Trailer Reaction: Star Wars The Force Awakens

I have a confession.  I went to see 'The Phantom Menace' 8 times at the cinema.  Yeah, madness, I'm sure you‘ll agree; however at the time I was in the middle of a strange kind of depression so that film clearly gave me the escapism I needed.  At the time of their release I also enjoyed the other Prequel films - though now I wouldn't thank you to watch them.  Their flaws are well documented, from story, script, direction and acting.  Even the much-bally-hooed CGI effects haven't aged well.

But that‘s not the biggest reason I've felt nothing but ambivalence towards the prospect of a new Star Wars movie since it was announced.  Each rumour and announcement has failed to evoke the same excitement and anticipation I felt back when the prequels were in development - or that the Marvel Studios movies do now.  You see, I'm still not convinced that the word actually needs a new series of Star Wars films (aside from making Disney more money, that is).  As flawed as the Prequels were, they at least told a story that made sense with the original Trilogy and felt complete: the Saga of Anakin Skywalker and his redemption through his son, Luke.  Beyond that, is there any story that is worth telling?

So when the trailer dropped yesterday I was genuinely surprised at how much I enjoyed it: it brought a huge smile to my face, and at times I had goosebumps.  It has genuinely thrilling moments, and most of all it truly feels like Star Wars.  And this is despite the fact it reveals nothing really: no story, no details on who these characters are, nor what they're doing.

But interestingly the first characters we see are all new ones - despite the presence of franchise stalwarts Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford.  There's a pretty clear message here - these are the people who will be going on the adventures this time.

(All my pics are lazily pilfered from the trailer breakdown Empire Online did...)

First, we see John Boyega in a Storm Trooper uniform.  Is he actually a Storm Trooper?  Or is he disguised as one?  Yes, Storm Troopers feel Star Wars, but I am a little concerned that there are still Storm Troopers (and later, Tie-Fighters) around 30 years after we saw the Empire defeated.  Of course, there are no story details, but perhaps after the deafeat of the Emperor the military resources of the defeated Empire were merged with those of the Rebels?  I hope that's the case, otherwise for me it cheapens the end of the original Trilogy.

Then we see a little Droid - at once familiar but entirely new.  The head is a domed shape reminiscent of R2D2; but the body, whizzing past, appears to be a sphere.  And, boy, can it move!  The message here seems to be it‘s still the same galaxy, but things have moved on.

Next we see newcomer Daisy Ridley, and another image that anchors the film emphatically as a Star Wars movie: with a slightly determined or desperate look (is she being persued?  Has she just seen something and needs to report/warn someone?) she sets of on a speeder.  Again, a familiar Star War image, but given a new design.  In the background we see what appear to be ship parts - could it be that this girl has built the speeder herself from this scrap?  If it is, she's clearly a resourceful and intelligent character.

The next couple of shots sold this trailer for me - because, you see, when I was 5 and first discovered Star Wars, my favourite part above all else was Luke Skywalker piloting the insanely cool X-Wing Fighter and taking part in the attack on the Death Star; at that age, when I grew up I wanted to be an X-Wing pilot.  Here we get our first glimpse of Oscar Isaac piloting - yes! - an X-Wing, here seen flying in a formation, skimming over a body of water.  One of the best thing about the original Trilogy is how it took familiar settings - deserts, forests, jungles, but made them feel exotic and otherworldly.  This shot captures that feel effectively.  But seein the X-Wings really sold this trailer to me, and I could sense a new feeling about this film emerging: could that be a bit of optimism?

Then we see what appears to be (at least one of) the film's villains - is it a Sith?  Well, he has a brutal looking 'Saber with a nasty hilt...  This apparently is Adam Driver, and even though we don't see his face, I loved how this shot shows how his performance will convey him as a potentially classic villain.  He is slightly hunched, stumbling slightly - but when he clearly detects a threat he immediately reacts, and looks very dangerous.

Finally, after that, that familiar, iconic theme blasts from the speakers, as the Millennium Falcon (YES!!!) blasts across the screen.  And what a phenomenal shot that is.  The original Trilogy gave us so many jaw-dropping and ground-breaking shots and visuals, from the opening moment of 'A New Hope' when that immense Star Destroyer slowly sweeps over the screen.  You could argue that the Prequels failed to deliver as much of the same, but the shot of the Falcon in this trailer arguably demonstrates that Director JJ Abrams clearly wants to push the visuals as much as possible, like the original Trilogy did.  This shot is absolutely fantastic as the Falcon zooms round in an arc, flipping from upside-down, to face some on-coming Tie-Fighters.  The camera movies like it's mounted on another ship, struggling to keep up (and not creash whilst doing so!).  You could say that this trailer doesn't deliver anything as provocative and mind-blowing as Darth Maul's double-ended Saber did at the end of the first Phantom Menace trailer - but this final shot was absolutely fantastic, and suggests that, if nothing else, it will look superb (especially in IMAX 3D, I‘m already drooling at the prospect of seeing it in that format)!

As well as this there's a mencaing voice over, which many believe is either Andy Serkis or Benedict Cumberbatch - my money's on the former seeing as he's oficially part of the cast.  But really tying the whole thing together is the sound - with each shot there are snippets of Ben Burtt's definitive aural benchmarks for the trilogy: Imperial Code, droid chatter, the whoomph of a speeder, the familiar buzz of an X-Wing's engine; and of course, the sound of a Lightsaber being activated.  These are used sparingly, but you could have played the trailer without images, and just those sound queues on their own would have been enough to indicate that this film is definitely Star Wars.

So I really enjoyed this trailer.  But without any details of story, am I still ambivalent towards this, and other new Star Wars films?

Well, lets just say, I am feeling cautiously optimistic now.  This film most likely won't be the generational and cutural defining event the originals were.  But it certainly looks like it should be a fun and entertaining trip to the cinema; and that's what Star Wars always has been.