Exciting and Respectful Towards the Original Series

Rating: 9/10 (22 December 2015)

There are spoilers in this so read at your own risk.
I know that a lot of users are saying this is just a carbon copy of A New Hope, and in a lot of respects it is. A Droid takes data vital to the Resistance's future and hides in a desert planet where it is found by one of our protagonists. When the other protagonist shows up they have to flea the First Order and get the Droid to the Resistance. Throw in a cantina scene, a very Death Star-ish super weapon, and the gradual discovery of Jedi powers and you can understand why people are a little miffed. But in my opinion, the plot isn't the biggest reason to watch. Yes a lot of things are similar, but it's not just a carbon copy. It's done so in a way that's respectful to the Originals while still adding a new flare. The cantina scene turns the tables and has Han asking for help. The Death Star-like thing is not just a one hit kill like in previous movies. An entire fleet of fighters goes up against it and it still isn't enough.
But the biggest reason to watch is by far the characters. You have Finn who's been raised in a 1984 style society and knows nothing other than being a Storm Trooper. Because of this, he latches on to any and all friends he makes. Rey is waiting for her family and dealing with the pain of having lost them for so long. Kylo Ren is Darth Vader-esque because he wants to be Darth Vader, and that alone places a huge weight on his shoulders. Watching them change as various challenges are placed before them is both entertaining and engaging.
Then there's the old cast. This is what everyone's been waiting for. We see the old faces we loved so much after thirty years, and a lot has happened to them in that time. We get to see a lot of Han, and he's dealing with his own struggle the only way he's ever known. Be a pirate. But he's not the same person we met in 1977. He's carrying this incredible burden from everything he's seen and done, and Harrison Ford does an incredible job as always.
Add some really good humor (I think we've been starving for that since the Prequels) and phenomenal acting and this movie is worth seeing again and again. Does it have problems? Of course. Could it have worked a little more on a different plot? Yep. But for what it is, it's an amazing movie, and the good things outweigh the bad a thousand times over.
And if you haven't seen it then you should stop taking random internet critics words as truth, and go make your own opinion. You might like it, you might not. But you'll know for sure what you think.