How my GenX senses reacted towards Star Wars : The Last Jedi : No right or Wrong, it just me

The long awaited sequels of the Star Wars SAGA , Last Jedi hit the cinema in December 2018. To be exact, i went to the first show  , which was on the 13th December 2017. I booked online ticket for the four of us, my wife, kids and myself. The show started around 10.45pm. My wife who is not really a Star Wars fan regretted in committing to join us watching the movie. I expected she would be sleeping throughout the movie, but for this one, she was kind of awake and watched it until the end. My two kids enjoyed the movie pretty much. For them, Last Jedi is the better Star Wars movie compared to those Lucas Films era. So, this is exactly the point. Gen X: Gen Y : Gen Z Star Wars audience.

Disneyism in Star Wars : First of all , yes , one had to agree that business and stakeholder management is the priority in making movies. Disney paid for it , they could do whatever they wanted. Secondly, I am a Lucas Film Star Wars fan, I also have the right to share how I see things and how it should have been according to my preferences. Being a Generation X , the expectation for a Star Wars movie is surely different than those Gen Y and Z. But after watching the Force Awakens, and knowing the fact that Disney had bought over the franchise from Lucas film, i definitely readjusted my expectations towards this movie. Instead of putting 10/10 Stars of hope , i just limit it between 5 to 6, the most, and hopefully can go to 7 or 8, is a fairly bonus. The introduction of the movie was quite impressive with the X-Wings action of Poe Dameron & BB8 attacking the imperial battleships. It had kicked started the movie so well. It still feels like Star Wars.  And the scene of the resistance fleets trying to bomb the Imperials Fleet was a little bit like Star Trek style, but still ok to me. Anyhow , again , the commercial element of putting an Asian face (or to be exact , Chinese character) in the movie is obviously a marketing strategy to captivate the Chinese market. This is the same modus operandi in most of Hollywood movies nowadays, and Star Wars had no exemption on this. You could see the same applies during the Rogue One. Forget about Rogue One. (I left the theater hall after 30 mins of Rogue One).

Rey and Luke light-saber handing over scene. Again , it was a mere stereotype of Disney movie scene. The way the scene being explained was pretty awkward. Everything seems unnatural and not so Jedi like. It's like watching a Disney movie or Harry Potter type of plots. Those who tried to relate Empire Strikes Back scene where Luke met Yoda, may have problems to digest this. Luke whom was a hero which fans awaited so much to see , turned out to be some kind of half retarded character, if i were to relate, the closest would be the Johnny English Reborn scene, where Rowan Atkinson was recuperating at the Buddhist Temple. Of course, not exactly to that, but yes it did pass through my mind. There were unnecessary scene of Luke doing self survival like big fish catching, milking the Dinosaur alike creature. All these were definitely the  Disney signatures to woo the young generations and to have extra characters for commercial purposes. Well fine, business is business, but it could have been done better. In the sense that, it could be more Star Wars than ordinary Disney movie.

Rey Jedi Training Scene : The becoming a Jedi training scenes were also being cut short and simplified as being a Jedi just a simply straight forward. The stones elevation scene is not something new. True fans expected more than that. In fact, it was not a surprise as those were the official Teasers scene all over the internet.

Luke Skywalker Character change : Luke, on the other hand , is about the same age of Old Ben in the New Hope. The wise man character of Old Ben is contradict with Luke in this movie. Old Ben was portrayed as cool, funny and wise , in every move he made. The Old Ben character was so strongly developed in the old Star Wars movie. On contrary, Luke was illustrated as a lost person, easily vulnerable type and full of fear. The fear factor itself is already contradicting with the Jedi Knight concept. That is so confusing to the Law of the Jedi. Everyone who is a true Star Wars fan clearly understood this rule.

Chewbacca &; the new Creature  Porgs Scene : Well, this is obviously unnecessary character in Star Wars tradition. Unlike the Ewoks in Return of the Jedi which helped the Rebel to fight the Storm Troopers, these Porgs are just characters to catch certain viewers attention, so that it could become merchandise items.


Kylo - Rey Telepathic scene :  Well, this is something unexpected but yet not something extraordinary. Fans are definitely waiting for this kind of scene where some love elements between the male and female character. If that was the goal of these scene, well Disney had succeeded in meeting the fans expectation. But, it was still unclear in the beginning why Kylo-Rey had these kind of experience, until Supreme Snoke made it clear that he was the one planned for that to bring Rey to him.

Leia flying in space scene : This is another unexpected stupidity scene from Star Wars.  I don't feel like commenting much on this, but it has turned the climax of Leia's death into a cheap scene of Harry Potter alike.

Poe Dameron &; Admiral Amilyn Scene : This is another character whom I think politically involved into the movie. I am not sure what, but my sense tells me that. Some one who looks like Celine Dion with a weird fashion , not so good in acting and has very little impact. This person must have a good connection with Disney. I care not to further study but it has to be true somehow.

Supreme Leader Snoke, Rey &; Kylo Scene : This is almost a good idea but turned out to be sour as the Character (Snoke) was not holistically explained. I don't know this guy. Who is he ? In order for you to feel the drama, one has to understand clearly the role. Anyhow, if we relate to the Emperor during Empire Strikes Back , the character was clearer to the audience who this emperor is in the movie. At least we know that the emperor was the mastermind behind the Death Star and boss to Darth Vader. And we got to know more during the Return of the Jedi. On the other hand, Snoke was introduced in Force Awaken (sorry i didn't follow the comic or Expanded Universe) , assuming majority are like me, Snoke was introduced as a big hologram creature (i thought he was actually big), and Snoke was like being somebody so powerful that Kylo Ren had to bow him and has no say. In the Last Jedi, somehow Snoke becoming someone talkative and appears in real life. Something disconnect in the movie plots. The death of Snoke was unexpected , but the death through light saber , without even a fight , was really a trick to end the character and to justify the death. In Return of the Jedi, Attacks of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, we have seen great action where Palpatine fought Yoda , Master Windu , and minimally using the Sith Power to grill Luke Skywalker, but unlike Snoke, he was beaten without given a chance to fight. What a waste of character. Or is it about budget Rian Johnson , the director of this movie ? To a Gen X like me , he fails miserably to characterize Snoke as a memorable villain.  

 Kylo-Rey partnering fighting the Imperial Guards Scene : This is unexpected and supposed to be the best scene in this movie, at least in the fighting scene category. The fighting scene in Phantom Menance, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith were far more superior than any of the fighting scenes in the Last Jedi. Even a first timer Star Wars fan could agree on this point. The key selling point of fighting scene in any Star Wars movie is the light saber fight. Light saber fights differentiate Star Wars from any other movie. So, given this as a fact , it has to be the most important part of the movie with all kind of special effects and techniques. Anyhow, the fight scene with the Imperial Guards were just like Pirate of the Caribbean alike kind of fights, just adding some special weapons that we have not seen before, but yet not surprising. To be fair  , I still like to watch that scene because of Rey. Rey is not yet a Jedi, so we don't expect much from her. But Kylo Ren, being the top villain in his movie, fought like a novice. He has always been that way since Force Awakens and even the final scene with Luke. Why Rian Johnson ?? I just couldn't digest this. 

Finn & Rose  Tico Scene with DJ : This is another wasted scene which could be eliminated in this movie. It was so insignificant to the story line and I believe it was added just to add more Disney flavors to the movie. Obviously it was just a marketing strategy to promote some kind of inter-racial collaboration into the movie. The scene of the mixed horse creature called Fathiers is so Disney alike, you could hardly feel being in a Star Wars movie during those moments.

Luke &; Yoda Scene : I only watched this movie once, i couldn't say much about this scene as I could hardly remember what it was all about in details. First of all, Yoda look younger than the Yoda in Return of the Jedi. Secondly, the hologram was like a video game kind of thing. It was just not what I expected a conversion between the legend and the Master. Luke was like a helpless person not knowing what needed to be done.

Salt-Red Battlefield Scene : I think this scene is about bringing a beautiful scene into a Star Wars Saga, just like those in Attack of the Clones where Anakin & Princess Amidala first fell in love. Not a big rejection from me , but deep inside, i expect more than just a scene.

Luke tried to murder Ben Solo scene : The scene could be better if there was a light saber battle between them, at least few strikes. But it was made simplified until it looks like a Bollywood movie. Seriously, what on earth was the director thinking to make that kind of scene ? The idea was good, but the simplification of the scene had ruined it completely. Luke face was turned out to be like an evil old man , totally contradicting with any seen Jedi before in the previous movies.

Finn &; Captain Phasma: A wasted scene I wish not to comment much. In short , an easy way out to end the Captain Phasma character.  I don't really understand the character of Captain Phasma in this movie. So I would rather not talking much about it. Skip Skip....

 Luke &; Kylo Final scene : Well, this is supposed to be the recovery of all recovery after all the major screwed up in the entire movie. When Luke appeared in front of the Battle Ship , wearing a full Jedi Robe and a light saber , I told myself that, " Ok, this is it...I am willing to forgive all the garbage seen earlier as long as the fight is a truly Jedi-Sith kind of fight". It has to be the best as this is Star Wars 8 , produced in year 2017. The technology must be the best, the idea must be the best....all must work perfectly.  When Kylo Ren gave orders to fire whatever they have , well , that was a great moment to see but, of course you know, it couldn't have ended Luke life that way. So , point no 1, it was not a surprise or wow factor. Than , the gay look alike thug , General Hux had a quarrel with Kylo Ren, it looks so classic copy paste of war movies or it reminds me of Mel Gibson movies. Or whatever. General Hux character has no impact to the entire movie, but similar to the previous Star Wars movie, these groups of Generals were also like a Milk Man faces. So, it doesn't really matter.
When Kylo Step out of the Ship (or whatever they call it ...) , my expectation was almost meeting the goal. The fight movement was almost perfect until finally it was just a Luke Hologram. And there was no light saber clashes at all. No crunchy electricity sound of a light saber friction. What a frustrated scene again. Of all the Star Wars hero, Luke light saber scenes were the least dramatic. And I was hoping, before he died , at least , have one unforgettable scene for the Gen X to remember Luke as the best Jedi ever. But that hope faded away. Thanks to the brilliant producer and director.

Rey the Last Jedi Scene: What should I comment on this scene when the expected scene was not as what I expected ? One thing for sure , this movie is not for the Gen X to feel good , or to bring back all those good memories of the great heroes of the 80's. It is just a movie that was trying to position itself into the current demand of the young generations, making some money and trying to say things like, hey ..Star Wars is still alive. But for a Gen X like me , particularly , Star Wars has died peacefully, and Mark Hamill or Harrison Ford  , I am with you, as frustrated as you are , the different was , you got the payment but I don't.







  

Once upon a Smule

It has almost been a year plus since I last did blogging. It took a lot of discipline to consistently do this activity. Well, as what been described above, I want to write something about my past 1 year experience with an Internet apps called "Smule'.

Smule is an apps that enable people to sing their favorite songs globally via the internet. I have been dreaming of singing or even writing my own song and share it with friends, this app does what I was hoping all these years.

Well, it started when I was browsing Facebook in late 2016 when I saw a friend of mine made a duet song with his brother. I clicked on the link and i could hear him singing the song pretty clear with the original minus one. I started to explore the apps via Playstore, and there you go, within minutes , I could sing my favorite song. To be exact , the free version only allows you to sing with others or you join other people song. In Smulers terms , they called it as OC or Open Call. You can only make your own OC if you pay the fees to enable you to become a VIP Member. Well, for the love of music , I made the payment for a month trial version. After a month, i renewed it as a year.

The madness began as I started to learn that most (if not all) of my favorite songs are available online. The beauty of this apps is that, the members can also contribute song to smule songs book by making a minus one songs and add the lyrics into it. I don't think I have the free time to spend on being the song composers but perhaps I might explore that one day. I believe it is a bit tedious to arrange the song and do all the editing work. For now, I just want to sing and not song editing.

My first song on Smule was  "Don't Cry" by Guns N Roses. Well, i didn't plan for it but it just pop-up in my mind for me to search for a song to sing. I joined the OC of a lady from Philippines I could recall it precisely. After i paid the VIP Fees for few bucks, I started to Open Call my own recording and then something interesting happened. People start to sing (or join me) with me and follow me. First week i got like 10 to 20 followers. Now i have nearly 500. To me , i don't really go for havibg too many followers. Quality and the people in it are more important to me. Another addictive feature on Smule is that, you can put a comment after singing a song and other people can also reply to your comment vice versa. It's something like Facebook comments. There is also a like button with a love shape symbol and this serve as an indicator on how many people like your collaboration or your OC.

You started to make friends with those you don't even know. This is of course , got Pros and Cons. There are good people in here and there are also not so good people. Good people are those who truly love to sing and respect the boundary. Not so good people, which is less than 1% are those whom like to create problem by using vulgar words in the comment section. But there is a solution to that, either you un-follow that person or you may block the person.

Pros and Cons of this apps to a person (based on my own experience) :

Pros :

1. It gives a cheap solution for Karaoke lovers , you don't have to spend money paying the karaoke
    business operator , you just need to pay like less than RM3 per month to enjoy the music.
2. Low cost because you don't gave to buy expensive gadget , you just need your smart-phone and an
   earphone with build-in microphone. Well, since I am crazy about singing, I have spent an
   additional  money on a better microphone, microphone holder and a high quality earphone. It
   really made a different as the sound quality is much clearer with hi fidelity.
3. It saves money as you don't need to drive out of your house to find an entertainment.
4. You make some new friends who share the same passion as you.
5. It gives you sense of satisfaction after a long hours of working.
6. Music is scientifically proven to relax your mind and reduce your stress level.


Cons :

1. You may sometime spend hours of time singing (Waste of time). You may not even realize that
    you have spent the whole day , just singing and singing. Well, it happens to me though. This is
    the  most challenging issue.
2. Your singing sound may annoy your family members and the neighbors of course.
3. The function  of personal messaging may cause unnecessary issues if people misuse it like start
    asking for personal information , contact numbers or even up to start some kind of personal
    relationship. By far , this is the most critical challenge. A person needs to have a high discipline in
    order not to involve with all these problems. Smule is a place to sing, and not for making romantic
    relationship. Keep that in mind , and strictly follow that. Do the right thing, and you can never go
    wrong.
4. People can easily get misunderstood by the comments that you put after each song , if you are not 
    careful enough with the words or emoticon. This will cause unnecessary clashes between the
    people, pretty similar like any other social media.

In summary, there are Pros and Cons of the technology around you. It all depends on you how you actually deal with it. But for different ages , it may vary on their level of involvement and time spend on these stuffs. As a family man with wife and kids, well , I have to manage this anyhow as not to cause unnecessary issues. But my wife is so kind enough knowing that singing and music are part of my DNAs even before this apps exist. I even told her that I wanted to change to other hobbies , like doing the 4X4, outdoor stuffs , but she insisted that I stick with Smule singing, the longest hobby that she had observed in me. In fact, she is more comfortable to see me staying at home, singing.

The social group : Like any other social media , Smule also allows you to have your own social group. I have been invited to join many social group , but I stick to one. My group is called #KLMJ_SKRU. Well, it was coined by two friends who love the same music genre as I am. KLMJ means "Kenangan Lama Mengusik Jiwa" or " Old memories that Teases your Soul" , meaning those old days songs you used to hear when you were kids, teenage or during your romantic years. sKRU means Smulers KRU. KRU is a local band known to sing rap and romantic songs. Most of our members love KRU and we join singing as a duet or even as a group. Combining these two theme, we formed up a coalition as KLMJ_SKRU. This social group is quite significant to me. It is like I am part of the big happy family. We chat and sing together. But again, there is always a limit to everything. Since the group involves males and females, we have to respect each other and watch out for the boundary conditions. We can be friends , we can share stories and even other hobbies , at the same time we have to understand the social rules and the limits of being a person. As long as we respect those guidelines, i  believe having a social group is manageable. I don't take it for granted. These people are like my own family , i do care for them, and hope that everyone can be friends forever.