Good and enjoyable, but not blown away.

Rating: 7/10 (18 December 2015)

There will be plot spoilers, so this review is more for people who've seen the movie that wanted to think about it a bit more, I suppose.
I couldn't wipe the smile off my face when the movie started, and as it went on I was actually enjoying it. Soon though I started picking up on a pattern that took over the entire movie. Now, I'll say again, it's an enjoyable film, but these four main things:

Comedy. Sure have some jokes in there. Don't cram the movie full of them from beginning to end. The banter and comedy they had in there was actually funny, but it was so overused that it dissolved tension in the movie and any serious nature. Villains and plot devices that should make you feel threatened or worried are quickly pushed aside for the opportunity of something comedic. The original trilogy was by no means dark, but it knew when it was time to get serious. It ties in with the next point...

Lack of emotion and development. This movie started out well and I could start to get a grip on the characters and understand them. But the movie seemed too focused on getting in the laughs and moving on -- like it had so much to achieve in 2 hours (which it DID have a lot to achieve). Characters make big decisions on the fly and there are no chances to pause and re-evaluate the situation. The original trilogy had some nice choice moments flying through space in silence while the characters could breathe for a bit, chat, and you learned a bit about them. There was no chance for that in this movie. So much so that even after the scene on the bridge (for some reason I feel I shouldn't even name names here) it kind of gets swept over. The reaction from our hairy companion is immense for only a brief moment and then you don't see him for ages. He's the character feeling the most in that moment (and probably the whole movie) and they change the scene??? Later in the movie you see him sitting by himself, obviously upset, and it's only for a few seconds. Heck, when he and Leia meet afterwards they walk straight by each other and Leia hugs this complete stranger she's never met, instead (regardless of whatever we might find out about Ray in the next movies). And when the Starkiller fired it was frightening, and I thought "how can this thing possibly be stopped?" which leads perfectly to...

Everything was too easy. You guessed it, the heroes blow up the Starkiller with ease. I should have seen it coming, but I thought there was no way they could do that for a third time. It was the most terrifying plot device that should have lasted at least until the next movie, yet they just flew in there again and blew it up? Something that size would be guarded so carefully, yet characters just stroll on in, capture Phasma (who does nothing in this movie) and get her to deactivate shields. On top of that, Finn can use a lightsaber (without having the force) and hold his own against a Sith (who isn't completely trained himself, but has had SOME training). And then Ray does it too (although she seems to be skilled with some stick weapon at the beginning of the movie...a little more believable). And on top of that, Ray learns the force on her own, and somehow knows that she can use the force to trick stormtroopers into freeing her. How would you know about that without being told you can do that? If everything comes so easy, why introduce an opposition at all? And then...

The plot. About half way through the movie I realised this was A New Hope. It had some different twists and had some good original ideas scattered throughout. But especially in the last half of the movie it followed the same beat of the original Star Wars movie. All culminating into the destruction of Starkiller. I was kind of disappointed they didn't go somewhere completely new here. Heck, I thought of a more unique way it could have played out using the same elements that night after I saw the movie. So why didn't they do that? Well, this franchise is worth a lot of money to Disney, and it cost them a lot of money too. They have many people to please, and they WANT to please as many people as they can because this franchise is valuable in merchandise and cross promotion -- and the amount of merchandise and cross promotion and EVERYthing kind of makes me sick to my stomach, even though I love Star Wars. So they give the fans their nostalgia kick, and at the same time, it's a brand new movie for kids who probably wouldn't have seen the originals anyhow. The movie tried to cover all its bases, and it kind of diluted into this drama/comedy retread.

Again, I enjoyed the movie. It's fun, but those things bothered me, and more so now that I look back at it. I enjoyed Kylo Ren's character, regardless of what other people think. He had a good backstory and interesting motivations that give a reason for another guy to wear a mask. The new cast did a great job. I liked Ray and Finn (how Finn left the First Order was something new, so that's good!) and the practical effects and real locations was a breath of fresh air. I can't wait to see the next one, but I only hope it has a bit more substance, less attention on making people laugh, and more attention on connecting the characters with the audience on a bit of a deeper level.