Star Wars: The Force Awakens Review

First, let me begin by disclaiming that I was never a huge Star Wars fan. It wasn’t until fairly recently, in preparation for this movie, in fact, that I saw the original trilogy. I grew up in the time of the prequels, which I never minded, but also never loved. When I did get around to seeing the originals, I expected them to be outdated. I know that Empire Strikes Back is generally everyone’s favorite, but I found it a bit boring and my least favorite of the three. As every Star Wars fan seems to have an “order,” mine is as follows: A New Hope, Return of the Jedi, Empire Strikes Back. I know, I’m weird. A New Hope is a beautiful film. Luke’s “Hero’s Journey” is straightforward and well executed, Leia’s independence and strength is impressive for a female character today which means it must have been revolutionary in 1977, and Han Solo’s wit and charm had girls and guys swooning. All this being said, I went into the film excited and hopeful.

It did not disappoint.

I was lucky enough to be able to see the first showing with my parents. As we sat through an hour long wait (which is amazing considering what I’ve heard others had to do for good seats) my mom and I discussed her experience seeing Star Wars for the first time as a sophomore in high school. Everyone seems to have a story, an experience when it comes to these movies. That’s what’s so incredible about them. But more on that later. I spent our hour grilling my mom about what it was like hearing the booming music for the first time, see a ship flying in space, it was a first for a lot of things. Bizarrely, as I looked around the theater, I kept imagining what everyone would have looked like in their terrible clothes from the 70s. Something that distinguished it was a Star Wars movie that we were all there to see was the amount of families there were. Young and old, side by side waiting in anticipation. I had never seen so many teenagers hanging out with their parents.   

It was surprisingly rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence although it contained hardly any gore and much less violence than Revenge of the Smith. I had marathoned the original movies before I saw Episode VII but my father had never seen any of them and still understood the plot line (admittedly he did have a few questions about certain relationships and what exactly a “Jedi” was). JJ Abrams brilliantly combined the perfect mixture of heart, humor, action, suspense and surprise that could meet even the highest of expectations.

In addition to my thoughts about 70s fashion, I tried to imagine what it must have felt like for George

Lucas seeing the movie for the first time. He created a universe that has stood the test of time and remains today to shatter box office records and take families out to the movies. While he wasn’t involved in the making of this movie, the first shot on the screen is the Lucasfilm logo, which emitted a loud cheer from the audience. In a culture that is so fickle and quick to move on to another fad, it’s important to take a moment to acknowledge how truly spectacular it is that this story remains ever growing 38 years after it first began. Cynics will say they continue the movies for money, and that may be partially true, but these movies make an impact and that's the reason they've been revived. They’re classics for a reason. We’ve seen other franchises hold similar influence (Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Star Trek) and I can’t help but feel that Star Wars is still in it’s own category. Almost every one a Star Wars memory or story, not many other films can be attributed to creating such emotion. These stories make you feel. It doesn’t have to be anything deep or philosophical, but their ability to allow someone to sit for two hours and forget about the bombs threats or terror alerts, to feel happy, means that we all owe George Lucas a thank you.

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