Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) Review

MINOR SPOILERS INCOMING! I WILL NOT BE REVEALING ANY BIG SURPRISES BUT I WILL BE REVEALING DETAILS NOT SEEN IN THE TRAILER! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Distributed by: Walt Disney Studios, Lucasfilm Ltd., Bad Robot Productions

Starring: Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Harrison Ford, Oscar Isaac, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Lupita Nyong'o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Andy Serkis, Peter Mayhew, Max von Sydow

Director: J.J. Abrams 

Screenplay: Lawrence Kasdan, J.J. Abrams, Michael Arndt 

Producers: Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk

Running Time: 2 hrs 15m

Rating: 12a

What can we say about 'Star Wars'? The 1977 sci-fi epic was both a critical and commercial success with two sequels, the former being my favourite movie of all time and the latter, whilst not as good, is still a satisfying conclusion. Then in 1999, 'The Phantom Menace' came out... and we all know how meh that film is. Coupled with a terrible sequel and an ok conclusion to the prequel trilogy, people's faith in 'Star Wars' turned sour. Then, in 2013, it was announced that Disney had bought the rights to the franchise and were working on a new sequel trilogy, bringing back the old cast whilst introducing a new one. When 'The Force Awakens' came out in 2015, it was a huge commercial success, breaking lots of box-office records and is now the third highest grossing movie of all time worldwide. Is it any good? Do Stormtroopers have terrible aim? The answer to both of these is "of course".

What's the story? It's been 30 years after 'Return of the Jedi' and a New Republic reigns supreme. However, remnants of the Empire have banded together to become the First Order, led by Kylo Ren (Driver), a user of the dark side of the Force, and Supreme Leader Snoke (Serkis). Poe Dameron (Isaac), a pilot of the Republic funded Resistance, retrieves information concerning the whereabouts of Luke Skywalker, who has been missing for years, and places it in his droid BB-8. When he gets captured by the First Order, BB-8 escapes and meets a scavenger named Rey (Ridley) who is waiting to escape the desert planet of Jakku. As Poe is rescued by FN-2187 or Finn, a redeemed Stormtrooper, Finn eventually meets Rey and BB-8, and together, with the help of Han Solo (Ford), they try to escape to the Resistance who are trying to stop the First Order from using Starkiller Base: a planet turned weapon used to destroy whole solar systems.

If any of this sound familiar it's because it's the same plot as 'A New Hope'. That was just the basics, if I had to list all the similarities, I would be here all day whilst simultaneously spoiling the big moments of the film. Is this a bad thing? Well there should be some more originality but after three prequels ranging from ok to downright bad, it is nice to see a 'Star Wars' movie FEEL like a 'Star Wars' movie. Also, since they've ripped off TONS from the Original Trilogy, it paves the way for more original sequels. This is a way of saying "look. I know we've had some dark times but look! We can still do 'Star Wars'! We just wanted you to know we're ok before we do anything spectacular again." Besides the elements are at least done well enough so it doesn't matter. That is except for Starkiller Base and the subsequent attack on it as it doesn't have as big of an emotional weight to it unlike 'New Hope' and 'Jedi'.

A major problem with this film is the lack of detail. What is the logistics of the Resistance and their relationship with the Republic? What are the Knights of Ren? Where did Luke's old lightsabre come from? Why did Finn defect from the First Order? This and other spoiler-filled questions and loose ends sometimes make the film frustrating to watch because you want to know more. Now the prequels have shown that learning too much is just as bad but you need a balance. You need to set the stage so that the audience knows what's going on in the last 30 years.

Now that's out of the way, how are the characters? Rey can appear like a Mary Sue (like Mary Poppins describes it: Practically Perfect in Every Way) to some but she's still an endearing character! Not once does she get rescued and even does the rescuing in some areas. In all honesty, she's a total bada** who is a great role model for girls in a time where movies like 'Fifty Shades of Grey' portray women in a negative light. Not to mention that Daisy Ridley is awesome in the role. Think of her as Keira Knightly done right.

John Boyega is also fantastic as Finn. His character is the best-rounded and is honestly my favourite in the movie. He starts out as a Stormtrooper but soon realises that it's not the right way of living so he rises to become a hero but not necessarily the most competent one. He's also very funny with one of the best uses of the 'liar revealed' storyline put to film. Oscar Isaac is equally if not more charming as the dashing pilot Poe Dameron and he's the kind of guy that all the ladies want to be with and all the guys want to be wi- I MEAN BE! Not to mention his chemistry with Finn is borderline bromantic. In fact, all the characters have great chemistry with each other and by the time the film is over, I just want to get to know these guys because they're brilliant.

Kylo Ren however... man he's shaping up to be more engaging than Darth Vader himself! He may appear villainous, and make no mistake he makes some downright despicable decisions, but you can tell his heart's not into it. Think of him as a pretentious teenager who wants to impress his clearly morally reprehensible mates but it isn't in his character to do so. He's a very conflicted character who wants to be evil but is often tempted and Driver really drives (he he) home that conflict. He's Anakin Skywalker done right. 

As for the old cast, the slip back into their roles comfortably. Princess, or General Leia as we now call her, doesn't do much in the film but her moments with Han Solo and Rey are touching nonetheless. C-3PO is... C-3PO. Chewbacca gets some awesome moments and as for Luke Skywalker or R2-D2... well, watch the movie to find out what went on with them.

However, the real star of the old cast is Harrison Ford as Han Solo. It's not like 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' where Ford clearly doesn't want to be in it, he's Han Solo. Oh he's older and wiser during the 30 years but it’s undeniably the same character we know and love and his interactions with Chewbacca and the new characters are still very strong. You can tell Ford is having a blast in this and he makes Han the best he's been since 'The Empire Strikes Back'. 

As for the others, Maz Kanata (Nyong'o) is engaging and quirky though not in the movie much; Gleeson as General Hux is as slimy a character as you would think; Snoke is mysterious but so far uninteresting. Max Von Sydow and Captain Phasma (Gwendoline Christie) get literally nothing to do and BB-8 is the most adorable thing in cinematic history.

J.J. Abrams had a difficult job in making this film feel like 'Star Wars' and he succeeds with well-directed aerial battles (the escape from Jakku is a highlight) and his own personal flair that makes the film seem unique. The special effects are also great on the spaceships (The Millennium Falcon has never looked better), the alien characters, BB-8 (seriously, that's an actual practical effect) and the lightsabres. If there's one criticism on the effects is that the motion capture doesn't look particularly great. Maz Kanata sticks out like a sore thumb among the practical characters and Snoke looks like a video game character.

The action is stellar as to be expected with the space battles being great (again, the escape from Jakku), the shootouts and ESPECIALLY the lightsabre duel in the end. The latter in particular is great since it is slower and more brutal than the cleaner more choreographed prequels. If there's one complaint of the duel it's that the editing can be too fast to see what's going on but the duel itself is amazing all the same.

And now, the list of problems I have for this movie that will no way affect the overall score:

• Starkiller base is a bit of a let-down after seeing TWO death stars
• The final aerial battle lacks emotional weight
• There are a few pointless detours in the film
• Poe Dameron is missing for a large chunk of the film which is a shame
• The motion capture sucks
• Captain Phasma does absolutely nothing in this film
• There's sequel bait everywhere
• Max von Sydow's character is little more than a glorified cameo

Overall, 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' may not be the best film ever made but certainly the best experience I ever had. It was great seeing a new 'Star Wars' movie and not only that, a GREAT 'Star Wars' movie! The characters are amazingly relatable, both old and new, the action is great, the plot is easy to follow if lacking in detail and the feel of 'Star Wars' has returned after so long. It's good to see you back 'Star Wars'. Let's hope Episode VIII is just as good if not better. The force is strong with this one indeed...

'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' gets, despite my issues, 5 cross-guard lightsabres out of 5

What do you guys think of the film? Do you agree or disagree? Sound off in the comments below, be sure to share the review around Facebook, Twitter etc. and like my Facebook page 'Joel Mole'. Join me next time for my next perfectly honest film review.