Birth of a New Heroine

Rating: 9/10 (6 January 2016)

The Force Awakens is, in a way, a re-telling of the first Star Wars movie. Those looking for something completely new might be disappointed. Those looking for a blow-by-blow account of everything that ever happened to Luke, Leia and Han Solo will most certainly be disappointed. That said, anyone just looking for a great movie experience will love it.
The new characters are not 2.0 versions of the originals. 2015 was a good year for heroines, and Rey is certainly in the top 3. Like Luke and Anakin's paths before her, her story is not an easy one, and we can assume it will only get harder in the following episodes.
The movie is action-packed, but the explosions never overshadow the characters. Perhaps it's because everyone who's seen A New Hope can already guess how the battles are going to turn out, but we still have no idea who will live and who will die - and by whom.
The original cast carry the heaviest parts of the plot on their shoulders while they turn to the youth for new hope. The balance between the old and the new must have been hard to find, but the writers have hit it just right.