Star Wars VII The Force Awakens

***Star Wars: The Force Awakens*** (also known as ***Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens***) is a 2015 American epic space opera film produced, co-written and directed by J. J. Abrams. It is the first installment of the *Star Wars* sequel trilogy and the seventh installment of the main *Star Wars* film franchise, following *Return of the Jedi* (1983). The film stars Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong'o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Max von Sydow, and was produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. and Abrams's production company Bad Robot Productions. *The Force Awakens* is the first *Star Wars* film to not involve franchise creator George Lucas. Set 30 years after *Return of the Jedi*, the film follows Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron's search for Luke Skywalker and their fight alongside the Resistance, led by General Leia Organa and veterans of the Rebel Alliance, against Kylo Ren and the First Order, a successor to the Galactic Empire.

## **Plot**

Thirty years after the Galactic Civil War, the First Order has risen from the fallen Galactic Empire and seeks to eliminate the New Republic. The Resistance, backed by the Republic and led by General Leia Organa, opposes them while Leia searches for her brother, Luke Skywalker.

On the planet Jakku, Resistance pilot Poe Dameron receives a map to Luke's location from village elder Lor San Tekka. Stormtroopers commanded by Kylo Ren destroy the village and capture Poe, while Kylo kills San Tekka. Poe's droid BB-8 escapes with the map and encounters a scavenger, Rey, near a junkyard settlement. Kylo tortures Poe using the Forceand learns of BB-8. Stormtrooper FN-2187, unwilling to kill for the First Order, frees Poe, and they escape in a stolen TIE fighter; Poe names FN-2187 "Finn". As they turn back toward Jakku to retrieve BB-8, they are shot down by a First Order Star Destroyer and crash-land on the planet. Finn survives and assumes Poe died in the crash. He encounters Rey and BB-8, but the First Order tracks them and launches an airstrike. Finn, Rey, and BB-8 flee the planet in the *Millennium Falcon*, which they steal from a junkyard.

The *Falcon* is captured by a larger ship piloted by Han Solo and Chewbacca, looking to reclaim their former vessel. They are attacked by gangs seeking to settle debts with Han, and flee in the *Falcon*. The gangs inform the First Order. At the First Order's Starkiller Base, a planet converted into a superweapon that harnesses star energy, Supreme Leader Snokeallows General Hux to use the weapon for the first time. Snoke questions Kylo's ability to deal with emotions relating to his father, Han Solo; Kylo says Han means nothing to him.

The *Falcon* crew determines BB-8's map is incomplete. Han explains that Luke attempted to rebuild the Jedi Order but exiled himself when an apprentice turned to the dark side, destroyed the temple, and slaughtered the other apprentices. The crew travels to the planet Takodana and meets with cantina owner Maz Kanata, who offers assistance getting BB-8 to the Resistance. Rey is drawn to a secluded vault and finds the lightsaber that once belonged to Luke and his father, Anakin Skywalker. She experiences disturbing visions and flees into the woods. Maz gives Finn the lightsaber for safekeeping.

Starkiller Base fires and destroys the Republic capital star system and a portion of its fleet. The First Order attacks Takodana in search of BB-8. Han, Chewbacca, and Finn are saved by Resistance X-wing fighters led by Poe, who survived the crash on Jakku. Leia arrives at Takodana with C-3PO and reunites with Han and Chewbacca. Meanwhile, Kylo captures Rey and takes her to Starkiller Base, but she resists his mind-reading attempts. Discovering she can use the Force, Rey escapes by using a Jedi mind trick on a nearby guard.

At the Resistance base on D'Qar, BB-8 finds R2-D2, who has been inactive since Luke's disappearance. As Starkiller Base prepares to fire on D'Qar, the Resistance devises a plan to destroy it by attacking a critical facility. Using the *Falcon*, Han, Chewbacca, and Finn infiltrate the facility, find Rey, and plant explosives. Han confronts Kylo, calling him by his birth name, Ben, and implores him to abandon the dark side. Kylo refuses and kills Han, enraging Chewbacca, who shoots Kylo and sets off the explosives, allowing the Resistance to attack and destroy Starkiller Base.

The injured Kylo pursues Finn and Rey to the surface. Kylo defeats Finn in a lightsaber duel, leaving him badly wounded. Rey takes the lightsaber and uses the Force to defeat Kylo before they are separated by a fissure as the planet begins to disintegrate. Snoke orders Hux to evacuate and bring Kylo to him to complete his training. Rey and Chewbacca escape with the unconscious Finn in the *Falcon*. On D'Qar, the Resistance celebrates while Leia, Chewbacca, and Rey mourn Han's death. R2-D2 awakens and reveals the rest of the map, which Rey follows to the oceanic planet Ahch-To. She finds Luke and presents him with the lightsaber.

## Good Qualities

* The acting choices go pretty well with the characters in the movie.
* The different character's subplots help us see the story in different ways from different perspectives
* Kylo Ren has a mysterious backstory that makes us speculate on what happened to him.
* The story of finding Luke Skywalker keeps the film going and makes it interesting.
* Rey is badass.
* The Soundtrack is as great as the originals.
* Way better than the Prequels.

## Bad Qualities

* Kylo Ren becoming bad has zero foreshadowing, and is evil for no reason.
* Rey can fly the Millennium Falcon and use a lightsaber with no prior knowledge of how she can. still badass though.
* The fight between Rey and Kylo is boring and forgettable, because there was no real emotion or reason for the fight and was just there because they needed a duel in the movie.
* It had a toxic hatebase back in 2015.