*SPOILER DISCUSSION* Star Wars The Force Awakens *POST HERE AFTER SEEING THE MOVIE*

[troutman]

Originally Posted by Knalus

Just read a fascinating scholarly article about film making, storytelling, and the Star Wars series. Honestly, the read took like 2 hours to get through, but it was absolutely fascinating - best read of the year so far, even better than the read on why Edmonton's LRT is the biggest waste of money and time ever.

Star Wars Ring Theory -
How George Lucas used an ancient technique called “ring composition” to reach a level of storytelling sophistication in his six-part saga that is unprecedented in cinema history.
http://www.starwarsringtheory.com/


Really great read. It actually gave me a greater appreciation as to how and why Lucas filmed what he filmed. Doesn't mean he did it well, but the way he was doing it has fascinating implications. Really, give it a read.

This is related and may interest you too:

http://www.moongadget.com/origins/myth.html

In 1949 Joseph Campbell (1904-1987) made a big splash in the field of mythology with his book The Hero With a Thousand Faces. This book built on the pioneering work of German anthropologist Adolph Bastian (1826-1905), who first proposed the idea that myths from all over the world seem to be built from the same "elementary ideas." Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung (1875-1961) named these elementary ideas "archetypes," which he believed to be the building blocks not only of the unconscious mind, but of a collective unconscious. In other words, Jung believed that everyone in the world is born with the same basic subconscious model of what a "hero" is, or a "mentor" or a "quest," and that's why people who don't even speak the same language can enjoy the same stories.

Lucas had already written two drafts of Star Wars when he rediscovered Joseph Campbell's The Hero With a Thousand Faces in 1975 (having read it years before in college). This blueprint for "The Hero's Journey" gave Lucas the focus he needed to draw his sprawling imaginary universe into a single story.

Note that the Wachowski Brothers' wonderful film The Matrix is carefully built on the same blueprint.

http://www.starwars.com/news/mythic-discovery-within-the-inner-reaches-of-outer-space-joseph-campbell-meets-george-lucas-part-i

Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers Break Down Star Wars as an Epic, Universal Myth
http://www.openculture.com/2012/11/joseph_campbell_and_bill_moyers_break_down_star_wa rs_as_myth.html

[Hockey_Ninja]

I'm sure just about everyone has seen it by now, but this is kind of a dick move:

[FireGilbert]

I agree with others that the General Hux character was wasted and underdeveloped.

Also, Domhnall Gleeson was a poor casting decision. He looks closer to being a graduate of the New Order officer academy than an experienced general running a massive base. It would have been more believable with an older grey haired actor.

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by FireGilbert

I agree with others that the General Hux character was wasted and underdeveloped.

Also, Domhnall Gleeson was a poor casting decision. He looks closer to being a graduate of the New Order officer academy than an experienced general running a massive base. It would have been more believable with an older grey haired actor.

They're young because a whole generation of leaders was killed in both A New Hope and Return of the Jedi in the Death Stars.

Also not every character, especially secondary ones, needs to be developed.

[codynw]

Originally Posted by Hockey_Ninja

I'm sure just about everyone has seen it by now, but this is kind of a dick move:

How long until we see a story about this vehicle being vandalized?

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by Bunk

They're young because a whole generation of leaders was killed in both A New Hope and Return of the Jedi in the Death Stars.

Also not every character, especially secondary ones, needs to be developed.

He probably didn't need a ton of development but someone with the right charisma to play a sinister leader. I feel like that casting decision was based on keeping every character, except of course original Star Wars cast, young and appealing to younger audiences.

It's been 30 years. Even a fresh Empire recruit from the RotJ era would be in his 40s or 50s.

General Hux is played by Charles Dance and we're probably talking about how he stole the movie.

FTR it's a minor quibble. In a perfect world we get to fix some things about Ye movie. I certainly wouldn't interpret the analyzing of every minute detail as criticism.

[SHOGUN]

Originally Posted by Hockey_Ninja

I'm sure just about everyone has seen it by now, but this is kind of a dick move:

Ahaha great way to have your Jeep keyed!

[SuperMatt18]

I wonder if there is going to be a bit of a twist on Rey's backstory.

We are all assuming that she was saved after the attack by Kylo on Luke's school.

But what if she was actually removed before that, maybe there were some signs that she was prone to the dark side, and Luke decided to remove her from the school before she could have full training - even wiping her memory of the past.

[Coys1882]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

I keep going back to her being a friend of Kylo's that he took under his wing or protected when he was at the academy.

I think this as well. The way Kylo reacts after hearing about Finn and droid escaping with a girl means something doesn't it?

"What girl?" while force choking the officer across the floor after already light-sabering the terminal to pieces seemed like there was some history there.

[speede5]

Originally Posted by codynw

Why do they always do Blu-Ray and DVD in the same box? I just want the Blu-Ray, man. It's a waste of a DVD.

I love it, I give my kids the DVD for their collection and keep my blurays.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Coys1882

I think this as well. The way Kylo reacts after hearing about Finn and droid escaping with a girl means something doesn't it?

"What girl?" while force choking the officer across the floor after already light-sabering the terminal to pieces seemed like there was some history there.

Maybe its me, but there's a long history of everyone in Star Wars being related, or running into people that you know in a galaxy with probably serveral hundred trillion lives over thousands of planets.

Just for once, I'd rather have someone being entirely new blood.

I think it would be more interesting if Rey represented new blood in a possible Jedi Order without Skywalker DNA in her.

It would also make the whole The Force Awakens a bit more poignent.

Lets face facts, everything that a skywalker touches in the Force universe turns out badly.

Anakin Skywalker, according to the prophesy he's a pure force being made by the milkshake that we call midiclorians to bring balance to the force. He turns out to be the perfect pure force being for evil.

Prince Leia Anakins daughter, has some force powers but clearly doesn't want to be a jedi

Luke Skywalker, Anakins son, helps bring balance to the force, but then decides to restart the Jedi Order, watches them get slaughtered.

Ben Solo grandson of Anakin, becomes a emo teenager, turns to the darkside betrays Luke, wipes out the New Jedi Order, kills his dad, becomes complete evil

Maybe the force created Rey because f%%% the Skywalkers.

[rayne008]

Another gripe is that with the size of the universe that CC paints, why is it that time and time again its only 12 x-wings fighting 25 tie-fighters.

When I finally get my promotion on the death star v4, my first order will be a fleet of 100,000 fighters on patrol at all times.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Coys1882

I think this as well. The way Kylo reacts after hearing about Finn and droid escaping with a girl means something doesn't it?

"What girl?" while force choking the officer across the floor after already light-sabering the terminal to pieces seemed like there was some history there.

Also, in the novelization, when Rey does the Force-pull on the lightsaber, Kylo looks at her and says "It is you". The way it's written implies that he knows who she is beyond just a girl with Force powers.

[gottabekd]

Originally Posted by getbak

Also, in the novelization, when Rey does the Force-pull on the lightsaber, Kylo looks at her and says "It is you". The way it's written implies that he knows who she is beyond just a girl with Force powers.

Interesting. In the trippy Rey flashback/flashforward scene, it seems that Kylo Ren is there dropping her off on Jakku when she was a young girl. So presumably he knew this girl would have force powers based on their past shared history, which must be time spent at Luke's Jedi school.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Anakin Skywalker, according to the prophesy he's a pure force being made by the milkshake that we call midiclorians to bring balance to the force. He turns out to be the perfect pure force being for evil.

This one has always interested me.

Anakin did bring balance to the force, it was just misinterpreted by the Jedi. The Jedi were the overpowered faction at the time, so in order for one to bring balance to the force they rightfully had to join the dark side.

At the time of the Prequel Trilogy the Jedi were a large group, that pretty much held all the power in the galaxy.

The Sith were a back room organization that were in hiding and had very little influence or power.

By the end of those movies the force was balanced: you had Palpatine and Vader on the dark side, and Obi Wan and Yoda on the light side. A perfect balance.

The only reason the dark side truly took over is because after the Jedi lost all of their political power, and the mass numbers advantage the Jedi once held, both Yoda and Obi Wan gave up and went into hiding.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

This one has always interested me.

Anakin did bring balance to the force, it was just misinterpreted by the Jedi. The Jedi were the overpowered faction at the time, so in order for one to bring balance to the force they rightfully had to join the dark side.

At the time of the Prequel Trilogy the Jedi were a large group, that pretty much held all the power in the galaxy.

The Sith were a back room organization that were in hiding and had very little influence or power.

By the end of those movies the force was balanced: you had Palpatine and Vader on the dark side, and Obi Wan and Yoda on the light side. A perfect balance.

The only reason the dark side truly took over is because after the Jedi lost all of their political power, and the mass numbers advantage the Jedi once held, both Yoda and Obi Wan gave up and went into hiding.

Except that balance left the galaxy in darkness and firmly tipped to the dark side.

I've always believe that the idea of the balance of the force was that the force was light.

So when Luke got rid of the practitioners of the darkside, the force was left in a balance of goodness and not evil.

Its interesting because the Jedi had their prophesy about the chosen one, the sith in legends had their prophesy of a perfect dark being that was the embodiment of the dark side of the force. The Sith'ari.

Palpatine believed that it was him, and he was considered to be an event horizon of the force as pure of a dark side master as there was.

But you could argue that Anakin was both because for most of his life he was the embodiment of both.

[GGG]

I've thought that Ren saved Rey as his last bit of light. Snoke tells him to slay the Jedi in the academy but he can't kill Rey. It's his pull to the light that will eventually be his undoing.

Kind works if you put about 10 years of age between the two.

The line I question the meaning of in the movie is when Leia says I lost him when I sent him away. Is that sending him to Luke to fix him or is it sending him away after he kills everyone?

[MrMastodonFarm]

I took at as sending him away to Luke.

The opening scenes are much more interesting after a second viewing by the way.

[Roughneck]

Originally Posted by GGG

The line I question the meaning of in the movie is when Leia says I lost him when I sent him away. Is that sending him to Luke to fix him or is it sending him away after he kills everyone?

Sending him away to Luke, presumably.

Given the conversation it seems like he was showing Dark signs ('too much Vader in him') which prompted Leia to send him to Luke, and Luke wasn't able to stop him from going over.

[CaptainCrunch]

Ray Park with the Ren Sabre