STAR WARS EPISODE VII: THE FORCE AWAKENS

Chewie…We’re home.

Star Wars is back. And it…is…AWESOME.

When we all found out a few years ago that George Lucas sold Star Wars to Disney, I think it’s safe to say we were all sceptical. Disney?! Star Wars? How would that even work? Everyone made their jokes. Everyone laughed it off. Then we found out J. J. Abrams was directing. People started to take it more seriously. His two Star Trek films were amazing. If we could have any director of our choice, he’d be them. And then…we got the first trailer. Boom. Now people were listening. No more jokes. No more laughing it off. Things only got better with the second, and best trailer. We knew Disney weren’t half-arsing this. This was gonna be good. And by the Force, it’s good.

The trailers, while awesome, gave me one worry. The story being told in the trailers looked suspiciously like Episode 4. And, seeing as Abrams last film, Star Trek: Into Darkness was just a remake of Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan, those worries didn’t really go away. The black-clad evil guy leading battalions of Stormtroopers. The Rebellion fighting back. The mysterious Jedi master. The person who goes from no-one to someone. And Han and Chewie being…Han and Chewie.

I’ll admit it. There are some parts that are similar to Episode 4. But once you have the context of the whole film, instead of a two minutes trailer, those worries float away. And so, without further ado...The plot.

The plot, on the whole, is great. It’s got no Space politics, and, while sharing points from the original, feels brand new. It may not be the best plot in places, but respect to the team behind it. Sci-Fi fans aren’t the easiest to please, but this time, they’ve pulled it off. From the opening scene of a First Order assault, you know it’s gonna be good.

There are points that could be improved, but nothing horrifically drastic. The revelation about Kylo Ren being Han and Leia’s son, and a Jedi turned bad was seen a mile off, and by everyone. Just Google ‘Jacen Solo’. You’ll see. Rey possibly being Luke’s daughter was a nice touch. Above all, it explains how she can use the force. But, as they don’t solidly explain it, we’ll have to wait for more details. They only kind of imply it, but that explanation makes sense.

I have only three bad views on the plot. Captain Phasma, the chrome Stormtrooper, is nowhere near as badass as I thought she would be. I think they went for the Boba Fett approach: A few good lines to make her famous. It doesn’t pay off. Instead, a potentially good character is wasted. The second takes place during Rey and Ren’s battle at the end. About half way through, she pauses to ‘feel the force’. Yeah, it’s symbolic, but, one, his Lightsaber is about an inch away from her face. Two, she’s standing on the edge of a cliff. The third, and this is mostly a nit-pick, I don’t think Kylo Ren should have taken his helmet off when he did. The confrontation on the bridge, that should have been the reveal, not when he’s interrogating Rey. It just didn’t feel right for the moment.

Still think Max Von Sydow should’ve played an older Boba Fett after his escape from the Sarlac pit.

John Williams returns too, with an all-new score. It’s brilliant. It was never not going to be. You can tell he’s given it his all, and the musical cue for the Force theme is perfectly timed. What surprised me though, was that none of the great music from the trailers were in the score.

Aside from a great story and a great score, there’s one other thing The Force Awakens does outstandingly: The spectacle. Star Wars is known for its iconic shots. The Force Awakens not only carries this burden, but adds to it. The mix of real props with some fantastic GCI make for some of the greatest camera shots put to film. And, thank god, there is only about one noticeable lens-flare.

Just a couple of sentences to sum up some other stuff. 1) It's surprisingly funny for a Star Wars movie. 2) Lots of nostalgia from the original trilogy, including Vader's helmet and the force orb Luke practices with in Episode 4. 3) All the original sound effects have been upgraded. Luke's lightsaber sounds a lot deeper than it used to, as does Chewie's crossbow. 4) The Stormtroopers' new, sleaker armour looks fantastic. And, and I can't believe I'm saying this, they actually hit stuff in this movie. 5) Loving the fact Kylo Ren's Lightsaber sounds like a thunderous car engine. 6) The final Saber fight isn't brillaintly choreographed like the fights in the Prequels. It's gritty. Which, for the scene at play, is perfect.

Very few words describe how I feel about The Force Awakens. I don’t think I’ve ever smiled my way through a movie before. I have now. Even in the sad moments, I was smiling. Why? Because I was in the cinema…watching a new Star Wars movie. Even my brother turned to me when ‘In a galaxy…’ appeared and said, “I can’t believe I’m actually here.” That’s now become one of my favourite sentences ever spoken. He’s never gonna let that go. I mean…Star Wars is back. Hell yeah. And, judging by the immense round of applause the almost full cinema gave it when it ended, I’m not the only one who likes it. I’m still shaking.

The gang is back together. Some might not return in the way you might expect, but with the help of a new generation of heroes, one of which is basically a robot football with the personality of a cat, they’re back. A new generation of Star Wars has begun.

10/10

R.I.P Han Solo – 1977-2015

"Never tell me the odds."