Keycube
Well-Known Member
A little backstory: NONE of my friends want to go see SOLO with me (although the first go 'round will still be, well, solo), and I refuse to be merely indulged regarding the matter, so I asked a new lady friend if she would be interested. Absolutely, she said...but...she's never seen a Star Wars movie before. I started wondering whether or not ANH was even necessary for her to enjoy the new film (Though I'll obviously try, regardless), and being a hyper-sensitive sort anyway, I started visualizing how she would react to certain elements, if she would find them enjoyable based on what I know of her, etc...
And then that got me thinking...even if she was an open-minded sort, and even enjoyed sci-fi/fantasy (she IS an avid reader, enjoys theatre, and has watched - and enjoyed - the first two Star Trek films with me), the days of shock & awe whilst being introduced to Star Wars is probably over, isn't it. And I know it's kind of a loaded question - no one is totally foreign to Star Wars - you're probably not going to surprise anyone with Darth Vader - but it makes me sad to think that "being entertained for a couple of hours" might be the ceiling anymore for some/many/most new Star Wars fans.
I confess, a BIG part of my allure for the franchise has been the depth of the faux-engineering and world/character-building; being able to immerse yourself in this new world because it made sense through a careful connecting of the dots. Flipping through the vehicle cutaway books and character profiles, it was almost like reading a documentary - there was a reasonable backstory why everything existed, whether weapon, character, or locale. But it required a suspension of disbelief that, with the in-your-face pummeling of reality upon people via social media, I'm not sure people have room for in their life.
Some of us older SW folks see all of this a bit differently, I'm sure. You almost had to be there in the theatre from the very beginning, to get the full effect of total immersion. By being there at the start, you were one of the characters, you were a shareholder. I am definitely old enough to know better than to engage in online arguments over art, but I'll be damned if I can always rein myself in. Mind you, I am not proud of this. But it's, like, part of your DNA or something. At least, that's what I would have told the judge if I had ended up assaulting someone after my rage-tantrum upon viewing TLJ.
I was too young for Star Trek TOS, but I'm sure those people can also relate to all of this somewhat. I can also see why some of them were a bit eyeroll-ey about Star Wars, maybe in the way some of us OTers were about the prequels (initially at least; I've more than come to terms with them). We all set our bars high, they're our babies.
Anyway...it just made me sad to think that there may be no more whirlwind cinematic surprises that leave your mouth agape and have you returning to the theatre 20 times. Lots of reasons for this, I suppose; big, creative risks aren't really worth it, when you can phone it in and still make megabucks. The many problematic elements of CGI, including not having practical narrative boundaries. Tonal inconsistencies.
All that said...can't wait for SOLO and IX.
And then that got me thinking...even if she was an open-minded sort, and even enjoyed sci-fi/fantasy (she IS an avid reader, enjoys theatre, and has watched - and enjoyed - the first two Star Trek films with me), the days of shock & awe whilst being introduced to Star Wars is probably over, isn't it. And I know it's kind of a loaded question - no one is totally foreign to Star Wars - you're probably not going to surprise anyone with Darth Vader - but it makes me sad to think that "being entertained for a couple of hours" might be the ceiling anymore for some/many/most new Star Wars fans.
I confess, a BIG part of my allure for the franchise has been the depth of the faux-engineering and world/character-building; being able to immerse yourself in this new world because it made sense through a careful connecting of the dots. Flipping through the vehicle cutaway books and character profiles, it was almost like reading a documentary - there was a reasonable backstory why everything existed, whether weapon, character, or locale. But it required a suspension of disbelief that, with the in-your-face pummeling of reality upon people via social media, I'm not sure people have room for in their life.
Some of us older SW folks see all of this a bit differently, I'm sure. You almost had to be there in the theatre from the very beginning, to get the full effect of total immersion. By being there at the start, you were one of the characters, you were a shareholder. I am definitely old enough to know better than to engage in online arguments over art, but I'll be damned if I can always rein myself in. Mind you, I am not proud of this. But it's, like, part of your DNA or something. At least, that's what I would have told the judge if I had ended up assaulting someone after my rage-tantrum upon viewing TLJ.
I was too young for Star Trek TOS, but I'm sure those people can also relate to all of this somewhat. I can also see why some of them were a bit eyeroll-ey about Star Wars, maybe in the way some of us OTers were about the prequels (initially at least; I've more than come to terms with them). We all set our bars high, they're our babies.
Anyway...it just made me sad to think that there may be no more whirlwind cinematic surprises that leave your mouth agape and have you returning to the theatre 20 times. Lots of reasons for this, I suppose; big, creative risks aren't really worth it, when you can phone it in and still make megabucks. The many problematic elements of CGI, including not having practical narrative boundaries. Tonal inconsistencies.
All that said...can't wait for SOLO and IX.