"This will begin to make things right." These are the lofty words first uttered in "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," setting up a prophecy for the movie about to unfold. But, does it fulfill this prophecy?
Going into it's release, there was so much hype surrounding this movie that it left Star Wars fans wondering if it could ever live up to it. Sure, they assembled all of the old cast. And yes, they found a critically successful director, J.J. Abrams, to helm the movie. But the original trilogy closed so neatly. Would this new story ever be good enough to qualify the necessity of another trilogy?
Yes. The answer is a resounding 'Yes.'
From the script to the direction, you can tell that so much care was taken with "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." Not only does it capture the spirit of the original trilogy but it does something new. It not only treats the lore that has been established in previous movies, but it deepens the lore in a purposeful way.
There was a danger that J.J. Abrams, a self-professed Star Wars fanatic, would make this film too much of a homage to the originals, that it would be overly saturated in nostalgia and devoid of story. We've seen this happen this year in fact, with the release of "Jurassic World," a mildly entertaining panegyric to the original film. "The Force Awakens" avoids this. While pulling story elements and characters from the original trilogy, "The Force Awakens" reinvents the wheel. This film is dripping with creativity, with excitement, and a respect for the lore that only J.J. Abrams could have brought.
The best part of "The Force Awakens" is that it leaves the audience with questions. You will not leave the theater having been given a crash course of what has gone down in the past 30 something years since the end of "Return of the Jedi." A lot of what has passed is implied but never explicitly told. As for where the next destination of the franchise, the audience is also left in the dark. This leaves the audience wanting more, which is important to do with a franchise like this. It sows the seeds for future films.
With all of this being said, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" is truly a holiday miracle that is sure to satisfy even casual fans of the Star Wars universe.
