It's Back

Rating: 7/10 (9 January 2016)

One of the most popular film franchises in history is back. Star Wars: The Force Awakens begins 30 years after the conclusion of Return of the Jedi. A new threat has arisen in the galaxy in the form of the First Order. Led by Supreme Leader Snoke and his right-hand men, General Hux and Kylo Ren, the First Order has constructed a new weapon with the capability of destroying planets. The Resistance, led by General Leia Organa, seeks to stop the First Order and destroy their weapon. It is up to a scavenger abandoned on a desert planet, a former stormtrooper, and a couple of familiar faces to aid the Resistance in their mission. Against this backdrop, the mystery of Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker's whereabouts looms.
As a fan of Star Wars, I have to admit that I was hit with a wave of nostalgia as the opening title crawl appeared on the screen, accompanied by John Williams' famous score. Nostalgia certainly seems to be what the filmmakers were aiming for with The Force Awakens. Between the brilliant use of practical effects and the return of some familiar faces, this film makes good use of the old to supplement the new. However, the success of this film hinged on whether audiences would buy into the new characters. I am happy to report that the new characters are fantastic. Rey, a young scavenger, steals the show. It is refreshing to see a woman in a starring role as a strong character in a blockbuster like Star Wars. Daisy Ridley does an excellent job of portraying Rey, particularly in her facial expressions. The revelation that Rey is in fact the force-sensitive character responsible for the film's title surprised and delighted me. I'm excited to see a female Jedi featured in more than a cameo role for the first time in the Star Wars films. Finn is probably the most dynamic character in the film, changing from a reluctant stormtrooper to a brave and wisecracking Resistance fighter. John Boyega exudes energy and excitement in his performance. It is easy to tell that he was so excited to be in a Star Wars movie. Poe Dameron, an immensely likable character, unfortunately doesn't receive as much screen time as he should. BB-8 is the cute droid that serves in an R2-D2-like role. To my surprise, I found him to be a very funny and likable character. Kylo Ren, or Ben Solo, is a well-developed and complex villain. Adam Driver plays him as a powerful, but impatient and often whiny user of the dark side. The revelation that he is the son of Leia and Han Solo was not particularly surprising, but it is handled well. Furthermore, it provides the backdrop for the most emotional scene of the movie in which he kills his father. The characters, action set pieces, and special effects are by far what work best in this film. There is also a surprising amount of humor in this movie, and most of it works well. However, there are some flaws.
The most-discussed flaw of The Force Awakens is its adherence to the plot and formula of the Original Trilogy films. Once again, the big bad enemies have constructed a massive, planet-sized weapon that destroys planets. Once again, the planet-sized weapon is aimed at the resistance base. Once again, the much smaller, ragtag resistance must destroy a shield in order to blow up said planet-sized weapon before it destroys them. Rey fills the Luke Skywalker role of this film, BB-8 fills the R2-D2 role, Kylo Ren fills the Darth Vader role, and Supreme Leader Snoke fills the Emperor role. Once again, a father figure for the main character is killed while the main character watches. The film definitely suffers due to its reliance on many of these familiar beats and tropes. The viewer gets a sense of having seen it all before. In addition, there are a number of plot contrivances that require immense suspension of disbelief. One, in particular, is when R2-D2 magically turns on to reveal the final piece of the map to Luke Skywalker. We get no context as to why R2 turned on at that particular moment or why he couldn't turn on earlier to avoid most of what happened in the film. Though the prequels are crucified for their portrayal of the galaxy's politics, I would have liked a little more information on the politics of the New Republic. We never actually see this government, so we don't know its size or its role in this film. We don't know much about its relation to the First Order or the Resistance. While the return of old characters was welcome, the results were mixed. Harrison Ford occasionally slipped into the crotchety old man routine that has defined his later career, though he did an overall good job. Carrie Fisher was oddly stiff as Leia. It was great to see Chewbacca again, though. There is one scene in which Han Solo and Chewbacca are introduced that seems random in the context of the rest of the film. An elaborate chase scene ensues after the characters meet that serves no purpose and contains no connection to the overarching plot. In a film with such frenetic pacing, it seemed odd to include that chase. On the note of pacing, Finn's turn on the First Order also seemed abrupt. After being so scarred over the death of his fellow stormtrooper, he killed a bunch of them minutes later. However, the richness of the characters and high production values generally redeem the film in the face of these flaws.
For me, The Force Awakens wasn't bad. It wasn't great. It was a good, solid, enjoyable film. Ultimately, we won't be able to fully judge this film until its two sequels arrive. Its context in the trilogy will better inform us on its quality. However, it is undeniable that Star Wars is back and off to a good start.