Moviegoing

I went to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens this afternoon. It’s definitely a popcorn movie ($6.99 for a large bag, $6.59 for a medium soda) with lots of whooshes and bangs and booms, but there’s some poignancy involved too.

You’ll get no deep thoughts about this movie from me. If you want a good thoughtful review try my friend Lance Mannion.

I’ve seen Carrie Fisher’s reaction to some complaints that she looks old in the movie. Get over it, people. The events in this film take place some 30 years after the events of Return of the Jedi; of course Princess Leia has aged. Being a General in the resistance probably puts a few wrinkles on your face, too.

I am a little surprised that Han Solo is on screen as much as he is. I thought the focus would be on the two new heroic figures Finn and Rey. It mostly is, but an older Han is still as roguish as ever. The new robot BB-8 shows potential, but it was just as much fun to see C3PO and R2D2 again. There were no Ewoks, but Chewie is still Han’s sidekick. By design the cantina that Maz Kanata runs looks a lot like the one in the first film.

There’s a lot of similarity to the first three movies, and why would the director do otherwise? This is the most profitable movie franchise in history; screwing it up is the last thing JJ Abrams wanted to do.

The spaceships zoom, the explosions boom, the score has familiar fanfares and themes. What more could you want in a Star Wars movie? Certainly not exposition!

I can’t imagine anyone not wanting to see this movie.

One Comment

  1. I am still trying to get to it! My little one freaks out over noise and explosions, so I can’t take her, the big one currently hates the little one and won’t watch her. My regular sitter is busy. This is driving me crazy!

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