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My inner geek has been reawakened, am I the only one? Got my tickets for The Science Museum Imax, one of the few places showing it in 2D (and on 70mm!).

I work in post production and have found excuses to go out to Pinewood Studios a couple times recently. They're doing Rogue One there at the moment (the spin-off about how the plans for the first Death Star were stolen) and I watched them shoot a scene involving a full size X Wing. They've just started building a full size Millenium Falcon on one of the sound stages too. Not sure if that's for Rogue One or episode 8.

Anyone else getting hyped for this stuff or is it just me!?

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Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

I think its safe to assume you are not alone

I'm excited, but I will probably do nothing about it, until very last minute. Potentially I will miss the premiere, because I'm incapable of planning, unless someone plan for me.

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eeee

Very very very very very.

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Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. [Lord Acton]
My own Google Earth Motor Sport file. http://www.mediafire.com/?jzm1ieatytv
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Very excited! But I stayed out of spoilers. I just want to know one thing who is the villain's name?

I think the bad guy is called Kylo Ren or similar.



I'm rather ambivalent. Star Wars I find terribly over-rated. I don't think it's bad, but I don't think the movies are all that great.

I'll go see it, and I'll be disappointed again. Didn't much care for Phantom, thought Attack of the Clones was a bit silly and had terrible dialogue but had some cool moments, thought the Clone Wars GCI film made the ending to Revenge of the Sith not work (some balls about high ground in lightsaber battles), RotS could have been done a bit better but was one of the better films.

I know it's acclaimed more than the rest, but I always found Empire rather boring. Even as a kid, I though the Ewoks would have been brutally slaughtered by the empire and killed that whole film for me really. Even in a story about people who can talk after they did and fight with swords made of light, that was a bit ridiculous.

But then Star Wars is kinda fantasy/sci-fi. I like my sci-fi to be pure sci-fi and I don't much care for fantasy type stuff in general, so that may be why. That would explain why I prefer the films with extensive space ship battles to a degree. (And I loved the videogames where space flight was the main thing. Rouge Squadron 2 on Gamecube was brilliant.)

I've learnt not to get excited over things anymore!

Absolutely everything in mainstream media is hyped up for so long before release that when it is finally out everyone's disappointed regardless of how good or bad it is thanks to the overly hyped build up and longing to see or play something. Also, I do remember how excited I was to see episode 1 with all the build up and a 15 year gap since Jedi came out. And look what happened there!!!

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There is no theory of evolution, just a list of animals that Chuck Norris allows to live.

Lord of the Rings was hyped but was amazing, all three of the films. JJ's Star Trek films are brilliant imo, therefore I expect to be equally impressed with the new Star Wars.

Hype is sometimes misplaced, but at least the trailers have gone down well it seems. So far, no Jar Jar Binks replacement has been seen thank god.

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Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. [Lord Acton]
My own Google Earth Motor Sport file. http://www.mediafire.com/?jzm1ieatytv
Follow me @asphalt_world

I enjoy the Star Wars universe more than the actual films. On paper the idea of wizard samurai should be awesome, but the films don't really focus too much on how awesome that is/should be. The original trilogy is more about Vader being evil, Luke and Leia having daddy issues, and Han Solo being a badass. The prequel trilogy is about that stupid Jar Jar Binks thing, trade routes, Samuel L Jackson not swearing, and Christopher Lee being a badass.

I'm excited to see what Disney can do with the awesome concept and no input from George Lucas, who has great basic ideas that he just ruins when he created when he tries to explain it a bit deeper. Disney have proven with the MCU and Pirates of the Caribbean that they have family friendly action films absolutely nailed, so I'm intrigued as how to how they take the genre.

I think a lot of the villains and how they relate to each other is still unknown. Some dude called Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) is being flagged as the main 'Vader-like' villain for this movie. But then there appear to be other significant villainous figures who may be more senior or may be part of a different group. I believe there's a General Hux and Andy Serkis plays 'Supreme Leader Snoke' (stop laughing at the back).

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Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

I've recently re-watched those prequels for the first time since their release. As a big cinema fan and a fairly big Star Wars fan I reckon the second one is the worst film I've ever seen. And I've seen Robocop 3. All the movies people generally go to for 'worst ever' status were made with no money, no talent and no resources. They have an excuse. Attack of the Clones and the other two don't have any excuse. But everything that was bad about those things was down to George Lucas, and he's nothing to do with this new trilogy. I'm setting myself up for another fall here but I've decided to believe!

_________________
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

Is Attack of the Clones the one where they talk about intergalactic trade routes for 4 hours? (or at least it feels that long)

That's The Phantom Menace. Attack of the Clones is Obi Wan Kenobi and Anakin moaning about each other in front of terrible CG backgrounds.

_________________
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

I think that was Phantom Menace and Clone Wars, with the invasion of Naboo being part of a way of blocking trade routes from the trade federation on the instruction from the Sith. Then it carried on into Clone Wars with Jar Jar being the new representative of Naboo in the senate. Either way, it was basically a means to an end fir the Sith in founding the empire and the Jedi had to try and stop them - which is what they should've focused more as opposed to getting I to the politics behind the their schemes.

The Phantom Menace as a whole has little redeeming features for me. At least with The Clone Wars if you skip the senate and the Anekin/Padame scenes it's an ok film. Episode 3 I actually thought was a decent film all round and is definitely my favorite of the 3 prequels.

Edit: And At the Robocop 3 comment from Balibari!

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There is no theory of evolution, just a list of animals that Chuck Norris allows to live.

I stand corrected. Guess my memory just melted those films together. Darth Maul is the only thing I actually remember from Episode 1.

That's an enviable position to be in!

_________________
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

I'd rather watch Robocop 3 than any of the pre-quels.

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Shoot999: "And anyone who puts a Y on the end of his name as a nickname should be punched in the face repeatedly."

Phantom had some great lightsaber stuff in it. This is one of the key things making me prefer the prequel trilogy in general. I hated Podracing. I didn't much care for any of the Anikin scenes (child actors are a neccessary evil though I guess). Midiclorians or however you spell that term was cringe worthy. As a fantasy element (given the nature of the force, I think most would agree it's fantasy not sci-fi) they don't need to explain it, and doing so made it less pleasant. I get they needed a definitivie way to say this guy was likely stronger with the force than anyone else, but I didn't like the way they came up with. I did actually like trade routes and the background of the democracy they had and the diplomatic role of the Jedi. I thought it was interesting the switch from political to military type group over the prequels.

I didn't much mind Jar Jar Binks given the other crap Star Wars has pulled. One guy being annoying is less of a crime then the goddamn EWOKS. The Empire couldn't be the Empire if they could be beaten as easily as the Ewoks do to that force. Darth Maul was cool, and the saber staff was really cool. Obi-Wan surviving the Darth Maul fight was ridiculous - I could kill a Jedi from that position. I know it's for drama and all that, but again, I feel they could do it better.

Episode 2 does feature some of the worst dialogue I've heard in well received films. Also Younglings... The Lightsaber stuff at the end with Ani, Obi-Wan, Dooku and Yoda was absolutely top class. I really liked this whole section of the film, and it made the start of the 3rd film better for it's inclusion.

Episode 3 was a really solid film I thought. I'd have had some more Jedi as minor characters so their deaths meant more. I didn't feel there was much emotional impact outwith Windu. Every other Jedi we actually cared about survived. And the dialogue during the big finale is dire. And the high ground thing wasn't exactly strongly established as a thing that was of great usefulness in lightsabering. And is pretty much not held up in any situation outwith that scene. That's just lazy to me. I need foreshadowing, or perhaps I just need more obvious foreshadowing.

I also hate the concept of utility droids having personalities. If you make a friend/substitute person then have a personality. For military droids that just stood in a line and shot, this seemed odd to me.

I know this sounds like a total trolly insult the thing you guys like post, but it's not meant to be. I'm by no means a fan, but I do appreciate the films and I do think that if some of the things I perceive as flaws were taken out, I'd love this stuff.

I will probably go see it eventually, but probably not on launch. I may just need to stay off the internet over xmas.

I didn't completely hate the prequel trilogy, actually agree with Mac D here, the lightsaber duels were much more visually interesting and better choreographed than any of the lightsaber fights in the original 3. I think its telling that my favourite of the films is The Empire Strikes Back, the battle on Hoth is awesome. When star wars is doing huge futuristic fights and space battles is when its at its best. The whole Jedi fighting thing was always a bit boring in the original 3.

I know people rag on the plots of the prequel trilogy, but the original 3 were not a great deal better. Star Wars never did have a good plot. The huge plot convenience that is the Ewoks has already been mentioned, but the Luke being able to fly out of that exploding death star is such total bull and there are many other parts that are equally stupid and pulled out of thin air to justify the stuff happening on the screen.

I am still interested in the new film, the signs are we might even get a semi-decent plot for the first time in Star Wars history. My big hope is that they take the much more thematic Jedi fights from the prequels, the awesome space battles from the originals and meld them into something truly great. Fix the awful dialogue and plot star wars has always had and you could have a film that stands head and shoulders over everything else in this universe.

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The two most powerful warriors are patience and time…so remember: great achievements take time, there is no overnight success.

Saz and Mac D, though I'm obviously not in agreement with much of what you say I completely respect the fact you've thought about these films critically and come away with things you like and don't like. I've found recently most people who like the prequels blindly defend every aspect of them and take criticism personally. So much of this stuff is subjective at the end of the day. For me a light saber duel was as much about being an extension of the combatants emotion as anything. Yes they're much less spectacular in the original trilogy, particularly the one in A New Hope. But they meant more. Obi Wan sacrificing himself to allow the others to escape in A New Hope. Luke acting on impulse with uncontrolled aggression in his duels with Vader. There's a palpable emotional investment to what they're doing. As impressively choreographed as the Darth Maul fight in ep1 (or Obi Wan vs Anakin in ep3) might be, they don't carry any emotional weight for me. I don't care about the characters and I don't know what's at stake. For example, what difference would it have made if Obi Wan had lost the fight at the end of ep 3? Everyone was still dead. Anakin had still turned to the dark side. As I said, this is subjective stuff... unlike the writing!

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Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

That's a good read regarding the lightsaber fights and points well made regarding how they affected the story more in the originals and are more showy in the prequals. But going back to your OP, I'd have thought that if you work in post production (didn't know that btw, and without going too off topic, which aspects?), you may actually appreciate how the film looks/sounds etc than the script and story.

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There is no theory of evolution, just a list of animals that Chuck Norris allows to live.

Kind of stoked but we will see, the first 3 are ace and I liked revenge of the sith because it keys you into the idear that this saga is the story of vada's redemption which was very cool considering it plays out mainly as the good vs evil sherazz that is to much the main stay of most storys.

Ironically I don't really like that super modern slick look. I enjoy mainstream nonsense like The Fast and the Furious as much as anyone, and CG has it's place. But for me it's just used too much now and combined with the reliance on green screen backgrounds and extensive colour grading (have you noticed how dark and cyan most sci-fi movies are nowadays?) the standard look of a big budget genre movie is too clean and artificial. Maybe it's partly connected to my job. I used to be a compositor but ended up working on a Wayans Brothers 'comedy' in which one of them pretends to be a midget pretending to be a baby so he can steal something. That was pretty much it for me and visual effects. Now I mainly make title sequences but I've spent a lot of this year on the new Frankenstein movie doing some colour work.

_________________
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

Some good points, pro & con, here but here is my basic take on the whole series.

The first film, Episode IV, was the only one that could've (maybe should've) stood on it's own as a single story although left some back story that left itself open to filling in without it being necessary.

Episodes V & VI were okay but didn't fill in much of the back story that I thought would be there and instead tried to build on the first movie without adding much. The Ewoks made me want to puke.

Episodes I-III lost me as soon as the having the level of a persons ability to feel and use "The Force" be something that can be measured with a Star Trek tricorder. Boom! There goes any mystery of an intangible universal force and it's just a genetic mutation that can be found using an at home test from the drug store.

That said I will go to see the new one in the first week it's out.

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{Insert clever sig line here}

After watching Phantom Menace in the theater, I didn't think I would ever be excited about a Star Wars movie again. I don't think that I've seen more than bits and pieces of episodes 2 and 3.

I was watching Monday Night Football when the new trailer debuted and suddenly I was 14 again. I watched the trailer over and over. Many of my (non-local) friends are going to see it the first night, or the first weekend. I probably won't be among them, because many theaters will sell out and I don't want to pay to potentially watch a movie from a bad seat. So I will probably wait until around New Years to go see it. I am cautiously optimistic. As others have stated, Disney and JJ Abrams have both done well bringing other peoples' properties to the big screen and made very enjoyable films that didn't trample and disregard the source material. I didn't think I would ever be excited about a Star Wars film again, but I am.

I've just watched the new trailer and OMFG! Forget what I said before - I AM SO F*CKING EXCITED FOR THIS NOW!!!!!!!!!!

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There is no theory of evolution, just a list of animals that Chuck Norris allows to live.

I’m not a cinema person but definitely looking forward to this one (on the pretence of taking my nephew of course).

My mum took me to the ‘first’ star wars film when I was just a nipper and it was the most amazing thing! I’ve been hooked on sci-fi ever since, but star wars always makes me a bit sad and nostalgic because I think back to 1978 and the sense of awe and wonder us kids felt at that time, and I don’t see anything today that evokes that same emotion and excitement from kids the same age as I was, which is a real shame (or am I wrong and just getting old?).

No, you're right! I remember growing up in the late 70's/early 80's and having only 3 tv channels and no VHS or Betamax. So going to the cinema was a massive deal! Nowadays, young people have so much as standard such as on demand film and tv on everyday things like phones and huge tvs (I remember having a 14" and thinking when my dad got a 24" how massive it was!) that just cause something on a bigger screen, doesn't make that special.

But after watching the latest trailer, there's no pretence at all for me, I'm off the midnight showing on release day with a 40 year old friend of mine at the same 20's cinema that I saw Jedi in back in '83

Edit: Not that its a bad thing what kids have got today, I'm not going off on a 'back in my day' type rant! It's just already a very different time to when I grew up.

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There is no theory of evolution, just a list of animals that Chuck Norris allows to live.

He he, glad to hear it's not just me , and I have to admit I'm a bit jealous of you going to the midnight showing.

But my goodness yes I do remember how big a deal it was going to the cinema back in the day, and I agree it’s not a bad thing what kids have today, I just think it’s a real shame that there seems to be no sense of awe and excitement that accompanies that any more.

Talking about your dad's TV reminded me of the first time I was allowed to take the old black and white 'portable' TV (portable if you had a van) to my bedroom - didn't matter that is was black and white when the highlight of the week is 'Hammer house of horror'! but a TV in the bedroom when I was was that age was an opluent, futuristic, and decadent marvel - doesn't get any better than that!

Anyway sorry to go off subject - Yay Star Wars is coming!

That....can't be.

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"No, there is no terrible way to win. There is only winning."
Jean-Pierre Sarti

Hey now..... Let's not say things we can't take back.

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"No, there is no terrible way to win. There is only winning."
Jean-Pierre Sarti

I saw the original Star Wars film in 1977, and a few years later, I fell asleep during the second film. Clearly, the Force (to stay awake) wasn't with me...

By contrast, I saw 2001 at least 10 times in the cinema, including travelling to London especially to do just that...

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Use every man after his desert, and who should scape whipping? Use them after your own honour and dignity.

Maria de Villota - Jules Bianchi

I'm with you. I have a 5 and nearly 3 year old and it's incredible to think what they have available to them. We've got a 3TB drive plugged into the TV and loaded with all the older ones favourite TV shows and movies. It's all just there for her. When I was about eight I had a VHS of Star Wars recorded from the TV and another of Yellow Submarine. That was it. Later I'd stay up excited to see something like a Hammer movie or any sci-fi I could find on TV. Part of me likes that I've been able to expose my eldest to so much I love, part of me laments they'll never have the thrill of finally finding the gem they've been searching dusty video shops for. It's hard to see what can engage kids again in the way Star Wars did for me. The studios have become too good at knowing what we want and every week there's a new Marvel (or whatever) movie that would have been the most amazing thing to my 10 year old self, but is now just more of the same. It's nice watching things through my nearly 3 year old's eyes though. Because he hasn't been swamped by recent movies yet A New Hope is the pinnacle of mankind's achievements to him. At the moment he asks to watch it several dozen times a day and goes nuts whenever he sees Chewbacca in a shop. I guess one day it will be just another franchise to him.

_________________
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

2001 is the only film I have as strong a connection to as Star Wars. In fact in my Letterboxd favourites list it's the only film above it. I'm Kubrick crazy, to the point my son is named Stanley and my daughter is Daisybelle, inspired by the song Daisy Bell that HAL sings as he's being shut down. I should probably be embarrassed...

_________________
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

Another favourite of mine was Barry Lyndon, but I'm not a particular Kubric fan. I didn't like The Shining much and I thought Eyes wide shut was boring. But 2001 is in my top 3 and unlikely ever to drop down the order.

Having said all that, I met Ewan McGregor 5 years ago, and was unaware he was huge to Star Wars fans...

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Use every man after his desert, and who should scape whipping? Use them after your own honour and dignity.

Maria de Villota - Jules Bianchi

I'm surprised that 2001 is a popular film tbh. So much of the exposition was left out of the film because it was in the book (which is absolutely superb), that large parts of the film don't make any sense (including the entire ending sequence involving Dave travelling to the other side of the universe) without it.

Cool

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Räikkönen - Vettel - Bottas
Thank you Nico - You´re the champ!

PF1 Pick 10 Competition 2016: CHAMPION (2 wins, 8 podiums)

I think that opaque, amorphous aspect is fundamental to the film's appeal. Put simply it makes you think. You have to work for answers, which can make an experience more satisfying. There's also the constant and tantalising thought that you don't know how much more there is to unravel. I also love the book, it's more literal approach works perfectly in that context. But, I believe, it would limit the scope and effectiveness of the film. Intriguingly Clarke and Kubrick co-wrote the book simultaneously will the film. It's a misconception that the film is based on the book. Clarke claims Kubrick made significant contributions to the novel, which was completed at about the same time as the film and released soon after. It makes it all the more interesting that there are significant aspects that are very different, it's not just the presentation.

I feel I have a pretty good handle on the whole thing, even the befuddling ending. Briefly and simply: Dave is transported through space by the star gate. He arrives in a chamber created by the alien intelligence. It looks like a slightly wrong Louis 14th era French apartment because that's the imagery the intelligence has chosen (either from Dave's memory or it's own knowledge of earth) in order to create an environment vaguely familiar. You could say it's what the alien imagines homes on earth to look like. Dave then ages and at the moment of death the monolith reappears and he is reborn as the Star-child, the next step in man's evolution. He then returns to earth. There's more going on but that's the bare bones. You don't need to read the book for that (I can't actually remember how the book ends now, I read it a long time ago and only once). All the information you need is contained within the film but you need to unpack it and make sense of it. You also probably need to see it several times and if it doesn't engage you the first time (which is completely understandable) you're unlikely to come back to it or spend much time thinking about it afterwards. It's uncanny how often people say they didn't like it until seeing it a 2nd or 3rd time.

But then I'm such a Kubrick geek I think Eyes Wide Shut is one of the best films of the last 20 years!!

_________________
Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?
-Epicurus

I too like Eyes Wide Shut and probably don't know anyone else who does, and this has always baffled me somewhat. Then again I find Clockwork Orange a bit overrated, so I probably have a little strange taste in films...

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Räikkönen - Vettel - Bottas
Thank you Nico - You´re the champ!

PF1 Pick 10 Competition 2016: CHAMPION (2 wins, 8 podiums)

Yes, you hit the nail on the head when you said ‘what they’ve got available to them’….

I think I might be a couple of years older than you, but I always remember what made it special for me was; cinema and even ‘a video’ back then exposed you to something that absolutely wasn’t available on normal TV, which isn’t really the case anymore, and that’s what made it so special – it was more scary, gruesome, more edgy, better special effects (which was a big deal back then (who here remembers trying to pause a video in an ‘old’ horror video at the gory bit for example (Omen 2) when the chap gets cut in half in the lift (elevator) etc. )).

The first ever video as a youngster I secretly watched with my pal was ‘The Manitou’, which blew our mind! I found it recently on youtube and kids these days would probably laugh at how pedestrian and unexciting it is…

Oh well, the joys of being old eh!