• Inside Entertainment,  Old vs New

    A New Hope vs The Force Awakens

    Okay, this isn’t exactly Old vs New – The Force Awakens (2015) isn’t a remake of A New Hope (1977). It’s more of a rehash. There are similarities. Lots of similarities. Look at the basic premise: an unsuspecting nobody becomes ensnared in a galactic struggle and learns they have the biggest part to play. Which movie is that? Both, of course. Because of that, I’m going to compare the two as if The Force Awakens is a remake of A New Hope, given both stories incorporate the same key beats. Beat #1 The protagonist’s life is disrupted when they come in possession of a droid. People believe A New Hope…

  • Life of the Mind

    Character Development

    One of the most important things for me in story is character development. Measuring development can done by asking (and answering) these three simple questions. Where does the character begin the story? What is the journey the character takes? Where does the character end the story? This is one of the reasons I loathe so many of the blockbusters nowadays. Characters don’t develop. They just are. I’ll use the new Star Wars Trilogy as an example. This new series has polarised fans. I find it boring because the protagonist is complete when she is handed to us. Although she opens the story as a scavenger, she is a crack pilot…