Tag: Carrie Fisher

  • The force is tepid with ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’

    The force is tepid with ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’

    Ian McDiarmid and Daisy Ridley in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

    “Slip to the darkside and cross that line.” – Eddie and the Cruisers

    In my past evaluations of the Star Wars films, I was very generous in doling out high praise. I was so enthralled with the imagination on display and wrenching moments that it took a long time, if ever, for me to see the flaws. With The Rise of Skywalker, however, the blinders have come off.

    The “final” entry to the main saga (pfft, like we haven’t heard that one before), Rise comes to us as the franchise may have just reached oversaturation. “Less is more” is perhaps a lesson this film could have used.

    The Emperor (Ian McDiarmid) lives! We’re finally clued in that he’s been shaping things from behind the scenes this whole time, but now wants his presence known. He meets with Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and officially gives him the order to kill Rey (Daisy Ridley). Meanwhile, the Rebels under command of Leia (Carrie Fisher) make their plans to strike but first need to locate the Sith homeworld where the Emperor is hiding out. So Rey, Finn (John Boyega), Poe (Oscar Isaac), Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo), C-3PO (Anthony Daniels), and BB-8 set out to find the big bad to end things once and for all.

    Even setting aside how its predecessor was received, this has been a very troubled production and lead-up. In addition to one of the primary actors dying before shooting even began, it’s been noted for the departure (firing?) of original director Colin Trevorrow and rumors circulating about behind the scenes disagreements. So yes, what we’re left with is a mess that does not come together in any cohesive or meaningful manner. While walking back some of The Last Jedi could please that film’s enemies, what was used to do that, in one way or another, is unlikely to be to their satisfaction.

    Chris Terrio has got to be one of the worst screenwriters working in major film today. This in no way feels like the natural progression of events that The Force Awakens was building towards. And no, that middle film cannot possibly be a scapegoat here, as this one tries its best to pretend it never existed. While that non-JJ Abrams entry has been fodder for hours upon hours of video analyses taking the writing to task, Rise has plenty more issues which should at least double those numbers.

    Yet in spite of all these detractions, I did derive some enjoyment from it. At the very least, it delivers on a purely visceral level. Space battles, lightsaber fights, chases, stealthy moments, exploring new(ish) environments…the basic elements one expects from this series are here. As terrible as the writing is, the main event reveal knocked me right on my hindquarters. Plus, it’s nice to see Billy Dee Williams finally reprise Lando in the flesh. 

    The Rise of Skywalker can be a fun time, but that’s really all it is. If you’re hoping for an all-time sci-fi great, this is not the film you’re looking for. You can go about your business. Move along.

  • ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ races at light speed to new heights

    ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ races at light speed to new heights

    Mark Hamill in ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’

    “That’s why ‘Star Wars’ is appealing. You watch someone fight the perilous monster” – Carrie Fisher

    As Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens ends, “Rey” (Daisy Ridley – Murder on the Orient Express) has found “Luke Skywalker” (Mark Hamill – Kingsman: The Secret Service) and given him back his father’s lightsaber.  “Kylo Ren” (Adam Driver – Silence) has been returned to “Supreme Leader Snoke” (Andy Serkis – War For the Planet of the Apes) to recover from the injuries suffered in the light-saber duel with Rey; and to complete his training.  The Resistance celebrates and also mourns the loss of “Han Solo.”

    The First Order is pursuing the remaining forces of the Resistance under the command of “Princess Leia” (the late Carrie Fisher to whom the film is lovingly dedicated).  She is on the bridge of the lead Resistance ship when some TIE fighters hit the ship’s bridge.  Leia survives but the rest of the main leadership of the Resistance is killed.  This puts “Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo” (Laura Dern – The Founder) in command of the Resistance until Leia can recover.  Prior to the destruction of that cruiser’s bridge, “Poe Dameron” (Oscar Isaac – 10 Years) led a successful but very costly mission to take out a First Republic dreadnought.

    The Resistance fleet makes the jump to light speed and escapes…only to find the First Order ships coming out of light speed right behind them.  Yes, somehow they are able to track ships at light speed, something previously thought impossible.  “Rose” (Kelly Marie Tran) is a technician who stops “Finn” from doing the wrong thing for a good reason.  Together they realize that there is a way to sneak aboard the First Order ship where “General Hux” (Dohmnall Gleeson – Dredd) is leading the pursuit of the Resistance.  If they can do that, they can disable the tracking device that enables the First Order to track spacecraft in hyperspace.   But they need a master codebreaker to carry out this mission, so Rose and “Finn” (John Boyega – The Circle) go off to a gambling resort world in search of the person recommended by “Maz” (Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave).  While they don’t find the man she recommended, they do meet up with “DJ” (Benicio Del Toro – Savages).  He’s a thief and has major code-breaking skills and they decide to trust him.  At the same time, having failed to persuade Luke Skywalker to leave his self-imposed exile and join the Resistance, Rey leaves him behind and goes off to face Kylo Ren.  Alone.

    Daisy Ridley in ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’

    Rian Johnson (Looper, Brick) has always had a deft touch in mixing story, action and visuals but he seriously ups his game here.  Mark Hamill gives the performance of his career and his brief on-screen moments with Carrie Fisher are amazing.

    Some say that this is the best Star Wars film ever, other saying it is the best since 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back.  That is a judgment left to each individual fan of the franchise.  Such subjective comparisons also ignore the fact that technology has leapt light-years ahead in the 40 years since I stood in line for hours to see the first film on opening day.  In the end, the question should not be if The Last Jedi is better than its predecessors.  The question is, just how good is it based solely on its own merits.  Other than being a moment or two too long, it is wonderful.

  • Debbie Reynolds dead at 84

    Debbie Reynolds dead at 84

    Debbie Reynolds in Albert Brooks' 1996 comedy, 'Mother'
    Debbie Reynolds in Albert Brooks’ 1996 comedy, ‘Mother’

    In a cruel twist that only 2016 could have wrought, just a day after the death of Carrie Fisher, her mother has also died.

    Debbie Reynolds, whose career stretched more than half a century, passed away in Los Angeles, according to her son. She was 84. Reports indicated she had been rushed to the hospital earlier in the day after having suffered a stroke.

    The singer and actress starred opposite Gene Kelly in 1952’s Singin’ in the Rain near the beginning of her career. She would later appear in dozens of films throughout the 50s and 60s, and even headlined her own television series, The Debbie Reynolds Show.

    For much of the 1980s and 1990s she would work only sporadically in TV and films, playing mostly small roles. Over her career Reynolds lent her voice to animated projects, and was the voice of “Charolette” in the classic 1973 animated tale, Charlotte’s Web. She would later work on other animated faire, such as Rugrats and Kim Possible.

    Then came the film which, for me, is one of my favorite comedies.

    Mother, written and directed by Albert Brooks, stars Brooks as a novelist struggling with a case of writer’s block who then moves back in with his mother to figure how how to write again. Reynolds plays the title role, and is brilliant.

    Debbie Reynolds with Gene Kelly (right) and Donald O'Connor in 'Singin' in the Rain'
    Debbie Reynolds with Gene Kelly (right) and Donald O’Connor in ‘Singin’ in the Rain’

    The role reminded audiences of Reynolds talents, and she worked consistently ever since.

    As of this writing it isn’t clear what lead up to Reynolds’ death, but it’s hard not to guess it related to the events surrounding her daughter’s passing.

    Carrie Fisher is one of Reynolds two children with the late Eddie Fisher. Carrie, who suffered a heart attack while on a flight into Los Angeles from London, died on December 27.

    With the loss of her daughter, Reynolds leaves behind a son, Todd, as well as a granddaughter, Carrie’s girl, Billie Catherine Lourd.

  • Carrie Fisher has died at UCLA Medical Center

    Carrie Fisher has died at UCLA Medical Center

    Carrie Fisher as "Princess Leia" in 'Star Wars'
    Carrie Fisher as “Princess Leia” in ‘Star Wars’

    Following a massive heart attack on a flight from London to Los Angeles, Carrie Fisher died on Tuesday morning in Los Angeles.  The cause of her passing was not immediately released.  She was born into Hollywood royalty as the daughter of singer Eddie Fisher and actress Debbie Reynolds, but achieved fame in her own right.

    Known around the world for playing “Princess Leia” in the original Star Wars trilogy, and reprising that role in Star Wars: The Force Awakens in 2015, Carrie Fisher did much more than just acting.  She authored four novels including the best-seller “Postcards From the Edge”, along with three non-fiction books.  Carrie Fisher was also famed for her skills as a Hollywood “script doctor” whose uncredited writing efforts included work on the scripts for Hook, Sister Act, Lethal Weapon 3 and other movies.

    She was born in Beverly Hills, CA and attended Beverly Hills High.  She left before graduating from high school to begin her career in show business.  She would later enroll at Sarah Lawrence College but never graduated because of her work on the original Star Wars film.

    She actually made her film debut in 1975’s Shampoo but playing Princess Leia in Star Wars just two years later rocketed her to stardom.  Aside from the remainder of the original trilogy and the more recent Star Wars: The Force Awakens, she also appeared in The Blues Brothers as the fiancee of John Belushi who he left waiting at the altar.  She also appeared in many other movies including Hannah and Her Sisters, When Harry Met Sally, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and others.

    CarrieCarrie Fisher was married to singer/songwriter Paul Simon, engaged to actor Dan Akyroyd and had a relationship with talent agent Bryan Lourd.  He is the father of Fisher’s daughter Billie Catherine Lourd who is also an actress.  She talked openly about her bi-polar disorder and her issues with involving the use of cocaine and misuse of prescription medications in an effort to self-medicate.

    She will appear on the big screen in December of 2017 when Star Wars VIII is scheduled to be released.  RIP.

  • ‘Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens’ amazes, and enthralls

    ‘Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens’ amazes, and enthralls

    Adam Driver as "Kylo Ren" in 'Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens'
    Adam Driver as “Kylo Ren” in ‘Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens’

    On May 25, 1977 in only 42 theaters, what we now know as ‘Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope” opened.  Its writer/director George Lucas was so convinced that it would not be a hit, he traded a small portion of his percentage of the movie’s profits to his friend Stephen Spielberg for an equal percentage of Spielberg’s profits from Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  In spite of the fact that Spielberg’s film was successful, he definitely got the best of that deal.

    Now, the 7th entry in this franchise is in theaters (on more than 4,000 screens) and at some point in the next few weeks, it will make the Star Wars film franchise the biggest box office franchise in film history, where only one major story is involved.  The Marvel “universe” has a larger total gross, but it involves film franchises that do not intersect in any way.

    The events in Episode VII begin roughly three decades after the end of Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.  “General Leia Organa” (Fisher) is leading the Resistance, which is struggling against The First Order, which has replaced the Empire as the evil force attempting to rule the entire galaxy.  It is led by “Supreme Leader Snoke” (Serkis) who has a ruthless general named “Hux” (Gleeson) and someone very similar and yet different than “Darth Vader.”  This person is “Kylo Ren” (Driver) and his mastery of the power of the Dark Side of the Force is most impressive.

    Both the Resistance and The First Order are searching for a map that will lead to the location of “Luke Skywalker” (Hamill), last of the Jedi.  He disappeared after a catastrophe at the Jedi Academy that he’d set up following the defeat of the Galactic Empire.  One of the best pilots in the Resistance, “Poe Dameron” (Isaac), has managed to obtain the map but before he is captured, he hides it in his droid, BB-8.  The droid winds up in the possession of a scavenger named “Rey” (Ridley), who is marooned on Jakku.  Poe is tortured by Ren but manages to escape with the help of a stormtrooper he dubs “Finn” (Boyega).  Their stolen TIE fighter crashes on Jakku and this brings Finn into contact with Rey.  Eventually they will encounter “Han Solo” (Ford) and “Chewbacca” and wind up delivering BB-8 to the Resistance.

    No more of the tremendously engaging story needs to be outlined.  There are surprises, shockers and stunning sequences throughout every one of the film’s 135 minutes.  In this critic’s opinion, this is by far the best film in the Franchise since the original trilogy was first released.  The deft touch of director J. J. Abrams in keeping the best aspects of the first three films, especially the moments of well-placed humor, while employing advances in technology to enhance the visuals and action validates choosing him to helm this movie.

    I plan to see it again.  Soon!