Star Wars: The Last Jedi

The Last Jedi is the spark that lit the fire that fueled a whole lot of internet nerd rage.  That nerd rage is why I was a little reluctant to write down my thoughts on the movie and put them someplace the entire internet can see them (Not that the entire internet reads this, but you know what I mean).

The Last Jedi is a controversial movie.  Audiences either love it or hate it, seemingly without much in the way of middle ground.  The great thing about controversy in film is it allows you to form your own opinions.  If a movie is crazy popular, you are expected to see it and like it by default.  Love it or hate it movies generate more discussion because they bring out passionate reactions.  Viewers will talk more about them because they either want to understand the opposite point of view or covert the other party to their way of seeing things.

Most people who hate The Last Jedi seem to focus primarily on the way Luke Skywalker 'Acts out of Character'.  This is fueled in part by actor Mark Hamill expressing his concern over the way Luke was written.  Fans are rallying to defend Luke's honor, and I kind of get that.  But personally I thought his character evolution made a lot of sense?  So, I don't see what the problem is?

I'll get into my thoughts on Luke's character arc a little more later on, but first here's a list of things I did and didn't like.  Spoilers to follow.

Liked - - - Paige Tico and her relationship with her sister, Rose.  The movie opens with a big space battle and a heroic sacrifice from a character we'd never met before.  Paige is somebody we've known for only 5 minutes, but her death left a bigger impact for me than all of the deaths in 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' combined.  I enjoyed Rogue One, by the way.  Not hating on Rogue One.  Just stating the facts as I see them.  This death gives us clear cut motivation for newcomer Rose Tico, and was brilliant use of shorthand to make us like and care about her.  Unless of course, you aren't some one who liked and cared about her.  Seriously, why do so many people hate Rose Tico?


Liked - - - Poe Dameron's story arc.  After I saw 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' I was like - 'Yeah! That was so cool! I loved all the new characters, like Rey, and Finn and...um, was there a third one? I'm not remembering anyone else...'  Poe left zero impact on me in the previous installment.  He's really given a chance to shine this time around.  We have here a subplot about recklessness vs. responsibility, consequences for our actions, and how bucking authority so we can go do our own thing isn't always the best plan of action.  I felt like this was a deconstruction of Luke and Han's carefree daring-do in the original trilogy - you know, the way they just sneak around the Deathstar and always come up with a plan of action on the spot, sending the message that 'Yeah, you can totally live your life flying by the seat of your pants. It'll all turn out okay in the end!'  But it real life you can't always fly by the seat of your pants.  And sometimes our actions have consequences.


Liked - - - C3PO.  He didn't have a huge role, but he had more than a cameo appearance this time around.  This is the first Star Wars movie in a long time where C3PO shows up on screen and I wasn't going 'Why is he even here?'  In Rogue One - and again, I like Rogue One, C3PO have the worlds most pointless, most in your face cameo that was basically 'Hey, remember these guys? Well, they're still here!' and that really really irked me.  Either give the droids something to do, or cut them out entirely.

Liked - - - Rey and Kylo Ren's force head games.  Rey and Kylo Ren spend large portions of this movie communicating long distance through the force.  These were actually my favorite parts of the story.  It felt like a psychological thriller, and how cool is a Star Wars psychological thriller?  Rhetorical question, because it's all kinds of cool.

Didn't like - - - That casino planet.  This didn't bother me as much as some people, but visually the casino on Canto Bite really looked like something out of the prequel trilogy.  It felt out of place with the aesthetics of the rest of the film.  Now you could say that this is Disney/Lucasfilm trying to put a band-aid on the prequels - throwing in the occasional visual callback to the trilogy as if to say, 'Yeah, that kind of visual COULD work in Star Wars. See? It's not such a glaring anachronism!'  As the giant tentacle slug monsters Han Solo was smuggling in 'The Force Awakens' also look like something from the prequel trilogy this seems like a plausible theory.

Didn't like - - - So...BB8 has superpowers now...?  There's a scene on Canto Bite where Finn and Rose are escaping from a prison cell, and they round a corner, and BB8 is there with a bunch of guards who have been knocked out and tied up.  A wide eyed Finn asks, 'Did you do that?'  Funny moment right?  Right.  The problem comes later where they take it a little too far - a little over the top.  If you've seen the movie you know the part I'm talking about.  It's the part where Finn and Rose are captured by the First Order when somebody driving an AT-ST walker comes to their rescue...and it is revealed that that somebody...is BB8.  BB8 stole an AT-ST.  That's really over the top and really really dumb.

As you can probably see, things I liked vastly the things I didn't so far.  And the things I don't like are pretty minor.  They might take me out of the story for a few moments, but they don't ruin my overall enjoyment of the movie.  So, without further adieu, here's my read on the Luke Skywalker story arc.

 Luke has seen a lot since 'Return of the Jedi'.  In the original trilogy he was an Idealist, and now he is rather Cynical.  Can a series of traumatic events completely change one's world view?  Can idealism be crushed?  Realistically speaking, I think it can.  'Return of the Jedi' ends with Darth Vader returning to the Light Side and the Rebel Alliance overcoming the forces of the Empire.  But history has a nasty tendency to  repeat itself.  Between trilogies Luke attempts to restore the Jedi Order.  His apprentice Ben Solo turns to the Dark Side and tears down everything Luke had built.  The First Order rises, and from Luke's point of view everything he's fought for has been in vain.  This, quite realistically in my opinion, leads to apathy and depression.
 
Luke does what Obi Wan and Yoda did before him - decide that the problems of the galaxy are too big for him to face on his own.  He goes into a self imposed exile.  When Rey finds him he's had a lot of time alone to think about just how fragile the Jedi Order is.  How fragile it has always been.  Interestingly the writers of this trilogy seem to have swapped Luke and Han Solo's views on the Force.  In 'The Force Awakens' Han Solo has a little bit of Luke's Idealism: 'I thought it was a bunch of Mumbo Jumbo. A magical power holding together good and evil - the Dark Side and the Light? Crazy thing is...It's true. The force, the Jedi...all of it. It's all true.'  Han Solo has a new found faith in the Force, whereas Luke sees the Jedi order as something that does more harm than good that is always doomed to failure.

People make a big deal out of the flashback scenes where it's revealed why Ben Solo turned to the Dark Side - Luke foresaw that he would turn and tried to kill him first.  Fans everywhere where upset that Luke would try to murder his apprentice.  Except that's not what happens.  If you were actually paying attention to the story you'll notice that Luke never tried to kill Ben.  They explicitly spell out that in a moment of weakness the thought crossed Luke's mind, but he wouldn't have gone through with it.  LUKE DIDN'T TRY TO KILL BEN SOLO PEOPLE.  But Kylo Ren thought he did.  And that's why he turned.  It's like a Greek Tragedy where knowing the outcome of the future and trying to change that outcome causes the outcome.

And the other thing people complain about is the ending.  They think Luke didn't get the wow moment he deserved. To which I have to ask - did we watch the same movie?  Luke coming back when the rebellion needs him most to face off with Kylo Ren and the armed forces of the First Order - ALONE - so they could make their getaway.  And to me at least it really doesn't matter that Luke was just a force projection.  Let me spell out why.

Reason 1: This new Force Projection was really well set up.  In those scenes with Rey and Kylo Ren we see them touch hands through the force.  At one point Kylo Ren is sopping wet because it's raining were Rey is.  And when she fires a blaster at him, he's knocked across the room.  So whats going on in the environment where the Force User is projecting to has some effect on them.  Meaning that all of those shots that were fired at Luke and that part where Kylo Ren stuck his Lightsabre through his chest?  Yeah, Luke potentially felt every blow.  Also the fact that Luke is a projection is foreshadowed really well.  He doesn't leave footprints in the salt (Kylo Ren does) and he's using a Lightsabre that we saw get broken just a few scenes earlier.

Reason 2: The final battle really reminds me of the Spaghetti western film 'A Fistful of Dollars'.  In this movie Clint Eastwood returns to town specifically to rescue a hostage.  He overcomes the villains by using his wits.  Earlier in the movie the main villain, Ramón, whilst showing off his skills with a gun boasts about always shooting a man through the heart when he kills.  So Clint Eastwood's character stuffs a bulletproof metal plate up his poncho and taunts Ramón to aim for the heart.  Our hero appears to be bulletproof and the unnerves the villains, throwing them off balance, long enough for Eastwood's character to overcome the odds of their superior numbers.  

Luke basically does the same thing, outwitting the First Order, appearing unstoppable, and stalling them long enough for the Rebel forces to escape.  What I see as a 'Fistful of Dollars' homage makes me especially happy because Star Wars has always been heavily influenced by westerns and Samurai films - 'Fistful of Dollars' is a western remake of an Akira Kurosawa Samurai film 'Yojimbo'.

Reason 3: How would fans expect and actual battle between Luke, Jedi Master, and Kylo Ren, Darksider who was Snoke's apprentice until about ten minutes ago?  You expect Luke to defeat Kylo Ren, right?  I know I would.  But Luke couldn't have defeated Kylo Ren.  Because they need a villain for the third movie in the trilogy.  And I don't think Kylo Ren is strong enough to defeated Luke.  So the only possible outcome of that hypothetical fight is a stalemate.  Kind of like that fight between Yoda and Palpatine in 'Revenge of the Sith'.  Fights that end in stalemates tend to be disappointing storytelling decisions.  Having Luke not be physically there for the fight was a brilliant way to sidestep this problem in my opinion.

'So, why did Luke just die?' is something a lot of fans are asking.  Some think he died from exertion from the force projection.  A lot of fans resent this, saying that that's like dying because of a supernatural Skype call.  I'd disagree with that statement because of the way they showed us how force projection works.  If Luke felt the effect of every one of those hits - like Kylo Ren felt the effects of Rey's blaster - I think that would totally be enough to kill somebody.

Others think he died because he was a peace.  He did what he had to do.  He saw Leia one last time, he made up for just walking away from the rebellion by returning when they needed him most, and he made (albeit one sided) piece with Kylo Ren.  He had said at the beginning of the movie that he came to the Jedi temple to die.  He just had some things he had to do first.  When those were done he gave himself up to the force, just like Yoda did in 'Return of the Jedi' because there was nothing more he could teach Luke.  It's an ending that's open for interpretation.  Personally I thought Luke fading away while looking off at the sunset as that theme from the original trilogy played (you know the one) was a beautiful moment.

I liked 'The Last Jedi.'  Personally I liked it better than 'The Force Awakens'.  If you're wondering about my current ranking of Star Wars movies it looks something like this:

1: Return of the Jedi
2: A New Hope
3: The Last Jedi
4: The Force Awakens
5: Empire Strikes Back
6: Rogue One
7: Attack of the Clones
8: Revenge of the Sith
9: The Phantom Menance

-Geekboy.

Best Vs. Favorite: Geekboy Ranks the Star Wars Movies

So 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' just recently came out, and audience reaction has been pretty divided.  There are those who are saying that it's the best Star Wars movie since 'Empire Strikes Back,' and those who are creating online petitions for Disney/Lucasfilm to call a mulligan and REMAKE IT, BUT DO IT RIGHT THIS TIME.  If you ask me, it's pretty ridiculous for an audience to think they have any right to demand that storytellers tell a story the way that they think it should go.  I've yet to see it, so I can't way in on the 'best ever or the worst ever' thing.  I've just been trying my best to avoid spoilers, which is hard because I apparently spend 25 hours a day on the internet, and that's the place spoilers call home.

What I can do is ask a simple question: Who ever said that 'Empire' was the best one in the first place?  And yeah, before you say "Like, Everybody? Duh?" it's a rhetorical question.  What I mean to say it that 'Best' is a OBJECTIVE term.  It's a universal truth, rather than a preference.  'Favorite' is always a better way to describe a movie, because 'Favorite' is a SUBJECTIVE term.  Odds are good that that somebody out there really really hates your favorite movie.  Therefore your favorite movie cannot be the 'best movie ever' because best is a universal truth.

Think of it like you would your favorite ice cream flavor.  Is Mint Chip the best ice cream?  As far a universal truths go, that one is pretty debatable.  Is it one of my favorites?  Yup.  And I try to apply the same logic to movies.

And before you try to tell me that 'Empire' is the best from a critical standpoint, or from as storytelling standpoint, let's take a quick look at one of the first scenes in the movie.  It's the first scene where two of the characters we'll be spending way to much time with (AKA Han and Leia) interact.  And I find this scene really painful to watch EVERY SINGLE TIME.  So Han comes back from a scout trip and informs his superior officer that he's leaving the resistance to go pay off his debt to Jabba the Hutt.  Hey, good use of foreshadowing right?  Right.

 
 The problem is that Leia clearly shown within earshot and is presumably eavesdropping.  So anyway, Han goes over to say goodbye to Leia, and she gives him the royal brush-off.  So he leaves in a huff, and the next thing you know she's chasing after him, acting shocked that he's leaving even though she clearly overheard that he was leaving, heard him give his reasons for leaving, and he basically said 'Bye Leia, I'm leaving now. Here's lookin' at you, kid.'  The way this scene is written and edited together, in my opinion, makes Leia look really really dumb.  And we know Leia's not dumb.  So, tell me again how 'Empire' is the best from a storytelling standpoint?

A lot of Star Wars fans like 'Empire' best, and that's their prerogative.  There is this mindset though, that if you don't think 'Empire' is the best, you're somehow a not a real fan.  Except, going back to my ice cream analogy, there's no such thing as a best movie.  So, is 'Empire' really your favorite, or do you just like it because somebody else said it's the best one?  Because if it's only your favorite because a lot of people say it's the best, well, quite frankly that makes you a sheep.

Here's a list of the Star Wars series in the order of my favorites.

#1: Return of the Jedi: I love a good ending to a story.  'Jedi' isn't a perfect movie by any stretch of the imagination but that doesn't stop it from being my favorite.  In any good trilogy the final installment SHOULD be the most satisfying, because we've traveled with the heroes on their journey and have watched them grow into the characters that they're supposed to be.  Lately a lot of third installments have felt like disappointing cash grabs, like Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, but in the Original Star Wars trilogy and in Indiana Jones, this rule holds true for me.  My favorite part of 'Return of the Jedi' is the way our attention is divided between the Luke's fight with Darth Vader and the Emperor, Lando Calrissian's space battle, and Han and Leia's struggle on the Moon of Endor.  We cut back and forth between these three battles, and I'm equally invested in all of them.  It's pretty intense.  And the themes of redemption and the culmination of Darth Vader's relationship with Luke is so satisfying.  'Return of the Jedi' gets top spot from me.

#2: A New Hope: Hey, it's iconic.  The movie that stated it all.  It's hard to think Star Wars without thinking of Jawas, Obi Wan mentoring a young and naive Luke, twin sunsets, Leia's cinnamon roll hairstyle...the list goes on.  A well earned #2 spot, and if I wasn't more interested in the ending of story arcs then the beginnings, it would be an easy #1.

#3: The Force Awakens: Yeah, this is hard.  As something of an original trilogy purist, I was rather disturbed when I realized I liked this movie more than 'Empire.'  I have major problems with 'Awakens,' such as 'Starkiller Base' aka, 'we're too lazy to come up with an original plot device!' but I have more fun WATCHING this movie than I do 'Empire'.  And as this is a favorites list, not a best list, how mush fun I have watching a movie is pretty important.

#4: The Empire Strikes Back: Um, I enjoy all the parts that have Luke in them?  Here's the deal: Some of the SCENES in 'Empire' are my favorite SCENES in a Star Wars movie.  The fight with the Wampa, the battle with the AT-ATs, the stuff with Yoda...and then there are all the parts that have Han and Leia in them.  At least all the parts before Cloud City.  I really cringe at most of the romantic stuff in this picture.  And we spend so much time with Han and Leia, that Luke's scenes kind of make him feel like he's a minor character in his own story.

#5: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story: This is the best Star Wars movie we didn't need.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed this movie.  But when it was announced it felt like Disney was just making more Star Wars to make more Star Wars.  Your getting a new Star Wars movie shoved down your throat every year for the next six years whether you want one or not.  Oh, and we just canceled Tron 3.  That movie you actually wanted to see.  Because we're too busy making more Star Wars.  What I like about Rogue One is that they made it definitively a stand alone movie.  I respect Disney/Lucasfilm for not trying to create a dozen spin-off franchises with Rogue One.  That said, part of what I likes so much about 'Force Awakens' is the way it opened up new story telling possibilities.  It makes you excited for what comes next.  Rogue One is a good movie in it's own right, but it doesn't leave you wanting more.  It's biggest strength is sort of it's biggest weakness.

#6: Attack of the Clones: ...Is not a good movie.  It's a bad movie with a good movie trying to get out.  It's my favorite of the prequel movies because of it's potential.  Every now and then I remember how much I really hate the Anakin and Padme love story, and C3PO's awful string of one-liners in the climax - "This is such a drag!" and think of the parts I like - such as the assassination plots, the web of intrigue Obi Wan is slowly unraveling, that part where Padme is trapped in a crucible that's about to fill with molten metal, the dumb fun flying car chase, the dumb fun booby trapped conveyor belt, and the dumb fun arena fight.  If you're looking for a dumb fun action movie, this might just be the Star Wars for you.  If I turn off my brain and put on Nostalgia Goggles, there are parts of 'Attack of the Clones' I really enjoy.

#7: Revenge of the Sith: ...Is a better movie than Attack of the Clones.  A better Star Wars movie too.  Too many of the parts I enjoy about 'Clones' don't really belong in a Star Wars movie - they're more like a Cyberpunk B-movie version of Minority Report.  'Revenge of the Sith' is the only movie in the prequel trilogy that feels like Star Wars.  But refer back to my 'How much fun do I have watching it?' point from 'The Force Awakens' - I find 'Attack of the Clones' much more fun to watch, even though I think 'Revenge of the Sith' is a better movie.

#8: The Phantom Menace: ...Introduced Jar Jar Binks, Midi-Chlorians, and a child actor who does his best with the material he is given.  Qui-Gon-Jinn is a good character, but his introduction as Obi Wan's mentor seemingly contradicts the original canon - Yoda is the one who trained Obi Wan.  So much of this movie is either pointless, (like pod-racing) annoying, (like Jar Jar, Anakin, the Jedi Council, and Boss Nass) or contradictory to the cannon (like Midi-Chlorians and Qui-Gon).  Phantom Menace doesn't bring enough new stuff to the table to make re-watching it ever again worth my time.  It's the only Star Wars movie I can say that about.

So, That's my list.  At least until I see 'The Last Jedi.'  And I'd have to really love it or really REALLY hate it for it to replace my top or bottom slot.

-Geekboy

Geekboy's Movie Poster Collection: Part 1

So I just spent the last two weeks doing a massive remodel of my bedroom.  Throwing Spackle around, repainting, building new shelves, tearing out old carpet, and rearranging my furniture.  I decided I wanted some new wall art to go with the new paint job.  I'd found a dealer on Ebay who specializes in the reproduction of vintage posters at reasonable prices, and I'd been drooling over them for a while.  I finally took the plunge and purchased some of my favorites.

First up we have the 1941 Republic serial 'Jungle Girl'.  If you know me you know that this is my all time favorite serial, so picking up this one was an obvious move.

As this dealer also had the 1942 follow up, 'Perils of Nyoka,' I bought it as well so I'd have a complete set.

Third we have 1949's 'King of the Rocketmen'.  This is the first of four Republic serials to feature the Rocketman suit - the others being 'Radar men from the Moon' (1952) 'Zombies of the Stratosphere' (1952) and 'Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe' (1953).  Each of the Rocketman serials uses a significant amount of stock footage from the previous installments, so watching them back to back can get pretty redundant.

Fun fact: The Rocketman serials are the primary source of inspiration for Dave Steven's comicbook hero 'The Rocketeer'.

George Lucas also named one of the Clone Troopers from Star Wars 'Commander Cody' as a tribute to the character from 'Radar Men' and 'Sky Marshal'.

And finally we have the 1968 science fiction film 'The Green Slime'.  This is kind of the odd one out in a collection for Cliffhanger Serial posters, but it's an awesome poster and I wanted it, okay?

It may be an awesome poster, but the movie that goes with it is slightly less awesome.  It does have a rocking theme song though - give a listen here:

 -Geekboy.

Star Wars vs. Flash Gordon: Cloud City

It's no secret that Star Wars was partially inspired by Flash Gordon.  George Lucas stated in interviews that he was a big fan of the serial 'Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe' as a kid.  Pretty much any Flash Gordon fan will tell you that Cloud City was a visual nod to the flying city of the Hawkmen.  But it goes a little further than the striking visual of a city in the air.  There seem to be parallels in the events that take place on Cloud City, and even parallels of character arcs for Lando Calrissian and King Vultan.

In both stories our heroes are on the run.  Flash, Dale, Dr. Zarkov and Prince Thun are trying to escape from Emperor Ming.  They've been sent as slaves to the flying city but escape when the rocketship transporting the prisoners crashes.  They are later captured by Vultan and Princess Aura, who arrived in Vultan's kingdom ahead of them.

In 'Empire Strikes Back' Han Solo and Princess Leia are of course escaping from the forces of the Empire.  They land in Cloud City for repaired unaware that Boba Fett and Darth Vader have beaten them there.

King Vultan tries to add Dale to his harem.  'Empire Strikes Back' tones this down a little bit, but Lando does some non-stop flirting with Leia in front of Han.  What's that classic Cars song?  'Best Friend's Girl?'  Yeah, that's the one.

Both Lando and Vultan are authority figures in their flying cities, but they both bow to the greater authority of the Empire.  In both cases they are willing to turn our heroes over to the villains in the best interest of their city and the people they rule over.

So our heroes are now in the clutches of the villains.  Flash Gordon is tortured by Princess Aura because he has once again chosen Dale over her and she's a woman scorned.  Han Solo is tortured by Darth Vader because...well, dramatic reasons?  He's the bad guy.  Just go with it.

So here the stories deviate a little bit.  Lando's conscience finally gets the better of him.  He's growing more and more uncomfortable with his arrangement with Darth Vader, who has 'Altered the Deal' one time too many.  He and Han Solo had been old friends after all.  So he helps Princess Leia and Chewbacca escape so they can try to rescue Han from Boba Fett.

In Flash Gordon King Vultan and Flash are not old friends.  They are in fact enemies.  So naturally this plays out differently.  Flash and Zarkov escape to try and save Dale from Vultan.  While Flash is doing what he does best - the more active part of going to rescue, Zarkov is doing what he does best - working behind the scenes.  He sabotages the flying city.  It's no longer a flying city.  It's a falling city.

So they make a deal with King Vultan.  Zarkov will fix the flying city IF and WHEN Vultan lets them go.  They don't have a lot of time for negotiating, so naturally Vultan agrees to there terms.  King Vultan is so grateful when Zarkov fixes the city - even though Zarkov broke it in the first place - that he allies himself with our little band of heroes.

So when Ming shows up to take our heroes prisoner again Vultan intervenes.  Rather allow Flash to be taken prisoner he calls for 'The Tournament of Death!'  With friends like these, am-I-right?  So Flash must now fight in an arena for his life and freedom.

The two stories do play out differently, but there are parallels even in the differences.  Lando uses his remaining influence in Cloud City as a last ditch effort to rescue Han, Chewie and Leia.  Vultan uses the traditions of Mongo to give Flash a way to earn freedom for Dale and himself.

The similarities don't end there either.  Lando and Vultan both aid the heroes in battle later on in the story as well.  Lando Calrissian joins the Rebellion and leads the battle against the second Death Star in 'Return of the Jedi'.  King Vultan and his army of Hawkmen becomes one of Flash Gordon's greatest allies in his fight against against Emperor Ming.

As I said, Flash Gordon fans tend to bring up the Hawkmen and Cloud City when they talk about Flash Gordon's influence on Star Wars.  I can definitely see why.

- Geekboy.

Thoughts on Heroic Sacrifice

"Have you ever seen 'Pacific Rim?'" a friend of mine asked.  "Yeah," I answered. "Good movie, but it would have been better if the hero died in the end."  I'm given a strange look, and am left wandering if I sprouted an extra head.

(This post may contain spoilers for Pacific Rim, Spiderman 2, Cowboys and Aliens, and Suckerpunch)

In the climax of Pacific Rim, our hero pilots a disabled self-destructing mech into a portal to another dimension in the bottom of the ocean.  He sent his unconscious co-pilot girlfriend back to the surface in an escape pod, and we are led to believe that he is about to go down with his ship.  At this point in the movie, I actually started to believe that our hero might not live through the story, and that's something that rarely happens.  So, when he takes a second escape pod to the surface in the ta-da nick of time, I was pretty disappointed.  If he had died, it would have been a beautiful self sacrificing moment.  Dying to save not only the love of his life, but the world as we know it.  And as the hero had lost so much over the course of the story, for example the twin brother with whom he shared a telepathic link, loosing his life felt like a satisfactory end to his story arc.

Willingness to sacrifice ones self for others is a key part of the definition of a hero.  However, that sacrifice doesn't always have to be the protagonist's life.  Take 'Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back' for example.  Han Solo spends the entire movie putting his own needs - paying off Jabba the Hutt - to the wayside in order to ensure Princess Leia's safety.

Another good example is Peter Parker in Sam Raimi's Spiderman Trilogy.  In the first movie, Peter scarifies the possibility of a future relationship with Mary Jane Watson because his secret life as Spiderman could put her life in jeopardy time and time again.  In Spiderman 2 Peter gives up the happiness of a normal life to put on the Spiderman suit again because he knows it's the right thing to do.  Spiderman 2 has a powerful line of repeated dialog that rivals "With great power comes great responsibility."  The gist of it is this: "Sometimes to do what is right we must give up what we want most; Even our dreams."  Peter isn't the only one who gets a heroic sacrifice in this story though.  The villain Doc Ock conquers his inner demons and saves New York City, atoning for his wrongdoing while giving up his life and scientific ambitions.


So, heroic sacrifice doesn't HAVE to be a character's life, but it CAN be.
In the criminally underrated movie 'Cowboys and Aliens' our heroine, Ella, is an alien who's race have been pretty much been wiped out by the same marauding aliens invading Earth.  To ensure that no other planets will be ravaged like her own had been, she makes her way to the heart of the Mothership and blows it, the invading aliens, and herself sky high.

Themes of self sacrifice can be found all throughout Zach Snyder's 2011 film Suckerpunch.  There are parallels between the lives of 3 of the characters: Babydoll, who after a failed attempt to protect her sister from an abusive stepfather is thrown into an insane asylum to keep her quiet.  Sweet Pea is equally protective of her younger sister Rocket.  In a scene that parallels the abuse scene in the beginning, Babydoll comes to Rocket's aid when she is slapped around by an abusive cook.  After this Babydoll and Sweet Pea form a bond, because they are both looking out for Rocket, who is a sister to Sweet Pea and like a sister to Baby Doll.

They, and a handful of other inmates, attempt escape the asylum, and to do so have to fight through several visually spectacular dream sequences.  Several of the girls are killed along the way, including Rocket, who dies to save her big sister Sweet Pea.  In the end only Sweet Pea and Babydoll remain.  Babydoll realizes that the only way either of them can escape is if one of them distracts the guards and is recaptured.  She doesn't even hesitate.

In the beginning of the story Babydoll's abusive stepfather bribes an orderly at the asylum to forge an order to have Babydoll lobotomized so she couldn't testify against him.  In the end of the movie Babydoll allows herself to be lobotomized.  Afterwards the doctors discover that there was a mistake, and root out the cause of the injustice.  The villains of the story fall into their own trap, all because of Babydoll's sacrifice, ending the story on a beautiful bittersweet note.

I think if you want to make your hero stand out, a little selflessness goes a long way.  A heroic sacrifice of some kind might be the way to go.

How I Would Fix the Prequel Star Wars Trilogy

Welcome to the first installment of "How I would Fix" in which I and all of my Hubris take works of fiction that are less than critically acclaimed and try to make them better.

Have you ever heard of this thing called The Machete Order? The idea was to create an order in which one can view all of the Star Wars movies without pesky spoilers for first time viewers.  By watching A New Hope, Empire Strikes Back, Attack of the Clones (Phantom Menace is apparently skippable) Revenge of the Sith, and lastly, Return of the Jedi, one experiences the whole story, but all of the twists in Empire Strikes Back are left intact.

Which got me thinking.  Why didn't George Lucas just make the prequels in-between 'Empire' and 'Return'?  My idea is this: After the climactic battle with Darth Vader, Luke returns to Dagobah to finish his training, build a new lightsabre, and get some answers from Obi Wan Kenobi, before retuning to Tatooine to rescue Han.  After the whole 'You told me Darth Vader murdered my Father.' 'What I said was the truth...from a certain point of view.' bit from Return of the Jedi, Obi Wan launches into the story of what really happened.  The entire Prequel series is now a frame story, narrated by Obi Wan  Kenobi, and if possible all squished into one movie.

Because, lets face it.  How much of the Prequel series is really important?  The relationship between Obi Wan and Anakin.  Friends turned enemies.  Anakin's relationship with the Emperor.  The rise of the Empire.  And finally, the 'love story' between Anakin and Padme, which is only important to show that Anakin had kids.

If the story is told from Obi Wan's point of view, two of these four elements can be pushed to the back burner.  The love story can be in the background.  Hey, Anakin and Padme could potentially be married and the beginning of the story.  They could already have kids between the ages of 1 and 3.  The Emperor's rise to power can also be downplayed.  We know about the Empire from the original movies.  Do we really need to see the details?  We do need to see how the Emperor manipulates Anakin, but that's about it.  I think these elements could easily fit into one story.

The best part of all this is it fixes some of the problems with 'Return of the Jedi'.  That minor reveal about Luke and Leia?  After the BIG reveal about Darth Vader in 'Empire Strikes Back' it feels lazy, anti-climatic and tacked-on.  Now that would be revealed in back-flash form in this third movie, rather that at the last minute.

So.  That's my solution.  Rather then two trilogies, we have the Star Wars Quartet.

As for a title for this third movie, I would pitch: 'Star Wars: Rise of the Sith,' or 'Star Wars: Fall of Skywalker,' or possibly 'Star Wars: Legend of Vader.'

Let me know how you would fix the prequel Star Wars movies in the comments.

Thoughts on Star Wars: The Force Awakens

I was not exited when I first heard about this movie.

My initial reaction was: Do we really need more Star Wars?

Personally I see the original Star Wars trilogy as a self contained story.  The prequels don't really add anything.  Also, at the end of the day, they are rather disappointing.  So, from my point of view Star Wars was over.  There was no further need to explore the world.  Let's move on to new science fiction worlds.  How about another Tron sequel, Disney?  Please please please?  Nope.  Tommorowland and John Carter both flopped, so we can't have nice things.

When my friends asked me if I was excited for the new Star Wars, me response was a flat: "I'll allow myself to get excited about the next one if this one is any good."

Truth be told, I was skeptical of director J.J. Abrams.  I still don't like what he did to Star Trek.

Then the reviews came around.  For the first month or so, every review was positive.  After awhile, some of the hype died down, and people were actually allowed to criticize the film.  People started with all the "It's just a retread of the original trilogy...!" talk.

I don't go out of my way to avoid spoilers, so I read a synopsis of the film.  Just like the reviews said, it sounded like it was just a retread of A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back.

One of my siblings wanted to see Force Awakens at our  local second run theater.  I wasn't still wasn't thrilled about  the idea, but when it finally came to the cheap theater, but I E-mailed some friends and planned a movie night.  Because that's my purpose in life.  I plan movie nights.

(I have one job on this ship, AND IT MAY BE STUPID, But I'M GOING TO DO IT! Okay?)

So I was sitting in the darkened theater doing a pretty good job about staying neutral about the quality of the story.  Then the movie started.

I WAS PRETTY MUCH INSTANTLY HOOKED.

I had never seen a Star Wars movie in theaters before.  When the music starts, the title and scrolling cliffhanger serial recap starts rolling up the screen, YOU CAN'T NOT FEEL SOMETHING.  I was overcome by the nostalgia of having watched Star Wars as a kid.  As an adult who has also seen Flash Gordon, I also felt a bit like I was watching a modern day serial.  This must be what it felt like to come back to a theater each week to see the adventures of characters you know and love.

The story does play out in a way that is similar to A New Hope.  It really didn't bother me until the end though.  R2-D2 and BB-8 are very different characters.  Yes, there are parallels on missions and character, but they are different enough.

I find it interesting that, of the new characters who are central to the storyline, Rey is introduced last.  In A New Hope, Luke is introduced right in the middle.  Princess Leia, R2D2, C3P0, Luke, Obi-Wan, Chewie, Han Solo.  In Force Awakes it's BB-8, Poe, Finn, then Rey last.

And what an introduction!  Rey doesn't have ANY dialog for a good 3-8 minutes.  This reminded me a lot of Clint Eastwood's "Man With No Name" in "For a Fistful of Dollars."  Also, her top-knot hairstyle really reminds me of a Samurai.  Both of those things are appropriate when you consider George Lucas' inspiration included Flash Gordon serials, Akira Kurosawa Samurai films, and Spaghetti Westerns.

My favorite part of the movie, by far, is the bit where Rey and Finn first try to pilot the Millennium Falcon.  I love the part where the gun jams in one position, and Rey repositions THE ENTIRE SHIP so Finn can make a shot.  So awesome.

I'm not crazy about the way Han Solo is introduced.  It seems out of character for him to return to smuggling.  He had character growth in the original trilogy.  After his close call with Jabba the Hut, I'd think he'd be al little more cautious.  Instead he's double crossed two different individuals and HAS TWO DIFFERENT BOUNTIES IN HIS HEAD.  This feels more like fan fiction then something that would actually happen.

I also don't like the fight with the big tentacle monsters.  They look fake, and not like something that should be in Star Wars.  Maybe in the prequel trilogy, but not in REAL Star Wars.  Most of the best monsters in real Star Wars are barely seen.  The thing in the garbage chute?  We see a tentacle and an eyeball.  Also, these new creatures instantly eat the bounty hunters, but carry Finn around long enough to be rescued.  What's up with that?

Another thing is the humor in this movie.  It's very funny, but it's a very modern sort of humor.  I feel like the humor in the original movies has a timeless quality, and The Force Awakens will probably feel really dated in the next generation.

Now, my last gripe.  I promise.

Starkiller Base.

Basically a new Death Star

This is the repetition from the original movies that bothered me.

1. It didn't need to be in the story.
2. There is no tension.
3. I do not care about the large scale destruction when entire planets filled with people I don't know or care about are being destroyed.
4. It limits storytelling possibilities in the future.

What are they going to do for the 3rd movie in this new trilogy?  Build YET ANOTHER NEW SUPER WEAPON?

The thinking here was to give ace pilot Poe something to do in the climax.  It didn't work.  The stuff with Han Solo, Finn, Rey and Kylo Ren take up all our attention.  As it should.

But one of the things Return of the Jedi does PERFECTLY in the climax is give us three different battles and we are equally invested in each one!  We care about Luke and Darth Vader.  We care about Han and Leia.  We care about Lando Calrissian.

In The Force Awakens we completely forget about Poe.  And it's not fair.

It may seem like I criticized a lot about this movie, but I think it's important if we are to care about future Star Wars movies that we hold them to a high standard.  And I do care.  This movie helped me remember HOW to care.

One thing the ending of this movie did well was it got people talking.  It's a cliffhanger, but not one that leaves any of the characters in imminent peril.  So if the movie flopped, fans could live with it if Disney decided to never make another Star Wars movie again (as if that would happen).  It got people talking about what's going to happen next.  Myself included.

I told my friends I would be excited about the next one if this one was any good.

And I'm exited about the next one.