The Rise of Skywalker General Star Wars Episode IX News/Speculation Thread - Part 1

[Sian]

Sorry I've upset you, but it's your choice. Believe it or not, I have had far worse things said to me for liking a fictional character than I've said to you but....at the end of the day, it's up to you.

 

[fan4stic]

Fact is, JJ was all for promoting Rey. Every other character took a back seat to her. And it's telling that Disney reset the poll on the official SW website several times after people voted Kylo Ren as the character they most wanted to see.

Why is that bad? Isn't Rey the heroic character and protagonist? Why should he want to not promote her over Kylo?

Abrams wanted to make the last real Skywalker an irredeemable bad guy.

He didn't have to be the last real Skywalker. Rey could've been one. JJ's not the one whose movie had Kylo take control of the villain organization and be the central antagonist mostly, leading the charge against a group of people, that includes his mom. That was Rian's movie. JJ's movie had a villain take the heat off of Kylo, had him I think take heroic actions in the movie, give Rey someone to focus on as a villain, gave Kylo a scene with Han and had Kylo die trying to prevent Rey's death.

I'm sorry you were insulted. That's not right. God's Holy Word, the Holy Bible, tells us to "honor all people" and, "if at all possible, live peaceably with all men."

 

[Sian]

I actually thought that the last film would be a different kind of film from what we'd seen before. Instead of a 'big bad villain' it would be about the 'evil' that is war itself, that under Kylo/Ben the FO would not be entirely evil and the Resistance not entirely good. Rogue One cleverly showed the darker aspects of freedom fighting, and I, perhaps foolishly, thought that Episode IX might take this approach. As for Rey....I'm genuinely perplexed as to why they didn't make HER a blood Skywalker, unless the ST was all along meant simply to erase the Skywalkers forever and replace them with new characters. Which I now suspect was the goal all along.

Regarding the 'insults'....I was told I don't deserve to be a Han Solo fan for liking Kylo, had a poster tell me how delighted he was his killing off upset me, it 'served me right' for liking Kylo after 'what he did', and the thought of me being upset gave him a great deal of pleasure, and also, not on SW forums here but other media, I was actually accused of supporting the abuse of women. This was on a news site discussing sexual assault; the lady in question used the reylo fandom (she was the one who brought it up, not me)as what she saw as an example of the 'demeaning and degrading of the female sex. My response was simply that I told her it was inappropriate to confuse a fantasy film with real life assault and she immediately began trolling me.
I am a big girl and I can defend myself...but I find it disturbing how far people are going these days. I wonder how long it will be before some organisation calls for a mass burning of Bronte novels.

 

[BatLobster]

@Sian , look this is nothing at all personal as far as I'm concerned. You're a passionate fan and that's obviously allowed and encouraged here. I don't mind a spirited debate.

I just think the facts are not on your side here with the specific claim you're making. @henzINNIT actually brought up a great point. Kylo's fate in what was going to be Trevorrow's Duel of the Fates was arguably even more sad and pathetic, and he barely got a last minute quasi-"redemption" there. If anything, Abrams and Terrio's rewrite of the story softened this element, gave Kylo a more redemptive arc that gave the audience permission to actually root for him and kick some Knights of Ren butt.

He died in both versions of the story. But he died a hero on the light side of the force, with an act of self-sacrifice in TROS. He was able to find peace with his father, and his mother became one with The Force with him at the moment of his death. It's a far happier ending than I ever thought he'd get, and Abrams and Terrio were far kinder with his fate than what the original plan was. Yet you're claiming they intentionally tried to sabotage him somehow. That's the part that simply does not jibe with the reality of the situation.

 

[Sian]

I think.....I like happy endings.
Genuinely sorry someone has quit because of something I've said.

 

[Brother Jack]

An interesting video I think worth discussing. JJ's deliberate and fluid use of camera is something I picked up on almost immediately watching TROS, and despite how much I do not like the movie I think it's important to give credit where it's due. Lens flares aside I do think Abrams is a talented director who knows how to make a film look dynamic and engaging and how to get good performances from his actors (fundamentals you can at least say he has over George Lucas); he's just an absolute dog**** screenwriter.

 

[Sian]

I think their biggest problem was they were focusing first and foremost on retconning TLJ. As a result they ended up with a poor rehash of ROTJ instead of an original film.

I also suspect that Disney wanted to get rid of Lucas's legacy family for some reason, whatever, but Lucas's big mistake was selling his franchise to a multi million dollar corporation with little affection for his saga except making fast dollars. Which they intended to make from theme parks and computer games.

 

[BatLobster]

An interesting video I think worth discussing. JJ's deliberate and fluid use of camera is something I picked up on almost immediately watching TROS, and despite how much I do not like the movie I think it's important to give credit where it's due. Lens flares aside I do think Abrams is a talented director who knows how to make a film look dynamic and engaging and how to get good performances from his actors (fundamentals you can at least say he has over George Lucas); he's just an absolute dog**** screenwriter.

I have to admit, I kind of liked Lucas' more minimalist approach to the camera in the original films. The idea was to just let the production design speak for itself, rather than using a ton of show-y blocking. For me I think that added to the immersion.

At the same time, by the time you get to the prequels and you're dealing with lots of green scenes of people sitting around talking...that can get pretty stale.

JJ and Mindel are very good at blocking out these super punchy and effective long shots, there's no denying it. He's great at capturing energy on screen and delivering that "Spielberg with added adrenaline" feel, and Lucas was the guy famous for saying "faster and more intense". It's no wonder Lucas also thought Abrams would be a great pick for Star Wars.

I'll always wonder what could've been if it had been JJ directing, based on Lucas and Arndt's ideas though.

 

[Brother Jack]

I'll always wonder what could've been if it had been JJ directing, based on Lucas and Arndt's ideas though.

I'm all for Abrams directing as long as he stays out of the writer's room. I feel the same about the upcoming Superman reboot he's producing. I will say though overall I prefer Rian Johnson's aesthetic, which didn't have the energic oners of Abrams but dealt in some truly beautiful and iconic images.

 

[Sian]

Yes, TLJ has some truly stunning visuals, Crait stands out in my mind, but I also found the Canto Bight scenes breathtaking. For me however, I loved the gentle knocks against animal cruelty, the stunning crystal foxes and the hints of a less than perfect Resistance as shown when DJ revealed to Finn where the Resistance got their ships and weapons from.
One of the many disappointments of TROS was how so many questions and plot threads from TLJ were never resolved.
The two I wanted to see:
"See you around kid" - Luke's last words to Kylo. But they never met again.
Snoke being killed by Kylo - the FO never did find out.

 

[antsman41]

Trying to rewatch this after watching The Bad Batch premiere... such a bad decision. It’s like eating battery acid for dessert after a wonderful steak.

 

[Gothamsknight]

I put The Last Jedi on briefly last night. Honestly was really enjoying it and it's a gorgeous movie.

 

[antsman41]

I put The Last Jedi on briefly last night. Honestly was really enjoying it and it's a gorgeous movie.

I used chapter 16 of Mando to clean my pallet.

 

[Gothamsknight]

I used chapter 16 of Mando to clean my pallet.

Good choice haha

 

[Brother Jack]

I put The Last Jedi on briefly last night. Honestly was really enjoying it and it's a gorgeous movie.

As flawed as TLJ may be, I have so much more respect for what Johnson was doing than Abrams. Johnson was actually trying to push the narrative forward and tell a more challenging, mature story. With some important exceptions, Abrams was just scratching the audience's nostalgia itch.

 

[CadeSkywalker28]

Mature story:

 

[BatLobster]

Mature story:

Right, because "mature" and "sense of humor" could never possibly co-exist.

 

[CadeSkywalker28]

More like sense of twilight.

 

[BatLobster]

More like sense of twilight.

This might come as a shock, but the "forbidden romance" trope has existed long before Twilight. Like centuries before. And it didn't even go all the way with it, it dabbled. But the seeds for that were planted in TFA anyway.

 

[CadeSkywalker28]

The seeds:

 

[Bobber]

I never really read Kylo and Reys "relationship" in TLJ as romantic.

 

[fan4stic]

I never really read Kylo and Reys "relationship" in TLJ as romantic.

 

[Bobber]

Fair enough.
I'm comfortable ignoring that when I watch it.

 

[Sian]

Well, that has been well and truly scuppered now, hasn't it?
Ben Solo is gone for good and Rey ended up with....BB8!

 

[Donner]

The seeds:

People interpret scenes differently. Clearly Rian Johnson saw enough in TFA to explore a more romantic connection in TLJ.