By Nellie Shih ’19, Contributor
Star Wars: the Force Awakens has been nominated for five Oscars: Film Editing, Best Original Score (by John Williams), Sound Mixing, and Visual Effects (thanks to the film’s use of puppets rather than CGI) and Sound Editing. The storyline and new cast has earned the film a 93% on Rotten Tomatoes and has fans raving.
“It was a flash-[from]-the-past and feels like you’re re-living the original trilogy,” says Sam Jaccaci, ’19. “But it’s so fresh and alive it exceeds all expectations.” Spencer McMaster, ’19, says, “The movie almost instantly makes you fall in love with the cast. This movie is the definition of fan service.”
However, some fans did not love the connections to the original trilogy. Haley Vaughn, ’18, thought The Force Awakens’ plot was too similar to A New Hope. Vaughn also did not enjoy some of the differences from the new film to the originals. She stated that she misses the alternating pattern of an action scene followed by a calmer and slower scene, for example a Han and Leia scene, in the original films. On the other hand, Mr. Faulhaber enjoyed the connection back to the originals and pointed out that fans who did not like the prequels as much liked the Force Awakens’ connection to the original trilogy. He also noticed that younger generations seemed to be the ones that didn’t like the new film, but the fans that grew up with the original trilogy thought it was nostalgic and loved the film. Contrary to Vaughn’s opinion, he thought there was a good balance between the story and action.
J.J. Abrams commented on the criticism of the film, stating that he understands why some reviews state The Force Awakens is a rip-off. “The story of history repeating itself was, I believe, an obvious and intentional thing,” he says. “Those simple tenets are by far the least important aspects of this movie, and they provide bones that were well-proven long before they were used in Star Wars.” Abrams continues, saying that the most important part of the film is the new characters, which most fans can agree to. Even Mr. Faulhaber agrees that Abrams did a good job incorporating the original characters into the film and giving them important roles, yet they clearly were not the key members, allowing the new characters to shine.
Supporting the original cast of Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, and Mark Hamill are newcomers John Boyega as Finn, Golden Globe-winner Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina, Show Me a Hero, X-Men: Apocalypse) as Poe Dameron, Adam Driver (Girls) as Kylo Ren, and Daisy Ridley as Rey. Both Boyega and Isaac provide some much-needed representation for people of color in Hollywood and play their parts beautifully. John Boyega’s character, and ex-Stormtrooper, is always trying to help, and adds plenty of humor to the film. Finn finds himself a part of an adventure he never thought he would be a part of. As seen in the trailers, Finn holds a lightsaber like a baseball bat. He clearly has no idea what he is doing, but is willing to fight to protect the people he cares about. Right from the beginning of the film, the characters Finn and Poe develop a friendship. Poe is the first person that has really been kind to Finn, and they end up working together like old friends.
Adam Driver is known for his comedic role in HBO’s Girls, but this film shows what he is truly capable of. Driver’s Kylo Ren is dark and mysterious, and just like the other characters, he is trying to find where he fits in. The character has received mixed feedback from fans. Vaughn described him as a let-down, while Mr. Faulhaber’s believes he was not a letdown and compared him to Darth Vader. Vader was menacing and evil, whereas Kylo Ren is someone that looks up to Vader and wants to be like him, but isn’t quite there yet. Kylo Ren is a complex character with an interesting backstory that still leaves questions to be answered in future films. Why did he turn to the Dark Side? Why does he want to avenge Vader? If he is so intent on being as good as Vader, what is holding him back? Adam Driver proves he is a phenomenal actor by pulling off such a deep role.
There is a very sad, small amount of strong female characters that are clearly a film’s protagonist. Even Princess Leia, one of the members of the golden trio in the original trilogy, didn’t do as much fighting as Luke and Han. Instead, she was forced to wear that God-awful gold bikini. Perhaps one of the strongest points of The Force Awakens is its new female protagonist, Rey, played by newcomer Daisy Ridley. Rey has lived on the desert planet of Jakku by herself since her parents abandoned her at a young age. Since then, she’s become a resourceful scavenger, a pilot, and a fighter. Even though she is alone and may resent many people, she is still very hopeful, kind, and loyal to everyone she meets. Because of this, Rey has become a fan favorite, as well as a character many young girls, as well as boys, can look up to.
Entertainment Weekly author, Nicole Sperling, brought her daughters to see the Force Awakens. After the film she wrote: “They never commented on how pretty Rey is. They never had to flinch because Rey was a sexual object to some man in power. They just felt strong. Equal.” Sperling goes on to ask the fans to “Imagine how the film will feel to girls in parts of the world where women are not allowed control over their own bodies or hearts or minds. Imagine a generation of both sexes, growing up believing that girls are powerful. Imagine the force of a billion girls realizing that, one day, they can rule the galaxy.”
Star Wars: The Force Awakens, led by Daisy Ridley’s Rey, has become one of the highest grossing films of all time. Although not everyone is a Star Wars fan, most fans, including myself, can agree that the Force Awakens told an interesting story, had a stellar director, cast, crew, cinematography, and soundtrack, and leaves many questions and groundwork for future films. I can confidently say I believe the Force Awakens is one of the best films of 2015, and I have faith that Rian Johnson, director of Episode VIII, will be able to expand on the brilliance of this new trilogy.
Image Source: http://www.starwars.com/news/star-wars-the-force-awakens-theatrical-poster-first-look-in-theater-exclusives-and-more
