seen on 5 January 2016
The film is directed by J. J. Abrams and features Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, and, from the original films, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Peter Mayhew and Anthony Daniels. It is the seventh in the sequence, and takes up the story a generation after the end of 'Return of the Jedi'.
Shrouded in secrecy, and subject to intense anticipation, the film had to satisfy old fans, interest newcomers, build on the franchise without betraying it, and avoid the pitfalls into which the three 'prequel' films so spectacularly fell. It has certainly proved a money-spinner, and the critics responded favourably.
It is an accomplished action film, with a storyline plausibly related to the original three movies. The idea that the original three heroes should be semi-mythical to a new generation is clever, and allows them to be present without attempting the heroics of their youth. The field is clear for the newcomers to do all the the most strenuous running and fighting, and to begin to find their own way into the mysteries of 'the Force'.
That said, many of the situations repeat those already familiar from the earlier films. A new Death Star. A new weak spot for a superb Resistance fighter pilot to aim for. New innocent bystanders to suffer. A new despot, but still a large projection not entirely there. New but familiar generational conflicts, though with a surprising resolution - still played out on a gantry over a deep manmade chasm. Whether this is seen as a clever echoing device, or just a reliance on the tried and true, depends perhaps on the indulgence of the viewer; to me it tends rather to the latter. It would be too much to say that these repetitions signify a deep view of family dynamics or the playing out of the inevitable patterns of the Force.
Good action entertainment, but no exception to the fact that the whole idea is enjoyably overblown.
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