The new Star Wars movie (spoilers within!)

[planetary]

I thought it was very good!

A few plot holes and open questions ("Why is there a Resistance if the New Republic won the war against the Empire? What are they Resisting?"), but those are par for the course, and I'm willing to look the other way. And I'm even willing to ignore some of the more egregious eye-roll-inducing uses of Star Wars tropes ("Sait... another version of the Death Star?").

I appreciated the callbacks and references to the older films -- "everything old is new again" -- maybe you can criticize that director JJ Abrams used them a bit too heavy-handedly as he perhaps did with Star Trek: Into Darkness, but I think his skill as a director has improved here, and this is one of his best movies. At the same time, the mix generational mix of the cast was very good, and the new actors were pretty damn good, and carried the film well, I thought. The physical sets and practical effects were terrific, and still beat out CGI which made the prequel trilogy an abstract mess, in my opinion,

After only this first viewing, I'm placing it somewhere in the top 3 Star Wars films, but it's a close call among them. In any case, it's the best Star Wars movie in the last 35 years, and is well worth your time -- especially if the original trilogy carries any nostalgia for you. I need to see it another few times to really decide where it settles out.

But they got this one right, guys. Go see it.

[SCgarman]

I enjoyed it very much. And yes, I was 10 years old in the summer of 1977 and seen the original when it came out in the theater. Loved the mix of old and new. Harrison Ford did an awesome job for a 73 year old!

[perkinke]

Agreed. This one "felt" like the original trilogy while the prequels never really did. I like that they went back to sets and costumes rather than CGI.

[Jones]

I thought it was very good!

A few plot holes and open questions ("Why is there a Resistance if the New Republic won the war against the Empire? What are they Resisting?"), but those are par for the course, and I'm willing to look the other way.

They are resisting the first order. In return of the jedi all they did was destroy the 2nd death star. There is still a huge fleet of star destroyers and a large ground army.

My problems with the plot are 1. this new super death star was only protected by about 30 tie fighters. 2. The sith lord kylor Ren seemed to be an even match for 2 different people who have never even picked up a light saber before. 3. I dont think that storm trooper captain would have turned the shields off at gun point because of how they are trained and conditioned. Seems like she didnt really put a up a fight, and wasnt willing to die for the cause.

Overall though i would say it was good not great.

[perkinke]

The way I took the "new order" and "new republic" was that a portion of the empire remained after the rebellion succeeded in establishing the new republic. Po mentioned the new republic fleet at one point as well. The resistance seems to be an attempt to overthrow the new order from within.

[PigFish]

I enjoyed it very much. And yes, I was 10 years old in the summer of 1977 and seen the original when it came out in the theater. Loved the mix of old and new. Harrison Ford did an awesome job for a 73 year old!

... after crashing his Ryan at Santa Monica airport, I am hoping that they did not give him the controls of the Falcon once more!!!

I think his asteroid dodging days are about over!

-Piggy

[MIKA27]

It's a brilliant movie, watched it with my son on opening day, brilliant.

Vader still kicks ass over Kylo Ren IMO

[polarbear]

I enjoyed it

It felt like more of a reboot to me than a sequel

TFA followed much of the some plot as A New Hope in the whole, Droid lands on desert planet, finds random person and together they go one to defeat the death star and become Jedi.

Not complaining, good on JJ for recognising a winning concept and putting a bit more spin on it.

The "twist" at the end was too much of a shock, after I found out who Kylo Ren was, I pretty much knew where it was going, but still, a nice way to mix things up a little

All in all, a solid entry

Better than Jedi but not as good as Empire

[MIKA27]

9 cameos you'll never notice while watching 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'

Many are heading out to see "Star Wars" to see Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, and Mark Hamill reunite on the big screen; however, another reason to see the movie may be for the celebrity cameos hidden in the new film. We're talking about ones you never would notice upon multiple viewings of the movie.

It turns out a few famous faces are underneath some of those Stormtrooper helmets.

Keep reading to see who has a hidden role in "The Force Awakens."

Ewan McGregor and Alec Guinness' voices as Obi-Wan Kenobi can be heard in the film.

According to an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Ewan McGregor came in to do a quick voice over one day. Abrams then combined it with a portion of Alec Guinness' voice from the original trilogy.

You can hear their voices calling out to Rey during her flashback/flashforward moment in the line, "Rey, these are your first steps."

It's Guinness saying Rey.

Frank Oz returns as the voice of Yoda briefly.

In the same sequence, you can briefly hear Yoda's voice, too. Abrams tells EW the legendary puppeteer came in bring the character back to life.

“He was incredibly generous and came in to Bad Robot, where we had a recording area, and he was doing Yoda, saying a number of lines we gave to him," says Abrams.

Bill Hader was a voice consultant on droid BB-8.

"J.J. [Abrams was] f-----g around with this sound effects app on his iPad that was attached to a talk box operated by me," Hader told Hitfix. "It looked ridiculous but it made BB-8's voice. At first I tried doing a voice, but we all agreed it sounded too human."

Actor Ben Schwartz is also credited as a voice consultant on the droid.

Simon Pegg is completely unrecognizable on the desert planet of Jakku.

Pegg hinted he was playing some sort of creature in the film. Watch carefully and you'll notice the "Star Trek" actor is Unkar Plutt, the alien who gives Rey scraps of food in exchange for metal parts.

"The Maze Runner" star Thomas Brodie-Sangster pops up briefly as a First Order officer.

You can spot him near the beginning of the film warning one of the higher ranking officers there's a TIE fighter trying to leave the Star Destroyer.

Daniel Craig plays a Stormtrooper.

Craig doesn't play just any Stormtrooper. He's probably the funniest one in the movie. He's the Stormtrooper which ends up getting Jedi mind-tricked into dropping his blaster.

Apparently, the latest James Bond movie, "Spectre," was filming next door to "The Force Awakens," making it convenient for Craig to pop on over to the set.

Composer Michael Giacchino is a Stormtrooper, too.

According to /film, the composer, who has worked with director J.J. Abrams before on "Lost" and "Star Trek," also plays a Stormtrooper named FN-3181. He's the one who puts Poe Dameron in front of Kylo Ren at the film's start.

Radiohead's Nigel Godrich is also a Stormtrooper

We're just not sure which one. He's Stormtrooper FN-9330 in the credits.

Warwick Davis is in the film, too, but not as an Ewok.

The actor, who played an Ewok in "Return of the Jedi," can be spotted in Maz Kanata's castle as a creature with a short, pink snout, according to EW.

[skalls]

Thought the cast rocked it.

Han liking chewies bow caster was great. Humor in this movie was genuine and boy forced as in the prequels.

Empire is my best sw movie. New hope is #2 and I think I can place force awakens at #3

[irratebass]

Loved it & CHEWIE still rules!!!!!

I'm going again this Sunday to see it with my step-son.

[planetary]

I have heard it is excellent in IMAX (either 2d or 3d) so I'd like to go again in a big theater.

I would also like this movie to smash any remaining box office records held by Titanic or Avatar, to better excise James Cameron from our global consciousness.

[Pharmacovigilant]

Just got home from seeing it for the first time and I'm ready to go back again. Star Wars fans get everything they came to see and more. Loved the parallels between Rey and Luke. Can't figure out if she's his daughter or Han's. Will get my answer in 2 years. I have LCDH boxes aging for longer than that.

[MIKA27]

Just got home from seeing it for the first time and I'm ready to go back again. Star Wars fans get everything they came to see and more. Loved the parallels between Rey and Luke. Can't figure out if she's his daughter or Han's. Will get my answer in 2 years. I have LCDH boxes aging for longer than that.

If you have ever read the books, this one's pointing to be Luke's daughter IMO no doubt about it.

[perkinke]

If you have ever read the books, this one's pointing to be Luke's daughter IMO no doubt about it.

That was my thought too. I was surprised that i like BB-8 as much as I did, with all the marketing I was almost sure he was another Jar-Jar.

[MIKA27]

That was my thought too. I was surprised that i like BB-8 as much as I did, with all the marketing I was almost sure he was another Jar-Jar.

Look what Santa bought me, I mean... my son

[BuckeyeSmoker]

Just saw the movie and thought it was terrific. I will always view new Star Wars offerings with strong skepticism after the prequels, so i was pleasantly surprised. I know this another set of three movies so they cant give away everything in the first film, but i hate not knowing who Reys parents are. The movie seems to want you to think its Luke, which only makes me think it isnt. I wonder if we will end up finding out Kylo Ren is her brother??

[MIKA27]

Just saw the movie and thought it was terrific. I will always view new Star Wars offerings with strong skepticism after the prequels, so i was pleasantly surprised. I know this another set of three movies so they cant give away everything in the first film, but i hate not knowing who Reys parents are. The movie seems to want you to think its Luke, which only makes me think it isnt. I wonder if we will end up finding out Kylo Ren is her brother??

I believe Rey is Luke's child BUT.... Han Solo has three children, some interesting reading HERE

It could really swing either way and that's what they want us to ponder on until 2017.... Will be hard after The Force Awakens which was brilliant.

[BuckeyeSmoker]

Interesting. I know the movies aren't copying the expanded universe so do you think the three children will follow? If I had to guess right now I'd say Luke is her father, but there are some interesting theories out there (including she was a pupil of Luke's that kylo ren spared when he killed the rest, as he wasn't ready to kill family).

I believe Rey is Luke's child BUT.... Han Solo has three children, some interesting reading HERE

It could really swing either way and that's what they want us to ponder on until 2017.... Will be hard after The Force Awakens which was brilliant.

[MIKA27]

Interesting. I know the movies aren't copying the expanded universe so do you think the three children will follow? If I had to guess right now I'd say Luke is her father, but there are some interesting theories out there (including she was a pupil of Luke's that kylo ren spared when he killed the rest, as he wasn't ready to kill family).

I guess one never really knows until the next movie...? But that's a good theory you posted about possible pupil spared.. Never though of that.

[CdnLimitada]

They are resisting the first order. In return of the jedi all they did was destroy the 2nd death star. There is still a huge fleet of star destroyers and a large ground army.

My problems with the plot are 1. this new super death star was only protected by about 30 tie fighters. 2. The sith lord kylor Ren seemed to be an even match for 2 different people who have never even picked up a light saber before. 3. I dont think that storm trooper captain would have turned the shields off at gun point because of how they are trained and conditioned. Seems like she didnt really put a up a fight, and wasnt willing to die for the cause.

Overall though i would say it was good not great.

These are pretty much mine as well! I was really bothered with how the original showed the trials Luke had to go through to become proficient at wielding a sabre and yet 2 (!) characters just pick up the sabre and are a match or better than a sith?

The shield to the entire planet sized station can be deactivated with one person inputting a code?

And the biggest one for me was the map. Why did they need a map showing a trail to follow to find Luke? They have to follow that line exactly in order to find the temple? It was only a small piece of the map missing. Couldn't they check some of the remaining planets in the area for Luke?

Thought they followed the old format too much sometimes like

-the droid carrying vital information the bad guys need to track down and finds a key person on a desert planet (also seems to point to Rey being Luke's daughter).

-small band of resistance needing to deactivate shield of space station before it destroys said resistance.

Overall a good flick though

[Nrengle]

Popular theory is Rey is Luke's daughter since she was waiting for her parents on a "safe" planet like before.

My take is she's his daughter and mom could be captain Phasma. What makes me think this is she's the only trooper with a name and not a designation. She also cooperates somewhat unreluctantly with Chewie and Han knowing who they are but doesn't revel any of her identity.

Also the light saber called to Rey, just as her dreams of the ocean and island were more than dreams but visions to find Luke. It also makes sense of R2 waking after makes it to the resistance base. It can also explain her ability to be such a great pilot. Remember Luke was no slouch himself and well Anakin was supposed to be the best pilot Obiwan had ever seen.

As much as I'm bummed they aren't following any of the Expanded Universe storylines, I'm excited to see where this goes. And believe me there were some great stories in the EU. The Grand Admiral Thrawn trilogy would've made a great set of movies!

[Jeremy Festa]

Private screening today with my bro.

All time.

Adam Driver does an unbelievable job!

Sent from my iPhone

[westg]

Private screening today with my bro.

All time.

Adam Driver does an unbelievable job!

Sent from my iPhone

Your younger and much taller brother

[xtcat9k]

I have heard it is excellent in IMAX (either 2d or 3d) so I'd like to go again in a big theater.

I saw it on IMAX 3d and visually it was outstanding. The 3d was completely immersive and the scale of the IMAX really help with the wide shots.