Tag: Star Wars

Female Characters, Film Score, Personal Essays, Spotlight, Uncategorized

The Musical Force is Female: Natalie Holt’s Score for “Obi-Wan Kenobi”

By Brian Skutle When Disney first purchased Lucasfilm in 2012, naturally, one of the first thoughts for many a “Star Wars”(1977) fan was the idea of getting more films and TV shows. “Clone Wars”(2008-2020) was going on Cartoon Network, but the prequel era had divided the fan base. New stories were not just on my mind, however. A new trilogy of films meant, of course, … Continue reading The Musical Force is Female: Natalie Holt’s Score for “Obi-Wan Kenobi”

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Personal Essays

Why I Hate Star Wars

I’m old enough to remember 1977, and as a young 6 year old I got all caught up in the excitement of “Star Wars”. I had two copies of the 1978 annual. I read them avidly, cover to cover, multiple times. Because of how long it took for feature films to make it to British television, I’d actually see “The Empire Strikes Back” at the cinema before I ever saw the first film, but I knew the story forwards, backwards and sideways. I remember getting Alan Dean Foster’s ‘Splinter of the Mind’s Eye’ spin-off novel from our school library multiple times.

So this sounds like the origin story of someone who totally loves and adores “Star Wars” right? No. I hate “Star Wars”. Continue reading Why I Hate Star Wars

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Personal Essays, Reviews

Trilogy of Star Wars – “Return of the Jedi”

Most people who meet me would not immediately think “Star Wars” fan and those people would be right.  And I don’t think when @FilmBee put out the word in our Saturday meeting that she was looking for a few Star Wars pieces, whether good or bad feelings on the subject, that she would’ve ever thought I would be one to write one up. But there was a time in a galaxy far far away when…… 🙂

In these weird never before experienced times, I did something I probably should have done years ago.  I did cleaning projects.  I’ve found things that I didn’t remember ever buying – things like loads of never used makeup and enough hair products to stock a small store.  But I also found these amazing VHS tapes that I had been given and saved from a time in my life long past – A collection of original special released “Star Wars Trilogy: Special Edition.  Continue reading Trilogy of Star Wars – “Return of the Jedi”

Peggy Marie1 Comment
Film Reviews, Reviews

Review- Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

“Star Wars: The Last Jedi” (aka the greatest film of all time, don’t @ me) was a film about failure, hope and a genuine sense of rebellion. It ended with a young force-using child symbolizing hope for the future, and the passing of the torch that is the “Star Wars” franchise to a new generation.

“Episode IX” might as well have begun with that child being unceremoniously shot dead by a blaster bolt. “The Rise of Skywalker” is not only a film thoroughly disinterested in continuing the themes and arcs of the previous film, but actively works to undermine them. Continue reading Review- Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Caelyn O'Reilly1 Comment
Female Characters, Personal Essays, Women in Film

Rey: The Force Will Be With You Always

2015. It had been 10 years since the Star Wars saga had wrapped up with 2005’s “Revenge of the Sith”. There I was standing in a massive line around noon waiting to get into a 7 pm showing of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”. The first outing post-Disney buy out. No one quite knew what to expect. Reviews hadn’t gone live, advance screenings started at 3pm, the script had been kept tightly under wraps, it was all up in the air.

The marketing at this point had all eyes on Finn as the supposed new Jedi of this trilogy, with Rey as the leia type character. Portrayed by Daisy Ridley, nothing was known about this character, other than she was a scavenger who played into the story somehow. Little did we know she would actually be the main character of this new trilogy. So it took everyone by surprise when at the end it was her wielding the lightsaber in the climactic battle against Kylo Ren play by Adam Driver. Continue reading Rey: The Force Will Be With You Always

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Female Characters, Film Reviews, Personal Essays, Women in Film

Star Wars: The Toxic Fandom

Anyone who uses social media to discuss their favourite tv shows or movies has probably run into a crazy fan or two. Most major franchises – Star Wars, Marvel, DC, Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Game of Thrones, Disney, etc- have a large following on social media that unfortunately includes some people whose goal is to make everyone else miserable.

These “Toxic Fans” (or “Toxic Fandoms” as a group) are defined as fans that are overly negative towards opposing opinions, are possessive, entitled, and/or abusive towards people they think are “ruining their franchise”. These groups of people have been in the spotlight recently for being so abusive they’ve made actors flee social media entirely. An example of this is with Rian Johnson’s “Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi” (2017) and its character Rose Tico and actress Kelly Marie Tran. Continue reading Star Wars: The Toxic Fandom

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Acting, Female Characters, Personal Essays, Women in Film

Leia Organa: The Hero We Needed

The loss of Carrie Fisher is still stinging, but we were given a legacy that some could only hope to leave behind. She was someone who was frequently active in her work as a mental health advocate, taking her own experiences to help others. She was passionate in her stances, humble and humorous in her flaws, and…a fighter. She was also a talented writer, and unapologetically open. This role is definitely the one most thought of, but she did a lot more in Hollywood, in front of and behind the scenes.

I first saw the original “Star Wars Trilogy” when I was 5 years old. This was the early 90’s before we got the prequels or the extended universe. These films had a near-permanent place on my television. This story, taking the very relatable good versus evil premise and creating this fantastical franchise, would be nothing without the characters that live within. All the main heroes were inspirational to me, but Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) especially stood out. Continue reading Leia Organa: The Hero We Needed

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