Star Trek Beyond (2016)

It was not as mind-blowing as the two previous installments of the reboot, but this is still a very good effort. JJ Abrams can do no wrong. The writing was excellent. It was quite humorous (thanks to Simon Pegg) and also really complex. Being a student of international relations, I have been taking Theories of International Relations. And the plot of this film is essentially the classical debate between realism and liberalism. Of course, the Federation is an interplanetary institution meant to reduce conflict between planets. They are the liberals. That interplanetary organization (and the intricate leadership structure of each starship) is my favorite part of Star Trek. And Idris Elba is the realist. He believes that power is everything. The Federation doesn't work. What's more realist than that?  Spoiler alert: the liberal galactic order wins.

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)

Star Wars will become the biggest movie of the year, without a doubt, maybe even the biggest movie of the decade.  This seriously has Avatar potential.  What the two movies share in common are fun and visually thrilling action movies in galaxies far, far away.  JJ Abrams made a movie that is exactly what the fans have asked for. It is a movie that lives up to the fans' expectations, and as we all know, Star Wars fans care very much.  And it shows that Abrams put care into this movie too so as not to disappoint. The movie has gotten some criticism  for copying the original too much, but I see it more as an homage to the source material. It opens on a desert planet Jakku, not unlike Tatooine.  The key to the Resistance (no longer Rebellion) movement is tucked away in a droid that is found by the protagonist.  And without revealing too much more of the movie, rest assured there are a lot more parallels to A New Hope--the most glaringly obvious of which is the new and improved Deathstar-like weapon.  I personally loved the hiding underneath the floor of the Millennium Falcon, a throwback to Han Solo and Chewbacca.

The movie brings the same type of drama that the original trilogy did that is simultaneously exhilarating and emotion.  Reliable John Williams returns and wrote a rousing score that echoes the familiar themes.  And at the end of the massive credits, the chimes play the theme one final glorious time at a slowed down pace.  2015 brought with it modern special effects that show how far Star Wars has come since 1977.   This is a Star Wars for a new generation creating a new young following.

The characters from the original trilogy are back. They're a lot older but we are all so glad to see them. The audience at the IMAX theater literally applauded Han Solo and Chewbacca. And the returning characters all have plausible story lines that make sense for their characters following the close of the original trilogy. But this is about the new characters. Daisy Ridley plays Rey and it is refreshing to have a strong female lead. John Boyega is a reformed Storm Trooper, finally putting a (likable) face to the foot soldiers of the Dark Side.  And the new face of evil is Kylo Ren with his newly designed light saber.  He makes a formidable foe for a formidable sequel to America's cinematic treasure.

    

Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)

Tom Cruise is the quintessential action star.  In the very first scene, Tom Cruise literally jumps onto a plane and hangs onto it from the outside as it takes off.  And this is just the beginning!  There are chase scenes galore, on foot, on motor bikes, in cars, you name it. There is constant action and non-stop adrenaline to keep this movie going.  There is another formidable action star to complement Cruise's performance.  Rebecca Ferguson kicks ass.  The two of them together are extraordinarily fun to watch.  Fun is the best way to describe this movie.  The plot is easy to follow meaning there are no hindrances to enjoying everything this movie has to offer.

I particularly liked the opera scene, in which a production of Puccini's Turandot is interrupted.  It is beautifully shot at the incredible Vienna State Opera.  I appreciated that motifs from Calaf's aria Nessun Dorma from Turandot reappeared in the score several times amid the famous Mission: Impossible theme.  The best known tenor aria and the best known movie theme all rolled into one.