The seventh installment of the beloved film franchise created by George Lucas premiered on Philippine cinemas yesterday. Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens is set thirty years after the conclusion of the last film in chronology, Return of the Jedi. Given the conclusive ending of Jedi continuing the franchise seems irrelevant, but within that thirty year gap in-between what is now past and present a new conflict has arisen in contrast to the new hope that Episode IV had.
Since the film's development was announced many fans believed that Episode VII will reinvent Star Wars, and while it did in more ways than one Episode VII also celebrates what the previous six films in the franchise have accomplished, and it aims to reintroduce the franchise to a new generation (and completely disregarding the Extended Universe).
I'm just gonna put this here, I cried the moment the opening crawl started and John Williams' music graced my ears yet again from the big screen. Chills? Heck yeah I had chills.
The story of Episode VII is almost, if not wholly, parallel to Episode IV (see Spoilers section below), and even the most recent of fans can (and should) notice the similarities from the get go. The circumstances to which these similarities occur differ, though since Episode VII plays more on nostalgia and the concept of 'returning' while Episode IV is more on starting anew. That said, it's amazing how Episode VII parallels Episode IV, focusing on the new characters being mentored, in a way, by the returning cast, but still keeps everything fresh. However because of the abundance of characters and overlapping scenarios expect plenty of switching from one scene to another to create a narrative that is driven by character interactions.
The new main characters and how they are all connected is the main focus of the story. The emphasis is placed on character development, though, and any backstory is only hinted. Their life stories are likely to be told in the next two sequels, and hopefully no detail should be spared as Finn and Poe seem to lack any proper motivation to why their character are they way they are in Episode VII.
Perhaps the only big revelation throughout the whole film is that the main antagonist, Kylo Ren, is Han and Leia's son. How he came to be in the Dark Side is, again, only hinted and vaguely explained. We are sure that he was tempted by the power of the Dark Side, but it is still unclear what really happened between Kylo Ren and Luke Skywalker for the former to align with Dark Side despite being trained by the latter Jedi.
Aside from the main conflict between the Resistance and the First Order which is almost the same conflict between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance, each of the main characters have their own internal conflict (save for Poe, that guy lacked screen time) which brings them down to a more humane level. While Luke was guided by Obi-Wan for the majority of A New Hope, Rey is alone and, for the most part, only had herself to depend to even at the climax of the film against Kylo Ren.
Rey displayed tremendous control of the Force in such a short time and for once in a Star Wars movie the Dark Side looked weak in the face of the Light. There are some hints that Rey might eventually fall where Luke rose above. Luke was tempted to go to the Dark Side but he resisted, Rey on the other hand is fierce yet she still wonders to herself where is the right path for her. By the end of the film she finds it in the form of an aged Luke Skywalker but instead of asking to be trained by the Jedi, she looks to be returning the Lightsaber to its previous owner. Whether Rey accepts her calling or not, it's interesting to see which path she takes on the next episode.
The film playing the nostalgia card was a given since it was announced a few years ago, and it played it well. Episode VII is the proper continuation of the film franchise that concluded more than thirty years ago of course someone, if not every single moviegoer blessed by the grace of Lucas and his Star Wars franchise, is going to cry purely because of nostalgia.
From its signature opening crawl, Han Solo and Chewy running on screen, Leia's reunion with Han, all the way to Luke removing his hood and staring at a potential new Jedi as the film closes, nostalgia is generously sprinkled everywhere. However, it's not all about nostalgia that makes the story more relevant than it already is, even the simple conversation between characters stuck in the middle of another war brewing is made special because of how much thought was put into making the characters look helpless and struggling to escape their situation.
Star Wars Episode VII is definitely a new hope for the franchise. This first film in a trilogy (the sequel trilogy, as it should be called) isn't perfect but it sets the franchise to a new thoughtful, sentimental, and emotional new direction. It is action-packed, humorous, charming, and visually dazzling like how the original trilogy would be viewed by an extra layer of rose tinted glasses.
Star Wars Episode VII is a must watch...
Now go watch it.
SPOILER SECTION
*
*
*
*
*
And then there's Han Solo. He can't be dead, right? I mean, that was such an unceremonious way to go for such a beloved character.
Here's a snip of the table I made out of Excel. It contains the parallels between A New Hope and The Force Awakens. It's also filled with spoilers so feast on it if you haven't watched the movie yet:
 |
| theatrical poster |
I'm just gonna put this here, I cried the moment the opening crawl started and John Williams' music graced my ears yet again from the big screen. Chills? Heck yeah I had chills.
The story of Episode VII is almost, if not wholly, parallel to Episode IV (see Spoilers section below), and even the most recent of fans can (and should) notice the similarities from the get go. The circumstances to which these similarities occur differ, though since Episode VII plays more on nostalgia and the concept of 'returning' while Episode IV is more on starting anew. That said, it's amazing how Episode VII parallels Episode IV, focusing on the new characters being mentored, in a way, by the returning cast, but still keeps everything fresh. However because of the abundance of characters and overlapping scenarios expect plenty of switching from one scene to another to create a narrative that is driven by character interactions.
The new main characters and how they are all connected is the main focus of the story. The emphasis is placed on character development, though, and any backstory is only hinted. Their life stories are likely to be told in the next two sequels, and hopefully no detail should be spared as Finn and Poe seem to lack any proper motivation to why their character are they way they are in Episode VII.
Perhaps the only big revelation throughout the whole film is that the main antagonist, Kylo Ren, is Han and Leia's son. How he came to be in the Dark Side is, again, only hinted and vaguely explained. We are sure that he was tempted by the power of the Dark Side, but it is still unclear what really happened between Kylo Ren and Luke Skywalker for the former to align with Dark Side despite being trained by the latter Jedi.
Aside from the main conflict between the Resistance and the First Order which is almost the same conflict between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance, each of the main characters have their own internal conflict (save for Poe, that guy lacked screen time) which brings them down to a more humane level. While Luke was guided by Obi-Wan for the majority of A New Hope, Rey is alone and, for the most part, only had herself to depend to even at the climax of the film against Kylo Ren.
Rey displayed tremendous control of the Force in such a short time and for once in a Star Wars movie the Dark Side looked weak in the face of the Light. There are some hints that Rey might eventually fall where Luke rose above. Luke was tempted to go to the Dark Side but he resisted, Rey on the other hand is fierce yet she still wonders to herself where is the right path for her. By the end of the film she finds it in the form of an aged Luke Skywalker but instead of asking to be trained by the Jedi, she looks to be returning the Lightsaber to its previous owner. Whether Rey accepts her calling or not, it's interesting to see which path she takes on the next episode.
The film playing the nostalgia card was a given since it was announced a few years ago, and it played it well. Episode VII is the proper continuation of the film franchise that concluded more than thirty years ago of course someone, if not every single moviegoer blessed by the grace of Lucas and his Star Wars franchise, is going to cry purely because of nostalgia.
From its signature opening crawl, Han Solo and Chewy running on screen, Leia's reunion with Han, all the way to Luke removing his hood and staring at a potential new Jedi as the film closes, nostalgia is generously sprinkled everywhere. However, it's not all about nostalgia that makes the story more relevant than it already is, even the simple conversation between characters stuck in the middle of another war brewing is made special because of how much thought was put into making the characters look helpless and struggling to escape their situation.
Star Wars Episode VII is definitely a new hope for the franchise. This first film in a trilogy (the sequel trilogy, as it should be called) isn't perfect but it sets the franchise to a new thoughtful, sentimental, and emotional new direction. It is action-packed, humorous, charming, and visually dazzling like how the original trilogy would be viewed by an extra layer of rose tinted glasses.
Star Wars Episode VII is a must watch...
Now go watch it.
SPOILER SECTION
*
*
*
*
*
And then there's Han Solo. He can't be dead, right? I mean, that was such an unceremonious way to go for such a beloved character.
Here's a snip of the table I made out of Excel. It contains the parallels between A New Hope and The Force Awakens. It's also filled with spoilers so feast on it if you haven't watched the movie yet:
 |
| click the image to enlarge |
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