Star Wars: The Force Awakens Violates Laws of the Universe
by Thomas Hoffman
A short while ago, in a movie theater very near, I saw the first Star Wars film I actually enjoyed in years. The Force Awakens re-awakened my interest in Star Wars. However, all Star Wars movies have flaws, and this one was no exception. This Star Wars film violates the laws of the universe. The Star Wars universe that is. The first Star Wars law that was broken was the idea of this movie debuting in the holiday season. I have always associated Star Wars with summer. I have seen my share of Star Wars Christmas ornaments. Other then Star Wars decorations, I am convinced the two simply do not mix. The only “dark side” that belongs in Christmas is the Grinch. The Imperial March does not mix with “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas.” I could not understand what Star Wars has to do with Christmas. Then I realized Star Wars leads to video game and toy sales, which has everything to do with Christmas.
I do not have the same disgust and disappointment towards the newer prequels like Attack of the Clones(or even to Jar Jar Binks) that many people do. I feel the critics were too hard on those films. The public was expecting the new cast to fill the shoes of the original, which is impossible. However, when I learned the original cast would return for these sequels, I knew they could deliver something the prequels never could. Unlike The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, I did not feel like I was watching a two hour video game commercial. You cared more about the characters. The whole conflict with the First Order and the Republic had some interesting parallels to real political movements. Unlike the newer prequals, I was expecting a sort of “romp with old friends.” Star Wars: The Force Awakens was just that, up to a certain point. Until another “Star Wars law” was broken
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SPOLIER ALERT:
The public seems to be concerned with who Ray really is. A secret daughter of Luke? A granddaughter of Obi Wan? I personally only have one question, and it is not about Ray’s identity. My main question is this, how could they kill off Han Solo? This is the first time in a Star Wars movie a major hero has ever been killed. The one exception(and Disney was trying to re-create this) was when Obi-Wan was killed by Darth Vader. Obi-Wan returned as a “ghost” in the same movie, Han Solo did not. I cannot understand why every single Star Wars fan is not outraged by this? I am surprised there are not protests. This is the biggest death in the Sci-Fi Movie world since Mr. Spock died. This also leads me to a terrible speculation. Could it be the entire original cast will make the ultimate sacrifice, one at a time? A major theme The Force Awakens features is the idea of the original cast passing things down to the new characters. I was not expecting to leave a Star Wars movie(especially a Christmas one) feeling depressed. Bored or disappointed maybe, but not depressed.
Thomas Hoffman is a freelance writer who writes on a variety of topics. He is a frequent contributor to The Moderate Voice