Analytical Film review

1. Jamie Hamer
Analytical Film review of Star Wars the Force Awakens
General overview
Director: Jeffrey Jacob Abrams is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor,
and composer. He is known for work in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. He
was the director of the film Star wars the force awakens.
Studio: Pinewood studios who are located in London.
Year of release: The Force Awakens was released on 18th December 2015.
Country: It was released as a preview in the UK and then released a day later in the United
States in December 2015.
Budget: $306 million gross profit.
Purpose
The force awakens was made in order to make LucasFilm profit and bring entertainment to
old star wars fans from the past and attract new Star Wars fans to promote the franchise around
the world. Star wars has always been a Sci-Fi movie and has always included robots such as
R2-D2 and now the new Star wars film has introduced a new robot in BB8 and these have
always been a big hit amongst the fans. This year Star wars have introduced the female
character Rey into the franchise and this has attracted a whole new target audience as there has
never been a key female character in the franchise before. They have also included old key
characters like Han Solo and Chewbacca which will attract the old generation of Star Wars
fans back into watching the new film as it will remind them of how much they enjoyed the old
films and how they will most likely enjoy the new ones as well. The scene where Han Solo is
hugging princess Leia will also excite fans and it will make them think that their old romance
could be brought back to life and it gives the audience many different interpretations of what
could be possibly happening in the new episode of the Star Wars films.
Genre
There are a variety of different Sci-fi codes and conventions throughout the film. One of the
first things that we see from the trailer is at the beginning of the trailer when Rey has a Mask
on and you could assume that it could be some sort of alien at first but we know that this was
the new star of the star wars films for the future, the female character “Rey” which has attracted
the a new female target audience into the franchise. One of the most Iconic conventions that is
associated with star wars films is the iconic lightsaber and this is first seen in the trailer when
Kylo Ren Is seen with the red lightsaber, the red lightsaber has connotations that Kylo Ren is
most likely to be with the Empire and most old star wars fans may think that he has replaced
Darth Vader. The colour red is normally associated with bad and evil. Another convention
which is shown in the trailer is when the iconic “millennium falcon” is shown in an air fight
and this is something which all old star wars fans will love as it is one of the most famous
battles which takes place in star wars movies. Finally, there is a variety of robots in the trailer
the famous R2-D2 who is the old robot is shown in the trailer with Luke skywalker touching
him with his metal hand, another sci-fi convention, and also the new robot BB8 is introduced
in the trailer to the viewers.

2. Jamie Hamer
Form
Star Wars was initially released into the cinemas on the 18th December 2015. The film was
filmed consistently similar throughout the film apart from certain points, especially in air
battles. The advantage of using a 35mm lens compared to a 65mm Imax lens is that it allows
the director to think about what he wants the shot type to look like when taking it. In addition
to this, 35mm lens is also lighter and cheaper than Imax cameras. However, 65mm Imax
cameras have their qualities and this is shown in the chase scene through Jakku between the
iconic Millennium falcon and the TIE fighters, the wider shots allow the chase scene to involve
the spaceships and the location of Jakku. It also shows the crashed empire ship in detail
allowing the audience to see the destroyed ship in more detail and the size of it compared to
other things in the film. The bigger scenes are filmed in 65mm as it can capture more detail
compared to the 35mm lens.
Style
JJ Abrams said that he wanted to keep the film traditional by limiting the use of CGI within
certain series. This would appeal to the primary audience by creating an original feeling for
them as it would be very similar to the old films. This would allow the new films to gain a good
reputation from the target audience. This also links to the continuous use of the same genre
throughout the whole franchise, this is carried on in the new trilogy. However, some fans have
started to criticise the film for being unoriginal and looking too much like the originals.
Content and Meaning
Throughout the trailer a range of different shots are used to introduce new and old characters
into the film and give a brief overview of all the main characters, with each shot detailing lots
about the character’s personality and role in the film.
At the beginning of the trailer the first 7 seconds consists of the legal requirement which a film
trailer must pass to be broadcasted to the public. Immediately after this it flashes to a black
screen which then flashes to a close up of Rey (1), one of the main characters, and one could
assume that she looks like some sort of an alien at first sighting and she looks like she’s
scavenging. Then it changes to a mid-shot of Rey exploring some sort of spaceship, which we
know is a crashed ship from the empire on the scavenger planet of Jakku. She turns her back
and it immediately turns to a high angle shot of her sliding down a rope and further exploring
the dismantled spaceship to search for valuable goods she can sell for food, the shot shows in
great detail how big the ship is and how quickly she slides down it the rope. Several seconds
into the shot the angle changes and it becomes a low angle (2) from a distance (extreme long
shot), this portrays Rey to become across as a small fish in a big pond. The sound up to this
point in the trailer has been a dramatic piano sound to build up the tension amongst the viewers.
After that, an establishing shot of Rey with her droid BB8 and the piles of sand on Jakku
walking into the distance (3). Most likely implying that she is on an adventure and is looking
to find her identity as a person. The voiceover of Rey saying “I’m no one” backs up this point.
The droid known as BB8 will excite Star Wars fans as robots have always been a key part of
the Star Wars identity. Next we see the first point in the film where a ship has been seen taking

3. Jamie Hamer
off into the distance and this is then followed by a shot of Rey. This suggests that Rey wants
that to be her taking off on that ship and wants to explore the universe. At 34 seconds in the
trailer the producers fade in the silver LucasFilm logo (4) onto a black screen and this lets the
audience know for the first time how this is a Star Wars film as everyone knows that LucasFilm
is associated with Star Wars. The colour silver has connotations of quality and this is what
LucasFilm aims to achieve with their Star Wars films and have been previously successful with
their attempts.
Secondly, the iconic Stormtroopers are introduced into the trailer in a shot showing just how
many of them there is. In addition to this all the Stormtroopers are looking up at Supreme leader
snook in a Nazi style fashion with the big red flag behind them with a Nazi looking sign on it
(5). Furthermore, the supreme leader has been placed higher up so he can look down on all the
Stormtroopers and this has been done to show the power which he has at his disposal and show
how each Stormtrooper is just a number and this is also done to display the power of the empire.
After this, a close up shot of a single Stormtrooper (6) is shown and they begin to take off their
helmet and his identity is revealed and normally a Stormtroopers identity is never shown in a
film. The Stormtrooper who has taken off their helmet is known as Fin who is a lonely character
to begin with who fights against the regime of the empire. Fin who is a British African isn’t
the stereotypical Stormtrooper that many Star wars fans would think. Previously in old star
wars films there hasn’t been many British Africans in the series, therefore this gives young
British Africans a character to aspire to be like and lets Lucas Film target another set of
potential fans. The next scene is edited in very well as it fades from a white to a black
background and makes the part of the trailer flow very well. Then they show a TIE fighter
which fin is in crashing on to Jakku (7) potentially meaning that the first two key characters
Rey and Finn are introduced to each other we could assume at this point in the trailer. Also,
this is the first point in the film were an iconic Star wars sound is introduced as when the TIE
fighter is falling you can hear the trademark sound of the TIE fighters. Meanwhile, the sound
of fin over the top saying “I’ve got nothing to fight for” implies how he is feeling quite lost at
this point in the trailer and needs someone to take him under his wing and look after him. Next,
a mid-shot is shown of Finn looking into the desert at the horizon wondering where his future
lies (8), very similar to how Rey was presented earlier In the trailer. Adding to this, we see
Finn without his Stormtrooper outfit on and he is dressed in all black.
For the first time in the film the Star wars fans who love Darth Vader may start to get excited
as they may think at first that he may be returning somehow but as the camera moves from a
long shot to a medium shot and then to a close up shot, they will then realise that it is another
new character Kylo Ren (9) and he is the ‘new darth vader’. Also, the bright red light shooting
across the screen has a visual representation of bad which implies to the audience that Kylo
Ren will be a bad character and will be part of the powerful empire. Meanwhile a voiceover
over these shots from Kylo Ren saying “nothing will stand in our way” implies how powerful
he thinks he and the empire is. Then the voiceover of “I will finish what you started” implies
how he wants to be more powerful than darth vader. In addition to this Kylo Rens voice has
been edited a lot to make him much more intimidating and sound very powerful. It switches
to a shot of Darth vader mask burnt (10) and many fans will question what happened to him as
from the last film it wasn’t clear exactly what happened to him and many fans would have
forgotten as it was a very long time ago since the last film. The next scene shows Kylo Ren
using the force to drain another new character that the audience doesn’t know, Poe an x-wing

4. Jamie Hamer
fighter pilot who is part of the rebels/ resistance. This then switches to a shot which portrays
that Kylo Ren is draining the life out of the universe and destroying all the forests implying he
is here to destroy and cause damage to anyone who is in his way.
In contrast to the trailer showing all of the dark sides power suddenly the music dramatically
changes and is so powerful which gets the fans so excited. Also, the colour changes from dark
to light to suggest there is hope for the resistance. Furthermore, the return of the millennium
falcon (11) excites old star wars fans and is one of the iconic features of the Star Wars series.
The camera angle quickly changes from a low angle to high angle and would have been filmed
on a 65mm camera lens to capture as much detail as possible from the scene. In the background,
it Shows a crashed empire ship. In addition to this the air fight scene between the millennium
falcon and the TIE Fighter will excite the old star wars fans as this is one of the things in which
they loved so much and is so iconic to star wars films. According to blumer and Katz theory
the impact of diversion has been used here as it allows people to escape from their everyday
lives to watch something that really excites them and they love it. As the fight scene continues,
the camera angle changes several times from long shots to medium shot then to close ups at
some points. This has been done to show the full detail of the battle between the two enemies
and its surroundings. JJ Abrams has used several shots which are similar from the past but has
added a modern twist to them to make them look different. Also, the colour red is again
associated with the empire implying that they are bad whereas in contrast the resistance
(millennium falcon) has been assigned with the colour green to show that there is hope and
good for universe and there is no reason to give up. Continuing on from this, the voiceover of
Rey saying “There are stories about what had happened” implies how much time has passed
for the characters and the fans since the last movies. Then this is followed by the deep voice of
Han solo saying “It’s true’ letting the star wars fans for the first time know that Han solo has
returned as well as the millennium falcon.
Next for the first time in the film we see one of the most important shots, a two shot of Rey
and Finn together (12). Rey is standing in front of Finn which may be perceived by the fans as
unusual as normally the male takes charge and would be at the front but we know that Rey is
the leading character from these two and can look after herself just fine. This is followed by a
medium shot of Han solo, the first visual time that fans see him returning in the film causing
great excitement and tension. All of a sudden it has gone from looking very bad for the
resistance to very good for the resistance by swaying it towards them and JJ Abrams has done
this purposely to play with the fans emotions. Following on from this, the next shot shows
another iconic moment from star wars films is the Millennium falcon jumping into hyperspace
and once again it is blue which is very original to Star Wars movies. This clever use of the
hyperspace edits into the next key shot of the text saying “this Christmas” and it flows very
well together and this lets all the fans know when they can go and watch the new film. The film
has been released over the Christmas period because it is an ideal time for families to go and
watch the film because everybody has time off work so won’t have a problem going and
watching it at some point. The next shot is a medium shot of Kylo Ren with his Red lightsaber
(13) and is dressed in all black along with all of his accomplices however they all have blasters
and no lightsabers which indicates to the audience that Kylo Ren is the only one who can use
the force. The weather of thunder and lightning in this shot which lasts for a couple of seconds
implies something isn’t good as thunder and lightning has the connotations of bad and evil

5. Jamie Hamer
which Abrams is suggesting Kylo Ren and his squad are. The red lightsaber really makes him
stand out amongst the others
We see the famous x-wing fighters for the first time in the next shot and the camera is quickly
following all of the x-wing fighters as the travel across the water, which is unusual for the
audience as they are typically seen in space in air battles. Poe is flying one of the x wing fighters
and is known as the best x wing fighter piolet in the universe. The white Stormtroopers are
shown again in the trailer and all look stunned at how many x-wing fighters there are which is
implying that they are worried that the hope of the resistance could defeat them. Next, we see
Poe acknowledging Finn (14) in what looks like the resistances base from the pictures and
implies to the audience that the battle is about to take place as everyone is rushing around
looking like they are going to their battle stations. Meanwhile, the most famous star wars tune
is being played over the top of these shots and is building up the tension massively. Also, as
the camera goes from a medium shot to a close up of rey we hear the voiceover from Han solo
saying “Jedi” which makes gives the audience an early tease that Finn could possibly be a new
Jedi. In addition to this Han solo is seen as a very calm and wise character and for him to make
an accusation like that it will most likely make star wars fans believe it at first. We next see a
high angle shot of an x-wing fighter shooting down a Tie fighter and they show it from a high
angle to show the x-wing as being more powerful than the TIE fighter. The next shot shows a
massive explosion which is one of the key conventions of action and sci-fi movies and again
we see a shot of Rey with Finn and Rey being in front again implying that she is taking control.
The Next two shots after each other of robots keep the feeling of Sci-Fi conventions constant
throughout. Also, the showing of R2-D2 who is another iconic star wars character and loved
by the fans is shown. This may give the audience a feeling that Luke skywalker, his master,
may possibly make an appearance in the film. Then they will realise when the look to the left
of R2-D2 there is a metal hand touching him (15) and this could be Luke skywalker as he had
his hand cut off in the last film.
Captain Phazma (16) the first woman Stormtrooper is introduced into the trailer at 1.43 and is
dressed in black like Kylo Ren which implies that she is more important than the others. We
then see Kylo Ren use his lightsaber to kill someone which makes the audience excited.
Furthermore, the next scene shows Chewbacca (introduced for the first time) Han solo and
Finn surrendering to the empire then there faces suggest a sign of hope, as they see the x-wing
piolets flying towards them. The next shot shows us how there is a big dogfight battle and this
is one of the most iconic moments for most star wars fans as they love these battles so much.
The next 3-4 seconds shows a series of different shots showing different people being shot and
Kylo Ren using the force which tells us for the first time he has got Jedi like powers. Then the
medium shot of Princess Leia and Han solo has got to be one of the most exciting shot for old
star wars fans as they were very upset by their romance being broken apart but it looks like
from this scene it could possibly be reunited. Finally, we see the accusation which Han solo
made earlier on in the trailer about Finn being a Jedi and he is shown holding the blue, the
colour has been portrayed as a good colour in this film, lightsaber and taking on Kylo Ren
without his mask on. Then as the lightsabers go to collide it just flashes straight into a black
screen (17) and the star wars music volume increases again. Then several pieces of text like
the release date and when tickets are available and important pieces of information that fans
will need to know are released into the screen in an original star wars style format.

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Screenshots – Left to right from 1-17

7. Jamie Hamer