Star Wars: The Force Awakens

**Spoiler Alert**

Director: J.J. Abrams/Starring: Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Domhnall Gleeson, Andy Serkis, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew and Max von Sydow

The most anticipated movie of the year is flooding multiplex theaters nationwide and the legions of fans who have lined up to see it might have shared my anxieties. Would the new Star Wars movie be the colossal embarrassment the last trilogy proved to be or would it redeem the saga? Would many of us feel like fools the morning for having purchased tickets over a month (like I did) before?
I think the majority of those who saw the film opening night are slowly exhaling; knowing the latest installment of the ongoing Star Wars isn't a let down and is, in fact, quite entertaining. The next question that might have entered your mind (as it did mine) was, is it a great movie; a commensurate achievement on the scale of the original series? In my estimation; it isn't, I'm sorry to say, but the new trilogy (I'm assuming it will be a trilogy, unless the studio decides to keep this cash cow grazing forever), based on what I saw in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, shows tremendous promise. With a batch of new, exciting characters, which includes the series' first, really strong female lead, J.J. Abrams has the tools to build on the new film's success (it isn't premature to call it a success; box-office records are sure to be broken and the early critical notice is mostly positive).

Abrams' approach to reviving the series was simple yet clever; tell a story that resembles the original; introducing new characters while resurrecting the old ones.
The familiar opening subtitles tell us that the shards of the Empire has been reconstituted as the First Order; a diabolical rebellion that threatens to unseat the Republic. The First Order is intent on not only crushing the forces marshaled against it but finding and killing the Jedi Master Luke Skywalker; whose strange disappearance remains a mystery. Finding Skywalker becomes the First Order's highest priority. Meanwhile, Princess Leia (now General) Organa (Carrie Fisher) has dispatched her top X-Wing pilot; Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) to retrieve part of a map that serves as a clue to his whereabouts.

In this new film, we meet a new crop of characters. Among them is the Vaderish Kylo-Ren (Adam Driver), whose black mask and sinister voice remind us of his evil forebear. He and his colleague, General Hux (Domnhall Gleeson), serve as the First Order's leadership.

We also meet FN-2187, or Finn (John Boyega) as he is rechristened later in the story. Raised to be a stormtrooper, Finn finds himself at odds with the First Order's murderous agenda, as he is unable and unwilling to assist in the wholesale slaughter of a resistance cell; led by Poe Dameron. When Kylo-Ren and his stormtrooper force annihilate said cell in their search for the map, Finn refuses to participate in the killings. And while on-board a First Order battleship, he affects his own escape with the help of Poe; who has just undergone torture at the hands of Kylo-Ren, who hopes to find the whereabouts of the map he has hidden in his loyal droid BB8. Poe and Finn's escape from the battleship via a commandeered TIE-fighter is one of the film's exciting highlights. Unable to fully escape the ships deadly array of weaponry, Poe and Finn crash land on a deserty planet named Jakku; an arid wasteland not unlike Tatooine. Finn is unable to find Poe in the wreckage and sets off in search of civilization; abandoning his stormtrooper uniform in the process. Also in search of the town is BB8, who wanders the sands alone until he meets one of the film's most inspired characters: Rey (Daisy Ridley). Rey is a gritty, young woman, who is forced to survive on the planet's unforgiving surface by scavenging the massive interiors of old Empire battleships, which lie half buried in the deserty sand. The diminishing returns of Rey's hard work is evident when her salvaged junk earns her little in the market, where a shady buyer offers her a pittance for her haul.

In her wanderings, she encounters BB8 and points him in the direction of the town but when he hesitates, Rey offers to guide him herself. When the buyer offers her a handsome price for the droid, Rey nearly accepts but after looking upon his almost helpless, roly-poly frame, she takes pity and decides to keep him. She also meets Finn, who has just wandered into camp. The two engage in a brief melee after she learns Finn is from the First Order but softens once she learns he is a deserter. As the First Order has eyes and ears everywhere, a unit of stormtroopers land arrive on Jakku to locate the droid. Needing a vessel to escape, Rey shows Finn a battered, decrepit ship, which turns out to be the Millennium Falcon (the sight of the ship roused the audience into hearty cheers; the first of many). How it came to rest on Jakku is explained later. A novice pilot, Rey manages to get the ship off the ground but is forced to evade the TIE fighters, who give furious chase. Meanwhile, Finn uses the ships weaponry (of which we are very familiar) to help keep the TIE fighters off the Falcon's tail.

Rey manages to pilot the Falcon off the planet and before long they encounter a larger ship that pulls the Falcon into its bay. Minutes later, we learn the larger ship is owned and manned by none other than Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) who haven't abandoned their pirating ways. We learn from Han how the Falcon came to be lost and his reunion with the ship is another of the movie's terrific moments. Finn and Rey, who express awe when they learn the identity of their host, are also astonished to learn that the exploits of Han, Luke and Leia are all true.

As trouble is wont to find Han, his ship is boarded by several parties demanding some form of recompense or satisfaction. Before the ship can be seized, Finn and Rey inadvertently open the cargo doors, which unleash a deadly, tentacled creature that roams the ship, devouring everything in its path. Han, Chewbacca, Finn, Rey and BB8 manage to board the Falcon in time but not before the creature latches on to the ships hull. Only a jump to light speed rids the Falcon of the hideous creature.

Han soon learns of the map in BB8's possession and is quick to point out its crucial, missing piece. Aware of the map's importance to the First Order, Han pilots the ship to a planet where General Leia is holed up in the Resistance headquarters. Having been somewhat estranged from Leia, Han is uneasy about the imminent reunion.

Meanwhile, General Hux and Kylo-Ren brief Supreme Leader Snoke on their progress and their success in locating the map. The audience becomes privy to a surprising development, where we learn Kylo-Ren's father is none other than Han Solo. This surprising bit of information is made more poignant by the fact that he wishes to destroy his father and assume his grandfather's mantle; that of Darth Vader.

Han and friends are welcomed into the Resistance fortress and the touching moment where Han and Leia embrace is a moment all Star Wars fans will truly appreciate. In Leia's company is C3PO and a silent R2D2, who refuses to communicate until he is in the presence of Luke. It comes to light that R2D2 is also in the possession of the missing part of the map; making his cooperation crucial to the search for his master. In a quiet moment between Han and Leia, they share regrets about their son; formerly known as Ben, succumbing to the dark side.

I think up until the point, I found the movie very well paced and fresh. The old and new characters are seamlessly united and the film feels very faithful to its origins.

The latter half of the film, which features an assault on the First Order's new weapon; a Death Star-like spheroid (but far more massive) that delivers a planet-shattering blast, seems like a reprise of both the original Star Wars movie and The Return of the Jedi. Of course the weapon's defenses must first be lowered in order for the assault to commence, which means a coordinated infiltration of the weapon. I think Abrams could have done better here.

And in the film's climactic third act, Kylo-Ren squares off with Finn and Rey respectively after they find Luke's light-saber. Rey's latent Jedi powers begin to surface, which include her ability to use the Force. She is able to harness her new-found power and use it effectively (and quite humorously) to escape Kylo-Ren's torture chamber.
And in a scene that rivals Spock's death in Star Trek II for being shockingly tragic; a heartbreaking loss occurs, though it would have been difficult not to have seen it coming. In the final moment of the film, we finally see the man who seems to have inspired all the kerfuffle, which also brings the story to an end; leaving us to anticipate the next chapter.

There is so much I liked about the new movie. I really like the characters of Rey and Finn and think its high time the series had a female lead. Daisy Ridley seems more than suitable to be Rey. And though the first trilogy had an African-American in the cast, it's nice to see someone with John Boyega's talent play a central role in the new series.

And though the visuals and sound effects are comfortably familiar, it would be great to see J.J. Abrams utilize Industrial Lights and Magic's potential to create something dazzling or break some some new ground. We all know that much of the first trilogy's success was predicated on spectacular effects. Of course this shouldn't be the creative focus for the next films but it wouldn't hurt to update the look. I'm pleased to say the creatures look more real with state of the art CGI.

Now that we know The Force Awakens isn't The Phantom Menace (again, sigh of relief), where will Abrams guide the series? Will it carry on indefinitely? Should this current series be a trilogy, tetralogy, pentalogy or hexology? One thing is for certain, after 40 years, the fans haven't lost their yen for everything Star Wars.

As much as I enjoyed the movie (how much of my reaction can be attributed to seeing it in a sold-out theater?), I think Abrams has a way to go before the series can reach its true potential. Watching The Empire Strikes Back again recently, I was reminded of its successful amalgamation of story, characterization and effects. The new series should reach for that level of excellence. It isn't a coincidence that both Empire and the new film were co-written by Lawrence Kasdan.

The Force Awakens is a good start but not an excellent one. I won't include it in my favorite films of 2015 list. To me, it is still outclassed by The Martian; a powerful sci-fi film that wed excellent effects to a smart, solid story. Still, I have to say my interest in Star Wars has been revived. I'm sure many other fans feel the same.

You're off to a good start, Abrams. Now take the series higher.