'Star Wars Episode 7' Rumors, Cast & Spoilers: Lawrence Kasdan Reveals Runtime of Episode VII
Lawrence Kasdan has revealed that "Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens" will be shorter than most action movies made today.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, the director noted that films today are too long, and, as a result, he and J.J Abrams decided to tighten up the script. He said, "One of the things that we always refocus on from the get-go was that it not be one of these very long, bloated blockbusters."
He added, "A lot of very entertaining movies lately are too long. In the last 20 minutes, you think, why isn't this over? We didn't want to make a movie like that. I mean, we were really aiming to have it be-when it's over you'll say, 'I wish there's more'. Or, 'Wait, is it over?' Because how rarely you get that feeling nowadays, and I think we're headed there. But it means that there will be constant critical looking at it from now to the end, saying, 'Do we need this? Do we need that? Is it better if this comes out, even though we love it?' Killing your darlings."
The recent blockbusters released this year have all been over two hours -- in some cases, they are two and half hours. These films have included "Avengers: Age of Ultron" and "Furious 7." Other blockbusters that have also been longer include "Skyfall" and all of Christopher Nolan films including "Inception," "Interstellar," "The Dark Knight" and "The Dark Knight Rises."
The last three "Star Wars" films were criticized for their length, especially "Episode II" which, at 2 hours and 12 minutes, was not even the longest in the trilogy. The reason for the criticism was the pacing of the film as most the action sequences occurred at the end of the film and most the middle was dedicated to a romance which fans and critics disliked. The third film, however, which was two and half hours, was praised for its action sequences and its pacing.
While it is unknown how long "The Force Awakens" will be, J.J Abrams' last films have been a few minutes over two hours.
"Star Wars: Episode VII: The Force Awakens" will open on Dec. 18 and is slated to be one of the biggest films of the year.
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