A little rough, but some diamonds inside

Rating: 7/10 (18 December 2015)

First I'll point out that if you're trying to return to the universe in the original Star Wars, that's a futile wish. That film was a product of many things: 1977, a low budget, the burden to invent a new universe, and a young George Lucas to name a few. This film cannot be what that film was because it is not a product of any of those same things. That's not inherently a good or bad thing, just know that it means this movie is different and the next ones will be, too. I consider this review to be spoiler-free, but everyone seems to have their own definition as to what this means. I will speak broadly about characters and themes, but not specific events. Proceed as you see fit.
For the backdrop of the film we have some beautifully realized planets and space settings, and there are simply amazing visuals throughout. I don't just mean the digital and practical effects (although each of those more than gets the job done), but the use of color, of framing, of setting and location. The areas all feel distinct from one another, and each is given time for you to appreciate them fully and holds their own self-contained chapter of the story.
Over the backdrop we have writing that mostly gets the job done. When the writing is at its peak, this film is funnier, cleverer, and potentially more meaningful than any Star Wars before it. The characters are well written, the interactions are natural, there are seamless transitions from one beat to the next, and there is a wit that is so good it almost feels out of place in this franchise. Sadly, though, that is not the case for the entirety of the film, and where the writing falls flat it falls flat hard. Some exchanges are prequel-quality pieces that are shoe-horned in awkwardly purely for expository purposes. Also much of the pacing falls apart in the final act of the film where characters make sudden, unwarranted leaps in their development. The very end of the film needed to get the characters to a specific point in setup for the next movie, but it feels incredibly out- of-place and forced.
The characters themselves again mostly get the job done. Newcomers Finn and Rey are by far the bright points, even outshining the likes of Harrison Ford's Han Solo. Each character is distinct from one another and very well performed. Their motivations feel sincere and their development is natural (again with notable exception in the last act). Poe Dameron fills out the trio and his character is incredibly fun, but also criminally under-utilized. His character arc doesn't have anywhere to go thus far, but that might be remedied in future installments. The best scenes in the entire film have to do with the interactions between each of these three. When it comes to capturing youthful energy and the exuberance of new adventure, no other Star Wars film has done so well and so naturally. Over on the other side, Kylo Ren is an interesting direction for the film. His character is menacing and powerful, yet also revealed to be broken and scared. In many ways he is designed to be the inverted Luke Skywalker, which is a refreshing take. His motivations, though, remain unclear and there is much that is still a mystery about him. That is probably intentional, but so far the Star Wars series still hasn't been able to explain properly why people are seduced to the Dark Side. General Hux is acceptable, but not very fleshed out and Captain Phasma has about as many lines and screen time as Greedo from the original Star Wars. I'm really not sure why she was featured so heavily in promotional material. Snoke is also in the film too briefly to have any opinion about. From the old characters I won't discuss Luke as that would venture into spoilers. Han Solo is believable as being the same character as before, but having experienced a great amount since. In fact he is shown to be more tender than ever before, and it is a good addition to his character. Leia? Well, that gets into my final point about the film.
One weakness that the film suffers from is constraining itself too tightly to replicating the original. In some cases this results in cameos that are nothing but meaningless fan service. This is the case with the characters of Leia, C-3PO, and R2-D2. None of these characters help move the story along or, in fact, do anything that couldn't have been handled just as well without them. As such their involvement is forced and weighs down the rest of the film. This is also true in the inclusion of Starkiller Base, i.e. Death Star 3.0. It's hard as an audience to feel menaced by something that you're so familiar with, and the struggle against it not only feels unoriginal, it is also devoid of any of the emotion and character development that made the original's trench run so riveting. In fact no matter how the film tries to suggest that the First Order and Rebellion are not just the Empire and Rebellion all over again, they really are and it retreads worn-out areas.
In summary, if the entire film maintained its highest points it would be the best Star Wars film to date, but it sputters out of originality and quality. Fortunately, in spite of its flaws it does introduce characters that are brilliantly conceived, and that provides me hope for their continuing stories in the following installments. Sorry to say it, but I'm happy to see the directing and writing pass into new hands for Episode VIII and I will be anxiously awaiting that film. Overall, I give this a 7/10. I would place it beneath Episode IV and V, and more on the VI and III tier, perhaps between those two.