My friend is a projectionist and he screens the print in advance of release to make sure it's clean and undamaged. Because it's Star Wars, he invited me to watch the film with him as he did this.
I loved the movie. It's everything you want in a Star Wars movie and more. They really nailed the nostalgia while still keeping it fresh and doing new things.
Ask me anything about the movie. I will answer to the best of my ability.
[b]THIS THREAD CONTAINS SPOILERS
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My quick & dirty review:
[spoiler]I absolutely loved it. This is the best Star Wars movie since Empire.
All the characters are fantastic. There are a couple who seemed a bit underused (Phasma, Poe, Snoke) but I'm sure they will be expanded upon in future films. Poe was the biggest surprise; he doesn't actually do much of anything, but at least he has plenty of personality to make up for it. I can tell they're building him up as a future leading role.
Finn is my favorite new character. John Boyega is a very funny guy and he brings a sense of humor and bravery to the role. His rapport with Harrison Ford is fantastic. I like Rey as well. Wasn't expecting the switcheroo they pulled with those two characters. (Basically, the trailers have misled you. Finn is not Force sensitive, but Rey discovers that she is.)
Kylo Ren was an interesting and complex villain, but I feel like they never properly explained his motivations. That's something they're obviously saving for a sequel, but it's kinda irritating that they didn't say anything about it this time.
Luke isn't really in the movie, which wasn't surprising since he isn't really in the marketing. He shows up at the very end for about a minute, but has no dialogue. That was an odd choice, but I actually think it was a good one because he is being presented as the "big mystery" of the new trilogy. Where has he been all these years? Why did he go into hiding? The answers are implied, but we definitely don't have the full picture yet.
John Williams' score is epic. The special effects are epic. There's a nice blend of practical and CG effects, and computer graphics are almost always used as a last resort.
[i]Almost [/i]always. There are some very "CG-esque" space battle shots, but I'm fine with that, and both Snoke and Maz Kanata are CG motion capture characters, but thankfully they blend into the environment very well and have realistic emotions.
Overall, it was an incredible movie, and it definitely lives up to the hype. It doesn't beat Empire, but it's right up there with A New Hope vying for the #2 spot. I need to see it again to make a final judgment.
It's better than Jedi and [i]definitely[/i] better than the prequels.[/spoiler]
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Darth jar jar it's real right?