Countdown to "The Rise of Skywalker" - Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
Hey guys, Chuck here. Well, we're almost finished with the Countdown to The Rise of Skywalker. We've covered the Prequels, the Anthology films, and the Original trilogy. Now, let's take a look at the first entry of the Sequel trilogy: Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Okay, before we get started, let's just say that when my dad shared an article with me about Lucasfilm being acquired by Disney, and that the first new film following the acquisition would be Star Wars Episode VII, later re-titled as The Force Awakens, I lost my mind. Holy crap, the first real Star Wars movie since Revenge of the Sith in 2005. I was beyond excited. Then as announcement after announcement came out about J.J. Abrams being chosen as the director, the new cast, the returning cast, etc., the anticipation only kept growing from there. Then, on Black Friday in 2014, the first teaser trailer for the movie drops, and OMG was I excited. This was it, it was for real now. I couldn't wait for the holiday season of 2015 to arrive. While 2015 saw the release of so many movies I enjoyed that year (Jurassic World, Mad Max, Ant-Man, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and so forth), I was eagerly awaiting for December to arrive so that I could enjoy the first new Star Wars movie in a decade.
The movie opens on the desert planet of Jakku, where Resistance pilot Poe Dameron is being given a data drive containing a fragment of a star map. This map leads to the current location of Luke Skywalker, who had been in seclusion for a long time. Unfortunately, a squadron of Stormtroopers from the First Order (a new regime built from the remnants of the Galactic Empire) arrive to get the data drive. A masked figure leading the charge, known as Kylo Ren, orders the villagers to be killed, and the Stormtrooper battalion, led by the chromed-out Captain Phasma, guns down the unarmed villagers. Poe is taken prisoner, and his droid BB-8 escapes with the data drive. One of the Stormtroopers, FN-2187, was unable to kill the innocent, and defects from the First Order, helping Poe escape, and the two take off in a TIE fighter, heading back to Jakku to retrieve BB-8. They are shot down, unfortunately, and crash down on the planet below, with FN-2187, now named Finn, as the only survivor.
BB-8, meanwhile, is rescued by a scavenger named Rey, who has been on her own on Jakku since childhood. After confronting Finn regarding the jacket he was wearing (Poe's jacket, to be exact), he and Rey, along with BB-8, escape the First Order TIE fighters on board a familiar looking freighter (which Rey refers to as garbage. How dare she!), destroying the TIE fighters and escaping from Jakku. The ship is caught by a larger ship, and the larger ship's captain boards them, looking around and asking who had the ship last, finally stating that Han Solo has taken back the Millennium Falcon for good. Yes, Han Solo is back, alongside Chewie, and they found the Falcon and reclaimed it. Unfortunately two gangs that Han borrowed money from in order to transport a bunch of Rathtars, arrive to get their investment back. The two gangs are the Guavian Death Gang, led by Bala-Tik, and Kanjiklub, led by Tasu Leech. After Rey and Finn unwittingly release the Rathtars, Han and Chewie head back to the Falcon, along with Finn, Rey, and BB-8, and jump to lightspeed, heading to parts unknown.
The First Order, meanwhile, is still relentlessly searching for BB-8, as they want the part of the map to Luke that BB-8 carries. The figure leading the First Order, Supreme Leader Snoke, orders General Hux to test their newest super weapon, which destroys the Hosnian system, ending the New Galactic Republic. The Falcon emerges from hyperspace at the planet Takodana, where they meet with Maz Kanata, who is holding Anakin's old lightsaber, which Luke lost during The Empire Strikes Back. Rey touches it and had a vision of terrible things that have happened, and may happen in the near future. Rey runs off, and BB-8 follows her. Upon the arrival of the First Order, Maz gives Finn the lightsaber, and he uses it to fight the First Order stormtroopers. However, the Resistance arrives in their X-Wings, led in the charge by Poe, but Kylo Ren takes off with Rey, taking her to their base of operations: Starkiller Base. Han and Leia reunite, and the Resistance returns to their base on the planet D'Qar.
We learn quite a few things: first, that Kylo Ren is the son of Han and Leia; second, that Luke trained him in the ways of the Jedi; third, that Snoke turned him to the dark side. Finn, it turns out, knows not only how Starkiller Base works, but a weak spot, a thermal oscillator, that will destroy both the weapon and the planet it was built into. Han and Chewie take Finn to Starkiller Base, where they capture Phasma, who shuts down the planetary defense shield. The Resistance then sends a squadron of X-Wings, with Poe leading the charge, to destroy the oscillator. Rey, using the power of the Force (by mere instinct), escapes capture and joins Han, Finn, and Chewie. Together, they work to open up a space in the oscillator for the Resistance to get to it. At this time as well, Han confronts Kylo Ren, whose real name is Ben Solo, which ends with Han's death. Finn and Rey head back outside, where Ren confronts them, engaging in a lightsaber duel with Finn, defeating Finn, and then in a duel with Rey, who while untrained, is naturally gifted in the Force. Rey ultimately defeats Ren, and Chewie flies the Falcon to pick up Rey and Finn. After returning to D'Qar, R2-D2 reactivates after being in low-power mode since Luke vanished. R2, it turns out is carrying the rest of the star map, which when combined with the part that BB-8 had, shows exactly where Luke is. Rey, along with R2 and Chewie, takes off in the Falcon, arriving at the planet Ahch-To, where the first Jedi Temple is located, finally coming face-to-face with Luke, ending the movie.
This movie was very divisive among fans. While some fans loved this one because it was nothing like the Prequels, others disliked it because it was derivative of A New Hope. I, personally, am of the camp that loved The Force Awakens. The new actors, in particular John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, and Oscar Isaac, were terrific, Harrison Ford was terrific as Han Solo, and both Adam Driver and Domhnall Gleeson were terrific as Kylo Ren and General Hux. The use of practical effects for the aliens and creatures were amazing, and the CGI, when used, still felt real. The only part I wasn't a fan of was introducing yet another desert planet with Jakku. Honestly, why do we need so many desert planets in Star Wars? Isn't one enough? But, I digress. The only CGI characters, Maz Kanata and Supreme Leader Snoke, were actually a lot of fun, and Lupita Nyong'o and Andy Serkis did a great job playing these characters. While I would have liked to have seen more Luke in the movie, that's what The Last Jedi is for. While some feel that Rey was too perfect and her natural skills with the Force makes her a bit of a Mary Sue, I feel differently. I think the fact that, while untrained, she is able to tap into the Force by instinct is pretty cool, and makes me interested in seeing where she goes in the next couple of movies.
All in all, The Force Awakens isn't perfect, but still entertaining. I loved every minute of the movie, and I'm glad that I saw it. Therefore, I give Star Wars: The Force Awakens a rating of 5/5. This is Chuck signing off. See you guys next time when we wrap-up the Countdown to The Rise of Skywalker with The Last Jedi.
Okay, before we get started, let's just say that when my dad shared an article with me about Lucasfilm being acquired by Disney, and that the first new film following the acquisition would be Star Wars Episode VII, later re-titled as The Force Awakens, I lost my mind. Holy crap, the first real Star Wars movie since Revenge of the Sith in 2005. I was beyond excited. Then as announcement after announcement came out about J.J. Abrams being chosen as the director, the new cast, the returning cast, etc., the anticipation only kept growing from there. Then, on Black Friday in 2014, the first teaser trailer for the movie drops, and OMG was I excited. This was it, it was for real now. I couldn't wait for the holiday season of 2015 to arrive. While 2015 saw the release of so many movies I enjoyed that year (Jurassic World, Mad Max, Ant-Man, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and so forth), I was eagerly awaiting for December to arrive so that I could enjoy the first new Star Wars movie in a decade.
The movie opens on the desert planet of Jakku, where Resistance pilot Poe Dameron is being given a data drive containing a fragment of a star map. This map leads to the current location of Luke Skywalker, who had been in seclusion for a long time. Unfortunately, a squadron of Stormtroopers from the First Order (a new regime built from the remnants of the Galactic Empire) arrive to get the data drive. A masked figure leading the charge, known as Kylo Ren, orders the villagers to be killed, and the Stormtrooper battalion, led by the chromed-out Captain Phasma, guns down the unarmed villagers. Poe is taken prisoner, and his droid BB-8 escapes with the data drive. One of the Stormtroopers, FN-2187, was unable to kill the innocent, and defects from the First Order, helping Poe escape, and the two take off in a TIE fighter, heading back to Jakku to retrieve BB-8. They are shot down, unfortunately, and crash down on the planet below, with FN-2187, now named Finn, as the only survivor.
BB-8, meanwhile, is rescued by a scavenger named Rey, who has been on her own on Jakku since childhood. After confronting Finn regarding the jacket he was wearing (Poe's jacket, to be exact), he and Rey, along with BB-8, escape the First Order TIE fighters on board a familiar looking freighter (which Rey refers to as garbage. How dare she!), destroying the TIE fighters and escaping from Jakku. The ship is caught by a larger ship, and the larger ship's captain boards them, looking around and asking who had the ship last, finally stating that Han Solo has taken back the Millennium Falcon for good. Yes, Han Solo is back, alongside Chewie, and they found the Falcon and reclaimed it. Unfortunately two gangs that Han borrowed money from in order to transport a bunch of Rathtars, arrive to get their investment back. The two gangs are the Guavian Death Gang, led by Bala-Tik, and Kanjiklub, led by Tasu Leech. After Rey and Finn unwittingly release the Rathtars, Han and Chewie head back to the Falcon, along with Finn, Rey, and BB-8, and jump to lightspeed, heading to parts unknown.
The First Order, meanwhile, is still relentlessly searching for BB-8, as they want the part of the map to Luke that BB-8 carries. The figure leading the First Order, Supreme Leader Snoke, orders General Hux to test their newest super weapon, which destroys the Hosnian system, ending the New Galactic Republic. The Falcon emerges from hyperspace at the planet Takodana, where they meet with Maz Kanata, who is holding Anakin's old lightsaber, which Luke lost during The Empire Strikes Back. Rey touches it and had a vision of terrible things that have happened, and may happen in the near future. Rey runs off, and BB-8 follows her. Upon the arrival of the First Order, Maz gives Finn the lightsaber, and he uses it to fight the First Order stormtroopers. However, the Resistance arrives in their X-Wings, led in the charge by Poe, but Kylo Ren takes off with Rey, taking her to their base of operations: Starkiller Base. Han and Leia reunite, and the Resistance returns to their base on the planet D'Qar.
We learn quite a few things: first, that Kylo Ren is the son of Han and Leia; second, that Luke trained him in the ways of the Jedi; third, that Snoke turned him to the dark side. Finn, it turns out, knows not only how Starkiller Base works, but a weak spot, a thermal oscillator, that will destroy both the weapon and the planet it was built into. Han and Chewie take Finn to Starkiller Base, where they capture Phasma, who shuts down the planetary defense shield. The Resistance then sends a squadron of X-Wings, with Poe leading the charge, to destroy the oscillator. Rey, using the power of the Force (by mere instinct), escapes capture and joins Han, Finn, and Chewie. Together, they work to open up a space in the oscillator for the Resistance to get to it. At this time as well, Han confronts Kylo Ren, whose real name is Ben Solo, which ends with Han's death. Finn and Rey head back outside, where Ren confronts them, engaging in a lightsaber duel with Finn, defeating Finn, and then in a duel with Rey, who while untrained, is naturally gifted in the Force. Rey ultimately defeats Ren, and Chewie flies the Falcon to pick up Rey and Finn. After returning to D'Qar, R2-D2 reactivates after being in low-power mode since Luke vanished. R2, it turns out is carrying the rest of the star map, which when combined with the part that BB-8 had, shows exactly where Luke is. Rey, along with R2 and Chewie, takes off in the Falcon, arriving at the planet Ahch-To, where the first Jedi Temple is located, finally coming face-to-face with Luke, ending the movie.
This movie was very divisive among fans. While some fans loved this one because it was nothing like the Prequels, others disliked it because it was derivative of A New Hope. I, personally, am of the camp that loved The Force Awakens. The new actors, in particular John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, and Oscar Isaac, were terrific, Harrison Ford was terrific as Han Solo, and both Adam Driver and Domhnall Gleeson were terrific as Kylo Ren and General Hux. The use of practical effects for the aliens and creatures were amazing, and the CGI, when used, still felt real. The only part I wasn't a fan of was introducing yet another desert planet with Jakku. Honestly, why do we need so many desert planets in Star Wars? Isn't one enough? But, I digress. The only CGI characters, Maz Kanata and Supreme Leader Snoke, were actually a lot of fun, and Lupita Nyong'o and Andy Serkis did a great job playing these characters. While I would have liked to have seen more Luke in the movie, that's what The Last Jedi is for. While some feel that Rey was too perfect and her natural skills with the Force makes her a bit of a Mary Sue, I feel differently. I think the fact that, while untrained, she is able to tap into the Force by instinct is pretty cool, and makes me interested in seeing where she goes in the next couple of movies.
All in all, The Force Awakens isn't perfect, but still entertaining. I loved every minute of the movie, and I'm glad that I saw it. Therefore, I give Star Wars: The Force Awakens a rating of 5/5. This is Chuck signing off. See you guys next time when we wrap-up the Countdown to The Rise of Skywalker with The Last Jedi.
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