The Force is back....but a little too familiar

Rating: 8/10 (16 March 2016)

Months before I entered the packed theater to witness history in the making, I avoided any and all contact with the trailers and social media, because I don't have social media. I went in with all my knowledge of the old films. And I will admit, I was quite impressed with what Abrams had to offer.
The original characters hadn't changed a bit and the new ones were introduced very smoothly. Had your good ole Star Wars action scenes and famous character lines. The music was just right and the effects were phenomenal. Disney didn't seem to bother restraining from the violence either. The problem? Throughout the whole film, I was like "that happens in Episode IV, and that, and that, and that , and that." A bunch of the scenarios in the story were recycled; recycled to the point when you knew what was going to happen next. Of course some material from the classic movies was going to be brought back, but Abrams went a little too far in this department. As if he ran out ideas and decided to just use some stuff from the old movies.
Overall, it succeeds as a Star Wars movie. I'm glad I wasn't mind blown, for the strict purpose of the next film being a step up. 3/4*