We are less than one week away from “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” coming out in the movie theaters. Disney issued a warning “that visuals and sustained flashing light” in the movie could affect those who are photosensitive. If this seems like a familiar problem, it is. Pixar, also owned by the House of Mouse, had to put out a similar warning for “The Incredibles 2” after it came out in theaters. A problem that Disney partially fixed when it came out on Blu-Ray. You would think that Disney wouldn’t have avoided making the same mistake twice.
When I saw “The Incredibles 2” in IMAX on opening weekend last year, the strobing light effects of the new super villain, Screenslaver, stabbed me in the eyeballs. I had to use my hand to block out the intensity when Screenslaver trapped Elastigirl inside a room of strobing lights. A week later printed warnings went up at the box office and on the theater doors that the strobing light effects could affect those who are photosensitive.
When I saw “The Incredibles 2” in digital a month later, a similar warning appeared on screen before the movie started. The strobing light effects in digital gave me a headache. But that was mild compared to having my eyeballs stabbed in IMAX.
Disney toned down the strobing light effects for every format except 4K HDR on the Blu-Ray. If you have a screen that can display 4K HDR, the strobing light effects will still be like the eyeball-stabbing IMAX format. That’s unavoidable for technical reasons, as I explained in my Screenslaver video last year.
Now “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” has the same problem with “visuals and sustained flashing lights”. Probably too many lightsaber battles, forcing lightning and lens flares. Be prepared to cover up your eyes if the visual effects are too intense or your face if the storyline stinks like horse manure. Disney will probably fix the former problem in every format except 4K HDR on the Blu-Ray. As for the latter problem, the original series was still brilliant with Han Solo shooting first.
What should you do to protect yourself from “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” next week?
You could go see “Jumanji: The Next Level” instead. I saw that earlier this week. The movie held together despite the expanded cast and all the gender benders that went on between characters in the virtual world.
If you do see the new Star Wars movie next week, consider which format to watch it in. Based on my experience with “The Incredibles 2,” digital will probably result in a mild headache. IMAX will result in eyeball stabbing. I’m not sure about Dolby since I saw “The Incredibles 2” twice in the theaters in the other formats. Dolby could be like 4K HDR on Blu-Ray, probably resulting in a mild headache and eyeball stabbing at the same time.
If you’re truly are at risk for an epileptic seizure, go see “Jumanji: The Next Level” instead.