Category: Star Wars

Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion (2014) – Series Premiere

140 Character Movie Review – #140RVW

If you sat out The Clone Wars, drop your principled stand or risk missing a new series with the timeline & spirit of the Original Trilogy…

Spoiler-free Movie Review of Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion:

For all of the great things about Star Wars fans, they can be seriously stubborn. Many will not partake of anything Star Wars except the 6 feature films – and many of those would stop at the original 3. I have met serious fans who will not watch this or any other animated show, and it’s entirely their loss…

A very gifted group of individuals poured their heart and soul into creating Star Wars: The Clone Wars, a CG-animated series that ran for 5 seasons on Cartoon Network. After the purchase of Lucasfilm by Disney in 2012, all thoughts were turned toward returning to the timeline of the Original Trilogy and the planned sequels. The show was dumped to another time slot before being unceremoniously and unwisely cancelled in 2013. Fans of the show, aware (thanks to the fantastic communication of show-runner Dave Filoni) of a backlog of content already in production, wondered if any of the material would see the light of day. Filoni and his team were allowed to cobble together what they could finish with reasonable effort and expense, and fans had to wait until March 2014 for the abbreviated 13-episode 6th season (“The Lost Missions”) to be put out exclusively on Netflix.

The output of the show was 125 episodes and a feature film – that’s approximately 48 hours of new content set in the SW galaxy! That’s not counting the 25 mini episodes of the first Clone Wars 2D-animated micro-series by Genndy Tartakovsky from 2003-2005, which would bring the total to 150 episodes and 50 hours. That’s almost four times as much Star Wars content as the feature films provided – but since these weren’t the original films, some weren’t interested. That’s just very silly to me. Don’t make the same mistake by skipping Rebels.

For the kick-off of this new series, they tied what would have been the first two episodes together for a tv movie event titled Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion. Disney actually screened the movie one week early for users of it’s WATCHDisneyXD.com service prior to the television debut on Friday, October 3. I caught the show early, but due to the twin roadblocks of a regular job and a rather verbose writing style, I’m not getting my review out until the day after the official premiere. Sigh…

Interestingly, the show premiered on the same day that the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series debuted in the US six years earlier in 2008. Rebels has already been renewed for a second season by Disney, and it’s likely to be be a big part of the lead-up to the future films.

Star Wars Rebels is set five years before the events of Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, when the few remaining Jedi are scattered and the Empire is in full swing. It’s an awesome time in the saga, full of potential and depicts what it was like before Luke and company started wrecking the place. Knowing more about the height of the Empire is fantastic, and I suspect I wasn’t the only kid wondering what happened in the years leading up to the original movie. I’ve always considered this era the most fascinating and I can understand why Disney wanted to quit the Clone Wars and get back into the Tie Fighters.

The promise of this time still needs to be backed up with good stories, and they seem to be on the right track. The series opens by following the exploits of an orphan named Ezra who scratches out a living on the streets before running across the path of a team of semi-criminals out to steal the same cargo of the Empire. The group of malcontents make up the crew of the starship Ghost and contain a diverse set of personality traits that seem to have been picked by focus group for maximum interest. That’s not really a bad thing, just be aware that you may experience sensations of déjà vu with some of this. The parallels to Firefly and other stories are unavoidable.

It is undeniably a kids show; I’m not sure why that’s supposed to be a problem. The original films were for kids, no matter how many fanboys insist otherwise. The Clone Wars was a kids show, albeit one that covered terrorism, suicide and torture at times. Depending on your perspective, being “for kids” is either a tremendous insult or a promise. Being “for kids” can certainly imply a dumbing-down, but it also hopefully carries the suggestion that you’re in for a good time; that the work in question will be meant to be enjoyable. That’s really important.

And Rebels fulfills on that promise. Watching the premiere event was like watching a movie and a fun one at that. As much as I loved The Clone Wars series and admired the skill involved, it never really was able to completely capture the spirit of the 1st film. That’s not a criticism – it was depicting a different, more complex time and a sensibility to match. Of course the subject matter of the original films was never soft – they do have the word wars in the title after all – but the spirit of adventure made it all seem more fun and carefree than it really was.

From the moment you see Stormtroopers march on screen you can’t help but be transported to that time and feeling. I can’t overstate how enjoyable it was to see Tie Fighters streaking across the skies and hearing the familiar sounds of their cannons and the troopers blasters.

The story is good, not great, and I’m absolutely certain that the show will have a cartoonish feel at times. The previous series certainly did and so did the films – yes, even the OT. The Clone Wars series seemed to alternate at times between adult stories too dark to let my daughter watch and ridiculously silly stories too goofy for me to watch. But most of the episodes lived in the comfortable middle ground where everyone could enjoy the wonder of the this galaxy and I expect Rebels to do the same.

I really shouldn’t have to sell you on this series – the images of Stormtroopers and Star Destroyers ought to do that. If you’ve complained in the past that nothing since Return of the Jedi has made you feel like you did when you played with your Kenner figures, give this a try. Don’t sleep on Star Wars Rebels; it’s going to be very good…

Poster:

Trailer:

Bechdel Test:

Pass

The Representation Test Score: C (5 pts)

(http://therepresentationproject.org/grading-hollywood-the-representation-test/)

[schema type=”movie” url=”http://www.starwars.com/tv-shows/star-wars-rebels” name=”Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion” description=”Star Wars Rebels, set five years before the events of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, tells the story of the Rebellion’s beginnings while the Empire spreads tyranny through the galaxy. Five years before the events of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, the reigning evil Empire continues to tighten its grip of power and fear throughout the cosmos. But even amidst the tyranny and oppression of these dark days, a glimmer of light emerges. Meet the ragtag crew of the starship Ghost : Twi’lek pilot Hera, street-smart pickpocket Ezra, team leader Kanan, alien enforcer Zeb, explosives expert Sabine, and Chopper, the cantankerous Droid. Together, they embark on action-packed adventures, battle ruthless villains, and ignite the very first Spark Of Rebellion against a surging tide of Stormtroopers, TIE fighters and the mysterious Inquisitor.” director=”Steward Lee” ]

Main Cast	Taylor Gray Ezra Bridger (voice), Vanessa Marshall Hera Syndulla (voice), Tiya Sircar Sabine Wren (voice), Steve Blum Zeb Orrelios/Alton Kastle/Stormtrooper (voice)
Rating	PG
Release Date	Fri 03 Oct 2014 UTC
Director	Steward Lee
Genres	Animation, Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Plot
Poster
Runtime	60
Tagline
Writers	Dave Filoni (created by) &, Simon Kinberg (created by) …
Year	2014

October 4, 2014

George Lucas in Love (1999)

140 Character Movie Review – #140RVW

Incredibly clever and funny send-up of both dubious Best Picture winner Shakespeare in Love and the Star Wars legacy. Very cute this is…

Spoiler-free Movie Review of George Lucas In Love:

A great reminder of the innovation and creativity found in short films, George Lucas in Love is a perfect satire and simply a lot of fun.

The story finds a young Lucas at USC film school in 1967 with a case of writer’s block. Everywhere around him are interesting characters, but he’s still struggling to finish his screenplay. With the help of fellow student Marion, he sees the world around him anew.

This film is just a ton of fun. Sight gags and Star Wars references are everywhere. It’s cutesy and gimmicky of course, but it’s a short film. By the time you start to wonder how long they can sustain this – it’s over. If you haven’t seen it, you’re in for a (short) treat!

Poster:

Trailer: (Actually, the whole thing)

Bechdel Test & The Representation Test Score:

Skipped for short films.

[schema type=”movie” name=”George Lucas in Love” description=”1967 film student George Lucas has writer’s block trying to finish his “Space Wheat” script, until a beautiful fellow student with a familiar hairstyle teaches him that the best stories are in plain sight.” director=”Joe Nussbaum” actor_1=”Martin Hynes” ]

Main Cast	Martin Hynes George, Lisa Jakub Marion, Jason Peck Benji, Jeff Wiens Aaron
Rating
Release Date	1999
Director	Joe Nussbaum
Genres	Short, Comedy, Romance
Plot	1967 film student George Lucas has writer’s block trying to finish his “Space Wheat” script, until a beautiful fellow student with a familiar hairstyle teaches him that the best stories are in plain sight.
Poster
Runtime	8
Tagline	Dozens of years ago, in a nearby galaxy…
Writers	Joe Nussbaum (story) &, Timothy Dowling (story) …
Year	1999

July 17, 2014

Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)

140 Character Movie Review – #140RVW

I don’t care what you say, I really like this movie. Does it have problems? Does it ever. I don’t fault anyone who hates it. But I like it.

Spoiler-free Movie Review of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace:

I am an unapologetic Star Wars nut. I will start this review by stating that I would rather watch a bad Star Wars movie than many good movies. So that should hopefully frame this review; my credibility is wobbly when it comes to the Wars…

So many people get so incensed about this film. I have no interest in fanning the flames. If you hate it you have lots of company and nothing I say will change your mind. I am nearly incapable of hating a Star Wars movie. When something makes you incredibly happy and then later iterations are awful, it’s hard and disappointing and a host of other things. But I still struggle with hate. Just like Van Hagar albums or Godfather III, the originals have amassed so much good will with me that I can’t totally condemn later stuff. I can even find a few good things to say about St. Anger (if I stop and think about it for a real long time)…

You’ve already spotted all of the problems with this movie – I’m not going to point out anything that hasn’t been noted before. But I can’t be convinced that we aren’t better off with this movie and the prequels themselves than if they hadn’t been made. Even if I didn’t like the prequels at all (and I honestly do), what would we have if Lucas really did leave well enough alone as so many of my generation (those that grew up with the OT) wish he had? What would we be missing?

The only Jedi we would ever have seen in action would have been an asthmatic robot-man, an old man and a whiny half-trained kid. To be fair, we still get a whiny kid and an old man, but there are some seriously cool, intense, acrobatic fights that really expanded the possibilities of what you had imagined these Jedi capable of. I’d sit through another two hours of bad dialogue to get another fight like the hangar battle with Maul. And that’s just in this movie – the battles in Ep3 are even better.

No concept of the Jedi Order, the master/apprentice dynamic, what it was like to see the Jedi at the height of their power and what it really meant for the Emperor to crush them.
No Clone War, no Jedi as generals. The Battle of Endor would have been the last land battle you would have ever seen…
No boring Senate speeches, but no Order 66 either. The machinations of the Sith are truly cool and worth a few dull discussions about procedure. Barely…

Digital filmmaking would still be in its infancy. I recognize that many would view this as a good thing, and there are lots of great arguments against, from the look of some digital cinematography to the over-proliferation of CG effects. But Lucas’s push for digital has led to more uniform quality in cinematic presentation, the ability for simultaneous release dates throughout the world, day and date releases of independent films through multiple outlets, not to mention severe reductions in cost and production time leading to fewer barriers to entry and a much more accessible environment for new and independent filmmakers.
Six fewer hours of John Williams music. That should make you pause right there…

But most importantly, the biggest thing we’d be missing is the presence of Star Wars in our lives. It was completely off the radar. Fans don’t like to admit it, but the Wars could very well have become just another old film series, no more relevant than the Back to the Future films. The landscape was pretty barren post Ep6, and while interest sparked up in the early 90’s with the return of novels and RPGs, you really cannot underestimate how much there needed to be new movies to really bring Star Wars into the modern age.

Star Wars is now bigger than it has ever been. I can share it with my own child. And that’s what it’s all for in the first place. I don’t need each movie to be as good as the first few any more than I expect each Bond film to rival Goldfinger. The important thing is enjoying these things and sharing them.

15 years ago today, on May 19, 1999, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace opened to an unbelievably excited public. I got to sit with my parents and sister as I did when we saw the original films, but this time my wife (then girlfriend) was by my side. I bought a couple of Star Wars figures in the lobby to give to my parents as a minor way of thanking them for rushing out to buy Kenner R2 & 3PO figures for my sister and I after the first film. I never thought I’d get to see another SW film. I was able to revisit something from my childhood but bring it into my adulthood. I get to share this love with my daughter. Nothing is better or more important to that.

I love The Phantom Menace for all of that.

Poster:

Trailer:

Opening Crawl:

Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace Opening Crawl | StarWars.com on Disney Video

Bechdel Test:

Pass

The Representation Test Score: C (5 pts)

(http://therepresentationproject.org/grading-hollywood-the-representation-test/)

[schema type=”movie” url=”http://www.starwars.com/films/star-wars-episode-i-the-phantom-menace” name=”Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace” description=”Stranded on the desert planet Tatooine after rescuing young Queen Amidala from the impending invasion of Naboo, Jedi apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn discover nine-year-old Anakin Skywalker, a young slave unusually strong in the Force. Anakin wins a thrilling Podrace and with it his freedom as he leaves his home to be trained as a Jedi. The heroes return to Naboo where Anakin and the Queen face massive invasion forces while the two Jedi contend with a deadly foe named Darth Maul. Only then do they realize the invasion is merely the first step in a sinister scheme by the re-emergent forces of darkness known as the Sith.” director=”George Lucas” producer=”Rick McCallum” actor_1=”Liam Neeson” ]

Main Cast	Ewan McGregor Obi-Wan Kenobi, Liam Neeson Qui-Gon Jinn, Natalie Portman Queen Amidala/Padmé, Jake Lloyd Anakin Skywalker
Rating	PG
Release Date	Wed 19 May 1999 UTC
Director	George Lucas
Genres	Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Plot	Two Jedi Knights escape a hostile blockade to find allies and come across a young boy who may bring balance to the Force, but the long dormant Sith resurface to reclaim their old glory.
Poster
Runtime	136
Tagline	Every generation has a legend. Every journey has a first step. Every saga has a beginning.
Writers	George Lucas (written by)
Year	1999

May 19, 2014

The Star Wars Holiday Special (1978)
140 Character Movie Review – #140RVW

If they would simply rebroadcast this 1 time, all criticism of the prequels would immediately cease. Worst moment in history; can’t unsee…

Spoiler-free Movie Review of The Star Wars Holiday Special:

35 years ago, on Thanksgiving 1978, the world ended. Everything since then has been simply trying to pick up the pieces.

To see the Star Wars Holiday Special is to die a little. Think of the Nazis looking into the Ark of the Covenant at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark.

It’s entirely possible that the special is in fact an anti-drug educational film. After all, no one would ever consider using cocaine after a single glance at Carrie Fisher. And the whole experience seems to mirror some terrible 1960’s bad trip.

Actually, despite growing up with the Wars, I have no memory of this special whatsoever, and considered it an urban legend before I finally tracked down a VHS bootleg in the 90’s.

Too many fine people have written extensively on this not to be believed train-wreck for me to go into it in great detail, so I’ll keep this brief(ish). I’ll just run over some of the main points for those of you who’d rather not experience it first-hand:
- The big draw of the show was new footage from that galaxy far, far away. Pity then that what you get is clearly deleted footage of Vader wandering around the recently destroyed Death Star with new lines over-dubbed. Helps to not have to lip-sync…
- Shame that Life Day never really caught on as a new holiday. Beat Festivus by years…
- Love the decision to make the main characters non-English (Basic) speaking…and not subtitle. Entire minutes go by with no comprehensible dialogue. It’s like watching a Senate hearing…
- Chewie’s family – yikes. Let’s just say you don’t see a lot of these cosplayers. Which name is worse, Lumpy or Itchy? I’ll give you a few minutes…
- Mark Hamill looks terrifying under all that makeup, but do remember that he had been in a horrible car crash only weeks before. He alone gets a pass…
- The single most fascinating aspect of this show is how they seem determined to bring back the old-time variety show. Ironically, this must have been the nail in the coffin for that crap. Art Carney, Harvey Korman? Was Carol Burnett busy? What about Tim Conway?
- There’s a kind of perverse joy in seeing Harrison Ford trying to roll with the crap dialogue in the cardboard mock-up of the Falcon. It’s like anticipatory karma for being such a stuck-up grouch for the rest of his career…
- Speaking of perverse, I’m fairly sure that this is the first example of sci-fi porn on broadcast television. If you haven’t seen it, and I recommend that you don’t, Carney gives grandpa Itchy some sort of virtual reality visor that allows him to participate in the first known wookiee/human hologram phone sex in the galaxy. I wonder how many kids weren’t allowed to watch the 2nd hour of this show after this segment…
- Oh, did I not mention that this show was TWO HOURS LONG?
- Fortunately, fans of the movie can recover from Itchy’s indiscretions as we now check in with Princess Leia & C-3P0. One of these characters is stilted and expressionless; the other is a droid. (Alright, you’ve heard it…)
- Kids, don’t do drugs…
- Art Carney shows a new dimension of his ability by distracting a Death Star Trooper (with an impressive 1970’s stache) with a video of The Jefferson Starship. In the long sad history of military strategy, this gambit certainly has the element of surprise.
- Many fans of the trilogy will tell you that the only good thing about this is the cartoon by Nelvana which introduces Boba Fett. Don’t believe it. The cartoon is also awful.
- Fortunately, we will now check in on the scene at the cantina at Mos Eisley, where BEA ARTHUR carouses with all the aliens from the movie when not being hit on by Harvey Korman. This was probably the breaking point for most kids. Bea Arthur singing. What’s next?
- What’s next is that all the wookiees get wrapped up in red gowns and solemnly go to celebrate Life Day, when…
- LEIA ADDS WORDS TO THE MAIN STAR WARS THEME AND SINGS THEM! I told you not to turn the page! (In Grover voice)
For more: http://www.starwarsholidayspecial.com/

Bonnie Burton just this week sticks up for it: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-57616191-1/in-defense-of-the-star-wars-holiday-special/?tag=mobile_social

The most in-depth article I’ve read on the debacle: http://www.vanityfair.com/magazine/2008/12/star_wars_special200812

Poster:

Coming up next CBS ad:

Kenner toy commercial:

All the commercials:

And finally, if you’ve made it this far…
December 25, 2013
Episode VII?

As an adult, I’m not in favor of new Star Wars films. But there’s an 8 year old kid inside me that the world still can’t get to, and he’s saying “awesome!”

October 31, 2012