The Force Returns to the Big Screen
Caleb Ecarma, Staff Writer
The newly released theatrical poster for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Retrieved from starwars.com.
Whether it’s ethnically diverse storm troopers, the return of Harrison Ford to the big screen or location shooting from the Middle East to the British Isles, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, has an equal amount of hype and questions surrounding it.
Little to no information has been released to the public on what exactly this new Star Wars film is about. However, we do know that it is three decades after the ending of The Return of the Jedi. In a recent trailer, Han Solo talks about the events in the last film as if they are ancient myths and legends. Viewers see in the trailer a possible future villain, as a man dressed in black stares longingly at the scorched mask of Darth Vader. Viewers also see that, while Princess Leah and Han Solo return, the probable protagonists are a duo of youngsters, primed and ready for an intergalactic adventure.
As far as location and setting of the film, it is set in a frontier desert world, which fits in with all the shooting that the cast and crew did in Abu Dhabi. Other parts of the movie were filmed in Ireland and Pinewood Studios in Britain.
The film’s director, J.J. Abrams, was skeptical when he was first offered the opportunity to lead the cast and crew on the seventh Star Wars film, but the highly acclaimed director eventually gave in to Lucasfilm’s requests. After the success Abrams experienced with his hand in the reboot of the Star Trek films, many fans and critics expect great things from the director in his retro of the franchise.
However, the job of bringing back one of the most iconic film series is no doubt an exhausting task. When Abrams was asked by a reporter where he would be on premier night, he replied, “I will be asleep. I look forward to being done with the movie so I can pass out.”
There is a lot of public pressure on Abrams to make the newest Star Wars film extremely well.
North Greenville Marketing freshmen Taylor Welch said, “Honestly I was excited to see how Disney and Abrams would take on the project and I have high hopes for it, especially after seeing the recent trailer for it. I think they’ll learn from the previous mistakes like Jar Jar Binks.”
James Dennis, a freshman business major, said, “I’m definitely, definitely glad they rebooted it. I already preordered four tickets for the premier.”
“I think they should have left the original series alone and not made the extra three, but I really like the director this time around so I’m excited,” Dennis added.
However, Trevor Kolman, a first-year mass communications major, had mixed feelings on the series rebooting.
“I’m excited that there will be more of Star Wars, but I am nervous that it could be a horrible mess. I think Abrams can do a great job with the franchise though,” he said.
