For me the only real weak thing about Solo was the casting of Han. It would have been fine had they just got someone that even looked like they could vaguely grow up to look like Harrison Ford. The actor was fine, he just didn't look the part, which is what kinda ruined it.
While I agree with this sentiment, I personally don't think it applies here, because I genuinely think "Star Wars Fans" actually hate Star Wars. They like the first two movies, find the 3rd one acceptable at best then hate everything else and constantly harp on about how the old "extended universe" did it better. They do all this complaining while still buying tickets to see everything new that comes out.
While the way I look at Star Wars is that they're just big block buster movies. Meant to be "crowd pleasers" not "mater class pieces of cinema". They're big, dumb, fun movies. Not really thought provoking in anyway, and generally full of plot holes or just thin plot in the first place.
Having just binged SW, Return of the Jedi might be my favorite actually. During my rewatch I did not like Empire as much (just seemed like nothing happened). So these things vary from time to time but at the moment I would rank them thusly:
- Return of the Jedi
- Rogue One
- A New Hope
- The Last Jedi
- The Empire Strikes Back
- The Force Awakens
- Solo
- Revenge of the Sith
- The Phantom Menace
- Attack of the Clones
“If you don't know what you want," the doorman said, "you end up with a lot you don't.”
― Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
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Angel's Game and Prisoner of Heaven (Zafon)
Ilium (Simmons)
Acerbic tone aside, he's absolutely right about this one. Disney has screwed the pooch royally with this trilogy. There was no long term gameplan, no singular vision. They did a trilogy because.. fuck it, why not? Doesn't every story need a trilogy these days?
It makes me appreciate Marvel much more. They have a vision, they carried it out to perfection, and now they have one of the greatest sagas ever told on screen. Every film in the MCU was both a good standalone story and a part of a collective.
The only Great Star Wars films in the entirety of the -9-film series is Empire Strikes Back, and maybe A New Hope. Everything else ranges from Good to Decent.
Yes, ultimately Star Wars are just fun blockbusters with a very rudimentary story of Good vs Evil propelling everything forward..
..however, that's not an excuse for sloppy writing and poor planning. I'm pretty lenient with broad strokes decision making - especially for a series like this which is supposed to be just big dumb fun - but some of the choices they've made for these films are baffling. From essentially rehashing Ep. IV, to self sabotaging the legacy of arguably it's most important character, to now doubling back on all the decisions Johnson made in Ep. VIII just to play it safe for IX in a desperate attempt to protect their cash cow. It's just... wow.
“If you don't know what you want," the doorman said, "you end up with a lot you don't.”
― Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
Looking for SubPress Lettered::
Angel's Game and Prisoner of Heaven (Zafon)
Ilium (Simmons)
The new ones are great films if you like plots that are nothing but coincidences and boring characters. The original trilogy are great films despite, and even because, of their flaws. The cast have a great dynamic. The characters are clear cut and entertaining with very defined roles and clear arcs. The films are charming and for their time extremely innovative. Most of all, there is filmmaking passion in them. A New Hope is one man's vision put on celluloid. The new films are a boardroom's ideas to milk people's money as much as possible so they can make back their investment money. Sure the new films look great, but the scripts are awful. Special effects used to sell a film and in cases made a film special, but these days special effects are so ubiquitous they add almost nothing to films that only film X can offer, and what used to make Star Wars stand out now just shows how little Star Wars has to offer that is unique.. As bad as the prequels were, I can't say they're boring and soulless...mostly misguided. The new films are soulless and boring.
Frankly, I'd rather Star Wars be corny and goofy with hammy acting than whatever we get now. Just so long as it has charm, passion, and good humour with characters you actually enjoy spending time with...that's all Star Wars needs. I think the brand has taken on so much lore and fandon that most people forget what the initial appeal of Star Wars was for 20 years. It was a fun adventure with characters you truly enjoyed spending time with. That's it. It's been bungled up with needless complication.
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Thank you. Look at what Solo bombing did. It made Disney scrap all their plans and rethink everything. Of course, they still had to make Rise of Skywalker. To be honest, one critics sentiment about how "Abrams didn't make a film for people to love, just one that no one would hate" shows what Disney hoped to achieve here. Get Rise of Skywalker out, try not to upset too many people with it, earn back some good will with The Mandalorian, and take the time to actually plan out the next film(s). Which is smart. If Solo made money, they'd have just rolled a new trilogy announcement and three more Star Wars Story films by 2025.
Originally Posted by DanHocker
You get that with any fandom. Once people identify so much with a product or brand and they've invested years and years (and sometimes a lot of money) and it's part of who they are, they expect their demands to be catered to. If they don't get what they want, they get upset. It's the same reason why seemingly no one likes the endings to their favourite shows. I agree they're big blockbuster movies, but as I said in the comment before this one, Star Wars is about a fun adventure in an inventive world with charming characters you enjoy spending time with. That's really it. But I think the new trilogy has shown us that the world of Star Wars is actually incredibly limited in terms of stories that can be told. If it's not Jedi vs. Sith or Rebels vs. Empire...what is there to tell? Mandalorian is doing bounty hunting and that's just about it unless we start getting D+ shows about moisture farmers, ore miners, or like House of Cards in space, there isn't many options. All I want with Star Wars is an enjoyable movie. It's been a long time since I got one.
Originally Posted by Fernandito
I think Disney just thought the brand was so powerful they didn't need to try. It was my greatest fear when they bought Star Wars and that fear came true. And I agree with the MCU (except every film being a good standalone story). I was really critical of the MCU for the first 5 years because I didn't like a single film. But once they found their groove and mastered their formula, I found a lot of the second half of the MCU to be quite enjoyable minus a few movies like Civil War and Ant-Man vs. The Wasp. But they took the time to plan more than release dates and premises. They gave directors enough leeway to make the film their own while also adhering to the greater planning of the MCU. I could be wrong, but I don't think a single director of an MCU film was ever fired and replaced during production of 22 films; Star Wars has fired, on average, a director per film, and that's not even including the Game of Thrones guys ditching their own trilogy for a Netflix deal and Rian Johnson's own trilogy being seemingly taken away. It's fascinating how a production company with zero gameplan can be so upset when their directors don't do what's expected of them. And because there's no gameplan, Lucasfilm doesn't even know they don't like what's being done until the assembly cut, basically.
It's a ramshackle affair.
People think I'm overly negative, especially with Star Wars, but that's because I grew up a Star Wars fan. And it's not even worth the frustration to watch it anymore. I haven't even watched The Last Jedi or Solo. I'd love nothing more than for Star Wars to be a solid franchise again, but I gave up hoping a long time ago. Maybe when Disney gets their shit together, I can find a new hope. But right now I'm longing for the halcyon days of Jar Jar Binks.
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100% agree with Mattrick. The new trilogy is AWFUL. Rey is such a boring and unlikable Mary Sue. Explain to me how she can fight a jedi master in the first movie and beat him. Yeah right. That would be like Luke fighting Vader in the first movie and winning. Poe Damron is so damn annoying. His lines are delivered so stony and without emotion. Also, don’t get me started on the fate of Luke skywalker. Even mark Hammil said fuck that shit. The dialogue is terrible between characters, and the first order commander guy is comically bad.
Not to mention these films are almost entirely cgi. It’s ridiculous. Anyone comparing the original trilogy using today’s standards is just kidding themselves.
I'm no conspiracy theorist or anything, but this is spooky.
- Yesterday Donald Trump's defense bill passed in The Senate. This established Trump's Space Force as the official 6th branch of the military.
- Today Donald Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives, leaving Trump's presidency in the hands of The Senate.
- Tomorrow, Star Wars Episode 9: Rise of Skywalker releases in America. Emperor Palpatine makes his first film appearance since 2005's Revenge of the Sith.
- In Revenge of the Sith, The Republic Senate intends to remove him from power and he says, "I am The Senate" before fighting Mace Windu. Palpatine uses the fallout from this action to become Supreme Emperor of the Galactic Empire.
George Lucas forsaw this.
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Matts, you have single handedly ruined this thread for me. You are so consistently and doggedly negative about all things SW it's freaking depressing. If you hate it so much stop watching. Then we won't have to listen to your long and drawn out nit picking condemnation of every film that is released.
Seriously, stick to the original trilogy and leave the other films to those who may actually enjoy them. You seem to go to see these newer films as some form of twisted masochism. lol
I'm a Star Wars fan and damn proud of it!!! I don't go to these films because I'm hoping to see an Oscar worthy film. They are never going to win Best film, or Best actor/actress at the Oscars because there are too many snobby, film critics involved in the voting for anything in this genre to ever win. Guys like you who are always valuing some sub-text, rare camera angle or some such crap or innuendo to ever give these type films their due. Star wars is fun, popcorn munching, children and adult harmless good entertainment and I, along with millions of others enjoy the living shit out of it!!!! It's only this grouchy, critical minority that constantly malign's the franchise. Do they perform better with some films than others? yeah, sure they can't all be diamonds. However, consider the overall hours of magical entertainment they have given to several generations of fans that far out weigh the malcontents.
There, rant completed. You may all return to dissecting the films and your general discontent. Please, pardon the interruption. LOL
BTW, "Mandalorian" fans!!!! Funko pop has 4 of the character statues available right now. Some more ready for delivery, but at right around $10 a pop pretty cool statues at a good price for Xmas!!!!
Like many others here, I have my ticket all set for tonight. Regardless of how the movie turns out, I'm definitely feeling nostalgic. Star Wars has literally been with me my whole life, so any release in the series is usually a pretty big deal, regardless of how I feel about the quality of the film. I will always have my original trilogy, which to me is quintessential "Star Wars", but I'd rather have new Star Wars movies, than none at all. So a toast to everyone still along for the ride, and I hope you all enjoy your screenings
I think Rogue One might be my favorite SW movie but I am not a superfan by any means. I've enjoyed nearly all of them. I'm not so crazy about the prequel trilogy, those three are the worst in my opinion. I liked The Last Jedi more than The Force Awakens and I even liked Solo.
But seeing how vicious some SW fans are really puts me off the whole thing. I can understand if someone is disappointed by something and wants to express that but there comes a point where you are simply just shitting all over other people's good time to make yourself feel better.
What wasn't civil? I've been called a lot worse and never had staff come to my defense. Just look at half of, Still Servant's posts about me. I don't believe I called, Matt an "Asshole" or a "Dick" or anything did I? If so, my apologies. Otherwise, I'm unsure what you take offense to, Ferny?
You come to his defense publicly (and I didn't specifically call him anything un-civil) and tell me to chill out privately when "Still Servant" regularly goes to town on me whenever and where ever he see's my posts simply because, and I quote "For some reason I just irk him". Maybe you folks on the staff need to take some time out and look inward. Just saying is all. Geez!!!!