By: Korey Alder, Photography Editor
Posted December 15th, 2015
With Star Wars: The Force Awakens debuting around the world on December 18th, now is a great time to summarize a bit of the hype, speculation, and information surrounding the newest addition to the Star Wars franchise.
Although those working on the new movie have gone to great lengths to ensure that the majority of the plot remains secret, there have been various hints dropped by the multiple trailers, as well as by the actors and crew. At this point, it has been established that the film takes place roughly thirty years after the events of Return of the Jedi. This correlates closely to the amount of time since that movie’s original release 32 years ago; thus the actors have aged a similar amount in real life as their characters would have in the Star Wars universe. Another important (although non-spoiling, don’t worry!) element leaked accidentally at Comic-Con is the “Starkiller Base,” an evolved version of the Death Star that is apparently the bad guy headquarters.
As far as the acting talent goes, many of the original film’s characters, and consequently their actors, are returning for the Star Wars reboot. Harrison Ford will return as Han Solo, Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia, Kenny Baker as R2-D2, Anthony Daniels as C-3PO, and Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca – although the roles of these characters are relatively unknown. Along with these veterans comes an array of new characters, which will presumably become the new stars of the franchise. Among them are Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, who play some of the lead protagonists in the picture.
In the special effects department, Star Wars is shaping up to be an impressive combination of computer graphics and practical effects . . . something akin to the style of the original Star Wars films. As a result of huge, detailed sets and intricate alien costumes, the movie should have a more physical feel than the heavily green-screened shots common in too many high-budget sci-fi’s. Over a period of six months, the majority of the filming was completed at the English Pinewood Studios, with other locales including the Abu Dhabi desert and the island of Skellig Michael. Also noteworthy is John Williams’ recurrence as the composer for the movie’s soundtrack; he’s no doubt come up with a beautiful and compelling score, which hopefully sticks to the original’s atmosphere.
But can all this talent and hard work come together into an all-around quality film? With so much of the film’s plot still shrouded in mystery, there’s plenty that could go wrong. If the story can’t live up to fans’ expectations, or Jar Jar Binks makes an appearance (or any kind, whatsoever), the movie could leave viewers disappointed. Additionally, there is the light hearted concern that director J.J. Abrams may cover up the entire film with anamorphic lens flares, despite his comments to the contrary. There are, after all, three lens flares in the trailer alone.
If you want to find out more about the upcoming Star Wars movie, if you just want to watch the trailer for the fifth time, head on over to starwars.com.
