The force definitely strong with this one

Rating: 10/10 (20 December 2015)

I will warn you all now that I am a little bit biased when it comes to Star Wars. But not even I can fully defend the prequel trilogy. There were some good moments in and acting them (McGregor for one). But they were in essence just about trying to tell us what we already knew i.e. that Darth Vader was going to the dark side. Not much more was gained than that unfortunately.
So 32 years after what I would consider the last really good star wars film (Return of the Jedi), The Force Awakens(TFA) has been released, but is it actually any good. Well from my already stated viewpoint (A bit biased) I would say it was absolutely brilliant. I will not give any spoilers away today. Another review will be coming next week after my 2nd viewing. So this review will just cover basics about the Director, cast etc.
When I heard that J.J. Abrams was hired as the director I was very happy. Though some people (Mainly Trekkies) did not like his take on Star Trek, I thought they were very good re-envisioned films. I also like most of what he did on Lost. You can tell he decided to make the films as Lucas did with the original films and should have done the prequels i.e. with some TLC. From having an actual Millennium Falcon built to using actual locations as per the original and not all CGI led. Most importantly, He hired Lawrence Kasdan (responsible for scripting Empire Strike Back), this was a master stroke as this guy knows how to write a good script. The vistas are also beautiful thanks to cinematographer Daniel Mindel.
The sound effects and the score (John Williams) is as ever brilliant. In fact Williams score is one of the things that is great about the prequels and he does not disappoint again here and is one area that may get an Oscar nod along with special effects and cinematography.
The most important part (along with the script) Abram's had to play along with the producers was to hire a good cast. This is an area I was very worried about as Lucas got this very wrong with his main character on 2 occasions in the prequels. Both Jake Lloyd and Hayden Christensen were poor as Anakin. Here in TFA there are lots of new characters, so trying to blend them all in with the older established characters (Han, Leia et al), would not be an easy task.
I am very happy to say that casting is not an issue. From 2 young British actors in Daisy Ridley and John Boyega (Attack the Block) as well as Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina), to the more established Ford and Fisher. They even manage to fit in a General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson (also Ex Machina and Harry Potter)), to keep me happy.
It is plain to see that there is brilliant chemistry between the cast, it is difficult to fake that on-screen. I have sometimes found Ford looking disinterested in recent roles, but there must be something about the role of Solo that has brought the best out in him again as he was excellent, he with Ridley and Boyega are the stand-outs for me (On the Light-side anyway). Though Isaac is again brilliant as he in most of his films. One final mention has to also go to Adam Driver as Kylo Ren (TFA's villain), I will go more into his performance in part two if this review next week. But suffice to say he is an excellent heir to Vader and he also has a great lightsaber :).
I would highly recommend going to the to see this (Though maybe not at midnight), its one of those films that needs to be seen in the cinema. It is a fun thrill ride of a movie with all the right Star Wars ingredients. Yes it does pander a little bit to fans (That's the only spoiler I will give), but there is plenty here for all to enjoy and love. The one issue you may have is you will most likely have to have seen the original trilogy before coming to see this (If you haven't already).