Fans of the "star" saga of George Lucas have been waiting for the continuation of their favorite project for ten years. And finally, in 2015, Star Wars 7 appeared on the big screens. Reviews about the film sounded the best, both from critics and from the vast majority of viewers. What events is the seventh film about and why is it worth watching?
Films 2015: Star Wars 7 and its creators
Unfortunately, the legendary George Lucas did not express a desire to sit in the director's chair of the seventh film. Therefore, Star Wars: Episode 7 was shot by JJ Abrams.
Abrams became famous for the fact that his directorial debut, associated with the film “Mission Impossible 3”, was recognized as the highest grossing in history: not a single creator has yet managed to start with a capital of 150 million dollars.
The most large-scale project of Abrams after the spy film was the action movie "Star Trek" with Chris Pine in the title role. By the way, he was considered as the main competitor of the starry universe of George Lucas.
As for episode 7 of Star Wars, Abrams acted not only as its director, but also as a producer and screenwriter. Oscar-winning Lawrence Kazdan and Michael Arndt helped in the work on the screenplay.
The presence of George Lucas in the project was limited to the fact that the film company Lucasfilm was engaged in the production of the picture. The premiere of the 8th episode of the franchise is planned for 2017, but the “father of the movie saga” will still not take part in its creation. This is due to the fact that the rights to the film adaptation of the story were bought by The Walt Disney Company, so it is not Lucas who initiated the continuation of the "star" franchise.
Short story
Star Wars: Episode 7 continues the storyline of episode 6, filmed in 1983, 30 years have passed since Luke Skywalker (Anakin Skywalker's son) disappeared. But still live his sister - General Leia Organa, as well as her husband - Han Solo. Their son Ben once trained with Luke, but then switched to the Dark Side by force, taking the name Kylo Ren. After that, Skywalker disappeared.
Kylo Ren decided to follow in the footsteps of his famous ancestor - Darth Vader: he, too, in his youth was a bright Jedi, promising, and then turned into the greatest evil.
Kylo Ren throughout the film hunts for the coordinates of Luke Skywalker. For their sake, he kills Lor San Tekka from the planet Jakku. But the card still eludes Kylo's hands. He has to confront the forces of the Resistance in order to get to it.
In the finale, Ren kills his father Han Solo, but loses the battle to the younger warriors - the girl Rei and his former comrade Finn. The story remains unfinished as the First Order and Kylo remain undestroyed and still constitute a danger.
Daisy Ridley as Ray
Star Wars 7 is replete with new heroes. For example, the main female character in the sequel is Rei - a native of the planet Jakku. In fact, Ray is an orphan, since from an early age he lives alone in AT-AT (her parents once escaped from the planet).
By chance, a runaway droid with the coordinates of Luke Skywalker's location gets to Rey. The girl undertakes to help him and is drawn into a big adventure. In the process of battles with representatives of the First Order, Rei learns that there is a Jedi force in her that can be developed. What she will do with this power will be clear in the subsequent parts of the franchise.
In the film "Star Wars 7" the actors were involved mostly little-known. Englishwoman Daisy Ridley also can not boast of roles in high-profile projects. In her filmography, from strength you can count 8-9 films, and those are mostly TV shows.
John Boyega as Finn
The movie Star Wars 7 seems to open the way to great cinema for another newcomer to the cinema. We are talking about John Boyeg, who got the role of Finn attack aircraft.
Finn is a defector character. At the beginning of the picture, he fights for the First Order and even goes for a map with the coordinates of Luke Skywalker. But in the process, Finn is more inclined to believe that the Dark Side of power is not for him. After the attack aircraft was shot down, he breaks with the past and goes over to the side of the New Republic.
In the movie Star Wars 7, actors John Boyega and Daisy Ridley play comrades. Their heroes in the finals bravely fight with Kylo Ren himself.
John is also from Britain, although he has Nigerian roots. The running role of the young actor in the theater is Othello. Of all Boyegi’s work before collaborating with Abrams, the most famous is the Alien in the Area action movie directed by Joe Cornish.
The hero of Boyegi Finn will appear in the eighth episode of the saga - again as the central character.
Other role performers
Star Wars 7: The Force Awakens found a place for the old guard. For example, General Leia Organa was played by the same Kerry Fisher. Kerry came to the stellar epic as a young little-known actress and so far this is her most noticeable role on the screen.
But Harrison Ford, after Star Wars, made an impressive career: the Indiana Jones franchise, the Blade Runner, The Fugitive, and Patriot Games fighters — he played the main roles everywhere. Unfortunately, his charming character Han Solo in the finale is killed by his own son.
The image of the pilot, Poe Dameron, the keeper of the card, was played by actor and singer Oscar Isaac. Before the "star" trilogy, Isaac starred in the main role in the tragicomedy "Inside Lewin Davis."
Adam Driver played the main antagonist of the picture - the son of Han Solo and the leader of the First Order, who joined the Dark Force. The driver is also known for the Spielberg Lincoln and Coen Brothers Inside Lewin Davis projects.
Donal Gleeson, who recently became famous thanks to the Survivor and Unbroken projects, appeared in the image of General Hux. In addition to young performers, you can also see Mark Hemill and Ken Lune in the frame.
Premiere
10 years have passed since the release of the last film by George Lucas, before Star Wars 7 was shot. The release date of the picture was scheduled for the end of 2015. On December 14, Los Angeles residents were the first to see the movie news. Within a few months, the seventh episode in North America broke all box office records.
The next day, December 15, the premiere took place in Jakarta, Indonesia. And on December 16, viewers of 20 countries saw the continuation of the franchise.
Star Wars 7 in Russian could be seen on December 17th. Nearly 6 million people attended the premiere. Charges in cinemas of the Russian Federation amounted to almost $ 26 million.
The Chinese were the last to see the film, since the premiere in their country took place only in January 2016.
Box office
What are the rental fees? Star Wars 7 has been a promising project from the start. The investment of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures in the amount of $ 245 million paid off: at the box office a science fiction film grossed more than two billion dollars. e.
For the first weekend, the tape of JJ Abrams earned $ 248 million. These are record fees. Star Wars 7 set a new bar, pushing the acclaimed Titanic and Avatar.
Nevertheless, in the TOP of the highest grossing films in the history of cinema, the seventh episode gave way to the projects of James Cameron, not getting at least $ 1 million. However, the release of the eighth episode is still ahead, so there is an opportunity in the rating to push at least “Titanic” to the third line.
Star Wars 7: Criticism Positive points
Critics very warmly accepted the attempt of JJ Abrams to continue the work of George Lucas. Firstly, five nominations for the Oscar testify to this. Secondly, a large percentage of loyal reviews: out of 319 reviews around the world, only 27 were negative.
What are the journalists talking about when describing their impressions of watching the Star Wars 7 episode? The reviews of most critics boil down to the fact that JJ Abrams was able to realize his plan: to preserve the light adventure atmosphere of all previous parts of the franchise, shot by George Lucas.
Despite the fact that the tape lasts 136 minutes, you do not have to be bored: every moment is filled with active action and events. And at the same time, there is the opportunity to relax a bit in between fights and battles.
It can be seen from the film canvas that Abrams sincerely tried to make a reverence for the true fans of the project: in the plot of the seventh episode, the director constantly makes references to prequels and tries to keep the connection with the universe created by George Lucas as much as possible.
All the features of the "star" saga (blasters, Jedi swords, droids) now look more modern - we can say, have found a "new" life.
JJ Abrams managed to create an aura of mystery around the film before the premiere. Teasers and trailers came out, but they absolutely did not tell the viewer about the plot. From the small commercials, one could only guess about the scope of the upcoming project.
Negative reviews
There were negative views on the work of Abrams. According to some critics, the appearance of new characters in the frame was "far-fetched." Speculation on some secret connection between Rei and Luke, the notorious main antagonist - all this looked frivolous against the backdrop of a fantastic film of the 80s, where Darth Vader was terrified of everyone in the frame.
Nevertheless, the box office speaks for itself. Apparently, fans of the franchise can not so meticulously analyze the plot and game of the actors.
Positive feedback from viewers
When viewers talk about the sequel to Star Wars 7, the reviews sound mixed.
The part of the audience that went to the cinema to relax and have fun believes that the painting by JJ Abrams completed this mission quite successfully. Dueling with lightsabers, shooting from blasters, a beautiful girl in the title role, new landscapes of star galaxies - everything was present in the frame. True, the performer of the role of Kylo Ren did not conquer the fans at all. They believe that with such an inexpressive and, moreover, a pretty face, playing the main antagonist is simply contraindicated.
Negative reviews
A second group of loyal franchise fans angrily stated that it wasn’t even worth trying to film Star Wars 7: The Force Awakens. The Disney company left an imprint of a children's fairy tale on a fully grown-up adventure movie. In addition, a lot of stamps are visible in the frame. If the reasons why Anakin Skywalker joined the Dark Force were clear, then the story of how his grandson ended up in the First Order is not substantiated. Kylo Ren looks caricatured cruel, and there is no logic in his actions.
The same can be said about the sudden "enlightenment" of the attack aircraft, which after 20 years of loyalty and devotion to the First Order suddenly decided to show humanity, and about many other points.
Precisely because the reviews differ, it is worth watching the movie with your own eyes to make up your mind.