–by Chloe Sweeney

If you have not seen the film, turn back before it’s too late! This is not the post you are looking for. SPOILER ALERT!!!

The release of the new Star Wars film has had the entire world buzzing. Weeks before it came out commercials were released, action figures were advertised, and speculation as to the film’s plot were circulating. Even before its release The Force Awakens racked up over $100 million in pre-ticket sales. But, did this film live up to its hype?
Film critics really enjoyed it, and Rotten Tomatoes gave it a score of 93 out of 100. Metacritic gave The Force Awakens an 81 out of 100 and IMDb rated it an 8.5 out of 10. The audience review was generally very positive with only a very few people leaving disappointed. Mr. Buck, a science teacher at Palm Valley School and Star Wars enthusiast, said this about the film:
“I never thought I would say this, but I miss George Lucas. The Star Wars prequels had many flaws in their execution, but Lucas is an imaginative and creative storyteller. The Force Awakens was a beautifully directed, mediocre story. J.J. Abrams played it safe and retold Episode 4 instead of creating something new. Although I’d rather have more Star Wars than less, this movie was nothing ventured, nothing gained.”
I am far from a hardcore Star Wars fan, but I do really love the movies. Prior to the release of the seventh film, my family and I had a Star Wars marathon where we re-watched all six episodes. It was so cool getting to hear my dad’s stories about his reaction to certain plot twists when he first saw the films in theaters. It is amazing that a movie franchise has made such a profound impact on so many people spanning multiple generations.
When we went to see The Force Awakens I was ecstatic. My memory was refreshed from the older episodes, and I couldn’t wait to see how the new film would turn out. Personally, my expectations were far exceeded. I absolutely loved the return of old characters and all the nostalgic throwbacks. The lightsaber fights packed more of a punch, and I loved BB-8. I agree that the plot was not as innovative as it could have been, but I was able to overlook that. I believe that if J.J. Abrams and Disney had significantly switched up the plot everyone would complain that they lost the elements that make Star Wars the Star Wars we have known and loved for almost 40 years.
The movie did leave many unanswered questions: who is Supreme Leader Snoke? Is Rey a Skywalker? Is she Luke’s daughter? How does Rey become attuned with The Force? Why does Luke’s lightsaber choose her? Will Kylo Ren redeem himself? Of course, there are countless other questions. It is incredibly unfortunate that the world will have to wait until December 15th, 2017, to see these questions answered in Episode VIII.

–Edited by Trey Lucatero