May The Fourth Be With You..."Star Wars: The Last Jedi"

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

Rated PG-13

Starring Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill,

Directed by Rian Johnson

The Story:

The one in which we continue to kill off characters to drive the story forward with a new generation of the cast.

Picking up shortly after the The Force Awakens, Rey (Ridley) tries to learn from Master Luke (Hamill) while the rest of the rebellion is trying to survive and outrun the Empire.

It seems like this one took a lot of flack from the fans compared to the previous installment.

I'm not really sure what the beef was.

While not as good as the last one, this one advanced the storylines, although it may have done so in rather expedient fashion.

It seems like a franchise that wants to hurry up and jettison the baggage of the old cast and move on to the new stories, and that's completely fine.

But it's an awful lot like treading water in some ways while also marathon sprinting in the others.

Some storylines that seem mysterious are quickly dissolved with some dialogue or a quick scene.

Others stretch over the entire movie before there is any sort of conclusion.

But everyone will be back in a year or so to see what happens next.

That's Star Wars for you.

Final Grade:  B-

Not Just Kid's Stuff... "The Toys That Made Us"

The Toys That Made Us (2017)

TV-14

The Story:

We were all kids once. We all liked to play. Come revisit your childhood with a walk down memory lane and learn the fascinating story about the toys we all played with and how they came to life.

This Netflix original will be an 8 part documentary series, the first 4 parts are already up and available.

They are: Star Wars; Barbie; He-Man; G.I. Joe

They are all fascinating to watch and will take you back to when you were a kid, and you'll be amazed in some cases that you even had that very toy to play with.

The designers, creators, marketers, etc. etc. etc. are all brought out to reminisce about what it took to get those toys into your hands and make your childhood the sunshine and roses that you remember.

The behind the scenes cut-throat business of toy empires are brought to light, and it's amazing what a lucrative business these toys were.

Each episode is about 45 minutes, so they all fly by fairly quickly, and no, you don't have to watch them all, but they are all totally worthwhile.

Coming in 2018, the remaining 4 episodes will be airing: Lego; Hello Kitty; Transformers; Star Trek

I'm looking forward to watching those as soon as they hit Netflix.

Final Grade: A-

Can't Wait For the Sequel..."Rogue One"

Rogue One (2016)

Rated PG-13

Starring Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Alan Tudyk, Donnie Yen, Wen Jiang, Ben Mendelsohn, Forest Whitaker, Mads Mikkelsen,

Directed by Gareth Edwards

The Story:

Galen Erso (Mikkelsen) is an engineer brought back by force to the Empire to continue building an elaborate weapon known as the "Death Star". His daughter, Jyn (Jones) is sent into hiding. As the years pass, she ends up tangling with members of the Rebellion. Their hope is that sending a group of mercenaries to steal plans for the weapon, they have a chance of destroying it, and defeating the Empire.

May the Force be with them.

Well, if you're going to tell a prequel to Star Wars about how the Rebel Alliance stole the plans for the Death Star, this is about the best movie you could hope for.

A great assemblage of new characters that by the time...

Spoiler Alert...

They all die...

You'll be sad and wish most of them would have been spared somehow and could come back in future, past installments.

But alas...

You know it's not possible because you've already seen Star Wars.

Standout favorites from Jyn's supporting team include Cassian Andor (Luna) as this film's scoundrel; K-2SO (Tudyk) as the reprogrammed Empirical droid with a sarcastic bent; and Chirrut Imwe (Yen) the coolest addition to the Star Wars mythos since the original series premiered.

And speaking of the original series...

Yes, I'm going to nitpick and say that I did indeed miss the opening crawl of the Star Wars saga.

It's part of what gives the whole saga an interlocked feel, and by keeping that opening, just drop the "Episode #" if nothing else, I think it would have added to the film, especially since they throw the bone of "A Long Time Ago..." at the beginning.

Also missing, John Williams score.

It's amazing how much that music influences the series, and little bits of it pop up here and there as appropriate, but it's quite unfair to hold any other composers to the John Williams standard...

But this is Star Wars we're talking about, prequel or not.

Final Grade: B

"Elstree 1976" Is Proof I Don't Love Every Documentary I See

Elstree 1976 (2015)

Not Rated

Starring Jeremy Bulloch, Laurie Goode, David Prowse

Written and Directed by Jon Spira

The Story:

For Star Wars fans, the title of this documentary should be obvious. That's where and when a little movie called Star Wars was filmed. This documentary has interviews and behind-the-scenes clips and photos of the filming of that little film and the effect it had on some of those actors who donned costumes as extras and other parts in the film.

It should be a fascinating and fun watch.

Oh, if only.

It was methodical and mundane.

Any time it kind of picked up and got relatively interesting, something would happen to stunt the momentum of the film.

The most interesting tidbit is the shaming of some actors for showing up at conventions because their parts were deemed irrelevant and immaterial because they didn't portray one of the cool space aliens.

Kind of harsh, but in the world of Star Wars, not totally unexpected either.

For die hards only.

It is streaming on Netflix as of this writing.

Netflix Streaming C-

A Long Time Ago...And Not A Moment Too Soon! "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

Rated PG-13

Starring Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Harrison Ford, Peter Mayhew, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Andy Serkis, Anthony Daniels,

Directed by J. J. Abrams

The Story:

30 years have passed after the fall of the Empire. Rising from the ashes are the New Order, and they are bent on finding Luke (Hamill) the last of the Jedi and killing him. Thankfully, the Resistance is led by General Organa (Fisher) and she has sent her best pilot (Isaac) to locate the whereabouts of her brother. However, nothing is ever easy for the Resistance, and if not for the conscience of a pacifist stormtrooper (Boyega) and a plucky desert scavenger (Ridley), the galaxy would be reduced to a pile of burning rubble.

Seriously, what's the point of writing any synopsis for this movie. Everyone's seen it by now, right?

Those that haven't either don't want to, or don't want to.
:)

Well, I wanted to, and I took the boys, and we had a blast.

When the lights dimmed, and the logo pops up with the John Williams fanfare...

I got a little misty.

This isn't a movie, this was an event 30 years in the making.

The future trilogy, as promised by George Lucas back in the 70s that he retconned himself into believing he never said, is finally here.

And Lucas is nowhere to be found because he sold the franchise to Disney.

They in turn handed the keys to the kingdom over to J. J. Abrams who successfully, like it or not, revamped Star Trek for a whole new generation.

As you watch this movie, there are many, many, many familiar beats to the story.

Sure, it's because J.J. took the entire original trilogy, dropped it in a blender and poured out The Force Awakens.

And you know what?

I liked it.

You didn't need to see the original trilogy to get what was going on here, but it certainly helps.

You definitely didn't need to see any of the misguided prequels.

Everything you need to know is right here.

J.J. Abrams basically said " I'm going to do one Star Wars film, and this is it." He bridged the gap between then and now and introduced us to a whole new cast of characters that we can get to know and love.

Little kids will now be able to be Finn, Rey or Poe out on the playground, if kids still do that pretend stuff in the 21st century.

Plus almost all of the stars of Star Wars have returned in one form or another, and we get to watch Han Solo (Ford) nearly steal the movie out from under his younger co-stars every time he's on screen.

The movie ends with a nice closing shot of what to expect in the next movie which should be here in about 18 more months.

Everyone's got an opinion about this film. This film is getting picked apart in ways I never dreamed possible. Even by people who claim to like it!

My opinion is: I had a lot of fun.

Welcome to 2016.

Welcome to the first film in the running for Best of the Year status.

Final Grade: A-

May The Documentary Be With You..."Jedi Junkies"

Jedi Junkies (2010)

Documentary

Starring Ray Park, Peter Mayhew, and about a million others

Written and Directed by Mark Editz

The Story:

 This documentary shows a little bit of the rabid fanbase of Star Wars and what they do to celebrate their obsession with the film and the Star Wars universe.

I mean who would dress in costume and go to conventions?

What a bunch of weirdos.

:)

This documentary attempts to hit as much of the fandom as possible.

You've got a guy who makes lightsabers.

You've got a Jedi Academy that teaches you how to properly wield and fight with lightsabers.

No, seriously.

Then you've got the fans who make fan films, including the crew that built a close to full-size Falcon in their back yard for a film.

Still, seriously. ;)

Then there are the women that dress as slave Leia, and there are a ton of them.

The more you like the franchise, the more you'll enjoy this documentary.



Available to stream instantly on Netflix as of this writing.

Final Grade: C

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Once was plenty. I'm not that big of a fan! :)

You Know Him. You Just Don't Realize It Yet. "Drew: The Man Behind The Poster"

Drew: The Man Behind the Poster (2013)
N/R- Documentary...does contain a bit of language and a few artistic nude paintings

Starring Drew Struzan, Harrison Ford, Michael J. Fox, Steven Spielberg

Directed by Erik Sharkey


The Story:

You may not know his name, but you know Drew Struzan's work.  At least assuming you've ever seen a movie poster between the 1970s and now.

This is his story, and it's actually pretty interesting stuff!

If a picture is worth a thousand words, I could put my 5 favorite Struzan posters on this review and call it good.



Hmm... I still might...

But that misses the point!

This is the story of a man who made a name for himself by being himself.  A dedicated artist who loved to work, and with a few twists of fate wound up becoming famous in Hollywood, and shaping how fans around the world came to view the movies.



You will hear Michael J. Fox, Harrison Ford, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg and many, many others gush about how great his work is, and how amazing it is to have Drew complete a poster for their movies.  In fact, it's quite praiseworthy how much they realize they need to make their movies as good as Drew's posters make them out to be.



You will also be amazed at the business venture that Struzan wound up in that went horribly wrong, but had the ultimate revenge at the end.  You can't script a story better than that!

Most remarkable, Struzan seems to be the most humble, likeable guy to ever be in any Hollywood circle.

THAT, is amazing, and elevates this piece even more.  Usually you'll hear someone say, yeah, but he's an @#$@#@#$...



Not here.  There is nothing but universal praise for his body of work and the man himself.

Amusingly, as many point out, even Drew's work on inferior movies never diminished his paintings, which most considered to be better than the movie they represented! :)

Count me as another fan, who is happy after all these years to put a name and face to the man who brought me a lot of joy on movie posters and VHS/DVD cases over the years.

Available to stream instantly on Netflix as of this writing.

Final Grade: A-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor:  I could definitely watch it again, probably a viewing in the near future with my art students is in the works.  A purchase?  It's possible...As I glance Amazon I see they have books that contain his work... and that might be better still. : )

100 Greatest Films of All Time... That I Own. # 100

A Long Time Ago...

Let's kick off this highly controversial list with a movie that almost didn't even make the cut.  Star Wars.   Not Episode IV.  Not Greedo shooting first Star Wars...

So you can see why it almost didn't make the list.  It's been so tampered and changed over the years, it's almost a shell of what it used to be.   The 3 prequels have sucked all of the mystery and mystique from the story.

But ignoring all of that... the original story is a lot of fun.  An homage to the Saturday morning serials, it's the timeless story of good versus evil.  I'd say boy meets girl... but eww... we know how that turns out.

While it may be the story of Luke Skywalker, everyone with half a brain gravitates to the cocky smuggler, Han Solo who steals the movie, and launched the career of Harrison Ford.  It also introduced the world to the coolest looking villain of all time, Darth Vader.

Honestly, the criteria for this listing is a movie that provides such great enjoyment, that at any time if someone says, "hey, let's watch this...." I'm ready, willing, and able!  To be honest, looking over the list again, I could easily remove this one, as I just don't get that feeling anymore.

But, for the sake of starting over and finding another movie to replace this one, this will stand as # 100.  However, the grasp on this list is tenuous at best for this movie, and if I were to couple it as a franchise, there's no chance it would make it when adding in the first 3 films.