Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: A saga repeated
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skwalker had a lot to accomplish for one movie: it had to not just wrap up a trilogy, but a saga of three trilogies, and to also find a direction to go in…
Tagged: Star Wars
Skywalker Saga movies, ranked (by title)
Originally, the first movie in the Skywalker Saga was just Star Wars, but since each movie in the nine-episode series since Episode V has had its own title (and the original got one after the release of Empire Strikes Back), …
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019): a spoiler-filled review
For many, the big moment is here. The final story of the Skywalker saga officially hits theaters this weekend. But I for one wouldn't be surprised if there were more film entries in this series, with or without Skywalkers. After all, Star Wars does have the backing of some studio that uses a mouse as its mascot. But onto the movie itself.
Hit or Bomb? December 2019 movie predictions
It’s the Christmas movie season, where studios typically roll out lots of big blockbusters and awards bait, but much like two years ago, the release schedule is pretty light this year, because the assumption seems to once again be that…
The Jedi Order must reinvent itself after The Rise of Skywalker
Story arcs that go from decline and fall to rise and redemption are common in fiction that operates on a grand scale. The Star Wars franchise operates on a large enough scale to do it twice in three trilogies, as…
Peak TV and serialization in the wake of the Game of Thrones finale
So… how about that Game of Thrones finale?
Okay, let me cut through the icy, awkward silence, and start over.
We live in the Age of Peak TV, or that’s what all the smart websites tell me: Peak TV this,…
Comparing the sci-fi bars
A bar or tavern in a sci-fi space opera setting can be a lot of things. It can be a place of potential danger, as in the Mos Eisley Cantina in Star Wars. It can be a place of opportunity…
Why The Last Jedi gives me (yes!) hope for Episode IX
As the Christmas release date for the next Star Wars movie approaches, and with filming now reportedly completed, the anticipation and the backlash that have both become synonymous with the franchise since the release of the prequel trilogy remain as…
Solo, and the appeal of smaller storylines
What do you get when you take away the usual ingredients of a Star Wars movie, such as lightsaber duels, the Jedi, and the Force? What happens when you tell a more prosaic, character-driven story that delves into the background…
Solo was good; here's how it could've been great
Solo: A Star Wars Story was good.
It was really good, you guys. You should see it if you haven’t yet. I’d imagine a fair bit of you haven’t, given that Solo was the second lowest-grossing Star Wars movie to…
Battle of the Nerd Comedies: Free Enterprise (1999) vs. Fanboys (2009)
A short while back, I wrote an article comparing the documentaries Trekkies and The People vs. George Lucas. These movies looked at the appeal and devoted followings of Star Trek and Star Wars, the two most famous series in…
7 ideas for the next A Star Wars Story
It was a golden moment when Lucasfilm and Disney announced their intention to make a series of standalone Star Wars movies in addition to the sequel trilogy. For the first time in history, the Star Wars franchise wasn’t penned in…
Hit or Bomb? May 2018 movie predictions
Feeling like you’re recovering from a massive hangover of Avengers proportions? Well, pop a fistful of Tylenol and pour yourself a Bloody Mary, because blockbuster season has only just begun, and Hollywood still has a ton of action/comic book/sci-fi extravaganzas…
Can we stop using the word "reboot"?
Looking at this year’s slate of movie reboots (including Death Wish, Tomb Raider, Venom, Robin Hood: Origins, and Mary Poppins Returns) made me come to a realization: Someday, Disney is going to reboot Star Wars…
5 burning questions about Star Wars: The Last Jedi
In a review of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I wrote that it turned out that one of the least interesting questions about The Force Awakens was “is it a good movie?” The reason is that it was so…
The Star Wars Holiday Special (1978)
For the holiday season, I decided to take a look at something that’s truly scary. No, I’m not talking about Black Christmas, Silent Night Deadly Night, or even Gremlins. I’m talking about a TV special that only…
5 ways to make The Last Jedi great
Let me start by explaining where I’m coming from with respect to Star Wars: The Last Jedi. First, it’s a sequel to a movie that I had a mixed reaction to. I found The Force Awakens enjoyable and some of…
The biggest plot hole in Star Wars... isn't a plot hole
So I finally saw Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. I have in fact seen it twice in the last four months. And my reaction is…
…eh.
I mean, it wasn’t bad or anything. It was a perfectly serviceable…
A cynic’s look at the Star Wars: The Last Jedi trailer
So hey, how about that Last Jedi trailer? Here it is, if you haven’t seen it:
We all know the drill pretty well by now, don’t we? The trailer drops. Everyone pores over it and does their own bit of…
Top 5 (bad guy) movie sidekicks
Last time, I looked at heroic sidekicks from movies. Now, I’m going to take a look at 5 movie sidekicks that were anything but heroic.
1. Oddjob
Granted, the James Bond series was already on its third movie (Goldfinger…
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