On J. J. Abrams Directing Star Wars VII
[dc]L[/dc]ike many Star Wars geeks, I waited and waited to find out who would direct Star Wars VII for Disney. When I heard J. J. Abrams got the job, I nearly fainted.
Yeah, I felt like that. Image © ClaudioT on morguefile.com.
OK, that is an exaggeration. I was happy with the choice. Abrams was on my director wish-list for Star Wars VII, although probably at about number four or so.
My director wish list went like this:
- Joss Whedon (Avengers, Serenity)
- Brad Bird (Iron Giant, Incredibles, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol)
- Guillermo del Torro (Pan’s Labyrinth, Pacific Rim)
- J. J. Abrams (Star Trek)
- Duncan Jones (Moon)
Abrams is a good choice.
His other films are solid, regardless of what some folks might think of Star Trek or Super 8. From a filmmaking point, Abrams does great work and Super 8 was one of my favorite films of 2011.
I enjoyed Star Trek, and I understand the criticism that it was not a ‘true’ Star Trek film—but when you start from scratch, you really have to hit the ground running and blow people away. Star Trek accomplished such a thing, and it got folks interested in the franchise again, which was the studio’s goal. Plus, Star Trek had a fair amount of physical sets instead of an overuse of green screen.
If Abrams can bring the charm, whimsy, and action he had with Star Trek and Super 8 to Star Wars VII, it should succeed how Disney wants: get people interested in the franchise again–mainly the core fans of the original trilogy scared away by the prequels and the ::shudder:: Special Edition releases.
Folks can pretend Hollywood isn’t a business all they want, but let’s face facts: films, even those as beloved as Star Wars, are a business move. A film is an investment, and Disney wants a good return on its investment.
J. J. Abrams directing Star Wars VII was an excellent business decision for Disney, plain and simple.
Honestly, I am more excited about the writers working on the film, especially Lawrence Kasdan being brought on as a consultant. Kasdan wrote the screenplays for Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and Raiders of the Lost Ark to name only a few.
On the other side of this conversation, there is room for concern.
Look at Disney’s recent attempt to resurrect another old franchise: TRON: Legacy. That could have went…better.
But, in fairness, TRON isn’t exactly Star Wars. However, many would say the Star Wars prequels weren’t exactly Star Wars either.
So, really, could Abrams do any worse than the prequels? I doubt it. He honestly has nowhere to go but up.
Or rather, to a galaxy far, far away–filled with all kinds of crazy lens flare. AWWW YEAH
I love me some lens flare.
And on a side note, I will be curious to see what Stephanie thinks of this new trilogy. Her observations on the original Star Wars trilogy were highly entertaining.
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