I was watching it. Bad tactical plan in hindsight, but the way they explained it during the movie was sufficient. It's not like it is unprecedented in Star Wars to have the villain try to execute slow torturous deaths of their opponents.
Hondo
Didn't like it as it was happening, but her actions made sense. And by God she was right. As soon as Poe found out what was going on, he ****ing leaked it and got ****ers killed.
The kamikaze thing is a pretty good sized hole. It makes sense in the movie. Took time to get rolling and they weren't focused on her because she was not a perceived threat. But a ship could easily get out of sensor range and plot a course through a static ship. Maybe you could back out of it through the economics of procuring a hyperdrive with the requisite power to move a massive enough ship through hyperspace. But yeah. Not really feasible.
Didn't really have a problem with it during the movie and my god it was cinematically beautiful.
Finn Sacrificing Himself
The Finn line I don't hate as much as everyone else. The Phasma stuff fell flat for me. But I thought his role in the film was fine. As far as Rose saving him, it hit home with what the movie was trying to get at. And it makes some sense. Virtually everybody in the movie was fighting because they were wronged. It was pretty powerful to push the idea of fighting for love instead of hate.
Along those lines, the fight on the salt planet was some of the best film making I've seen ever. However, the only time I really thought, "naaaaaah" was when the walkers opened fire on those slow ass crafts and didn't hit shit. Overall though, one of the best sequences Star Wars has put out.
Overall, I really REALLY enjoyed this movie and it is truly a shame Johnson isn't going to get rewarded for taking risks and making a great movie.