Star Wars: The Force Awakens (SPOILERS ALLOWED)

It's been a week or so since TFA (aka Episode VII) opened in cinemas, so if you want to discuss it I say it's fair game to do so in this appropriately-warned thread.

I'll kick things off with a link to a critique I wrote of it that really nitpicks the thing. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed seeing it (twice!) and I encourage everyone here to see it (particularly if you're going to read this thread, or my essay!), but ... well, see for yourself:

My critique (not a review) of Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Wow Chas, interesting review. You covered it all. I will say more later after I watch it one more time.

I went to see it, only once. I enjoyed it, yet there isn't much new in the way of a plot. Bad guys have the upper hand, good guys try to eliminate them. And you have to have the social tension between a male and a female to make it interesting. But, a great show!

I'll wait for it to appear on TV or sold on DVD. Star Wars is after all still Star Wars.

Wow, That is awesome thank you for sharing

You heathen Charlie. That is like saying Dr No is just Dr No!!!!

Dr. No is one my favourite Bond movies!

(just for the record, I don't normally nitpick movies too much, I try to enjoy them and forgive a lot of illogic or odd story/direction choices in the name of a good time; but if it gets so silly that it takes me out of the movie, as JJ Abrams can be pretty much guaranteed to do, then I find that annoying and seek my revenge. )

Dr. No is one my favourite Bond movies!

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The original book by Ian Fleming was even better. I remember scrambling to get to the library so I could check out Ian Fleming's latest novels about James Bond. There was always a waiting list.

Only Bond book I ever read was From Russia With Love (favorite film). It was fantastic! Reading the series is on my bucket list but there's so much STUFF (books, movies, TV, games, etc.) to do that I dunno if I'll ever get to them, heh.

On Topic - I thought The Force Awakens was pretty great. Not as good as the OT but definitely good enough to be up there with them. I was not to bothered by the rehashed plot (though I get what people are saying). I'm so steeped into Star Wars fandom (not much into the books but played almost every video game) that I got used to it being all the same a long time ago, heh. I was SUPER HAPPY with how large a role Harrison Ford had in the movie. To me, he made it.

I think I will like this movie more if the sequels can deliver on some of the open-ended plot threads. If Mark Hammill has as large a role in the next one as Harrison Ford had in this one, I will be totally psyched. I absolutely loved his look at the end of TFA.

I suspect you're right that Episode VIII will feature Hamill more (how could it not really), and I agree with you that Harrison Ford turned in possibly one of the best performances of his career here, reminding us effortlessly how much he contributed to the original trilogy. There is, as you know, another SW film coming before Episode VIII called "Rogue One" that kind of takes a different look at SW history, which is another thing to look forward to.

Although I criticized some aspects of TFA, I encourage everyone to see it and have a good time doing so, and to the extent that TFA is so waaay better than the prequels I continue to have hope that even better SW movies are in our future.

I liked it. It was fun, predictable, and the time flew by. My wife said "This is the 4th movie we never got (after Jedi)."

Best line in the movie (to me) was when Han exclaimed to Chewbacca "Really? You're cold?"

BB-8 was a hoot as well.

We bought our son one of those BB-8 toys for Christmas and he loves it. It is funny that the head falls off when moving. I would have liked to see THAT in the movie ;-)

Both times I saw it, there was a collective groan from the audience when the new Death Star appeared. Otherwise, I enjoyed it for what it is. I really liked the new characters who really gelled well with the old ones. Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, were particularly well cast. Dialog was nowhere near as awkward as the prequels -- I suspect that was a function of George Lucas being sidelined. I could have done without Kylo Ren and Snoke, neither of whom seemed to really convey "the dark side" like the original Emporer and Darth Vader.

I'd say JJ and Disney did a fantastic job, given the legacy and hype they had to live up to. Personally, I'd put this movie as a close second to The Empire Strikes Back in terms of my ranking of best Star Wars flicks.