Darth Vader

way, where she faces the many challenges of a Hero’s Quest. She is shown in her Ordinary World on the planet Jakku, Meets the Mentor, the legendary smuggler Han Solo, and finally faces her Ordeal against Kylo Ren, the grandson of the Sith Lord Darth Vader. Rey’s “mundane, Ordinary World” (Vogler, The Stages of the Hero’s Journey) took place on the frontier dessert world…

Valerian: Luc Besson’s hero drives a Lexus A younger generation raised after Star Wars might think, when looking at Valerian, the film, that it borrowed many ideas from George Lucas blockbuster, but the reality is different: Valerian inspired Star Wars. Valerian, the film, picks the comic series from 1967 and mixes it with a promise of the future: the Skyjet vehicle designed by Lexus for a world set 700 years in the future. The first trailer from Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets,…

of self-actualization when they are being evil and would feel lost if they could not be evil. To quote Alfred from the film The Dark Knight, “Some men just want to watch the world burn”, this can be said for beings of true evil like the Joker or Darth Vader. While a being of pure evil cannot be found in The Third Man such and entity can be found in Edgar Allan Poe’s poem The Raven. In The Raven the entity of pure evil is mysterious in that it is not clear if it is the Raven or the narrator’s own…

April 2016 Both the film Star Wars: A New Hope Directed by George Lucas and comic, The Watchmen by Alan Moore had one thing in common. In the comic novel and film, the “superhero" protagonists are white heterosexual men. Neither Princess Leia nor Laurie Juspeczyk have plot lines of their own instead they revolve around men. In The Watchmen and Star Wars: A New Hope both author and director are male and give their characters a male protagonist role. In The Watchmen, Alan Moore introduces his…

The King of Disney Disney is renowned for their spectacular animated movies. Most, if not all, of their movies are considered as classics and are timeless. For the past 80 years, there has been an ongoing debate about which Disney movie is greatest. It seems as if every individual has their own opinion and belief about which movie is the best and why. Overall, it seems to come down to two movies, Beauty and the Beast and the Lion King. “NAAA ZABENYA BABA SITHI UHM!” This short phrase can…

The Human Porch Begins: Part I of the S.T.U.C.C.O. Story arch Dust and fine rubble fell from the sky, settling like fine snow on the rocky ground. The cold Canadian air swept from the north, fanning the flames of the burning research facility into towering monsters of fire and heat. With haste, two figures raced from the building, climbing over the metal fences and retreating into the dense woods. Tired as they were, they had to run away. Run far and fast. Go anywhere but back. Back where…

The eyes of the people are far from welling up with tears. Why is this so? Music is a huge part of expressing the emotions of the movie to the viewer, and without it, many of the most powerful scenes in movies are much less effective. Imagine Darth Vader entering the scene, with zero music. Not as intimidating, right? People tend to take this music for granted, thinking nothing of the many hours upon hours put into producing it. They know the names of every actor in the movie, but not a single…

On January 17, 1931 in Arkabutla, Mississippi, a baby boy was born to parents who would end up being more absent than present in his life. At the tender age of 5, the boy moved to Jackson, Michigan to be raised by his grandparents on their farm. The change of life from Mississippi to Michigan was so disturbing for the young boy that he developed a stuttering problem. Upon entering school, his stutter became worse, causing him to become self-conscious and shy around his peers. It progressed…

stage, and while The Phantom Menace may attempt to be more politically savvy, more “wowing” in action, and more stoic, the opening of A New Hope still trumps it by introducing strong characters, (Clever Princess Leia, bumbling C3PO, and imposing Darth Vader) a clear conflict, and has the superior action in the form of a gunfight. Both films also make use of a wise old sage type character who later dies, with The Phantom Menace killing Qui-Gon Jin and A New Hope depicting the demise of Obi-Wan…

Firefly: The Best of both Worlds Popular culture introduces individuals to communities, heck it helps create communities. Think about the TV shows and the bands you like, you are drawn to others who also enjoy those things, right? Just like fables and fairytales, shows like Firefly, the Simpsons, Parks and Rec, or Avatar bring people together through common interests and viewings. TV shows and movies have created huge communities around them and have given people who are literally across the…