For better or worse, it felt like a Disney movie.

The “Star Wars” science fiction series began with the original “Star Wars” movie released in 1977. The epic space opera came to a close with the trilogy that included the subsequent “Star Wars: Episode V” (1980) and “Star Wars: Episode VI” (1983), followed by “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi” (1983). The technology has since been improved to the point that it is now sufficient to represent the films. A new trilogy consisting of three films, “Star Wars: Episode I” (1999), “Star Wars: Episode II” (2002), and “Star Wars: Episode III” (2005), has been created. A new trilogy consisting of three films, “Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith” (2005), was released. Director George Lucas explained, and fans agreed, that the Star Wars series was complete with these six films.

However, at the end of 2012, the Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm, the series’s production company. It will produce a new trilogy to follow “Star Wars: Episode VI” and “Return of the Jedi. Furthermore, George Lucas, who has been involved in all the films in the series, will not be involved in this trilogy. This news surprised the world and caused a whirlwind of anticipation and anxiety among fans. Thus, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” was released in 2015. Although the film lacked novelty, it was a good combination of the original and new trilogy, and it knew what fans wanted.

However, it is best not to look for the excitement of the first Lucasfilm-produced Star Wars (1977). There is nothing brand new about the story. Or rather, I needed to find out where the Empire stood. Has it declined to some degree since the Jedi period? But do they still have enough power to build a Death Star-like weapon? The most questionable part is that Finn, who is not a Jedi knight, could handle a lightsaber. I wonder if Finn will eventually become a Jedi knight, especially since only Jedi can handle a lightsaber.
The shining star of this movie is Harrison Ford, playing Han Solo. (The rest of the film is dull, including the enemies.)

Respect for the old trilogy

One of the main attractions of the Star Wars series is the presence of spaceships that are handmade in a good way and that excite the audience. Unfortunately, many fans felt this aspect needed to be fulfilled in the new trilogy. However, in the new trilogy, many effects tickled the hearts of fans who might have been dissatisfied with the new trilogy. The handmade feel, in the good sense of the word, achieved by actually constructing the sets and the flight scenes with compositions that are irresistible to those who love spaceships truly tickle the hearts of fans. In particular, the flight scene of the Millennium Falcon was shot from an angle that maximized its appeal, and I couldn’t help but let out a sigh of admiration.

As a fan of the old series, I was delighted to see this scene!

Technical innovations inherited from the new trilogy

On the other hand, this film also inherits the vivid special effects and CG technology refined in the new trilogy. In the new trilogy, many fans were impressed by the action scenes using light sabers, which have been dramatically upgraded. In this film, we can see even more lightsaber action on a larger scale. In particular, the action at the movie’s beginning with the bright red cross lightsaber owned by Kylo Ren, a villain-like character, and the scene using the Force was fascinating. The high level of technology in representing the planets and technological innovation was on our side concerning the full CG characters. I felt this most in the Takodana scene where Maz Kanata appeared.

Fascinating Characters

While “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” respects many of its predecessors, it shows its presence as a new film. It is most noticeable in the creation of the characters. In addition to such indispensable characters as C-3PO and R2-D2, this film also features characters from the previous trilogy, such as Han Solo, Chewbacca, and Leia, which has excited fans of the series for many years. However, characters who had not been in the series before, such as Rey, the first female protagonist in the series, BB-8, who charmed people with her cuteness, and Finn, who unexpectedly went from being a stormtrooper to a member of the Resistance, the side of justice, solidified the main cast. Conservative fans were vehemently opposed to these new cast members, but the fact that the film received such a strong reaction proves it was able to create such new value. New characters such as Poe, the hot-blooded pilot, and Kylo Ren, the villain with a feud with his parents, both types of characters that tend to appear in the Star Wars series, were also attractive and well suited to bring out the Star Wars character.

Another attraction of this film was the presence of many cameo appearances by famous British actors, something that had yet to be seen in past Star Wars films. In particular, the scene in which Daniel Craig, who plays James Bond in the 007 series, appears as a trooper is gorgeous. Star Wars: The Force Awakens” takes on new challenges while inheriting the good aspects of the previous films. It was a very appropriate film for the opening of the new trilogy.