The Plot

 Thirty years after the events of Episode VI, a new threat is upon the galaxy. With Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) at its helm, it’s up to a new generation of heroes to bring balance to the Force.

 The Good

 When director JJ Abrams accepted the daunting task of bringing back one of the worlds most recognisable franchises from the ashes of the prequel trilogy, he along with a worldwide fan base knew that it had to be done right. Fortunately, Abrams has proven that, like Star Trek before it, he’s the right man for the job. The Force Awakens breathes much needed new life into the Star Wars franchise with the help of a stellar cast scattered amongst it including the return of familiar faces (Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Peter Mayhew to name but three) and the introduction of a trio of heroes to lead a new saga.

This trio consists of John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, and Daisy Ridley who from the very beginning of their journey prove beyond a doubt that with their winning personalities and most importantly, their effortless chemistry with each other, fans old and new are in safe hands.

On the dark side of this trio are Adam Driver as the lead villain, a new with lord with dire need of anger management, who is joined by Domhnall Gleeson and Andy Serkis. While Driver gives a wonderfully dark performance and joins the ranks of Dooku and Darth Maul (there’s still time to catch up with Vader…) it’s Gleeson who is most impressive. Perhaps due to the fact that he has no mask to cover his performance, or his power hungry speeches and constant need to one up his ally. Gleeson’s General Hux ultimately comes out on top in this powerful trio while Serkis’ Supreme Leader Snoke is given enough screen time to keep him a mystery for future instalments to figure out.

The Bad

Fans looking for more story to join the already rich canon in the franchises nearly forty year existence may feel slightly short changed with the plot that Abrams has concocted along with co writers Lawrence Kasdan and Michael Arndt. Without giving away any details, the approach for this new trilogy opening seems very much to be one of ‘don’t mess with the old routine’ as plot threads that have been seen before rear their heads.

The Ugly Truth

Boyega, Isaac and Ridley bring a new hope (pun intended) to a franchise that was last seen stranded in CGI. While Abrams plays it easy in terms of story, he brings back the physical effects and along with it a new lease of life into a once dead saga.

Review by Johnny Ellis