[tps_header][/tps_header]2. There’s no happy ending.
The ending of A New Hope (and Return of the Jedi for that matter) is very happy. This is not a bad thing! Remember: Force Awakens being different doesn’t take anything away from the original’s successes.
The original 1977 film was made under tight watch from the studio, a lower budget and a huge amount of pressure on George Lucas to deliver a profitable film. No sequel was planned, or even considered until the money started rollin’ in and it was clear that Star Wars would be a huge phenomenon. We now live in a very different world – In 2015, Star Wars is the biggest thing ever! Under Disney’s ownership, multiple sequels can be planned and executed, with longer-term arcs, rivalries and payoffs. J.J. Abrams has stated that he is very fascinated by what happened to Han, Luke and Leia after they “walked into the sunset”, because there is always the question of, “Okay, then what?”.
Force Awakens doesn’t end with a party or celebration: it ends with a classic cliffhanger. The first thing I said when the movie ended was, “Okay, I want the next one!”. It may seem less-than satisfying, but so did The Empire Strikes Back in 1980, and we all know how fantastic that film is…
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