This review contains SPOILERS. If you have not seen "Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens," read at your own risk.
Final rating and ratings by category at bottom.
All in all, "Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens" is a great movie. It is a wonderful bridge between the original trilogy and the new trilogy. J.J. Abrams uses the past Star Wars movies and the nostalgia from them to inspire and propel the movie’s plot, not simply remind people of the good ole’ days. It is well written and filled with gripping action, humor, and emotion. It is a worthy Star Wars movie and is arguably the first true Star Wars movie since 1983. Does it have flaws? Of course. There are only a handful of movies that have ever been made that are completely flawless. But that being said, the flaws that it does have are not so invasive to the movie that they take away from the positive things about the movie.
People complain that it is a straight up copy of A New Hope, most notably Starkiller Base being another Death Star. However, what about the construction of the new death star in Return of the Jedi? I mean it was literally a second death star. Same name and look. (I did very much enjoy Return of the Jedi regardless of that). The name "Starkiller" was the original last name for Luke, until "Skywalker" was hatched. Naming the base "Starkiller Base" was a nice nod to George Lucas' original ideas that many people may have missed, and was one that I enjoyed (plus it literally eats stars so the name fits perfectly anyways.)
People also complain about how Jakku is too much like Tatooine and say display a lack of creativity or originality. That is honestly pretty dumb. Tatooine inspired Jakku of course, but there are over 20 major deserts on earth, and plenty of other minor ones as well, so why can’t there be more than one desert planet in the Star Wars universe? I mean seriously come on people. If it was a jungle people would say it’s too much like Endor. If it was a city people would say it’s too much like Coroscant. If it was ice then people would say it’s too much like Hoth. Over the 6 previous Star Wars movies, most (if not all) biomes have been used, so I do not see how Jakku being a desert is a lack of creativity or originality.
Another major complaint people have is that the plot itself copies that of A New Hope. A droid with a very important message meets one of the main characters on a desert planet. Someone is rescued from the prison block from the bad guys. An old man sacrifices himself. I big ball in space gets blown up by the good guys. Yes, there are definitely some similarities in the plots. Sure The Force Awakens borrowed some basic plot points and ideas from A New Hope. However, the details and characters within the story make The Force Awakens its own. I can find way way way more differences in the two movies then I can similarities. Granted, there are more similarities then I mentioned, but the details in the plot points make the movie its own. One last thought on this: If the movie had been nothing like A New Hope, then people would have complained that it was nothing like the originals and didn’t have the right Star Wars spirit and themes. If it had not borrowed some basic things from A New Hope, people would have complained as well. It borrowed things, but the movie was more original than many people think it was. People keep looking at the surface of the movie and refuse to look deeper, missing the details and development that make The Force Awakens its own unique movie that positively propels the franchise and makes many viewers hungry for more.
The three main flaws I found in it:
1. Rey’s sudden ability to use the force and her skills with a lightsaber
Although this can be interpreted as a flaw, I believe it can be easily explained and I believe it will be explained in Episode VIII.
My thought is that Rey was trained to be a Jedi in the past by Luke. This would explain Kylo Ren's enragement when he found out Finn and BB-8 were accompanied by "a girl" because he very well could have been trained with her. Then Kylo Ren proceeded to kill all the padawans except for Rey. She possibly lived because someone saved her or he could not bring himself to kill her because they may be related. Her memory of her training may have been force wiped by Luke, explaining why she does not remember it. In addition, we see on Jakku that she already has fighting skills with her staff.
2. R2-D2 suddenly turns on and has the rest of the map.
This really didn’t annoy me too much, but I have a theory on this as well. C-3PO tells BB-8 that R2 has been in low power mode since his master, Luke, left. However, if Rey turns out to be Luke’s daughter, the R2 turning on all of sudden can be explained because she’s the daughter of his master, which in a way could make Rey R2’s master because Luke is not present. R2 turns on when Rey arrives at the Resistance Base, supporting this theory. That’s just a theory and is probably wrong, but is possible.
3. The death of Han Solo
I would have liked to see an interaction between Han and Kylo Ren earlier in the movie, before Kylo killed him. I mean everyone knew Han’s death was coming, but it would have made the scene and his death more engaging, gripping, and emotional if we had seen some interaction between them earlier. I know Han saw Kylo Ren earlier in the movie at the end of the battle at Maz Kanata’s, but I am talking about more of a face to face, talking to each to other kind of interaction. That being said, Han touching Kylo’s face right before he fell was a very good touch, and added to the emotion and significance of his death.
The Acting
Harrison Ford (Han Solo)
He was not Harrison Ford trying to be Han Solo, he was Han Solo. It was like we were back in 1977. It was the same Han Solo we all love. He gave a great performance and the movie would not have had a chance to succeed without him.
Daisy Ridley (Rey)
What a gem. She is a diamond in the rough who was plucked from obscurity and is now becoming a household name. I mean this is her first major role ever. She is extremely talented and gave a truly wonderful performance that will set her career to light speed.
John Boyega (Finn)
I really like this guy. He embodied the role of Finn much better than I thought he could. He played out humor, intensity, and emotion so honestly. It never really felt forced (lol forced). He gave a great and noteworthy performance, and I look forward to seeing the development of his character in Episodes VIII and IX.
Adam Driver (Kylo Ren)
He performs with emotion and skill, and does not ruin the character by over or under acting (ahem Hayden Chrsitensen). He shows struggle, strife, weakness, and power all at the same time, which is not an easy thing to do. I could feel his struggle between the light and dark side. (Kylo Ren’s training is not complete, displayed when Snoke says Kylo’s training will be completed. This explains why he could lose a lightsaber duel to Rey, who very well could have previously had training. I just wanted to say that while I was on the topic of Kylo Ren).
Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron)
He really is not in the movie a ton, but when he is he is a leader and gives off an amiable and brave tone. He quickly becomes friends with Finn when they escape from the First Order in the stolen Tie-Fighter. That dynamic that they form through fighting together bonds there character and drives the plot, and Isaac does a great job of carrying that dynamic in all his scene.
Gwendoline Christie (Captain Phasma)
A forgettable character. She is supposed to be strong, but she appears to be a weak pushover. She lowers the shields so easily that it was almost unrealistic. However, this is not Christie’s fault as she did not write the script, but I did feel when she spoke, she sounded a little forced and bland. I did not feel much emotion from her.
In addition I really liked BB-8. Even though he’s a droid, he was engaging, humorous, and emotional. He was not forced into the movie too much and overly cute. He was great.
I can’t wait for Episode VII to find out the answers to so many questions and see the development of classic and new dynamic characters. Star Wars has come back to life; the force is truly awake.
Final Ratings:
Plot and Writing: 8/10 (-1 for borrowed things from A New Hope, -1 for no interaction between Han and Kylo Ren before Han’s death)
Acting: 8.5/10 (-1.5 for Christie being a little dry and Phasma being overly weak)
Special Effects: 9/10 (-.5 because Maz Kanata did not look great to me -.5 because Snoke wasn’t great either).
Average-->Final Rating: 8.5/10