SECOND WATCH: The Rise of Skywalker
When it came out, the new Star Wars movie: "The Rise of Skywalker", was roundly criticised.
The fanboys hated it because it brownnosed too much to the audience. Some of the critics didn't like it because it felt too much like Return of The Jedi.
The group who did like it was Disney, who made $1 billion and counting from it, as the punter ignored the frustrations of the cellar-dwellers and the self-styled Hollywood pen elite and got their butts on seats. Some of them multiple times.
Today was my second watch, after the first one burnt joy and a headache into my skull after I watched it in IMAX (which was cool).
If it's a second watch, some people like to think that this was the time to think critically.
So I tried to.
I tried to analyse the battle sequences, whether it was indeed an updated version of Return of The Jedi, and whether it was paying too much homage to the fans instead of following the darker trajectory that the last two films had promised.
But I couldn't. As soon as I had reminded myself that I had been one of those 'fanboys' ever since I was "Return of The Jedi |for the first time in the cinema (incidentally, I saw 'Star Wars' then 'Empire Strikes Back after that), I was quietly reliving moments of getting Star Wars stuff for Christmas and making noises as my Millennium Falcon buzzed around the TIE fighters for the last war of wars in my head, and smiling a lot.
I continued to be wowed by the set pieces, the disappearances into different worlds, the slightly tongue-in-cheek humour at times, and shed a tear with stories of self-sacrifice, the battle between good and evil, and - although I'd seen it before - a deep breath during the battle scenes.
Of course I smiled at Luke Skywalker coming back on screen with Princess Leia. Of course I laughed with Poe Dameron, smiled with Lando, and loved the relationship between C-3PO and R2D2...and wished there was more Han Solo.
I mean, isn't that what fans do?
Anyway, I'm off to imagine fighting my dog with a lightsaber.
If you haven't seen it yet.....
The fanboys hated it because it brownnosed too much to the audience. Some of the critics didn't like it because it felt too much like Return of The Jedi.
The group who did like it was Disney, who made $1 billion and counting from it, as the punter ignored the frustrations of the cellar-dwellers and the self-styled Hollywood pen elite and got their butts on seats. Some of them multiple times.
Today was my second watch, after the first one burnt joy and a headache into my skull after I watched it in IMAX (which was cool).
If it's a second watch, some people like to think that this was the time to think critically.
So I tried to.
I tried to analyse the battle sequences, whether it was indeed an updated version of Return of The Jedi, and whether it was paying too much homage to the fans instead of following the darker trajectory that the last two films had promised.
But I couldn't. As soon as I had reminded myself that I had been one of those 'fanboys' ever since I was "Return of The Jedi |for the first time in the cinema (incidentally, I saw 'Star Wars' then 'Empire Strikes Back after that), I was quietly reliving moments of getting Star Wars stuff for Christmas and making noises as my Millennium Falcon buzzed around the TIE fighters for the last war of wars in my head, and smiling a lot.
I continued to be wowed by the set pieces, the disappearances into different worlds, the slightly tongue-in-cheek humour at times, and shed a tear with stories of self-sacrifice, the battle between good and evil, and - although I'd seen it before - a deep breath during the battle scenes.
Of course I smiled at Luke Skywalker coming back on screen with Princess Leia. Of course I laughed with Poe Dameron, smiled with Lando, and loved the relationship between C-3PO and R2D2...and wished there was more Han Solo.
I mean, isn't that what fans do?
Anyway, I'm off to imagine fighting my dog with a lightsaber.
If you haven't seen it yet.....
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