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A retrospective review of all the Star Wars films, from the original trilogy to the prequels to the J.J. Abram's "reboot"!
We have arrived at the controversial apex of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. The eighth chapter of the Skywalker Saga was directed by Rian Johnson and has proven to be controversial since it was released in 2017. Fans of the franchise feel that the movie played too fast and loose with the series. They think it included unnecessary humor and tried to subvert expectations to a detrimental extent. And most importantly – it lacks a big lightsaber fight sequence!
The Last Jedi is the middle film of the sequel trilogy. It continues the adventures of Rey, Poe and Finn as they battle the First Order and Kylo Ren. Rey seeks out Luke Skywalker so that the Jedi Master can aid the new Resistance. Poe learns some valuable lessons about leadership. Finn meets a new friend and heads to a James Bond-esque casino planet to steal some code breaking technology that can disable Snoke’s starship.
Into this plot steps Rian Johnson. Depending on how you view the film, the director either ruined the story or he designed a brilliant commentary on the entire franchise. His comedy pushed the series into a strange new space, but his analysis of the push and pull between the old and new perfectly encapsulates the battle within the fandom. The film doesn’t always manage to stand as a well executed narrative, but if you’re willing to take a chance and appreciate it as an odd, metacontextual perspective on a classic franchise you might find it to be an interesting concept.
In this podcast, Wes, Dave and Clay debate the merits and failures of The Last Jedi. They all have a different perspective of the quality of the movie and they all view the successes and failures differently. Who do you agree with?
Links!
• linktr.ee/the_pensky_file
• e-Mail : thepenskyfilevideo@gmail.com
After a two year break, Wes, Clay and Dave have reassembled to pull off the ultimate heist: to podcast about Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Rogue One is the first of the Star Wars Anthology films (and there ended up being only two). The goal of these films was to step away from the Skywalker saga and show a different part of the universe.
Rogue One focuses on the previously mentioned plot to steal the plans for the Death Star. In A New Hope, there is a throwaway line about rebels having sacrificed their lives to steal the plans that ultimately reveal the Death Stars weakness to the Rebel Alliance. Rogue One details that heist and focuses on previously unknown characters. It strives to portray a more realistic, guerilla warfare that sometimes becomes indistinguishable from terrorism.
Instead of a Skywalker, the film focuses on Jyn, a young woman who finds herself persuaded to aid the rebels. She assembles a motley crew to steal the plans, and the third act does manage some spectacular action sequences and emotional payoffs.
Oh, and the film features some uncanny valley horror shots where grand Moff Tarkin and Princess Leia are resurrected via “cutting edge” CGI and forced to perform.
The guys get together to discuss the somewhat surprising Rogue One. They discuss how effectively the film breaks away from the core Star Wars story, and try to understand what works and what doesn’t. Is Star Wars a universe that can support tangential stories, or does it only work when it focuses on the swashbuckling adventures of space knights?
Plus!
The guys rank where Rogue One sits in the Star Wars filmography, discuss limiting the use of Darth Vader, and review the original story beats and try to figure out why those ideas were ever considered in the first place.
Links!
• linktr.ee/the_pensky_file
• e-Mail : thepenskyfilevideo@gmail.com
Lucas sold his franchise to Disney, and Disney brought into renowned franchise caretaker J.J. Abrams to fix things. Largely ignoring the prequels, Abrams created a whole new cast and rebooted the aging franchise. So, what do we think?
In this episode, we discuss the pros and cons of the new characters, movie franchises that act like TV shows, and the upside of making the Death Star a planet.
The final prequel movie features a lot of bad times for the Jedi, and a lot of good times for the viewers who don’t need to watch anymore of these movies!
In this episode we discuss Obi-Wan drawing first, fighting in a volcano, and the benefits of standing above someone.
So, how did we come to the events of the original trilogy? By watching the prequels!
In Episode I: The Phantom Menace, we meet a young Anakin Skywalker, a Gungan named Jar Jar, and we learn a whole lot of information about trade in galaxies far, far away.
Join Wes, Clay, Jim and Dave as they begin their retrospective review of the Star Wars franchise!
We begin with Episode IV: A New Hope, which introduces us to Luke Skywalker, the Force, and Darth Vader. Does the film hold up to modern standards? The guys discuss lightsaber fights, interminable flight sequences, and how it all started!
Amanda is a wife. A mother. A blogger. A Christian.
A charming, beautiful, bubbly, young woman who lives life to the fullest.
But Amanda is dying, with a secret she doesn’t want anyone to know.
She starts a blog detailing her cancer journey, and becomes an inspiration, touching and
captivating her local community as well as followers all over the world.
Until one day investigative producer Nancy gets an anonymous tip telling her to look at Amanda’s
blog, setting Nancy on an unimaginable road to uncover Amanda’s secret.
Award winning journalist Charlie Webster explores this unbelievable and bizarre, but
all-too-real tale, of a woman from San Jose, California whose secret ripped a family apart and
left a community in shock.
Scamanda is the true story of a woman whose own words held the key to her secret.
New episodes every Monday.
Follow Scamanda on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
Amanda’s blog posts are read by actor Kendall Horn.
