Top 10 Films of 2015

It's that time of year again. 2015 is on the way out, 2016 is on the way in, and we film aficionados run our retrospectives of the year. But before we get to the list, I should repeat something. This list is based only on what I saw this year. If a particularly acclaimed film isn't on the list, there's a good chance I just didn't get a chance to see it. So with the preamble taken care of, here are my choices for...

Review of the Jedi: The Force Awakens

10 years have passed since Episode III and what was presumed to be the end of Star Wars on the big screen, and 2 years have passed since the announcement of Episode VII. But now it's finally arrived and that looming sword of Damocles has dropped. Would Star Wars return to the heights of its past glory? Would it recapture the magic that enthralled audiences and changed the world when it first appeared nearly 40 years ago? Or would it crash and burn, a failed attempt at revival and another sign of the franchise's fall from grace. Well, it makes me extremely happy to report that it it is indeed the former. Episode VII: The Force Awakens is true Star Wars through and through, and the beginning of a very bright future under Disney's wings.

In hindsight, It's somewhat amusing the question most were asking before release was where Luke Skywalker was. Because that's a question very much on the minds of the characters. The Jedi Master has gone missing after an unexplained tragedy and is now being sought by both the villainous First Order, a terrorist junta born from the ruins of the Empire, and his sister former Princess now General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher, once again). Leia's trusted pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) has tracked down the one map Luke left to his location, but must trust it to his droid BB-8 when he's captured by the First Order's lightsaber wielding enforcer Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). From there BB-8 is found by desert scavenger Rey (Daisy Ridley) and defecting Stormtrooper Finn (John Boyega), who after weathering a few First Order attacks take it upon themselves to return BB-8 to General Leia and her Resistance. Their journey won't be an easy one, with everything from pirates, their own secrets, and of course Ren and the First Order blocking their way at every turn. But maybe with a little help from Han Solo (Harrison Ford, once again), Chewbacca, and the Millennium Falcon, they might be able to find Luke before the First Order's deadly new weapon comes online.

Childhood's End: A Review

SPOILERS BELOW

Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End is a classic of Science Fiction literature that has been wildly influential. It's inspired everything from TV shows like V,  anime like Neon Genesis Evangelion, and even the cover of Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy (true story) with its images of massive spaceships floating over major cities and its ideas of benevolent alien invasion. All this despite the fact that the novel has never been adapted in the sixty years since its publication. Until now, as the Syfy Channel has chosen it as the basis for its annual year-end miniseries event. And fans of the novel can rest easy. There have been a few changes to the story to better fit a TV format, but Clarke's themes and ideas still ring out. Though maybe not in the way Clarke intended.

Last warning, I'm going to spoil the book and miniseries. Our story begins when a fleet of huge spaceships park themselves above Earth's major cities. The aliens, dubbed the Overlords, broadcast their intentions to Humanity. They aren't here to invade or conquer, they're here to help us finally overcome our problems and usher in a golden age. People are naturally skeptical of this, but as the advances and peace settle in the resistance fades. But at the same time, children born after the Overlords' appearance begin showing strange inhuman traits and evidence of psychic powers. Then it becomes clear. The Overlords didn't come to help humanity, they came to make sure the next generation could evolve into a higher form of consciousness. And as their mission comes to a close we have to wonder, was it worth it?