J.J. Abrams had a lot on his shoulders when he took the job of directing 'The Force Awakens'. The prequel trilogy in a nutshell was met with 'conflicting' opinions by fans and the general public with most citing its weak acting and relying too much on the special effects. Thankfully, this is not the case with 'Force Awakens' and it channels the older films in both the best and worst of ways. The filmmakers were adamant on using as much classic filmmaking techniques as possible when going into this entry, from practical effects and puppetry for the creatures to even basic things such as using real locations and camera styles. Abrams has a good eye for channeling nostalgia and retro style (despite this giving him the negative nickname of 'Diet Spielberg') and it really helps 'Force Awakens' stand out but also feel like a true continuation of the 1983 'Return of the Jedi'.
This retro mentality is a strength but it's also the film's biggest flaw. As much as people don't like to admit it, it essentially recreates 'A New Hope' with a few changes here and there which gives it a familiar feeling but not in a good way. I also feel that the film did build up certain characters like Phasma or Maz as being essential characters, whereas in the final product they come off as arbitrary especially Phasma who has two lines and then is literally chucked out of the film down a garbage chute. Even when introducing our main characters Finn and Rey, we really don't get to know enough about them to care. Thankfully, 'The Last Jedi' is looking to address these issues and will hopefully give us some better heroes and villains this time.
So all in all, I still enjoy watching 'The Force Awakens' and will always reach for it on my DVD shelf before I ever touch a prequel entry but it has obvious flaws and is mostly a retread of what came before. I understand it's meant to establish the world for a new generation, but frankly I am of the belief that most children have been shown the original films by their parents long before this entry and don't think that a refresher course was entirely necessary.
8.5/10
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