Relating to Characters: Part I
The premiere of The Rise of Skywalker (2019) nears. Scuttlebutt around plot leaks are discouraging. One of the scariest is that test audiences laughed at how easily Rey disposed of the Emperor. Sigh. Even if that’s not true, or it is true but has been corrected, I’m not expecting much. Disney’s Star Wars movies have featured an array of unrelatable one-dimensional characters. They have no depth and take no real journey (unless, like Rey, it’s to discover who they are). They’re flash and style with little substance. Just because these characters belong to an extraordinary sci-fantasy premise doesn’t mean they have to be unrelatable. You can create relatability in characters…
The Return of the Jedi vs The Rise of Skywalker
The final movie in the Original Trilogy, Return of the Jedi (1983), is an unbalanced film. Harrison Ford had wanted George Lucas to kill off Han Solo; Ford thought that Solo no longer served a purpose in the story. He’s right. But nor did Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), C3PO (Anthony Daniels), R2D2 (Kenny Baker), Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams), and everybody other than Luke. Once Han is rescued, a plot is invented to keep the ensemble busy – taking down the shield generator so an assault can be launched on the new Death Star. Along the way, we meet some teddy bears who teach us about the…