After many many years of anticipation (long before any actual announcement), thanks to Disney, we finally have Episode VII.
I don't want to really go into the nitty gritty details too much, or at all, because I think it is worth going into this film with just your knowledge of the previous episodes. Armed with that, you will get a kick out of this movie. There is an enormous amount of nostalgia flowing through the veins of this film. Just seeing the characters you grew up with and loved will be enough to make most happy.
JJ and co have crafted a visually spendid and very enjoyable beginning to a new trilogy. The film moves at a decent pace, and fortunately the new characters are very interesting. My pick of the bunch is Rey, the scavenger we've seen in the trailers. Boyega is also very good and brings plenty of humour to the film, but not in a cheesy way. Another of my favourites and no doubt what will become a big toy item is BB8. What a joy that droid is - I so want one.
The story itself, ever so secret in the promotion of the film, is an interesting one - mainly because of what it sets up for the rest of the series. For all the questions raised, there weren't many answers - both annoying and intriguing at the same time. I've seen some minor quibbles from others about the script/story being a bit lacking, and I can see that, but what is there is definitely promising of a bigger things to come - hopefully.
Is this film great? Is it the masterpiece or exercise in excellence I was wanting? No. But, I instantly feel like I need to give this film time to sit, let the expectation fade away a bit, and then watch it again. I know I have that habit of letting films fall under the weight of 'I can't fucking wait to see this' pressure, that I struggle to reconcile my own thoughts.
I can tell you this though, The Force Awakens is the Star Wars movie we deserved in 1999 - sadly we had to wait till 2015 to get it.
3.5/5
