A long time ago, in a galaxy very near, an iconic franchise was born... Rebels have just stolen the plans to the Empire's ultimate weapon.  The brave Princess Leia has been captured- but the plans are nowhere to be found.  Will she crack under the vicious interrogation of Darth Vader? Meanwhile, a chance encounter with two droids soon propels a young farmer into the larger galaxy... a galaxy in peril as he seeks to rescue the princess... and begin the journey to fulfill his destiny.. . Despite it's age, " Episode Four: A New Hope " holds up extremely well- much better than the prequels, certainly.  It's a well crafted, coherent, and well paced fantasy quest movie in space.  There is an excellent balance between the action, the drama, and the humour.  While the plotline is fairly predictable when examined via tropes used in the fantasy genre, it's still an enjoyable hero's journey type of story. The characters- while also pretty predictable in th...

Gotta admit, having just watched the teaser for Star Wars Episode IX, officially titled, The Rise of Skywalker, I was a little emotional. Hearing Luke's voice over, seeing Lando co-piloting the Falcon with Chewie, and yes, having Carrie Fisher appear as Princess Leia one last time, I feel more than a little excited to catch this final chapter in the Skywalker saga come Christmas.

UPDATE: The folks at JoBlo.com report that Carrie Fisher's reps have come out and said that Princess Leia was joking when it came to statements about her involvement in Star Wars: Episode VII: "She was joking. Nothing has been announced." Well . . . damn :( We'll be bombarded from now until its 2015 release date with enough casting rumours to fill a Death Star , but it seems Princess Leia herself has confirmed she'll be back in the J.J. Abrams -directed Star Wars Episode VII . The actress and author said so in an interview with Palm Beach Illustrated, where she was asked more than once if she was coming back for more Star Wars and answered in the affirmative. Word has also been swirling around the Interwebs that there's a good chance Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill will return, and that we can expect official word to that effect any time now.   I'll believe it when I see it, but I also have to admit -- I'd like to see it. If done right tha...

So says Entertainment Weekly reporter Geoff Boucher, who claims he has a source close to him saying Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher are all "upbeat" about returning to the Star War franchise now that Disney has bought Lucasfilm and set a 2015 date for Episode VII's release. I can understand Hamill and Fisher being up for a return trip to that galaxy far, far away. But Ford, who has never had a kind word for any of the Star Wars scripts, strikes me as someone who could care less about the franchise. And this is an unconfirmed source coming in early on what is surely the tip of the tsunami of Star Wars rumours now that a film is in pre-production. Where gonna hear a lot more of these in the years leading up to the new film. But . . . how cool would it be to have Ford back in saddle as Solo, if only as a guest appearance? Very fucking cool. Ditto Fisher and Hamill when you come to think of it. I guess we'll all just have to stay tuned. PS: Lucas won't...