Star Wars VII and the Return of the Cynics

Before we get into the subject of the blog post, let me make a disclaimer: I don't hate cynics. It's good to have these kinds of people in our lives to help us take a reality check sometimes, or be realistic, or see the other side of a situation, or the more negative aspects of a topic...the list goes on. In fact, some of the movie characters I enjoy the most are cynics.

Case in point. Who doesn't love Anton Ego? 

Cue the music! STAR WARS!!! 

Yes, that's right! The official trailer for Star Wars VII is here!!! Watch it now! 

So let's go through a scene-by-scene analysis: 

(1) Lucasfilm Ltd. slowly fades in on a black screen. The excitement starts to build. How many times have you seen that logo before watching a great movie about a galaxy far, far away? 

(2) The music fades in. And the excitement/nostalgia increases. Not to mention, you get an awesome long shot of the Tattooine landscape, a familiar sight from "A New Hope." Looking good. Looking good. 

(3) Someone's zooming by on a speeder. What's that in the background? Oh, sweet! It's a Star Destroyer that crashed in the sand. That's cool! Fade to black. 

(4) Voiceover: "The Force is strong in my family." Close shot of the Darth Vader mask, pretty banged up and kind of deformed, but still distinguishable. Creepy but cool. "My Father has it." So it's Luke talking, which you may have already guessed, since this quote is in "Return of the Jedi." 

(5) Fade to black. Cut to scene of R2-D2, and a person in a black cape kneeling beside him. "I have it." The person reaches out and touches R2 with a mechanical hand. (A little odd, considering that Luke's prosthetic hand in Star Wars V actually looked very realistic.) 

(6) "My sister has it." Scene of a lightsaber being handed to someone. It looks like a girl's hands. All right. Is it Leia? Fade to black. 

(7) "You have that power, too." And the music builds to the dramatic theme that we all love while the magical words appear on the screen: "This Christmas...." Cue excitement and drumroll on the desk that I was sitting at when I watched the trailer for the first time. 

(8) Cue lots of action scenes giving subtle hints at the plot and content of the movie, culminating in the MILLENNIUM FALCON (AHHHH!) being chased by a TIE Fighter. Fade to black. 

(9) Voiceover: "Chewie..." Fade in (much older) HAN SOLO and CHEWBACCA, and Han says, "We're home," while grinning in that way that only Han Solo can. And add to that cheers and gleeful exclamations by me: "Oh my gosh!! YES!!!!" 

So there you have it. My reaction to the trailer for Star Wars, Episode VII: The Force Awakens. 

Now I consider myself an avid fan of Star Wars. I didn't see IV, V, and VI very early in my childhood, but once I did see them I was hooked. Han Solo was my favorite (obviously), closely followed by Luke and R2-D2. I loved the movies, collected the action figures, read whatever I could manage at that age (but, let's face it, chapter books that are 300 pages or so when you're not even in middle school yet can be a struggle), and even started writing a story of my own that took place in a galaxy far far away. 

I watched I, II, and III eventually, and I liked them, though not as much as IV, V, and VI. Over time, though, I did get more critical of I, II, and III and started thinking about why they just weren't as good. 

The Phantom Menace had some good points. Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi for instance. Qui-Gonn Jinn was also pretty cool, and I liked little-kid Anakin. Jar-Jar Binx was funny, but...well, he wasn't smart. Pod racing is cool, but...the Millennium Falcon is cooler. And the bad guys just weren't as interesting. The fight with Darth Maul was pretty awesome. But, all other things considered, it just wasn't all that good.

Attack of the Clones wasn't much better. Again, Ewan McGregor did a great job of keeping things interesting. Obi-Wan's investigation and encounters with Jango Fett were pretty cool, and he's got some great one-liners. Anakin and Padme's so-called romance, though, really killed it. Ugh...just...no. I'm sorry, George Lucas, but romantic films are definitely not your forte. Things got better with the Jedi Battle. Mace Windu was pretty awesome in that whole scene. But, apart from that...not a whole lot to be said.

Revenge of the Sith: The beginning made you think: "Oh hey, this is pretty cool! Maybe this one will actually be pretty good." But...once we're back on Couruscant, ...no. More poorly written romance dialogue between Anakin and Padme. (Ughhh...make it stop!) (I will say that Anakin's reaction to being a dad is pretty great. But after that... :P) For the third time, Ewan McGregor saves the movie from complete disaster. He and General Grievous were pretty cool (and Boga! Love Boga.).

But yeah...overall, kind of a bummer. 

So, of course, cynics being what they are, when people who claim to be true fans of the movies see other people who are also true fans of the movies getting excited about Star Wars VII, the inevitable Facebook status appears: 

"I don't see what everyone's so excited about. Everyone was excited about The Phantom Menace, and look how bad that movie was." 

Okay, killjoy. Thanks for your perspective. And, I might add, there's one thing that The Force Awakens has that The Phantom Menace didn't and it is definitely worth consideration. What on earth could that be? What indeed....

Han Solo of course! The Phantom Menace did not have Han Solo, or Chewbacca, or the Millennium Falcon, or really anything that was essential to the awesomeness of IV, V, and VI. So there. 

More seriously, though...

Lots of people are saying that Star Wars VII will not be as good as IV, V, and VI. Okay. I'll agree with that. But, here's the shocker. That is OKAY! IV, V, and VI are awesome because they are the originals and they introduced us to the world of Star Wars.  You don't get better than the original.  Every once in a while you'll get a killer sequel; but something always remains special about that first movie, usually because it was where we first got to know our favorite characters, worlds, dialogues, etc.  Whatever it is that you love about IV, V, and VI, you love them because they are what they are.  Obviously, VII is not going to be IV, V, and VI, so it's not going to be as wonderful as IV, V, and VI because VII is not IV, V, and VI.  You want to know the secret to enjoying the movie? Let Star Wars VII be Star Wars VII.  One of the great ways to enjoy movies is to let them speak for themselves. 

Obviously, I don't go into movies with absolutely no expectations. That wouldn't make sense because in order to be Star Wars it has to carry on the legacy of Star Wars using many of the techniques, worlds, characters, etc. from the originals.  It would be like forgetting who I was on purpose so I could focus on the goodness of this week; but that wouldn't be good because I'd forget a week that had informed my life and personhood. And...you can't just wipe things from your memory. Not sure if that makes any sense; but I was trying to be philosophical.  

At the same time, though, I go in with the attitude of giving the movie a chance.  I believe that there's got to be something good about this one, and I decide to look out for it. Star Wars movies are meant to be enjoyed. So, I'm going to walk into that theater a day or two after Christmas with an optimistic but informed mindset.  

I'd also like to take a moment to talk about how I, II, and III weren't (and in some ways couldn't be) better than IV, V, and VI.  

Remember that the storyline of the prequels is a descending one, not ascending. It is the story about how Anakin was good, and then turned evil.  It's not going to be a happy story.  It's going to be about a lot of his mistakes and poor choices.  The originals, on the other hand, are about rising out of the ashes and restoring freedom from the emperor's tyranny.  That's a brighter and more enjoyable story (unless you like sad stories).  

Anakin and Padme's romance, if we may call it that, was just...not good. As I think about it, there really is nothing selfless about it. The most beautiful relationships are the ones where one makes sacrifices for the other.  I can't think of a time at all where Anakin sacrificed something for Padme, or where she did the same for him.  Anakin defends her, yeah. But a bodyguard can do that, too. It doesn't make it romance. And, they kind of dragged each other into dangerous situations in Attack of the Clones. Padme was too stubborn not to do anything, and Anakin didn't care about stopping her, even though he knew it was going to be dangerous. The indifference there was annoying.  So...the relationship seemed based solely on emotions and not actions. (Han and Leia on the other hand: end of VI. Look at what Han says to Leia. "You love him, don't you? ...That's all right. I understand. When he comes back, I won't get in the way." Aww! He's willing to let her go, even though he loves her, because he thinks that she's in love with Luke.) 

Corruption: we like it when the protagonist overcomes corruption and rises above it. Well, given the storyline, Anakin doesn't do that. He falls to the emperor's lies and deception. 

The originals are just a lot more fun to watch than I, II, and III.  In the prequels, you're watching characters make mistakes and suffer, and go lower and lower (in Anakin's case), and their actions hurting those around them. The originals are about friendship, working through differences, working together, struggling and fighting together, and all for the common goal of making the galaxy a better place to live.  

I think Star Wars VII has that positive storyline going for it. It's coming after the good stuff, so maybe it will be about more good stuff. Of course, it can't all be good or else there'd be no conflict and that would be a boring story.  It's also called "The Force Awakens," and the teasers have hinted that the Dark Side is returning. That should be interesting to see! But the overall theme of the trailer isn't a dark one, so I think that there is, forgive my pun, hope (a new hope, if you will) for VII.  It already seems to have some of the great elements of Star Wars as a whole going for it. Also, in the history of the movies, when it's not George Lucas directing the movies they tend to be better.  And George Lucas isn't directing VII, so I think the story stands a good chance of being good. I'm curious to see the plot revealed and unfolding.  One thing's for sure: come Christmastime, I will be making a trip to the theater.  

Now, cynics will be cynics, and without them we probably wouldn't take a more critical view of things, which we need to do sometimes.  But I would say this: don't judge or criticize people for being excited about the return of Star Wars to the big screen. If you really love Star Wars, you should be excited about this too, and give the movie a chance to carry on the Star Wars legacy.  It's great just to see the galaxy far far away returning to the big screen. After the movie comes out, make your judgments then, and I will listen to you. But don't crush people's hopes before the movie even has a chance to run. Let us revel the moment: Star Wars is back and we are excited!!!! 

Until next time, "May the Force be with you."