Okay. And then you compare a 6th movie in a series with continuity to the FIRST movie in a series, Star Wars. Why not compare it to Empire Strikes Back? An actual comparable sequel. "Does that Han guy like Leia? Does she like him? They certainly flirt a lot... kind of. I guess they kind of like each other or maybe had a past that's implied? Why did she kiss that other guy then? How come that other dude isn't using a gun and only has that light sword? What is the force? Is he telepathic? What's with this empire and why are they attacking these rebels? What's with the dude in the black getup? Is he a wizard? Who is that blue-glowy guy that appears and talks to this Luke guy occasionally? Who is Ben Kenobi and why did he lie to that guy with the light-up sword about who his father was?" Please note, haven't seen FF6 and don't really plan to. But found your rant about what makes a film to be a tad hypocritical.One of the basic principles of a good film is the ability for the story to be contained within the screen. That means all of the character motivations, all of their various struggles, the narrative itself, it all needs to be fit in to the time that the movie is playing on screen.
This is a consistent theme with the movie, the reliance on every other film out there for understanding characters and motivation. I don’t know who these people are and I’m not able to determine their motivations while I’m watching, but I guess its really that they all just sort of know each other? I guess? And that’s why they’re all willing to die together and take on an ex-military super guy? I guess?
Say you sit down and watch Star Wars. Alright cool, its the first one. Characters: Luke, Han, Leia, Chewy, Obi, Vader. Motivations range from becoming a Jedi to money to politics to Life Day to training Luke to crushing the Rebellion. Clear motivations for the characters, all of which we understand through what we see happening before us. We do not need to see all of the films that influenced Star Wars in order to understand it, even if they enrich our experience of watching it. The narrative and characters are clear based solely on the evidence that the audience sees.