Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (USE SPOILER TAGS!)

[Guydowood]

21 days left peeps!

[imsounoriginal]

PT lightsaber fights were better than the OT's, only complaint I have with the former is the length of some of them (esp. Mustafar). Seriously, from a choreography and intensity standpoint, the OT isn't even close. But I get that a few of the older ones pack a little more punch simply because of the raised emotional stakes. As much as I dislike RotJ, when the music swells and we see Vader vs. Luke while the Emperor sits there laughing... chills.

[Deathbymonkeys]

Originally Posted by Ernest Rister

Spoilers for the beginning of the film! A big one, too.

[Show spoiler]

That sure doesn't look like a light saber to me.

Looks like one to me. Looks like the clip hanging off the end there.

[mrr1]

The dialogue between the duelers in the OT during the light saber battles really elevated their emotional weight. I always thought the battle against Darth Maul would've been perfect if, at some point (like when the force fields were separating them) and they were just staring each other down, Qui Gon said something like, "Why are you attacking us? Who are you?".

Without Alec Guinness' dialogue in the original movie his duel with Vader would be entirely forgettable instead of the great scene that it is.

I hope any light saber duels in this movie have some emotional weight to them.

[The_Walking_Dead]

Will be booking tickets tonight , finally

[JamesKurtovich]

Give me Luke vs Vader over any other duel in Star Wars any day. They had an actual fight.

[Geoff D]

I love the Ep I fight for its 'dance style' moves but yeah, there's not a great deal of emotional content (until Obi-Wan squares off against Maul, anyway) which is what made the OT fights so memorable. That's why I love Anakin vs Obi-Wan in Ep III though, people can moan about the staging all they want but it's the first and only time in the prequels that we get the flashy PT moves allied to proper OT-style emotional beats throughout, it sends a shiver down my spine when they kick off and Williams' 'Battle of the Heroes' starts up.

[StingingVelvet]

Obi versus Maul is great, I would like to see that style and look repeated. The Yoda versus Dooku and Anakin versus Obi fights are just a little too overdone for me, and too gimmicky. Anakin versus Dooku was okay I guess.

[Geoff D]

I loved Sidious vs Yoda too, when they go into the Senate and literally start dismantling the apparatus of democracy (by throwing the pods at each other) it's one of those rare moments in the prequels when Lucas' love of thematic allusions combines brilliantly with the action beats.

[TimD]

I thinks there's a subliminally pleasing geometric thing going on in the Phantom Menace duel. Darth Maul in black with his red face and red blades, The Jedi in light colors with their swords meeting Maul's blades at each end, it's like a triangle meeting another triangle.

[Gamma_Winstead]

Uh... His post has always been in spoiler tags, so if you clicked it.... Your bad.

[Porco Azzurro]

I love how fast and flowing the prequel lightsaber fights are, in direct and purposeful contrast to the original trilogy ones. The characters in the prequels are at the top of their game when it comes to lightsabers, having had years of training and practice. In the original trilogy you have Vader and Obi-Wan who are now old guys, possibly with arthritis(!), and Luke, who only gets his training during the course of the films. And Han who cuts open a tauntaun, but that's not really too relevant

I think it will make sense if the lightsaber fights in the sequels follow the logic of the characters who wield them, whether it's down to the technology, the amount of training, or physical attributes they possess (or don't).

Meanwhile, my TFA Prep is proceeding nicely...

[GC Riot]

Originally Posted by StingingVelvet

Ren and Finn aren't really trained classic Jedi though, so it makes sense their dual will be more basic. Also there is a biiiiiiiig gap between the OT's saber fights and the PT's over-the-top and silly acrobatics in the Obi/Anakin fight.

Ideally I would want something between the two.

I though the Darth Maul duel in Episode 1 and the Count Dooku duel in Episode 2 (The Yoda part excluded) had that balance. Not too flashy and over the top, and still intense.

[tigertron]

Originally Posted by Geoff D

I loved Sidious vs Yoda too, when they go into the Senate and literally start dismantling the apparatus of democracy (by throwing the pods at each other) it's one of those rare moments in the prequels when Lucas' love of thematic allusions combines brilliantly with the action beats.

I just wish that duel could have been a bit longer, but Sidious throwing those pods at Yoda was a great metaphor for the destruction of democracy.

[Det. Bullock]

Originally Posted by mrr1

The dialogue between the duelers in the OT during the light saber battles really elevated their emotional weight. I always thought the battle against Darth Maul would've been perfect if, at some point (like when the force fields were separating them) and they were just staring each other down, Qui Gon said something like, "Why are you attacking us? Who are you?".

Without Alec Guinness' dialogue in the original movie his duel with Vader would be entirely forgettable instead of the great scene that it is.

I hope any light saber duels in this movie have some emotional weight to them.

It would not have made sense, the guy had "sith lord" literally written on his forehead and they had a history of wanting the Jedi dead no-matter-what.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Det. Bullock

It would not have made sense, the guy had "sith lord" literally written on his forehead and they had a history of wanting the Jedi dead no-matter-what.

I get that but I still wish there was more from Maul throughout the film, as cool as the fight is it really would've been even better if they were chuntering away and taunting each other. But that's a fault of Lucas' writing more than anything, Maul should've been the main antagonist thoughbut the PT. He could've come back as a cyborg in Ep II and been the perfect leader for the droid army, leading to a final showdown in Ep III where Obi-Wan finally gets revenge for him killing Qui-Gon, hunting him on an Ahab-like quest (the "reckless" bit mentioned in the OT) whilst neglecting Anakin's training and not noticing his descent into the dark side.

[edit] And to lead us back on topic, I've said it before and I'll do so again: they HAVE to have a villain or villains that carry on throughout this new trilogy. They can't keep introducing a major villain out of nowhere with every new film because it just doesn't build up any dramatic tension. You can even get away with mentioning them early doors, e.g. Jabba's mentioned in Star Wars as is The Emperor, so that keeps a sense of continuity at the very least when they appear in later instalments, but was Dooku leaving the order mentioned in Ep I? Was Grievous featured in Ep II? No, because they simply didn't exist in Lucas' mind at the time. Hopefully one or more of Kylo, Hux, Phasma and Snoke make it into the next films.

[Himmel]

New Behind The Scenes Tv Spot About Rey...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAS2-TtB1y8

[imsounoriginal]

Originally Posted by TimD

I thinks there's a subliminally pleasing geometric thing going on in the Phantom Menace duel. Darth Maul in black with his red face and red blades, The Jedi in light colors with their swords meeting Maul's blades at each end, it's like a triangle meeting another triangle.

Triangle offense is always a good look.

[jayman3]

Any guesses as to what moments the audience will cheer for during the movie?

I'm going to say that there will be loud applause during:
1. The opening crawl
2. First appearance of Han Solo/Chewbacca
3. First appearance of C-3PO and R2
4. First appearance of Leia
5. First appearance of Luke


So basically the first appearance of all the original trilogy cast.

[tigertron]

Originally Posted by jayman3

Any guesses as to what moments the audience will cheer for during the movie?

I'm going to say that there will be loud applause during:
1. The opening crawl
2. First appearance of Han Solo/Chewbacca
3. First appearance of C-3PO and R2
4. First appearance of Leia
5. First appearance of Luke


So basically the first appearance of all the original trilogy cast.

Pretty much.