Film: First Thoughts on Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

It's finally here:  the first teaser trailer for the next Star Wars film.  It's been almost ten years since the prequel movies were rounded off, fifteen years since they were first released, and 37 years since the original came out and rocked most of everybody's world.  Since the prequels, LucasFilm has left Fox and joined up with Disney, much the same way as Marvel left Fox and Sony to join Disney.  You might think it's weird for Disney, the company best known for animated classics like Mickey Mouse, would take the reigns for the Star Wars franchise.  Truth is, George Lucas probably can't ask for a better studio partner, given that Disney will leave creative control to him, but still provide a proactive role as producers, marketers, and distributors.  They are currently planning for a whole slew of new movies, which not only include Episodes VII, VIII, and IX, but also a number of spin-offs for all the different characters (such as Yoda and Boba Fett).  As for the next episode, Lucas has relinquished the director's chair to JJ Abrams, the man responsible for 2009's Star Trek and its sequel.  I know Abrams gets a lot of flack for his jittery camera work and use of lens flares (and fans have griped a lot about the storytelling decisions in the new Trek films), but if Super 8 was any indication, the man has a certain heart and energy that's on-par with the early works of Spielberg.  Letting Abrams direct may be the best decision Lucas has made of late, not only because Abrams will undoubtedly make an exciting film, but also because Lucas' direction has not been all that endearing; the prequels undoubtedly still leave a bad taste in people's mouths, due to the acting, writing, and massive use of CGI.

Even I will say that it's easy to get burned out on Star Wars.  I've always been a shameless fan, and I've ignored most of the movies' shortcomings up till now.  Only now will I admit that, yes, the prequels are rather bland, the acting is rather bad, the Ewoks are kinda dumb; I think it's only my personal maturity as a film viewer that has allowed me to put aside personal preference and recognize the films' critical shortcomings. Above all though, the whole saga has been spread so far and wide, across all manner of films, TV shows, books, games, and more, that it can become hard to get enthused about something that's been done and redone repeatedly.  All that being said, I do think the saga overall has been the brunt of a lot of undue hate, thanks to fans ravenously complaining about the prequels and changes in the original films, causing them to all cry out against George Lucas himself like he's the son of the devil or something.  Seriously, one of the sentences I hate the most is  "George Lucas raped my childhood," and it's regurgitated day after day across the Internet.  Although I understand the meaning - that a person's most influential childhood film has been defiled - I personally think it's flaky that one's entire childhood can be nullified by something new.  As I see it, childhood is an intangible essence that's come and gone, and can never be taken away from someone (unless we develop the technology to alter memories).

In light of the love/hate relationship people now have for Star Wars, I have no doubt that people will look at the upcoming film with reservations.  I do believe that we shouldn't have anything to worry about.  Lucas' role in the next film has been purely in the creative process, leaving the actual film-making to other hands; the things that made the prequels weak shouldn't carry over.  Folks may have their own reasons to hate Abrams' direction, but aside from how he handles the camera, I think we can all count on him capturing the same nostalgic magic that has been desired since the original films.  We can always count on the films looking good, with no expense spared on each set, prop, costume, vehicle, weapon, or special effect.  If there is anything to worry about it's where the story's going.  Rumors about the sequel trilogy have been floating around since the 80s, but from the few who've read the story treatments, the feedback has always been positive.  The real icing on the cake may be the return of the original cast and crew members - they may be aging a lot, but they will be familiar faces playing familiar roles, and they will undoubtedly stir up some kind of emotional fervor in all us fans.

Filming has been ongoing over the past year, with extreme secrecy and a lot of rumors floating around (the same tactics Abrams used in the Trek films to dissuade leaks; any rumors you read online should be dismissed as disinformation until you hear otherwise).  Finally, we have a first glimpse of the upcoming film, thanks to the following trailer:

My reaction to this trailer is naturally positive.  It's short and doesn't reveal much, but I personally prefer it that way, so as not to ruin too much of it all when I finally see the film.  I'm especially enamored by the way the camera focuses on a desert, before John Boyega's head appears (it's almost like the way The Good The Bad and the Ugly started off).  The look of panic on his face definitely warrants interest.  The scene with the X-Wings over water is a thing of beauty.  And, of course, the final shot of the Millennium Falcon is incredible.  It does prove that Abrams will use some pretty wild camera moves here, but I was personally impressed by the way the camera tracked it upside down and everything, while still giving us a good view of the ships' details.  It's exactly the kind of thing that made the original films so good - the slick combination of unique camera work, editing, and special effects.  That scene in the trailer generally reminded me of the Falcon's approach to Yavin IV, or the Death Star battle, all of which had pretty wild camera moves for their time.

Here are some more specific thoughts on what I've seen in this trailer:

• John Boyega's brief scene seems to suggest that he's in distress (some would even joke that he's really one of the troopers in the first film, still looking for those droids).  It may be speculation, but the current belief is that he'll be one of the main characters - a stomtrooper who defects and joins the main characters.  Could this mean that he's part of a unit that goes through some kind of traumatic event? Could it be connected to the next shot showing advanced stormtroopers on a dropship?
• I got to admit, the "football" droid is pretty weird.  Not sure what to think of that at this time.
• The design of the new stormtroopers look great; it's just like the classic design, but seems sleeker and more futuristic.  The question now is, can they actually shoot straight?
• Not sure who the woman is who mounts the flying hovercraft and takes off, but it is a cool-looking vehicle, and she looks like an interesting rough-around-the-edges character.  Could she be a merc? A bounty hunter? An assassin? A heroine? Just another working-class citizen of Tatooine?
• The shot with the robed figure seems to have caused some controversy, thanks to his bizarre lightsaber with the added blades on the hilt.  Many people are asking what the point and practicality of that is; others defend it saying that practicality in Star Wars is a moot point.  I personally do think it's a cool-looking lightsaber; it is something new and unique.  I also learned that it's been used before in other media.  The bigger question should be directed at the figure himself.  Who is he? Some have speculated that Darth Revan will be the villain of the movie.  Others have suggested Darth Plagueis.  In any case, it sounds like the Sith are definitely going to be the source of the overall conflict.
• The various designs of the pilots and X-Wings look on-par with the original films.  It is quite refreshing and exciting to see things match up with the older films (I've read plenty of people griping about how the prequels looked "too shiny and new").
• You may notice that the Millennium Falcon now has a square radar dish.  You might think that's odd, but do remember that the original dish was knocked off the dorsal hull while Lando flew inside the Death Star II.
• You may notice that the words "Episode VII" don't appear anywhere.  It remains to be seen whether those words will appear in the film's opening crawl (they most likely will), but the omission in the marketing will likely keep it in line with previous sequels (Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi never had episode numbers; they were really only needed in the prequels, to let people know that they are in fact prequels).  I personally like the way the secondary title squeezes in between the Star and Wars.

That's pretty much all we can extrapolate from this brief one-and-a-half minute clip.  There's still no telling how this new storyline will play out, but after thinking it over some more, I have my theories.  Given that all the trilogies up to now have followed the same basic pattern, then it may be safe to say that Episode VII will follow after Episodes I and IV.  Meaning, it will likely start with some kind of battle, causing a spaceship crash on Tatooine (it was confirmed in some news I read that a ship does crash on a desert planet).  Given that we see a troubled stormtrooper in the middle of the desert, perhaps it's the stormtrooper dropship that crashes or suffers some major incident, causing this specific trooper to desert and find help elsewhere on his own.  Maybe he'll group up with a bunch of new heroic characters.  Of course, the Falcon is seen flying over Tatooine, so maybe it's the ship that crashes (or maybe multiple ships crash, and the stormtrooper winds up allying with Han Solo and other heroes).  In any case, the heroes will undoubtedly gather on Tatooine, before taking off on some new adventure.  There are rumors that Luke Skywalker will become a Jedi so powerful that he can move mountains (which may be true, given that everybody in the original films claimed that he would be more powerful than Darth Vader).  He may even be a recluse up to this point (which seems to fly in the face of what's in all the books, but unfortunately, it is confirmed that the Extended Universe will be ignored for the next batch of films).  Above all though, I realize that the film will have to go above and beyond the normal scope of previous Star Wars films to confront the main antagonists who have always existed, but never really made a full-blown appearance.  The other movies have been about the rise and fall of the Galactic Empire; I believe this next film (and probably the two that follow it) will indicate that the Empire is just a small part of a larger Sith conspiracy to defeat the powers of good or light.  The most well-informed fans will know that Anakin Skywalker was actually the result of a Sith plot by Darth Plagueis, who manipulated life (midichlorians) to create "The Chosen One." Chances are that this will play into the next few stories to create an overarching conflict between good and evil.  This could be similar to the scope of Mass Effect, which started off small (colonies under attack), but eventually ballooned into a galaxy-wide struggle between various forms of life; I can easily see Star Wars going the same route, starting off with the galactic politics scene, but ballooning into a much larger struggle that will put earlier events into a new perspective.

I think it is exciting-looking stuff, I do believe Episode VII will be a great film to look forward to, and I already can't wait for next year when it comes out.  It remains to be seen whether general audiences will embrace the new film or not, but the film will surely make millions no matter what.  As the hype continues to build and I'll undoubtedly be geeking out over every other detail that emerges, I am confident that this will be one of the biggest movie events since Marvel's Avengers (although Avengers:  Age of Ultron will be a huge competing force next year).  I'm certain that I'll love Episode VII all the same, and I'm sure that other devoted fans will too.  It's an exciting time as ever to be a Star Wars fan.