It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
^ Back to Top
The MI6 Community is unofficial and in no way associated or linked with EON Productions, MGM, Sony Pictures, Activision or Ian Fleming Publications. Any views expressed on this website are of the individual members and do not necessarily reflect those of the Community owners. Any video or images displayed in topics on MI6 Community are embedded by users from third party sites and as such MI6 Community and its owners take no responsibility for this material.
James Bond News • James Bond Articles • James Bond Magazine
Comments
The funny thing about 'Avatar' was that it wasn't terribly successful when it debuted; it had lasting power and the word-of-mouth brought it to where it stands today financially.
Just because it's been out for four weeks now doesn't mean anything; it's already nearing $2 billion and, as @chrisisall said, this movie will probably stay in theaters for the next few months.
If you look at last weekends figures, if you take China out, the rest of the International gross was already dropping heavily from the previous week, but i think it will be a close thing
I live on an island called the UK ;) where SWTFA has been, if not more a bigger hit than it has been in N.America in respect to BO gross/population.
Yes, i know SWTFA will be in theatres for a long time, but it will not be able to make another $1 billion, maybe a few hundred mil, which would put it in the same region as Titanic.
You made one crucial error, Domestic box office is not U.S.A. alone, its U.S.A. + Canada.
Many people make this mistake when they make box office comparisons.
There's close to 36 million people in Canada.
I know it all sounds a bit nerdy, but this increases the multiple factor to somewhere around 5.6/1. UK wins, narrowly. There is a site called 'box office forum', where you can see where people have done all these nerdy calculations, though obviously it doesn't take into account the differing ticket prices in each region.
Anyway, Australia beats both N.America and the UK, so far, for its BO gross/population for SWTFA. ;)
However, I never said that it would make another billion, just that it will continue to sell tickets for another few months. It will, however, beat 'Titanic' at some point.
I'am just jesting with you. :)
I wonder if there are any Star Wars fans who have seen SWTFA more than our member @quantumofsolace has seen Spectre. The record here so far for Spectre cinema goings is 17 viewings.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XuoLcN_fK74"; frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
In it, he says he'll never again take Jar Jar's mantle even if asked to by the producers. But this doesn't mean he can have some fun with the fandom: jump to 8:50 for a treat to Liam Neeson's fans (with a sense of humor, that is).
http://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/649137-star-wars-episode-viii-delayed-until-december-2017#/slide/1
https://youtube.com/watch?v=FaOSCASqLsE
I can wait another 6 months or so and once Rogue One arrives it will only be another year to go, possibly we'll get the first trailer for Ep 8.
Speaking about that surely R1 is due it's first official teaser trailer soon?
I have to say Rogue One is definitely my most awaited blockbuster this year and SW films after my reaction to SPECTRE have become the series I will most await unless Bond 25 really pulls its finger out.
I thought I read somewhere that they were collaborating with a bunch of prop making fans to painstakingly recreate not only Darth Vader's costume, but exactly as it appeared in A New Hope. If they're paying that much attention to detail, I would certainly hope it's not just a dumb cameo.
Kyle Katarn will always be the guy who stole the Death Star plans in my eyes (yes I know it's not canon anymore ;) )
Remember Dark Forces? Those were the days!
But after thinking the film over, I started to think "Is this the only thing J.J. Abrahms can do?" Making almost near-perfect fan movies, in which every element is present, but NOT infusing the franchise with some new, original elements and a bit of a 'unique soul'?
Just think about it, all characters in "The Force Awakens" are fairly interexchangeable with "A New Hope". So are certain pivotal scenes. The films for me was at times....a bit too perfect: Perfect fanwank movie, nice but unoriginal story, but above all rather 'soul-less'.
This article basically verbalizes my feeling:
http://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/what-the-seven-star-wars-films-reveal-about-george-lucas
In all honesty? I think the anthology films / spin-off's will be way more engaging and unique. I'm looking more forward to "Rogue One: A Star Wars Tale" than "Star Wars 8".
Having read the article it seems to me like a thinly veiled admission that Finn and Rey were not particularly well drawn in TFA. Having a female and black guy as the leads seems to have been their main focus and the pretty much forgot about fleshing out anything beneath the surface. In that sense I'm glad they're approaching it in this manner, it makes total sense. To introduce yet more new protagonists is totally unnecessary when you haven't fully evolved the ones you have.
Except they aren't. The characters in the original SW all have some meat on the bones. Luke, Leia, Han, Obi-Wan they're all three dimensional people with a clear motivation, goals, abilities, weaknesses. Finn and Rey aren't (yet).
I meant:
'Rey' is the new Luke Skywalker
'Finn' is the new partner of Rey, like Leia was in "A New Hope"
'Poe Dameron' obviously replaces Han Solo
'Kylo Renn' is the new Anakin Skywalker
'Han Solo' had a certain Obi-Wan Kenobi paternal zest
'BB-8' obviously is the new RSD2
'Lor San Tekka' is the proverbial first kill, like with Skywalker's parents
And then there were some signature scenes, like the killing of Han Solo above a deep abyss. Which was obviously reminiscent of how Darth Vader was killed.
Don't take the above comparisons too black-and-white, but this is at least how it felt to me.
Moreover, at times I found Daisy Ridley's acting a bit....over-the-top. If you start a role clean-sheet, then for me it's no good to over-dramatize.
Nevertheless, I liked "The Force Awakens" on first watch, don't get me wrong ;-). But I shall always be more of a Trekkie. Scenes like these you won't find in a "Star Wars" tale:
Picard lecturing about 'forced relocations' (very topical if you compare it with today's immigrant crisis in Europe):
Picard justifying his kills (wars can make characters look both like protagonists and antagonists. There's no black-and-white, only 'grey zones'):
Yeah, I agree. What I meant was that if you swapped them like for like, Luke would elevate TFA, where Rey in ANH would bring it down several notches.
Are you more of a "Star Wars"-fan? Or more a "Trekkie"? :-)
Star Wars. Trek skipped me by as kid. I'd like to get into it at some point.
But.....you did see the 12 films and 6 TV-series no? Or at least....some parts, episodes or....at least one Picard-film no ;-)?
I've seen most of the films and the TV series' was always on back in the 90s. Couldn't tell you much, though. Whereas I know most of SW inside out.
Unlike some, I really don't have a problem with the way they approached things in TFA. The throwbacks to the past were necessary in my view to bridge the film to the past, and reunite us with a universe that we last encountered over 30 years ago (if one ignores the pretty dull prequels).
There was enough deja vu in TFA, but I didn't find it annoying because I connected to each and every one of the characters, even though their backstories weren't properly fleshed out. The film resonated with me emotionally, both on account of the 'old guard' reappearing, and because these new folks really acted their pants off. Ridley as the protagonist is actually brilliant, especially when one considers that she doesn't have the benefit of playing (or screwing up as the case may be) a legendary character who we would instantly connect to - Hayden I'm talking about you.
So I think it actually did have 'heart & soul' and that's what is making it so successful, despite a derivative plot/story. In that respect, it's similar to SF for me. Poor/derivative (TDK in the case of SF) story perhaps, but I personally find the characters credible & their motivations sincere, even if derivative.
From now on, they have to take risks and bring us new, unpredictable events & concepts, but as a reestablishing film, TFA was right on the money imho.