Since LOST there have been many iconic and epic television shows that critics and fans stressed over.
Breaking Bad was a media darling based upon its premise, its script and its compelling actors.
Currently, the fantasy epic Game of Thrones is on everyone's radar. The coffee room talk is very high on this series as fans are eagerly anticipating the climatic ending.
But
it is very hard for a show to keep itself on the rails when fan
expectations are so far ahead of the ability of the writers and staff to
meet those expectations.
There are the big, deep film franchises like Avengers: End Game which will set in the next few weeks a world wide box office record of more than $3 billion.
But there are iconic series, like Star Trek and Star Wars,
who have had their spin-offs, sequels and prequels not being received
as highly as the original shows. Some of that is viewer burn-out of the
franchise's story. In some cases, the original show fan base has aged
out and the material does not hook younger viewers. There are more
diversions now for people to spend their entertainment time, such as
video games, YouTube broadcasts and Twitch streams.
LOST
is still considered a legacy show because it long running series that
captured the imagination of both critics and fans to the point of
obsession on every detail. Game of Thrones has many similar
attributes as fans are trying to figure out who will survive to the End.
And the End is the key to the legacy of a series.
For
many, LOST's ending was weak to a fail. For others, it was the perfect
happy ending for their favorite characters. Many thought the questions
had to be answered about the mythology of the show. Others thought the
final character development was more important. Insiders have tried to
conceal many of the production issues which partially caused major
shifts in scripts and settings which may or may not have caused the
strange, disjointed final season to come together.
The
debate of LOST's End is a continuation of the in-season debates about
the motivations of the characters, who was good, who was evil, and what
everything meant to mean in the Big Picture. This on-line fan community
debates were just as important as the show itself.
The
only problem with LOST's legacy is that it is frozen in time. People
still remember it, but memories will fade over time. It is not in
syndication because it is a series that builds upon each previous
episode. It is not like a sit-com that has a self contained 30 minute
story line resolution. As such, LOST does not have the continuing
traction of Star Trek, which continues to be syndicated and shown
on a daily basis across the cable spectrum. In that regard, LOST will
never be as popular as Star Trek. But it may be more important to future screenwriters on the pitfalls of expectations in creating a legacy show.
Showing posts with label Star Wars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Star Wars. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 1, 2019
Thursday, September 7, 2017
THE JOURNEY
Poet Rainer Maria Rilke wrote, “The only journey is the one within.”
The basic structure of a good story is a good premise, strong character development, action, reaction, conflict, choices and a journey's end.
The quintessential story arc in this generation is Luke Skywalker's journey to become a Jedi. From humble beginnings, a tragedy propels a naive young man into a dangerous adventure across the galaxy in search of truth, purpose and family. But throughout, the journey was within Luke's heart and soul - - - the mixed emotions, conflicts, set-backs and new friendships that affect how he would become a man.
Did anyone in LOST have such an heroic journey?
Sun defied her rich and overbearing father by marrying a poor fisherman's son, but her life did not end well.
Locke tried to rebel against his miserable life without a family, only to be crippled by his own father which led to a lifetime of mistrust and failure. His life did not end well either.
Kate was a bored, troublemaker as a child who kept her selfish ways of manipulating others in the forefront of her personal survival game. She had an opportunity to change (as did all of the characters) but she did not. She could never find true happiness in her life.
Sawyer was a vengeful boy who turned into the man he despised for destroying his family. But when he could have had a chance to led a family, he turned his back and fled responsibility. He took the easy way out because his personal bitterness and torment was his own internal best friend.
Sayid led a life of struggle and burden of responsibility. He did the dirty jobs. It affected his mental state. When he left Iraq and found his true love, it was taken away from him. In his journey to find her, he failed the woman he claimed to be the love of his life - - - and wound up with a woman he had only a short affair.
Hurley was an introvert scarred by his father's abandonment. He felt he was unlucky at life and that he was the sole cause of his own problems. But when he got lucky and won the lottery, a life changing event, he willed himself into more bad luck. In order to keep himself together, he invented his own best friend and checked himself into a mental institution to be safe from the world that brought him only bad luck. Even when he tried to change his life (by finding the meaning of the numbers), his plane crash lands on a dangerous island. He has an opportunity to re-invent himself but he never does. We don't know how much of Hurley's experiences and thoughts were real or imagined as some theories believe.
Jack may have been the closest to a clear path journey. His story starts as being a highly successful surgeon. He is at the top of his profession. He is well respected. He holds life and death decisions in his hands. But his demon is the lack of love from his father. His relationship with his father eats away at his soul to the point of jealousy, ire and mental breakdowns. The fact his father dies in a Sydney alley causes Jack to begin a journey into a downward spiral of personal torment. He becomes the reluctant leader of the survivors. His decision making becomes fragmented between himself as being the leader and good of the group. He decides to hide his island past when he is rescued, causing even more pain and suffering to the people around him. When Locke is killed, Jack has his final mental breakdown - - - the illogical quest to return to the island to fulfill some unknown reason. At this point, objectively he lost his ability to be rational. But since he left enough of the old Jack in the minds of his island mates, they joined him on a fateful journey back to the island. But the resolution on the island did not solve any of Jack's life problems. It was merely murky waters of his own discontent to the point of a suicide pact with the Man in Black as they went down into the Light Cave. Jack did not die a hero's death, but a foolhardy attempt to runaway from his problems. He did not have a personal redemption. He did not find the solution to save his friends. He did not get them off the island or home. Jack's journey was the reverse path of Luke's. Jack did not find his journey's end with true answers to make his life great.
The basic structure of a good story is a good premise, strong character development, action, reaction, conflict, choices and a journey's end.
The quintessential story arc in this generation is Luke Skywalker's journey to become a Jedi. From humble beginnings, a tragedy propels a naive young man into a dangerous adventure across the galaxy in search of truth, purpose and family. But throughout, the journey was within Luke's heart and soul - - - the mixed emotions, conflicts, set-backs and new friendships that affect how he would become a man.
Did anyone in LOST have such an heroic journey?
Sun defied her rich and overbearing father by marrying a poor fisherman's son, but her life did not end well.
Locke tried to rebel against his miserable life without a family, only to be crippled by his own father which led to a lifetime of mistrust and failure. His life did not end well either.
Kate was a bored, troublemaker as a child who kept her selfish ways of manipulating others in the forefront of her personal survival game. She had an opportunity to change (as did all of the characters) but she did not. She could never find true happiness in her life.
Sawyer was a vengeful boy who turned into the man he despised for destroying his family. But when he could have had a chance to led a family, he turned his back and fled responsibility. He took the easy way out because his personal bitterness and torment was his own internal best friend.
Sayid led a life of struggle and burden of responsibility. He did the dirty jobs. It affected his mental state. When he left Iraq and found his true love, it was taken away from him. In his journey to find her, he failed the woman he claimed to be the love of his life - - - and wound up with a woman he had only a short affair.
Hurley was an introvert scarred by his father's abandonment. He felt he was unlucky at life and that he was the sole cause of his own problems. But when he got lucky and won the lottery, a life changing event, he willed himself into more bad luck. In order to keep himself together, he invented his own best friend and checked himself into a mental institution to be safe from the world that brought him only bad luck. Even when he tried to change his life (by finding the meaning of the numbers), his plane crash lands on a dangerous island. He has an opportunity to re-invent himself but he never does. We don't know how much of Hurley's experiences and thoughts were real or imagined as some theories believe.
Jack may have been the closest to a clear path journey. His story starts as being a highly successful surgeon. He is at the top of his profession. He is well respected. He holds life and death decisions in his hands. But his demon is the lack of love from his father. His relationship with his father eats away at his soul to the point of jealousy, ire and mental breakdowns. The fact his father dies in a Sydney alley causes Jack to begin a journey into a downward spiral of personal torment. He becomes the reluctant leader of the survivors. His decision making becomes fragmented between himself as being the leader and good of the group. He decides to hide his island past when he is rescued, causing even more pain and suffering to the people around him. When Locke is killed, Jack has his final mental breakdown - - - the illogical quest to return to the island to fulfill some unknown reason. At this point, objectively he lost his ability to be rational. But since he left enough of the old Jack in the minds of his island mates, they joined him on a fateful journey back to the island. But the resolution on the island did not solve any of Jack's life problems. It was merely murky waters of his own discontent to the point of a suicide pact with the Man in Black as they went down into the Light Cave. Jack did not die a hero's death, but a foolhardy attempt to runaway from his problems. He did not have a personal redemption. He did not find the solution to save his friends. He did not get them off the island or home. Jack's journey was the reverse path of Luke's. Jack did not find his journey's end with true answers to make his life great.
Saturday, December 26, 2015
WONDER TO GO
In 1977, I went to a large suburban theater to watch the first Star Wars movie. I do not recall what actually motivated me to see the movie, except that that was what kids did on Saturday afternoons.
The old theater had a monster screen and new Dolby sound. It could fit three current theaters into it. It was the last arc of the grand movie palace experience, where the characters and action on the huge screen was larger than life.
I remember it was a very good action-adventure movie. So much so, that I made a point of seeing the next two sequels. But then after that, I had no interest in George Lucas' prequels. It came mostly from negative reviews and the lack of the original characters involved in the movies.
And that is a point of franchise stories: people get personally invested in the characters that they are drawn to . . . in such a fashion to follow their stories to the bitter end.
With Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I can guess a couple of major plot twists because I know that Hollywood rarely has a totally original story idea. I have been spoiler free in internet surfing so if I make the commitment to elbow through the mobs this holiday season to see the picture, I will get the full effect of re-boot.
But I am thrilled with JJ Abrams at the helm. As a loyal, old school Roddenberry Star Trek fan, I was disappointed with his franchise reboot to the point of not watching any more of his "alternative" universal thought. It seems the younger generation does not care about alternative canon story lines since the major comic book makers seem to re-boot their franchise characters every couple of years, to the point of total confusion of character roles and motivations. Example, is Batman good or bad?
So I wonder if the new Star Wars movie will hold to Lucas' vision, or will it be a tale of Hollywood Disneyification profiteering, or a mixed bag of hope dreams bruised by formula pole tent movie making.
Great science fiction charges one's imagination. Poor sci-fi clouds the mind.
This new Star Wars movie is supposed to break all box office records. But industry insiders think it will be a commercial flop if it does not make $1.5 billion at the box office. Reports indicate that Disney has strong armed many theater chains to pay higher ticket gate percentages in order to show the film. To be super successful, Disney hopes for multiple viewings by fans and a huge rush of merchandise purchases.
But let's hope the old characters can gracefully hand over the story to the new, younger Jedi characters. Because in the end, it is still the story that counts the most.
The old theater had a monster screen and new Dolby sound. It could fit three current theaters into it. It was the last arc of the grand movie palace experience, where the characters and action on the huge screen was larger than life.
I remember it was a very good action-adventure movie. So much so, that I made a point of seeing the next two sequels. But then after that, I had no interest in George Lucas' prequels. It came mostly from negative reviews and the lack of the original characters involved in the movies.
And that is a point of franchise stories: people get personally invested in the characters that they are drawn to . . . in such a fashion to follow their stories to the bitter end.
With Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I can guess a couple of major plot twists because I know that Hollywood rarely has a totally original story idea. I have been spoiler free in internet surfing so if I make the commitment to elbow through the mobs this holiday season to see the picture, I will get the full effect of re-boot.
But I am thrilled with JJ Abrams at the helm. As a loyal, old school Roddenberry Star Trek fan, I was disappointed with his franchise reboot to the point of not watching any more of his "alternative" universal thought. It seems the younger generation does not care about alternative canon story lines since the major comic book makers seem to re-boot their franchise characters every couple of years, to the point of total confusion of character roles and motivations. Example, is Batman good or bad?
So I wonder if the new Star Wars movie will hold to Lucas' vision, or will it be a tale of Hollywood Disneyification profiteering, or a mixed bag of hope dreams bruised by formula pole tent movie making.
Great science fiction charges one's imagination. Poor sci-fi clouds the mind.
This new Star Wars movie is supposed to break all box office records. But industry insiders think it will be a commercial flop if it does not make $1.5 billion at the box office. Reports indicate that Disney has strong armed many theater chains to pay higher ticket gate percentages in order to show the film. To be super successful, Disney hopes for multiple viewings by fans and a huge rush of merchandise purchases.
But let's hope the old characters can gracefully hand over the story to the new, younger Jedi characters. Because in the end, it is still the story that counts the most.
Thursday, November 20, 2014
THE QUEST
In all great historical stories and myths, there is a difficult quest that the main character must endure in order to find his answers.
A quest is a long or arduous search for something important.
In the series, various characters were looking for answers but few were truly on a quest.
Locke was an angry, lonely child - - - bounced from foster home to foster home. He had no father. He had a crazy mother. He longed to be popular, but his intelligence outcast him to the geeky group in school. Throughout his life, he turned away from applying his natural talents in order to chase the illusion of grandeur of the high school jock, or adventurous outback hunter. In the show, Locke continued on his fantasy illusion, not finding answers but running into the same societal judgments and roadblocks that angered him so.
Sayid was also an angry child - - - having to do the dirty work for his older brother. He was the one who became tormented by family honor to become a self-hating soldier. He knew he could not fit into normal society because his training had created a monster within him. He ran away from his homeland, feebly chasing a vision of his dream girl, but only to wind up in a miserable place with people weary of his background and his purpose.
Sawyer was also an angry child - - - having his parents killed by a con man's greed set him on the path of revenge. Finding the man who ruined his life became an obsession that ruined Sawyer's own life. Instead of learning from the experience, he became what he hated most: the con man. In the show, Sawyer never changed his self-preservation mode.
Most people believe the LOST mythology best suits Jack. Jack was a child who wanted the attention and admiration of his father. But he never got it. This void motivated Jack to become a miracle worker surgeon. And that got nothing from his father but criticism. So when his father died suddenly, Jack had no means to get the acknowledgement from his father. He was lost in his own psychic pit of growing despair. It was on the island that Jack chased the ghost Christian to find an answer to the hole in his heart. But in the end, the long journey led Jack not to an answer, but to a cruel, unfortunate death. There was no grand revelation. There was no grand moment of enlightenment.
It does not fit the classic pattern as used in Star Wars. Luke is also a lonely child, his parents gone. He is living on a desert planet doing mindless work. He has no prospects and has no adventure if he stays on his home world. But once his family is killed, he is set on a course to fight against the tyranny of the Empire. He joins forces with an old wizard and slowly learns the way of an ancient religion, to grasp and combine with the Force to defeat his enemies. Along his journey, Luke meets up with a cast of misfits, royalty and evil masters - - - so he has to confront danger, and defeat it in order to protect the people he cares about. Luke overcomes his sparse upbringing to become an enlightened Jedi Knight.
Jack's journey does not have all the elements of Luke's. Jack is not transformed into an enlightened individual. He would have met up with his father in the after life no matter what happened to him on the island. The people in the church were people he knew from the island, but they did little to mold him into a better person (some would say his island experience threw him into deeper darkness and despair). And what did Jack find in the end? The anti-climatic twist was that he was dead, everyone was dead, and it was time to "move on."
A quest is a long or arduous search for something important.
In the series, various characters were looking for answers but few were truly on a quest.
Locke was an angry, lonely child - - - bounced from foster home to foster home. He had no father. He had a crazy mother. He longed to be popular, but his intelligence outcast him to the geeky group in school. Throughout his life, he turned away from applying his natural talents in order to chase the illusion of grandeur of the high school jock, or adventurous outback hunter. In the show, Locke continued on his fantasy illusion, not finding answers but running into the same societal judgments and roadblocks that angered him so.
Sayid was also an angry child - - - having to do the dirty work for his older brother. He was the one who became tormented by family honor to become a self-hating soldier. He knew he could not fit into normal society because his training had created a monster within him. He ran away from his homeland, feebly chasing a vision of his dream girl, but only to wind up in a miserable place with people weary of his background and his purpose.
Sawyer was also an angry child - - - having his parents killed by a con man's greed set him on the path of revenge. Finding the man who ruined his life became an obsession that ruined Sawyer's own life. Instead of learning from the experience, he became what he hated most: the con man. In the show, Sawyer never changed his self-preservation mode.
Most people believe the LOST mythology best suits Jack. Jack was a child who wanted the attention and admiration of his father. But he never got it. This void motivated Jack to become a miracle worker surgeon. And that got nothing from his father but criticism. So when his father died suddenly, Jack had no means to get the acknowledgement from his father. He was lost in his own psychic pit of growing despair. It was on the island that Jack chased the ghost Christian to find an answer to the hole in his heart. But in the end, the long journey led Jack not to an answer, but to a cruel, unfortunate death. There was no grand revelation. There was no grand moment of enlightenment.
It does not fit the classic pattern as used in Star Wars. Luke is also a lonely child, his parents gone. He is living on a desert planet doing mindless work. He has no prospects and has no adventure if he stays on his home world. But once his family is killed, he is set on a course to fight against the tyranny of the Empire. He joins forces with an old wizard and slowly learns the way of an ancient religion, to grasp and combine with the Force to defeat his enemies. Along his journey, Luke meets up with a cast of misfits, royalty and evil masters - - - so he has to confront danger, and defeat it in order to protect the people he cares about. Luke overcomes his sparse upbringing to become an enlightened Jedi Knight.
Jack's journey does not have all the elements of Luke's. Jack is not transformed into an enlightened individual. He would have met up with his father in the after life no matter what happened to him on the island. The people in the church were people he knew from the island, but they did little to mold him into a better person (some would say his island experience threw him into deeper darkness and despair). And what did Jack find in the end? The anti-climatic twist was that he was dead, everyone was dead, and it was time to "move on."
Monday, May 19, 2014
LOST WARS
In the alternative universe of my mind, with all the hype of the new Abrams helmed Star Wars on the horizon, what LOST characters would be cast in the SW reboot?
It should be fairly easy.
The "good guys" would be Jack as Han Solo, because he is the de facto leader of the rebel squad fleeing Darth Vader (Ben).
Kate would be Leia, because she is the lead female character.
Locke would be Chewbacca because of the hair.
Or lack thereof. Besides, Locke played second chair to Jack for most of the series.
Sawyer could be Luke, but the actual romance angle with Kate is beyond PG-13. But as the "golden" street smart guy who seems to get into and out of trouble easily, C-3PO.
Likewise, the banter allows Hurley to be R2-D2, the character that no one seems threatened by.
At least in LOST WARS, you know who you were fighting (Widmore) the evil empire. And the story would be fairly linear - - - attack, counterattack, capture, escape, victory.
The "good guys" would be Jack as Han Solo, because he is the de facto leader of the rebel squad fleeing Darth Vader (Ben).
Kate would be Leia, because she is the lead female character.
Locke would be Chewbacca because of the hair.
Or lack thereof. Besides, Locke played second chair to Jack for most of the series.
Sawyer could be Luke, but the actual romance angle with Kate is beyond PG-13. But as the "golden" street smart guy who seems to get into and out of trouble easily, C-3PO.
Likewise, the banter allows Hurley to be R2-D2, the character that no one seems threatened by.
At least in LOST WARS, you know who you were fighting (Widmore) the evil empire. And the story would be fairly linear - - - attack, counterattack, capture, escape, victory.
Thursday, February 6, 2014
REWORKING THE CLASSICS
Things are not going at light speed in the new Star Wars universe. According to CNet via the Hollywood Reporter, Oscar-winning writer Michael Arndt left the new JJ Abrams Star Wars project
back in October because of what direction to
take in Episode VII.
Arndt is said to have wanted to focus on a younger generation of heroes, specifically the children of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia, with the original stars playing supporting roles.
Apparently director Abrams wanted to keep the classic protagonists in the spotlight for one last hurrah for the fans before they are likely dispatched to the annals of science fiction future history (or something like that) in Episode VIII. That makes the picture more marketable and accessible to the older fan base.
Columnists lament that we have to wait a while longer to get to know those new, younger characters. Reportedly, some characters have disappeared from the Arndt version of the Episode VII script completely and been replaced with new ones. As the CNet writer opined: "Let's hope it's not the fickle juggling of cast and characters we saw from Abrams in "Lost" that drove the series into complete silliness and a narrative storyline that became impossible to resolve in a satisfying way."
Burn.
Star Wars has a deep origin story and guidebook for the universe George Lucas created when he helmed the franchise. The question pondered in the media is a good one: will Abrams mess with the characters so much that the basic narrative of the series becomes garbled or silly?
This is also the first criticism I have read that based a reviewer's unsatisfied explanation of the The End of LOST as being partly the "fickle juggling" of characters that made it impossible to resolve the series. If this refers to the fact that the Others story line, then the odd time travel arcs, then later the Jacob-MIB story line, masked or clouded the original vision of the show, that is a valid point. The additional new characters introduced into the series may have been conflict fodder to stretch the show through six seasons, but all shows have to address those issues. If one removes the Others, the time travel, the Jacob-MIB story, and the sideways world (which may be the "silliness" of plot switches), then could LOST have been resolved to everyone's satisfaction?
Arndt is said to have wanted to focus on a younger generation of heroes, specifically the children of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia, with the original stars playing supporting roles.
Apparently director Abrams wanted to keep the classic protagonists in the spotlight for one last hurrah for the fans before they are likely dispatched to the annals of science fiction future history (or something like that) in Episode VIII. That makes the picture more marketable and accessible to the older fan base.
Columnists lament that we have to wait a while longer to get to know those new, younger characters. Reportedly, some characters have disappeared from the Arndt version of the Episode VII script completely and been replaced with new ones. As the CNet writer opined: "Let's hope it's not the fickle juggling of cast and characters we saw from Abrams in "Lost" that drove the series into complete silliness and a narrative storyline that became impossible to resolve in a satisfying way."
Burn.
Star Wars has a deep origin story and guidebook for the universe George Lucas created when he helmed the franchise. The question pondered in the media is a good one: will Abrams mess with the characters so much that the basic narrative of the series becomes garbled or silly?
This is also the first criticism I have read that based a reviewer's unsatisfied explanation of the The End of LOST as being partly the "fickle juggling" of characters that made it impossible to resolve the series. If this refers to the fact that the Others story line, then the odd time travel arcs, then later the Jacob-MIB story line, masked or clouded the original vision of the show, that is a valid point. The additional new characters introduced into the series may have been conflict fodder to stretch the show through six seasons, but all shows have to address those issues. If one removes the Others, the time travel, the Jacob-MIB story, and the sideways world (which may be the "silliness" of plot switches), then could LOST have been resolved to everyone's satisfaction?
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
CARRY ON
A correspondent from Forbes magazine was at a Disney event last weekend.
The report was from Disney's D23 Expo. This is the Disney-centric expo version of comic-cons.
At the show, visitors got to see glimpses of new materials from Pixar, Disney Animation, Marvel Studios, and some of the upcoming live-action tent poles. Some stars made appearances, like Angelina Jolie, to plug her next movie, Maleficent, in which she plays the Sleeping Beauty villain in a film told from her point of view.
But the reporters' big news item from the expo was on J.J. Abrams’s upcoming summer 2015 tent pole Star Wars Episode 7. Visitors learned absolutely nothing about Star Wars Episode 7.
There was no title announcement, no casting confirmations, no teaser posters, nor any major acknowledgment behind ‘Yes, J.J. Abrams is still directing’ and “summer 2015′ is still the goal.
How refreshing. No spoilers. No news. Nothing.
It was a shock to the fanboy collective when Lucas sold his bounty to Disney. Disney is in the "franchise" business and Star Wars is an iconic franchise. The reboot has the entertainment industry on pins and needles. (Especially this summer when Hollywood' had a record number of blockbuster box office busts.)
There are two camps in regard to Abrams, the movie director. Younger audiences tend to like his Star Trek reboot. Older, original die hard Trek fans do not care for the Abrams version of the franchise. It overwrote much of the canon elements of the original series. So there is some unease when Abrams was tapped to make the seventh Star Wars installment.
In retrospect, there were very few spoilers in the LOST saga, in part due to its long story format and its disjointed segment sequences (flashbacks/real time/flash forwards) and its inability to answer deep questions without raising more mysteries. For example, even today, no one can definitively say what the smoke monster was, or what it truly represented.
The report was from Disney's D23 Expo. This is the Disney-centric expo version of comic-cons.
At the show, visitors got to see glimpses of new materials from Pixar, Disney Animation, Marvel Studios, and some of the upcoming live-action tent poles. Some stars made appearances, like Angelina Jolie, to plug her next movie, Maleficent, in which she plays the Sleeping Beauty villain in a film told from her point of view.
But the reporters' big news item from the expo was on J.J. Abrams’s upcoming summer 2015 tent pole Star Wars Episode 7. Visitors learned absolutely nothing about Star Wars Episode 7.
There was no title announcement, no casting confirmations, no teaser posters, nor any major acknowledgment behind ‘Yes, J.J. Abrams is still directing’ and “summer 2015′ is still the goal.
How refreshing. No spoilers. No news. Nothing.
It was a shock to the fanboy collective when Lucas sold his bounty to Disney. Disney is in the "franchise" business and Star Wars is an iconic franchise. The reboot has the entertainment industry on pins and needles. (Especially this summer when Hollywood' had a record number of blockbuster box office busts.)
There are two camps in regard to Abrams, the movie director. Younger audiences tend to like his Star Trek reboot. Older, original die hard Trek fans do not care for the Abrams version of the franchise. It overwrote much of the canon elements of the original series. So there is some unease when Abrams was tapped to make the seventh Star Wars installment.
In retrospect, there were very few spoilers in the LOST saga, in part due to its long story format and its disjointed segment sequences (flashbacks/real time/flash forwards) and its inability to answer deep questions without raising more mysteries. For example, even today, no one can definitively say what the smoke monster was, or what it truly represented.
Monday, June 10, 2013
A NEW FRANCHISE
LOST producer J. J. Abrams continues his quest to remake all his childhood era franchises. Next up, the Star Wars saga. When Disney purchased Lucas Films, it did so with the express intention of ramping up the sequels to the iconic sci-fi franchise.
Abrams has revealed creative plans and production details for "Star Wars: Episode VI," which will be the first installment of the franchise under the wing of Disney.
Abrams sat on a panel last Saturday (June 8) but he was careful not to spill too many details about the much-anticipated sequel, he did reveal his approach to the film.
"Talk about bigger than any of
us ... That thing is so massive and so important to so many people,"
Abrams said. "I know from seeing the first film when I was 11, what that
felt like. I think the key in moving forward with something like this
is in honoring but not revering what came before."
Abrams added "There's that deep feeling of infinite possibilities that I think was the ultimate thing I thought when I first saw 'Star Wars' which I would -- and probably will -- give my left arm to try and come close to again."
Abrams has had his finger in many boiling cauldrons lately. Some people believe he kick started the Star Trek franchise, while die hard purists thought it was an awful reboot that went against the show's long running canon. But Abrams is one of those "big tent" summer action movie directors (lots of explosions, lush backgrounds, big stunts) who get paid big money to get a multi-hundred million dollar box office.
Yes, Abrams is excited to direct a childhood happy moment. But there has to be caution in his own words. "Honor but not revere?" That seems that he will make sure his "own mark" is put on the franchise, even if it is at the expense of the Lucas past story lines. "Infinite possibilities?" That sounds like open ended tangents which may reshape the SW universe into a new (odder) vision.
But that is standard operating procedure in Hollywood. Take an existing "asset," whether it be a comic, old movie, old television show, and remake it as your own "new" creation.
I wonder what J.J. could setting the new Star Wars sequel? A mysterious island, perhaps?
Abrams has revealed creative plans and production details for "Star Wars: Episode VI," which will be the first installment of the franchise under the wing of Disney.
Abrams sat on a panel last Saturday (June 8) but he was careful not to spill too many details about the much-anticipated sequel, he did reveal his approach to the film.
Abrams added "There's that deep feeling of infinite possibilities that I think was the ultimate thing I thought when I first saw 'Star Wars' which I would -- and probably will -- give my left arm to try and come close to again."
Abrams has had his finger in many boiling cauldrons lately. Some people believe he kick started the Star Trek franchise, while die hard purists thought it was an awful reboot that went against the show's long running canon. But Abrams is one of those "big tent" summer action movie directors (lots of explosions, lush backgrounds, big stunts) who get paid big money to get a multi-hundred million dollar box office.
Yes, Abrams is excited to direct a childhood happy moment. But there has to be caution in his own words. "Honor but not revere?" That seems that he will make sure his "own mark" is put on the franchise, even if it is at the expense of the Lucas past story lines. "Infinite possibilities?" That sounds like open ended tangents which may reshape the SW universe into a new (odder) vision.
But that is standard operating procedure in Hollywood. Take an existing "asset," whether it be a comic, old movie, old television show, and remake it as your own "new" creation.
I wonder what J.J. could setting the new Star Wars sequel? A mysterious island, perhaps?
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