Let's Have Some Star Wars

If there is a movie that connects with the idea of nostalgia, it is Star Wars:  The Force Awakens.  If you have not seen the movie yet, you should probably stop reading — in other words, SPOILER ALERT.  I intentionally waited a little to write this in order to give more people a chance to see the movie.  However, I wanted to capture my thoughts before they start to fade away.

I’ve seen the movie multiple times with the first being a private screening courtesy of Veritas Software.  The “price” of admission was watching a Star Wars themed advertisement video that was about five minutes long.  When you consider that there was no crowd to speak of or line for seating, I think that I got more than a fair trade.

After the trailers for upcoming movies were complete, the wait 32 years was over.  I have to admit that I felt a tingle when the Lucasfilm logo flashed up followed by the main theme and opening crawl.  The 100+ people there broke into applause as the story began.  I hadn’t read anything about the plot, and I had stuck to the trailers.  I have to say that I was a little surprised by the setup.  I was also a little confused throughout the movie because there were scenes/dialog from the trailers that never materialized in the movie.

However, that didn’t take away from my enjoyment at all.  With the benefit of seeing it twice since then, I really don’t think JJ Abrams could have done much better than he did.  The story elements gave me a strong sense of de déjà vu with Episode IV.  You had a young, force-sensitive Jedi in waiting on a desert planet, a droid containing vital information to both sides, an evil, overconfident army with a weapon of mass destruction, and unlikely acts of escape and heroism.  You also have an older character meeting his end by the hand of a black clad, red light saber wielding villain who uses the dark side of the force.  This doesn’t even take into account all of the references to Episode IV such as the garbage chute/trash compactor and “We thinking they’re splitting up” during the rescue on Starkiller Base.  

While there was a familiar feel to the story, the story moved forward with new characters.  The good guys pass the torch to the unlikely duo of Rey and Finn along with ace pilot Poe Dameron and his trusty sidekick BB8.  In contrast, the Empire gives way to the First Order with Supreme Leader Snoke, Kylo Ren, and General Hux forming the new triumvirate replacing the Emperor, Darth Vader, and Grand Moff Tarkin.  

To me, Star Wars:  The Force Awakens was a movie to reset the board with new players in a familiar game.  Disney and Abrams were well aware of the criticisms of “the new trilogy" and I agree with many who thought George Lucas went off the rails with Episodes I & II at least.  I did think that Episode III was better, but it was also a mixed bag.  However, these concerns do not apply to Episode VII.  Diehard Star Wars fans will likely apply Han’s now famous line from the trailer to the movie overall, “Chewie, we’re home.”