Discussion Poll: If I didn't like Into Darkness, should I be worried for SW7?

I really liked Star Trek (2009), but I really didn't like Star Trek Into Darkness. Do I need to be worried about Star Wars Episode VII?

Mav Edit: This can be and has been discussed in the JJ Abrams Directing thread.

 

Into Darkness was a solid (but yes, flawed) movie, and it makes me incredibly hopeful for the next Star Wars. All of the space stuff, the group dialogue, the emotion (with one exception) was really well done and a lot of fun. And- hey! -he actually tried for some thematic depth this time. I have no doubt after seeing this movie that JJ can make a great Star Wars film as long as he adapts his style to Star Wars sensibilities. Knowing his reverence for the source material, he will.

That being said, even if you don't like STID, it shouldn't be a cause for fear. Star Wars is a completely different beast for JJ. Unlike trek, Star Wars is something he has ingrained in his brain, it's something he subconsciously worships in every frame of all of his films, so when he is handed the keys to actually direct and actual Star Wars film, I think the only thing we should be worried about is that it might be too much a stylistic carbon-copy of the OT films.

Unlike Trek fans, I think we have the luxury of not having to be afraid that JJ is going to make Leia make out with Lando, or blow up Tatooine (actually that could happen...). There will be absolutely no sacred cows slaughtered in this film. The only thing we need to ask ourselves is whether or not that's a good thing.

 

Did you like Super 8? I have a hunch that film might be an even better "what to expect" guide than the Star Trek films.

 

But if he doesn't knock off those damned LENS FLARES I'm personally going to hunt him down and choke him.
STID wasn't a 'crappy remake of a bad film' - it relied too heavily/robbed blind one of the very best Trek films in the franchise.

 

I like Star Trek in general (not as much as Star Wars though). I also liked ST 2009 and Into Darkness. Into Darkness was a fun movie, but nothing too special for me, and I blame that mainly on the script. Considering that episode 7 is not written by the same people that wrote into darkness, I think we will be fine.

 

I don't think you can really compare the two franchises like this. It's really not fair to expect that one movie will equal another; they are totally different animals.

 

Yeah, Super 8 is really good. You may be right.

 

It depends if the mixed reception to Star Trek Into Darkness is affecting the preparation for EPISODE VII. Doing the "Wrath of Khan" thing may have seemed like a good idea at the time...and some people like it but others don't. Does this matter? You can bet Bad Robot, Lucasfilm, Disney, and whomever are doing all kinds of analysis and deciding if they should have this character or not have that homage or whatever.
A lot of this also depends on what inspired the hiring of J.J. Abrams in the first place. Was he desired because Kennedy and Lucas were impressed by his rebooting and repopularizing of Star Trek and want the same to happen with Star Wars? Was it because of his sensibilities when paying homage to Spielberg with Super 8? Was it because Lucas really liked LOST? We really don't know what Lucas and others want of these new movies.

 

Directors aren't moviemaking dictators.

The people who write the script, play the characters, make the sets and costumes, etc. are much more important than whoever the director is.

 

"STID was bad because they made it like Trek."
"SW7 won't be a semi-remake of an old crappy movie"
"I'm crazy & I liked STID"

This poll makes me feel like I've just been phoned during dinner by one of those "legitimate" political survey companies.

 

Flaws with STID aside, it's hardly a bad movie. It gets right much of what the PT movies got wrong and manages to be entertaining as well as put in references for fans of the Trek OS.

Episode VII will have a better script (by a scriptwriter who loves Star Wars) and be directed by someone who is a big fan of the franchise. It will have Lucas' input and KK will be sure the creator likes what is being done with it. Abrams did Trek because he thought he would never get to do a Star Wars movie, so it's not surprising he modelled a reboot on the thing he loves most.

 

I am NOT crazy, have good taste in movies, and liked STID. (check)

STID is not terribly relevant to SW 7. (check)

 

Into Darkness was in no way a WoK remake. Why? Because "John Harrison" had absolutely nothing against Kirk. It was more a combination of the episode Space Seed and the plot from the Novel "Dreadnought".

I think more of the "problem" for most people is the fact that it's not a simple remake. Plus there were two villains. As they say, "the enemy of my enemy is my friend...unless it's KHAAAANNNN!!!!!!!!!"

 

Which is probably why "no, other" is currently the leading response.

 

I tried to

How about an option for "remove me from your list"?

Seriously, I'm leaning more towards Yes/Maybe, but for reasons that have nothing to do with STID. I'm still not entirely sure what I think of Abrams' directorial style. Haven't seen Super 8, but I did see Cloverfield and was unimpressed by it.

 

JJ won't have the same free reign he had with Trek either. He had his group of people working on Trek, Wars is a Lucasfilm project that he happens to be a part of. That said, I think he will prove to be a good choice so I'm not worried about it.

 

The options in this thread seem to indicate if you liked Star Trek Into Darkness (which most people did) that we're crazy and our opinions don't matter.

The problems I've heard are all around the script, I haven't heard anything about stiff acting or lame portrayals of characters because JJ Abrams is a great director because he knows how to make a cast act, and incredibly well. Michael Arndt wrote Toy Story 3 which by many is considered the best of the three while winning an Oscar for Little Miss Sunshine, and Lindelof won't be involved in Episode VII.

 

How do we define "mixed reception?" If "mixed" means anything that wasn't an overwhelming success that nearly everyone is raving about, then I guess you could call it that; you could also call its reception on this site as "mixed." However, the vast majority of critics and viewers have given it positive reviews (as evidenced by any site you like that shows things across the board).

 

An 8.3 on IMDB and an 87% on RT is hardly "mixed." By all accounts if anything, Into Darkness is about as critically acclaimed as the last one.

 

I liked Into Darkness for the most part. It had it's flaws, but it was enjoyable.

 

Come to think of it, I actually would have voted yes, even though I liked Into Darkness myself, because I think Abrams' Trek is sufficiently SW-like that someone's opinion of it is a good gauge for what they'll think of EVII. But the leading choices annoyed me too much.