A New Hope Indeed
This is my critique and analysis of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. If you want to read my more general response in a largely spoiler free post, follow this link: http://whatmakesamovie.tumblr.com/post/135767348865/star-wars-the-force-awakens-or-how-i-learned-to
Be warned, there are big spoilers ahead. No, I mean it. VERY BIG SPOILERS AHEAD. Iâm going to talk about everything, so donât come crying to me when you read something you didnât want to. Youâve been warned.Â
The Force Awakens is the beginning of the new trilogy of Star Wars films. If youâve seen the new film you have probably noticed some major plot and structure similarities between this film and Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. The film starts with an important figure in a rebellious faction obtaining very important information and handing it off to a droid for safe keeping. The droid gets lost on a desert planet only to be recovered by our protagonist, a scrappy young character with brown hair whose parents are long gone and who has a surprising knack for all things technological (sound familiar yet?). The film follows the protagonist as she meets a mentor figure, is exposed to the concept of the Force as a powerful energy in the universe, and begins her journey toward the light side. Oh wait, scratch that last part, because in this film the big concepts of the light and dark side dichotomy are explored exclusively through our antagonist character, and hereâs where the film gets interesting. Although much of what comes next we have seen before (a growing friendship between unlikely companions, evisceration of a planet by a giant laser cannon, the ensuing battle around said giant laser, and the exploitation of a structural weakness to bring the conflict to its end) plenty of it is new, especially when it comes to this antagonist, Kylo Ren. Lets talk about why I LOVE Kylo Ren. Played by the no doubt awards-bound Adam Driver, the new masked menace is initially presented like the rest of the film, as an homage to the classic film with just enough of a twist to keep the imagery fresh in our minds (see: the unbelievably cool scene where Kylo stops a laser blast mid air, holds it there while he conducts an interrogation, then releases it as he walks away). But then the twist goes further. We see that Kylo is not a heartless, half-robot weapon of the empire-analogue First Order. Instead he is the conflicted and isolated son of our favorite scruffy looking nerf-herder and badass (now General) Leia, Ben Solo. Not only that, but he looks up to Darth Vader as some sort of dark side surrogate father. We see the beginnings of a character arc develop in which Kylo is presented as impulsive and uncontrolled, lashing out when he does not get his way. Those quick to draw more connections between him and his grandfather will note the latterâs own violent tendencies, but they might disregard the fact that Vaderâs rage is controlled: his kills are always used to motivate those around him to do their job more effectively. Kylo, on the other hand, attacks the world around him because it does not bend to his will. The relationship between Kylo and Vader is made more complex by the revelation that Kylo does not wear his mask out of necessity. He removes it to show Rey that he is not a âmonster in a maskâ but a person, and someone she should fear. But if not for life-support, like his idol, why does Kylo wear the obviously clunky head gear? The answer comes to us during the climactic final confrontation between Ben and Han Solo. Han tells him to take off the mask because he doesnât need it. Kylo uses the mask to hide the parts of himself he feels are weak: the features he shares with his father. The confrontation between him and Han plays out as a Freudian fever dream: the son kills the father in order to realize his own identity (I told you there would be spoilers). In this moment, sold almost entirely on Driverâs nuanced performance, we see Kylo reach out to Han in a true expression of vulnerability before allowing himself to embrace the dark side and destroy both the father whom he hates and the weakness he sees in himself. At this point Iâm sure many fans of the original trilogy will be quite upset. Han has always been a fan favorite. The beauty of this moment is highlighted in the following scene when Kylo meets Rey and Finn out on the icy surface of Star Killer Base and tells them that they are alone now, Han Solo cannot save them. Itâs that seemingly insignificant line that tells us that not only does Hanâs death have a purpose for Kylo, it has a purpose for the story as a whole. Our old heroes have to fall away so that we can see new heroes rise.
And just who are these new heroes? Finn, the stormtrooper turned resistance fighter, and Rey, the heir to the light side of the force, are a refreshingly inspired pair for this new trilogy to center on. While anyone whose seen the original trilogy knows that Luke ends up a hero, what they might forget without a refresher course on A New Hope is that Luke starts out fairly pathetic. Heâs a farmerâs assistant and a bit of a complainer (and he wastes so much time at Tashiâs station with those damn power converters). Finn picks up the not-so-immediately lovable bit by embodying one primary emotion throughout the beginning of his arc: fear. Finnâs fear leads him to freeze on the battle field, flee from the First Order, and almost from the film all together. Each time he uses lies as a tool to keep himself safe, only revealing the truth to Rey in the hopes that it will keep her safe as well. We see this impulse to keep her safe first when he lands on Jakku in his repeated (and even unnecessary) attempts to save Rey from danger. His arc approaches itâs peak when he sees the destruction the First Order wreaks on an entire planet followed by the abduction of Rey. By the end of the film we still see him using lies as a tool when he tells the Resistance that he knows how to turn off the shields surrounding the base, but this time the lies down spring from his fear but from his desire to protect Rey. But if Finnâs fear is the axel on which our opinion of him shifts, what is Reyâs character-defining flaw? Lets get into what may be the most controversial thing I have to say about the film: Rey is the least interesting character in The Force Awakens. I donât mean to say that sheâs not cool and I definitely donât mean to say that I donât like her. I simply mean that as a character she has the least complexity. She is definitely the protagonist character of this new trilogy and we will certainly get to see her grow as a character in interesting ways in Episodes VIII and IX, but what we get in this installment toes the line between an stock hero and a mary sue. She is a highly skilled mechanic, an incredible pilot, embodies the orphan hero trope, and oh yes did we forget to mention she can use the force (and is probably/definitely/almost undeniably Luke Skywalkerâs daughter!). She starts the film as a scavenger on a desert outpost planet and ends the film flying the millennium falcon off to find Luke Skywalker with Chewbacca and R2-D2 by her side so that she can learn the ways of the force and wield Lukeâs own lightsaber. We see the hint of character development when Han tells her she might be more confident than she ought to, although this goes almost nowhere. Her next big moment is the force-sensitivity reveal (and her refusal of the call) followed by her capture at the hands of Kylo Ren and subsequent escape using her newly discovered force abilities. In fact, if she has an arc it is only in her refusal to take Lukeâs legacy. Not that Iâm entirely upset with how that particular arc ends. We get an entirely satisfying resolution when Kylo strikes down Finn and we see him try to take the light saber, only to have Rey use her own force powers to embrace her destiny, take the saber for herself and engage Kylo in the most compelling fight sequence in the film. The problem with this scene as a resolution to an arc is that fights-her-own-battles is a character trait we see from her first scene with Finn. From the get go Finn sees that he doesnât have to help her fight or hold her hand when they run away. Honestly, Iâm less sure if this is a flaw in the film or a glimpse into what happens when three men try to write a powerful female character with agency engaged in her own story. That being said, the results ring true. We donât quite get the Hero Moment from her that we are hoping for, but she feels right as a Jedi, and weâll definitely see her character expand and develop in the two films to come. There are worse things about the film Reyâs simplistic characterization. Itâs primary weakness being pacing. Very little of the film takes place outside of action set pieces set up to get us from one story beat to another as quickly as possible. Whether this is done to front load the new trilogy with all of the exposition while still keeping it interesting, or out of J.J. Abrams inexperience with a skillful application of downbeat moments is not entirely clear. What is clear is that one of the primary things missing from this film is also one of the major ways it breaks from the Episode IV formula: relationship development. Much of the film is defined by the relationships between the characters, and a lot of effort is put into the film so that the audience knows what each character thinks about each other. Han, Leia, Rey, Finn, Kylo, even Chewbacca, BB-8 (and even Poe Dameron to an extent) all have very specific relationships with one another. We know what they think of each other and why they feel that way. The problem with the relationships is that though some of them donât need to be established, others quite obviously do. Chewbacca and Han are buddies, we know this, and the details in the film which remind us of this are a nice touch, but we donât need to see their connection grow. By contrast, Rey and Finn seem to be jumping into the relationship they have with one another. They go from complete strangers to willing to go through hell for each other all within the span of...exactly how much time? None of the Star Wars films broadcast how much time elapses from beginning to end, but they feel like they take place over an extended period because the audience gets a break between big action set pieces to process how characters have changed and how theyâre feelings towards one another shift over time. Yes, Rey and Finn are both broken people looking for a family and the fact that they fit together makes them a great on-screen pair. We still need a moment to see Rey go from being uncomfortable with Finn grabbing her hand, to her grabbing his hand as they make their final escape from Jakku, only to be chased down by TIEs, nearly gassed, captured by a passing freighter, and attacked by space-ruffians and monsters. All of these moments happen before we get any real feeling of the relationship between Rey and Finn shifting. The next quiet moment in the film is actually between Rey and Han, with the intention of setting up the father figure dynamic which plays less in the climax of the film than it ought too given how explicit it is. This is another relationship we arenât given time to process, because while Finn and Rey have a new relationship, so do Rey and Han, and Han and Finn, and none of these characters get a full beat to express this change. We see itâs results in the plot, allowing us to infer the finer details, but the end result is a film that feels rushed.
All that complaining aside, I really do like the film. I donât have any particular problem with the use of A New Hopeâs plot outline as a rubric for The Force Awakens. Weâre talking about a franchise built on the backs of tropes. Re-using even a handful of them doesnât serve to discredit the writers as lazy so much as it is to their credit that they realize what made Star Wars great. Star Wars is the finer points of Joseph Campbellâs mono-myth polished and sharpened for a contemporary audience. The new film does this well, and still manage to expose us to new ideas and a fresh perspective on the battle between the dark and light side of the force. Best of all, the film is exciting and fun. I cannot emphasize enough how important the humor peppered throughout the film is to itâs ultimate enjoyability and this quality really drives the film home. For all the possible complaints about the new Star Wars film, itâs an enjoyable movie with good characters, an engaging conflict, and a lot of potential for exciting follow-up. What we have here is the dawn of a new Star Wars era, and I for one could not be more excited!