Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens Movie Review (Spoiler-Free)

Article by Gabe Zia

Lazy Film Critic Movie Reviews

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (It's finally here)

So Star Wars The Force Awakens is the seventh film in the Star Wars series, it's directed by JJ Abrams and follows the story 30 years after the events of Return of the Jedi. Honestly, if you're hoping for anything more in-depth than that, and don't want any spoilers... Yeah I've got bad news for you. This is going to be a spoiler-free version of my review, I'll probably talk about the spoilers in a few days (once I've finished Star Wars week), so in the meantime I hope this will do.

So, without spoilers or anything, I'm sure people reading this want to know right out of the gate - is it good? Well, not only is Star Wars The Force Awakens a good movie, I think it's a great one. I'd go so far as to say this is probably my second favorite Star Wars movie, right behind Empire Strikes Back. This movie does everything the prequels should've (and maybe tried) to do, but didn't.

First off, the cast in this movie is fantastic. Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher are both excellent in the movie, they played their roles in a way that made you genuinely believe these were what those characters would be like 30 years down the line. John Boyega and Oscar Isaac are both great in their roles, both have some really memorable moments, and they both give really great performances. Adam Driver did a surprisingly good job as the villain, and making Kylo Ren the most human villain in the Star Wars series (aside from Darth Vader, obviously). However, the real knockout here is Daisy Ridley, and for a couple of reasons. Mainly, for this being her first acting role in a movie (at least that I know of), this is an absolutely amazing performance.

The action in this movie is also outstanding, and is without a doubt the best example of action in the series. It's not flashy or heavily choreographed as to give the illusion it's more of a dance than a fight, like in the prequels, however it's still much faster paced and more engaging than the action of the original films. The action also looks better than any the six films, which is due in large part to both JJ Abrams creativity with action scenes, and ability to deliver sequences that are just really good action.

As for the story... I can't get into that so much, not without spoiling the film anyway. However, what I will say is that, like everything else in this movie, it's good. In a lot of ways, it mimics the plot of A New Hope which I thought were pretty clever and well integrated (ways I can't get into), and it has a lot of really good twists and turns (twists and turns I also can't get into). Not to mention, this movie does a good job of setting up a trilogy, something the prequels didn't at all do.

Now, when Jurassic World was in production, a lot of set photos came to light showing off the films practical effects. However, to my disappointment, those practical effects would later be replaced by CGI. To my relief, this film doesn't make the same mistake. The way this movie handles its blend of practical effects and CGI is much to the same degree of quality as Mad Max Fury Road, it's mostly costumes, animatronics, puppetry, and makeup to make the aliens and creatures look real. For the most part, the only uses of CGI are the times when a shot would pretty much be impossible to do without CGI, or a background effect. The CGI is rarely the foreground, which is really how it should be. If I had to pick any issue with the movie, it has to be the two motion capture characters in the movie. Not only is their CGI just kind of... Okay, but their clearly CGI presence in a film that is predominantly practical effects kind of sticks out like a sore thumb.

Final Rating
This is a rare example of a movie I went into with high hopes, and was still totally blown away by. I loved the acting, I loved the writing, I loved the characters, I loved the cinematography, I loved the story, I loved the ending, I loved the music. Aside from two characters who probably take up a total of five minutes of screentime, there's nothing I wasn't absolutely in love with about this movie. Star Wars fan or not, go see it.

Star Wars Movie Review

Article by Gabe Zia

Lazy Film Critic Road to Episode VII

Star Wars

So I'm finally done with the prequels, now I can actually get to the movies in the series that everyone loves, starting with Episode IV (or Episode I if you prefer): A New Hope! This film follows the story of Luke Skywalker as he goes from a simple desert farmboy to the hero of the rebellion, fighting against the sinister Empire.

Okay, so it's basically common knowledge at this point that the original Star Wars trilogy are 3 of the best movies ever, even people who haven't seen them at the very least know about them. And with good reason, the first Star Wars movies are some of the best sci-fi films out there. And although I didn't grow up with Star Wars like a lot of current Star Wars fans, it's still one of my favorite movie series out there.

What's great about Star Wars, especially the first film, is that the story isn't anything special at its core. It's a basic story of good vs. evil, but what makes this movie great isn't really the story, but the execution. Sure, one could see it as a bit cheesy, after all, it's a 70s movie. But on the other hand, the movie does a great job of delivering such a simple plot into a sci-fi film that introduces its audience to a whole new world.

And thats the other thing I love, about this movie in particular. Something I love in any series, movie or tv, is anything that can establish an original world, and bring it's own creative lore. And that's what Star Wars does, which is something I see very rarely. This movie establishes its own lore, there is incredible and genuine originality behind this movie. Which is why I have and always will retain that even if you don't love Star Wars, there's gotta be some part in everyone that respects this movie.

Final Rating
Star Wars is an absolutely fantastic movie. It's a timeless film, and one of the all-time greats. I don't think it's quite on the same god-like status to me as it is to most people, I still enjoy the hell out of it. If you're one of the few who hasn't seen it, I'd highly recommend watching it. It's one of the best movies out there, and one of the best in the series.

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith Movie Review

Article by Gabe Zia

Lazy Film Critic Road to Episode VII

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

Continuing with my Star Wars week, leading up to the release of Episode VII: The Force Awakens, I'm going to review the third and final film in the infamous Prequel trilogy, "Revenge of the Sith". This film follows the plotline that the prequel trilogy was kind of always supposed to follow, but got sidetracked along the way. That plot being the from of Anakin Skywalker from Jedi Knight to Darth Vader, and how his turn to the dark side affects the people around him.

Now, of the Star Wars prequels, Revenge of the Sith is by far my favorite, and for a few reasons. The first major one being - unlike Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones - the acting in this movie is pretty good overall. Hayden Christensen is better here than in any of the other films, and has some pretty memorable moments acting wise. Ewan Mcgregor kills it again as Obi-Wan, and Ian McDairmid is finally allowed to have fun with his role as The Emperor. 

Revenge of the Sith also seems to do exactly what Attack of the Clones should've done but didn't which is to include more action than boring political stuff. Like the other two, the action is the best part of this movie, and it's better here than anywhere in the trilogy (dare I say the series) (until Force Awakens comes out). Unlike the other two, this movie starts out with a pretty long action sequence, and manages to maintain a consistent tone throughout the film. Also, it's worth mentioning that this movie has one of the coolest villain designs since... Well, since Darth Vader.

Honestly, I take very little issue with this movie. The only real issue is the same one that plagued both the other prequels - the writing. The dialogue in this movie (especially most of the dialogue between Padme and Anakin) is pretty awful, and while it doesn't have all the same problems as the first two prequels, it's still worth mentioning. Not enough to ruin the movie though. The other problems I have with this movie are mostly minor gripes, stuff in the story that really isn't worth bringing up because it's very minor.

Final Rating
Is it as good as the originals? No, absolutely not. However, Revenge of the Sith is by far the best Star Wars prequel, I don't have a lot against this movie aside from the writing (which is still a big issue). I like the acting, I like the action, I absolutely love the art design in this movie. Of the prequels, this is the only one that I can honestly say I could watch on a whim, or if it's on tv or something. Honestly, if you haven't seen the prequels, you wouldn't be missing much by skipping straight to this one. It's the best of the prequels, even if it has some flaws as well.

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones Movie Review

Article by Gabe Zia

Lazy Film Critic - Road to Episode VII

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones Movie Review

So, incase you missed it yesterday, I'm doing a special segment for this week leading up to the release of Star Wars episode VII. If you missed my review for Phantom Menace, be sure to check that out as well. But for now, I'm going to review Episode II: Attack of the Clones, which is in my opinion the absolute worst Star Wars film not just of the prequels, but the series as a whole.

Now, in my review for The Phantom Menace, I said Ewan Mcgregor was one of the acting highlights of that movie, and that is certainly true here. And once again, he's really the best part of this movie. Christopher Lee does a decent job as the villain - which is to be expected, he's Christopher Lee. However, much like Phantom Menace, the rest of the cast is incredibly bland, and there's very little visible effort shown. What's worse is that, unlike Phantom Menace where the two acting highlights were the leads, now Ewan Mcgregor is taking a back seat to Hayden Christensen, who has become infamous for his performance in this movie.

*Django Unchained theme plays in the distance* 

One of the things that really bugs me about this movie is the action sequences, because much like in Phantom Menace, they're pretty decent. However, to Phantom Menace's credit, that movie did a good job of balancing the action and the mind-numbingly boring political sub-plot. But here, the action seems to be put lower on the list of priorities. There are some entertaining sequences, sure, but they're greatly overshadowed by the films story, which takes itself way too seriously. 

Now, with The Phantom Menace, one of the key issues with that film was the writing and the characters, and Attack of the Clones does exactly nothing to improve the situation. Once again, the dialogue in this movie is absolute garbage, and brings back all the problems the dialogue in Phantom Menace had. It's cheesy, nonsensical, annoying, or just really uninteresting. And while it's not all horrific, there is one scene in the movie that I enjoy in terms of dialogue, but it happens very early one and makes up about a minute (or even less) of the movie. So it's not enough to save the writing.

You remember how in The Phantom Menace the film seems to go to absurd lengths to set up parts of the story in the originals? Attack of the Clones brings that back as well, and it's even more ridiculous. Now, while I'll admit it's interesting to find out what exactly Luke and Obi-Wan were talking about in A New Hope when they mention "the clone wars", but that's where the interest ends. The way this movie tries to tie in Anakins robotic hand, the clones, the stormtroopers, and the death star is extremely unnecessary. Much like Phantom Menace, this film would have been much better off it it wasn't trying so hard to tie itself into the original films.

Final Rating
Where Phantom Menace had a few things I enjoyed, Attack of the Clones has almost nothing to like about it. The few things I do like are very minor, and go mostly unnoticed due to the films focus on all the other stuff that just isn't interesting. The writing sucks, the CGI is mediocre, the characters are boring, most of the actors don't seem to care about their performance, the action seems to get cut off constantly by a boring story, and it's not worth your time. The only reason to watch this movie is if you're marathoning the series in anticipation of The Force Awakens, and even then, try to watch it on TV or something.

Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace Movie Review

Article by Gabe Zia

Lazy Film Critic - Road to Episode VII

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace Movie Review

So for the week leading up to the release of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, I've decided to review all six of the previous films in the series. Yeah, I'm doing it in story linear order, meaning I'll unfortunately start with the prequels. More specifically, I'll start with the most hated of the star wars films, The Phantom Menace.

Now, I'm gonna be 100% honest here. While it's by no means a good movie, one I'd avoid watching under any circumstance other than to review it. However, I don't think it's the complete failure many Star Wars fans accuse it of being, in fact there are some parts of the film I don't mind. I'll start with those, then get to what's rightfully hated about the film. First off, I don't think the acting is that bad. Not for the kid who plays Anakin, but mainly Ewan Mcgregor and Liam Neeson. Ewan Mcgregor especially, I feel like he's not given enough credit for these movies, because I think he actually does a pretty decent job at playing the young Obi-Wan. While he's much better in the role in the other two prequels, I think he's just fine here. 

There's also the action sequences, which I'll admit are mostly entertaining. The lightsaber fights are really fast, there's no slow motion, and its' really cool to watch some of the fight sequences (especially the last one). In fact, the film is kind of like a martial arts film in that right. Now, one may argue that what made the lightsaber fights in the originals was the elegance of them, that they weren't really fights. From an artistic standpoint, you'd be right, but if we're simply talking entertainment, these ones are better.

Now, it may sound like I actually like this movie, but rest assured I absolutely do not. Entertaining fight sequences and two good performances (McGregor and Neeson) don't at all make up for the horrendous stuff in this movie. I'll skip over Jar-Jar because at this point, it's really not worth mentioning. Instead, let's talk about the story of this film. This entire movie is written in this really weird way that forces events in the plot, not for the sake of the film, but for the sake of it being a prequel. In fact, the film goes to such extensive lengths to make sure you know it's a prequel that the actual plot of the film takes a backseat to the prequel portion of it. Not to mention, the prequel bits themselves don't make much sense, and feel really rushed.

Let's talk about the writing. This is an aspect I think really sucked a quality out of all three of the prequels, and yet it's rarely addressed, not to the magnitude of the acting or characters anyway. The dialogue in all of the first two prequels (and even a lot of Revenge of the Sith) is absolute garbage. Between annoying dialogue, boring dialogue, absolutely nonsensical dialogue, and odd expositional dialogue, this movie has it all as far as bad movie dialogue goes. And, to address the elephant in the room, a good 90% of the characters in this movie are incredibly annoying, pretty offensive racial stereotypes, made with creepy looking CGI, or (in the case of Jar-Jar) all of the above.

Final Rating
Of the prequels, The Phantom Menace is not the worst, but it's not the best either. It has its qualities, Ewan Mcgegor and Liam Neeson are both good, the main villain has a pretty cool design, and the action is actually very entertaining. Those things are enough to get this movie above terrible, and no further than that. It's by no means a good movie, but if I'm being honest I don't think it's the kind of godawful film most people - especially hardcore Star Wars fans - claim it to be.

Phantom Menace - 1/5