Biggs' Zone

A Geek's Cogitations, Conjectures and other Cortical Experiences

Category: Movies Page 18 of 24

Movie Review – Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

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On December 28, 2016

In Movies, Reviews, Star Wars

Rogue One A Star Wars StoryRogue One: A Star Wars Story

Directed by: Gareth Edwards
Starring: Felicity Jones, Alan Tudyk

My Rating: [rating=5]

A second Star Wars movie in a year is a dream come true for Star Wars nerds the world over. I saw this movie in a Dolby Cinema off of Times Square in New York City. It’s one of 10 Dolby Cinema theaters in the country and this should be the only way to watch a Star Wars movie.

Rogue One takes a different approach to telling a story in the Star Wars universe. It’s a movie that isn’t part of the main story but it does make a significant contribution to the original story that we all first fell in love with.

This is a war movie and honestly, it isn’t a happy movie. In fact it’s probably one of the most depressing movie of all the movies (from a story perspective). I saw this movie the day after Carrie Fisher passed away so the final scene was probably the most heart-wrenching scene in the whole film. If you have seen this movie then you know to what I am comparing it to.

It Changes ‘A New Hope’

I talked about the story this movie was going to tell and I was right on the money. Granted that isn’t saying much because it doesn’t take a lot of imagination to figure out the plot of the movie. Jyn Erso discovers a message that tells her there is a weakness in the Death Star. If the Rebellion could obtain those plans, it would change the outcome of the war (which we all know it does).

Rogue One could literally be Part One of A New Hope. After watching the former you will want to go home and watch the latter immediately. It will change the way you see it.

Many other fans have said they think this movie is how Episode III should have ended. I can see their point but I liked the way III ended and I loved Rogue One. It was not better than The Force Awakens but it does present an interesting thought. Considering the success of the first two Star Wars after George Lucas sold the rights, perhaps Lucas was the problem with the prequels.

/MTFBWY

film_reelThe screen is a magic medium. It has such power that it can retain interest as it conveys emotions and moods that no other art form can hope to tackle.
– Stanley Kubrick

 

 

TBT: One Year Ago, The Force Awakened

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On December 15, 2016

In Movies, Star Wars, TBT

The Force Awakened

It was actually December 18th, 2015 when The Force Awakened but it’s Throwback Thursday and the 18th is Sunday. As I sit on the cusp of the premiere of another Star Wars movie I love thinking about the success of The Force Awakens. I’m really happy how well it was received not only by Star Wars fans, but the majority of movie goers. Here are a few *numbers I found:

  •  It earned $935 million domestic, thus making it the biggest-grossing movie of all time in America
  •  It was the first movie to earn $750m on an initial release and the first to earn $800m, $850m, and $900m.
  •  By the end of the tenth day, it had earned $540 million domestic
  •  It ended up selling more tickets than all but maybe ten other movies in all of cinematic history.

The Force Awakens wasn’t everyone’s cup-of-tea but you can’t deny the amazing success the movie has had. I still remember the feeling I had as I was sitting in the theater waiting for the movie to start. The same feelings I had for several hours after the movie was over. The Force awakened the child in all of us because we all felt 10 years old again that day. Any reservations and skepticism we felt because Disney now runs the franchise were also blown to pieces.

Rogue One has a Tough Act to Follow

Tonight the first of the Star Wars spin-off movies premiers to the public. Rogue One: A Star Wars story will have a tough act to follow. I’ll be honest, I’m not setting my expectations very high because I think this movie is going to have a different appeal. We already know it will not have the iconic opening crawl and the score is not composed by John Williams (but fear not, Michael Giacchino is no slacker). So far the preliminary reviews are fairly positive with an 83% on the “Tomatometer“. I really don’t expect this movie to be as extraordinary as TFA but I do hope it will be loved by all the real Star Wars fans.

The movie does have all the right ingredients to be successful. As long as the acting is solid, the music is great and everyone understands how the story fits in; I think it will do well in the theaters. I am excited to see Rogue One but probably not as eager as I was to see TFA. There was a certain amount of mystery in The Force Awakens that Rogue One will not have, obviously. Even though Rogue One will not be quite as inscrutable, I still think our inner child will still be waiting with bated breath. A feeling that Star Wars has always inspired and that which Disney has fully restored.

* Numbers come from this Forbes article

The Force. It calls to you. Just let it in.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Star Wars: Final Rogue One Trailer Looks Exciting!

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On October 13, 2016

In Movies, Star Wars

Final Rogue One TrailerHere it is folks! The final Rogue One trailer before its December release! I reiterate, this movie is definitely a movie for the fans. I do not expect it to produce the same box office cash as The Force Awakens. After watching only four seconds into the trailer and I was amorous! Michael Giacchino is the composer for Rogue One while John Williams continues to focus on the main story line. However, I think the score is going to be just as good as a Williams score. Jyn is going to be a fantastic new Star Wars hero and Donnie Yen looks to be as much of a bad ass as Ray Park was for Darth Maul. Oh, and then there is Forest Whitaker!

Enough Commentary!

All right, enough with the verbose introduction (just trying to meet some of the SEO requirements for a post 🙂 ). Here is the trailer!!

I admit that I’m geeking out a little bit. I’m really excited for this movie and I can’t wait to see it with my other Star Wars buddies! If you are not sure whether you are going to go see this movie then be sure to come back here after its release. I will make sure that I provide a relevant review of the movie and I hope it will help you make your decision.

/MTFBWY

The Force. It calls to you. Just let it in.

Suicide Squad

Movie Review: Suicide Squad

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On September 7, 2016

In Comic Books, DC, Movies, Reviews

Suicide Squad

Suicide Squad

Directed by: David Ayer
Starring: Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie

My Rating: [rating=4]

It has been a while since my last movie review post. Batman vs Superman (BvS) may have been the last one I did so it’s serendipitous that Suicide Squad is next. I can’t believe there was no warning that you should see BvS before you see Suicide Squad. It picks up shortly after the events of BvS so you should watch that first, if you don’t want a spoiler.

Suicide Squad is esoteric to comic geek canon. In other words, if you are not familiar with DC villains then you probably have no idea what the “Suicide Squad” is. The Joker (Jared Leto) will be the most recognizable name among this motley crew. Those that are slightly more enlightened will recognize Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie). The lesser known villains in this movie are Deadshot (Will Smith), Killer Croc, Boomerang and Diablo. They are all villains that have been captured by either Batman or The Flash, both of which make cameo appearances.

[Quick Plot Summary]

When the kind of justice Gotham needs isn’t the kind Superman or Batman are willing to provide, a new kind of vigilante is needed. The most dastardly of Gotham’s villains are locked away and forgotten. However, assembling the right group of them will provide a set of skills that can thwart meta-human terrorist threats. The trick is, how do you control them so they don’t start their own terrorist plots.

Don’t Believe All The Critics

Despite what many other critics and movie goers have been saying, Suicide Squad is a good movie. Granted I am not a big DC comic nerd or pundit. I don’t know how well each actor portrayed their respective villain as it pertains to canon. Will Smith is the biggest name in the movie and I’m glad he didn’t turn it into “The Will Smith Show”. He did share the spotlight well with the other characters, especially Margot Robbie. There is good chemistry between Deadshot and Harley Quinn, and the rest of the crew to be honest. So with that said, I think Suicide Squad is a better movie than Batman vs Superman in terms of plot and the quality of the acting.

One final note. I firmly believe that the music makes the movie and this wouldn’t be a “Biggs Movie Review” if I didn’t comment on the music. Keep in mind that I am referring to the score soundtrack and not the album soundtrack. The film’s composer is Steven Price and an hour into the movie I began wondering if it was available on iTunes. The mood of the music matched the mood of each scene perfectly. When you don’t realize that you have been completely bewitched by a scene, that is a sign of good music. Hats off to Steven Price.

film_reelThe screen is a magic medium. It has such power that it can retain interest as it conveys emotions and moods that no other art form can hope to tackle.
– Stanley Kubrick
The Story Rogue One Will Tell

The Story Rogue One Will Tell (For the Noobs)

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On May 3, 2016

In Geek Canon, Movies, Star Wars

The Story Rogue One Will TellIf you’re a Star Wars troglodyte (aka a Trekkie – j/k Trekkies!), or just a newbie you may have no clue as to the story Rogue One will tell. I’ve also been reading a lot of fan theories trying to connect characters in Rogue One to The Force Awakens. While I admire the hypothesizing, I was never under the impression that there would be a lineage connection between any of the new faces in Rogue One with any character in The Force Awakens. All of these fan theories has given credence to how successful the story is in The Force Awakens. If the movie hadn’t been so cryptic as to the origins of Rey and Snoke, people wouldn’t be trying to find the answers in trailer subtext.

Is Jyn Erso Rey’s mother or Captain Phasma?

Is Snoke in that bacta tank?

The Rogue One creative executive, Pablo Hidalgo, ended all of that speculation with his tweet (as mentioned in this article):

The producers (and Disney) want Rogue One to be a stand alone film with the only common element being that it’s Star Wars (hence “anthology film“). The movie will be the telling of how the rebel spies (as mentioned in the opening crawl of A New Hope) managed to steal the plans to the Death Star. While its true that the movie “is set between Revenge of the Sith and the classic that started it all, 1977’s A New Hope”, its chronologically much closer to A New Hope. In fact my suspicion is that the movie will end with the delivering of said stolen plans to Princess Leia thus triggering the events that unfold in the beginning of A New Hope. Granted I don’t know how much lore already exists surrounding the theft of the Death Star plans but I hope Disney sticks to it if any lore exists (remember they only debunked any lore post-ROTJ). Be that as it may, the unequivocal answer to these questions is “No”. Jyn Erso is not kin to Rey or Phasma. Supreme Leader Snoke is not bobbing around in a bacta tank.

Rogue One will be one of three anthology films Disney plans to release (the other two will be a Han Solo film in 2018 and a Boba Fett film in 2020). I do not expect this film to have the same success as The Force Awakens as I believe all three of these films are simply for the fans (and another profit-generator for Disney, since they love to milk a subculture for every dollar they can). I do plan to see this movie in the theater (because its required to see a Star Wars movie in the theater). The director, Gareth Edwards, doesn’t have a lot of highly successful credentials, with the possible exception of Godzilla (2014) so that could be a red flag but I think it has the potential to be one of those obscure fan favorites (The Ewok Adventures anyone?). Regardless, I’m excited to see it 

/MTFBWY

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

ICYMI: Rogue One Teaser Trailer

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On April 7, 2016

In Movies, Star Wars

As promised, on Good Morning America the teaser trailer for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story premiered. You can watch the trailer below. Personally I think these anthology movies are really just for the fans. I’m not expecting the regular movie goers or critics to rave about this movie as much as they did for The Force Awakens. I think it looks pretty decent and I’ll probably see it in the theater. I am excited for a full length trailer.

My understanding, as to where in the timeline this movie falls, it takes place just before A New Hope. It’s the story of how the Rebel spies managed to steal the plans for the Death Star. The one question I have so far is, Where Is Alan Tudyk???

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