Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) | Film Review

There are moments that shape us, that change our lives and put us on a path we might not have found ourselves on otherwise. For me, that moment came when I was four and a half years old.

It was May of 1977, and my parents took my toddler brother and I to see some movie called Star Wars at the local drive-in movie theater. Now remember, I wasn’t even five yet. My brain was still soft clay, waiting for the right hands to come along and mold it, give it purpose and direction. I was waiting to be inspired. What followed as I sat on the roof of my parents’ car changed me forever. My young eyes had never seen anything so beautiful as Princess Leia, so daring as Han Solo, as terrifying as Darth Vader, and as hopeful as Luke Skywalker. When the Death Star exploded at the end and everyone cheered, my fate was sealed. I knew in that moment, even without knowing I knew, that I wanted to be a storyteller. Four published novels later, Star Wars still stands as my muse and inspiration. It is as much a part of who I am as my family is, maybe even more so. It’s woven into my very DNA, and my passion for it still burns brightly.

I say all that so you can know what sort of headspace I was in as I took my seat last night at a local theater and readied myself to see what J.J. Abrams had in store for us with Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens. I was hoping for the best, prepared to have my socks blown off. And why not be so optimistic? Abrams is a writer/director I have a lot of love and respect for. Whether on the small screen with Alias and LOST, or the large with Mission Impossible III and his rebooting of Star Trek, he has never let me down. If there was anyone on this planet that could handle the daunting task of bringing Star Wars back, it was him. My anticipation for Force Awakens was nearly through the roof. Did the final product meet those expectations? Could it?

Yes, dear readers, it did. In spectacular fashion.

Now would be the point in the review when I would lay out the general plot of the film, but Force Awakens makes that difficult because the possibility in spoiling something is so high. I could explain who Finn played wonderfully by John Boyega is, give you a bit of insight into Daisy Ridley’s Rey, speak to Oscar Isaac’s X-Wing pilot Poe Dameron, but are those the kind of details you want? I don’t think so. You deserve to go into your first viewing with as little information as possible. All I will say for the acting from people both new and old to the franchise, is that everyone is nearly note perfect, and the chemistry between them all is amazing.

But, just so I don’t leave anyone too much in the dark, Force Awakens picks up thirty years after the conclusion of Return Of The Jedi. The Empire has been defeated, the Republic once again governs the galaxy, and life has continued for our merry band of scoundrels and princesses. But not everything is as calm as it appears. Picking up where the Empire left off, a powerful threat has risen with The First Order. Standing against them is the Resistance, a faction of the New Republic devoted to ending the threat of The First Order, and it is led by none other than General Leia Organa.

In the midst of all this, Luke Skywalker has gone missing. The why of this is something I’ll leave for you to discover, but the plot of Force Awakens revolves around the search for Skywalker by both the Resistance and The First Order. Where has Luke gone? Why did he leave? And what does this mean for the future of the Jedi?

Joining the fight is Finn and Rey, two young citizens of the galaxy who think the Jedi are a myth. For them it’s all stories. They learn differently, though, when Han Solo and Chewbacca cross their paths. There in the bowels of the Millennium Falcon they learn that the stories are true, that the Force is real, that Jedi fought Sith, and an Empire crumbled because of the heroics of Han, Leia, Luke, and many others. It’s a startling revelation, but nothing compared to what’s coming for them.

Evil is given form in Force Awakens through Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), a worshipper of Darth Vader and wielder of Dark Jedi powers, not to mention one sinister looking lightsaber. Leading The First Order with him are General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson) and Captain Phasma (Gwendoline Christie), neither of which get as much screen time as I would have liked. There is another member of this dark collective, but I daren’t say more. That you should discover on your own.

Does the plot of Force Awakens sound somewhat familiar? It should, as it borrows heavily on the structure of A New Hope and a bit of The Empire Strikes Back. Some might see this as lazy, but to me it makes sense. We’re starting all new hero journeys for Poe, Finn, and Rey, just as we did for Luke and Leia all those years ago. I felt comforted by all of the callbacks, like I was settling into a new suit made perfectly for me. Star Wars movies need cantinas filled with aliens, need mentors leading the young heroes in training, need giant threats that our plucky protagonists have to destroy. It’s part and parcel of what Star Wars is as a franchise. It’s a safe place to start, and I’m sure that what’s coming in Episodes VIII and IX will take us in directions we never could have thought of before.

The Force Awakens is an amazing film from beginning to end. Abrams keeps the story tight and the pacing quick with a firm hand on the directorial reins. The film never once gets away from him, and you can tell that behind the camera he is having the time of his life. It is a film made by a fan, made with love and care. The writing is also incredible. The old characters are true to their former selves, and the new ones are given strong voices that meld easily with their predecessors. It’s the humor, though, that really surprised me. I never expected to laugh as much as I did.

Another old voice I was thankful to hear again was John Williams’s score. Most of Abrams films have been scored by Michael Giacchino, but he wisely wanted Williams back in the recording studio, and what he gave us is quintessential Star Wars music. I’m listening to it even now as I write this.

Folks, THIS is Star Wars. If you’re a fan like I am, and you’re worried this won’t be worthy of the franchise, then stop worrying. It does. In spades. It is better than I ever dreamed it could be, better than I could have hoped, and I can’t wait to see it again in a few hours. And then again, and again, and again. After the prequels came out it felt like Star Wars went out with a whimper. It became the butt of easy jokes, laughed at, and scorned. I defended the franchise as much as I could, but even I knew Lucas had dropped the ball and given us a new trilogy that just didn’t have the same magic as what he created decades ago. But Star Wars is back, and in a big bad way. I dare say, it’s as close to perfection as mortality allows. My thanks go to Abrams, his crew, Lawrence Kasdan, and the amazing cast he put together. This is the film we’ve been waiting for. The Force is still with us.

Listen to our in-depth analysis on our Star Wars: The Force Awakens Reactions Cast

Star Wars: The Force Awakens releases nationwide December 18th
Starring Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hammill, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac
Written by Lawrence Kasdan, J.J. Abrams, and Michael Arndt
Directed byJ.J. Abrams

Justin Macumber
The Hollywood Outsider