Star Wars - Episode 7: The Force Awakens (2015) - #Movie #Review

This one is a fun one!

Ok, so I am going to be honest and say that I was one of the handful of people who seems to have actually liked the prequel series... I mean Jar Jar Binks was incredibly irritating, but the rest of it... Well I thought it was pretty good... 

But I have to admit that I have really been looking forward to finally getting in to the future of the Star Wars universe... and that is why I am glad to have seen, Star Wars - Episode 7: The Force Awakens (2015)! 

A great movie, and a fantastic poster! 

Written by: Lawrence Kasdan (Kin), Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3) & J.J. Abrams (Star Trek). Starring: Harrison Ford (Raiders Of The Lost Ark), Mark Hamill (Batman: The Animated Series), Carrie Fisher (Family Guy), Adam Driver (The Simpsons), Daisy Ridley (Lifesaver), John Boyega (Attack The Block) & Andy Serkis (Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes). 

"This is the ship that made the Kessel Run in 14 par secs?" - Rey (Daisy Ridley: A quote from: Star Wars - Episode 8: The Force Awakens.) 

Ok... So I am going to say it.... This movie is basically a decent movie... I mean the story is pretty alright (except for the fact that it is fairly un-original...) Ok, so what I mean by this is this... Ok... So basically this movie takes place about 20 years after, 'Return Of The Jedi'... 

The Universe is now a very different place... The Empire is gone... Replaced by, 'The First Order'... And even though they aren't as big as the, 'Old Republic,' the, 'New Republic' is working on it... 

During this time, Storm Troopers are basically no longer recruited, but born in to service, and then kept drugged up to keep them there! And instead of Darth Vader bringing fear to the Galaxy, it is, 'Kylo Ren' (Played by: Adam Driver) 

Kylo Ren and his shrine to Darth Vader...

Now after a massacre on a world, one of the Storm Troopers gets out of their power and decides to escape... And with the help of a crafty girl who salvages stuff on a back water planet... And with the help of the people who helped end the reign of tyranny of the Emperor, will now work together to stop the next big plot from the Empire's successor! 

Ok so plus points... 

1. Awesome cast and getting to see the characters that made this series... Was awesome! 

2. The special effects are amazing! 

3. And for what it is, the story is alright. 

Now for the main minus point... This movie is fairly unoriginal... It is like J.J. Abrams decided to take the best of the original series (which was basically everything,) and then threw a few little perks in there... 

Don't let that discourage you though... It is a fun one that is worth checking out! 

Star Trek (2009) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"] Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

Being a huge Star Trek fan I was saddened when I heard that after the failures of the last 2 Star Trek The Next Generation movies and the failure of, 'Enterprise' that Paramount was putting a moratorium on any future Star Trek show (A moratorium being a hold on any future Star Trek TV project,) and that with the disaster that was, Star Trek: Nemesis (2002), that there was going to be nothing more from Star Trek...

The reason for this is that not only did they deprive the world of some truly awesome entertainment, but Star Trek has always stood for the idea that instead of only being able to see the problems that mankind faces, and will face in the future, it put forth the idea of what life could be like if mankind is able to get past it's petty squabbles...

But there was light at the end of the tunnel for us Star Trek fans out there... That light being when they release the re-booted series by going back to the beginning with Star Trek (2009)!

[caption id="attachment_2103" align="aligncenter" width="450"] A scene from, 'Star Trek' (2009)![/caption]

Directed by: J.J. Abrams (Super 8) and Starring: Chris Pine (This Means War), Zachary Quinto (Heroes), Simon Pegg (Shaun Of The Dead), Leonard Nimoy (Invasion Of The Body Snatchers), Eric Bana (Hulk), Bruce Greenwood (Double Jeopardy), Karl Urban (Dredd), Zoe Saldana (Colombiana), John Cho (American Pie), Anton Yelchin (Fright Night) & Chris Hemsworth (Thor).

Now I could tell you that the acting was great... (It was!), I could tell you that the Sound Effects were spectacular (they were), but the truth is, is my favorite thing about this movie is the story!

You see this story is truly an interesting twist on rebooting a franchise right! What I mean by this is that instead of the classic remake that would have inevitably butchered the series they took the story in a whole different direction...

In this movie, on the day that the future Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) is born... As a matter of fact while his mother is giving birth to him... The U.S.S. Kelvin is confronted with a Romulan ship that has just traveled to the past from the future... A ship that is being commanded by Captain Nero (Eric Bana)...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="512"] The ship that changed the future of, 'James T. Kirk'![/caption]

You see Captain Nero is looking for Ambassador Spock (Leonard Nimoy) who had ended up going back through time to the past (At this point in the Star Trek Universe, everything is moving the way it would have through out all of the previous movies and TV shows.)

Anyway Nero pushes to try and find Spock, but when he realizes that he went to far back in time, he ends up destroying the Kelvin... Fortunately just about everyone (including the newborn Jim Kirk and his mother Winona) escape the ships destruction... The only problem is that the only one left is the new born Jim Kirk's dad (who ended up saving the Kelvin survivors from Nero...

Now things are different, instead of young Kirk working his way to becoming the legend that he would have eventually become, he is a drunk, and a looser... That is until Kirk is confronted by a friend of his father's by the name of Captain Christopher Pike (Greenwood), who convinces him to at least give him a try.

During his initial run at Starfleet Academy, Vulcan is being attacked by Nero... Who has hatched a master plan that would eventual destroy the Federation of the past (A.K.A. the world of today.)

And now it will be up to the, until recently Jim Kirk that would not become the legend that he would have been in the previous time line, to finally own up to the man he was always meant to be and along with the crew oft he U.S.S. Enterprise, stop Nero, before Nero destroys the Federation!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Kirk & McCoy as they head toward their, 'destiny'...[/caption]

Really my main problem (and I know from talking to to other Trekkies out there that I am not the only one who thinks this), but the problem is, is that as good as this story is, it does have some disjointed continuity errors (well I won't bore you with the details, but if you are a trekkie, you probably will know which ones that I am talking about.)

But regardless, this movie is a fun one, and I thought it was well worth it, and if you give it a try, you might find the same thing as well!

http://youtu.be/SyJszxnJydA

Bring Star Trek Back To The Small Screen

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Star Trek Phase 2, a pilot that would have brought Star Trek back in the 1970s, an example of potentially a new show in the modern day?[/caption]

When I had heard about the absolute failure of, 'Enterprise' that they had decided to put a moratorium on Star Trek on both the small screen and the big screen... I was sad to hear! I mean besides the fact that Star Trek maybe historically one of the most important things that the Science Fiction genre ever produced, but this maybe one of the most prolific institutions to ever hit the big screen or small screen!

But fortunately though, J.J. Abrams (Lost) brought Star Trek back to life... And not just in the normal way that Hollywood seems to be doing these days! You see instead of just remaking, 'Star Trek' he just rebooted the series!

And so I ask, with the success of the new movie series, why not bring back Star Trek in the way that it had originally been intended? Why not bring it back to the small screen?

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="638"] A scene from the TV series, 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' the episode, 'The Best Of Both Worlds'.[/caption]

I think with the effort that most network TV stations seem to be getting away from the disastrous run that they saw when they over did the whole, 'Reality TV' craze, a few years back, that a new Star Trek show would not only help in this effort to revitalize TV, but I also think it would also help to bring Star Trek even further back to the prominence that it once had!

Another thing that I think would be great if Star Trek was brought back to TV would be to continue to bring back a certain level of respectability to the quality of TV programs on TV, what I mean by that a lot of network TV... Albeit great programming and fun shows... A lot of network TV I kind of feel (largely with Cable & Satellite TV as well,) but Star Trek's message in my opinion... And I think a lot of you would agree, but the message is one of hope and the belief that mankind can become better then where we are at!

The current standards of a lot of TV is more escapist from the tough lives that a lot of people are living today... Well the truth is, is Star Trek does the same thing as well, and there is nothing wrong with escapist TV... As a matter of fact, TV in and of itself is a medium of entertainment... And entertainment in and of itself is escapist... But modern TV has seemed to maintain the escapist entertainment, bringing back Star Trek to TV would start to bringing that back to the world!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="578"] Star Trek was a great example of TV that showed that the world could be more then what it was... especially considering the fact that the original Star Trek had a crew that was not segregated based on any sort of bigoted preference![/caption]

In the end, there is a lot of reasons to bring Star Trek back to TV, but in the end, as a fan, and I am sure that I can speak for a lot of the other Star Trek fans out there, it would be great to see a new series on TV!

http://youtu.be/G4pKq0sEjuA