Obi-Wan Kenobi: Part II

 "You're not a Jedi any more, Kenobi. You're just a man. And you're bleeding all over my floor."

Episode two... and we leave Tattoine to a markedly different, and much more studio-bound (if CGI-heavy) hive of scum and villainy. The plot works out as we expected- Obi-Wan rescues Leia, who turns out to be a cheeky little minx, and ends up being successful despite the inquisitors, especially the impressive Reva, who seems to have a chip on her shoulder.

Ewan McGregor is good. Flea is excellent. Moses Ingram is increasingly impressive. And some interesting stuff happens- Reva kills her annoying boss for being a snob; she reveals to Obi-Wan that she's working for Darth Vader- and Anakin lives; Obi-Wan uses his Jedi powers to save Leia having not used them at all until this point; and at the end we see Vader himself (er, Hayden Christensen!) in a flotation tank.

It's good. It's entertaining. It's just pretty standard, Joseph Campbell stuff- admittedly not inappropriate for Star Wars- and so far doesn't have the creativity or take the risks of those spin-offs whose protagonists wear Beskar.

Obi-Wan Kenobi: Part I

 "It's been ten years. I'm not who I used to be."

We begin with a"previously on" showing us a succint summary of the events of the three Star Wars prequels. I would comment about this being the perfect alternative to going through the horrors of actually watching these films, but I won't. Partly because, while they are certainly very flawed and downright bad in many places, that would be a little harsh.

Well, I said "a little"

But mostly it's because I'm blogging this first episode three days after it dropped, and I know for a fact every single blogger who got there before me will have made that quip.

I'm sure I'm not the first, either, to raise an eyebrow and warily point to the fact that yet another Star Wars spin-off on Disney appears, so far, to be Tattoine-based, even if the premise sort of justifies this rather well. Nor will I be the first to lightly remark at the lack of Mandalorians, or the actual non-involvement of Jon Favreau. 

I think, for now, I'll confine myself to expressing satisfaction. This is a logical seam of continuity for a mini-series to mine. Yes, it's all very Joseph Campbell as the episode is all about an ageing ex-hero in Obi-Wan, jaded and reluctant to do any further heroics after the shock of losing Anakin and the horrifying drudgery and poverty of his current life, which is shown extremely well in the many repetitice factory montages. The whole thing is exquisitely directed by Deborah Chow, and Ewan McGregor is outstanding.

The Inquisitors are a superb creation, too, and the last minute revelation that the kidnapping of Leia (who is awesome, and the daddy in me loves the touching father/daughter scene) is a big trap for Obi-Wan by the nastiest Inquisitor is nicely done. Flea is excellent too.

It's all a bit of fun, nothing original and nothing new. But it's extremely well-executed, so far, in every way. I'm enjoying this.

Back to the Future, Part III (1990)

“My horse broke down...”

There’s a difference between our favourite films ever and the ones we objectively think are best, and it’s the second list that is likely to feature all those intellectual films that we may regard highly but tend not to use as comfort food. Back to the Future, Part III is my favourite film of all time. And no, it isn’t as “good” as cleverer films with more to say; it’s a blockbuster. It just happens to be the most perfect blockbuster that has ever been made or ever will be.

This is the third and final film in a series that starts as excellent and just gets better with every film, and which is so uber-familiar that we forget how good it is. But we have the timey-wimey plot, with an opening scene that manages to recap both of the previous film, along with a superbly constructed Western pastiche that gives us yet more versions of the McFlys and a villainous Tannen, along with lots of adventure, thrills and even romance. And comedy. Lots of that. And yet again the great Christopher Lloyd is superlatively good. In fact, Doc is the real hero of the trilogy, isn’t he? Marty is just this kid who isn’t that bright and is a bit bland. Well, until you call him a chicken, that is. It’s Doc who invents the time machine, acts the hero and even, this time, gets the girl. Marty is just the Boswell to his Johnson, the Hans Castorp to his Settembrini, the person through whose eyes we see it all and with a heroic arc of his own, but very much a sidekick.

So why is this third film my favourite? I think it’s because we know the drill by now, we can have more fun with this 1885 Hill Valley as we know the later ones so very well by now- we get by far the best version of Strickland, too. It doesn’t have to be extremely timey-wimey- it’s done that- so can explore the fun of the Western setting more. And it has a kickass conclusion, with Marty learning a lesson that helps him to avert his bleak future, and us getting to see Doc’s new family (let’s just not think about his age here) and a time travelling train.

And there are great touches- Doc in 1955 hasn’t heard of Clint Eastwood and is amazed to hear that Japanese parts in 1985 are considered the best. Doc gets utterly bladdered after one shot of whiskey. But this film works because it has heart, it has plot, it has humour and it has characters, all combined perfectly. Sod it, this is one of the greatest films of all time.