Nerds That Geek Movie Review - 'Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens'

Written by Scott Edwards

Now if you were like me, the only thing I knew about this movie when it came out, is what I saw in the trailer and read on IMDB, so I had really no idea about what the actual storyline was and who the baddies really were. But I could not hold in my excitement to see the movie and with J.J. Abrams leading the way, I was sure I would not be disappointed and to tell you the truth, I was not at all. So, let’s jump into my first attempt at a 100% spoiler free review.

Ladies and gentlemen, John Williams is back and strikes a powerful score that has not captured my emotions in over thirty years. Openly, I have watched the prequels and none of them really seemed to capture my attention as much as this movie did. Hearing the strings play the Star Wars theme while the opening credits came on the screen brought me back to my youth and I could not help but to tear up when hearing it again. As the movie played on, the score stayed right on pace with the action and it appears that John Williams has not lost a beat when it comes to making you feel things without saying a word.

When your old favorites take to the screen, Han Solo and Chewbacca are just as magical as they were in Return of the Jedi. With the same type of humor that made us fall in love with these smugglers, you pretty much forget the fact that it's been forever since we have seen these two on screen together. I know we were all worried that Harrison Ford would not make it through the shoot with his plane crashes and earrings, but when you see Han back on the screen, you never want to see him leave again. Call them what you will, smugglers, nerf herders or scoundrels, they are the same as they will always be and never let their friends down. Leia is still working with the Rebellion, now known as the Resistance and one thing that I loved about seeing Carrie Fisher once again is that she still holds the hatred for anyone that is trying to hold people down and C-3P0 is just as badly timed as he ever was when it comes to giving his observations.  

The creatures and aliens in this movie are as epic as ever. Sure, there is some CGI here and there, but you can still see some of the classic makeup and masks that made this series great so long ago. You get to see several different species in a mixer and some you will recognize from your readings of the Star Wars universe which made it a bit more enjoyable. Knowing that the original Extended Universe has been taken out of the storyline, it is nice to see that Abrams did not kill it off completely. And the droids do not disappoint as well, you get to see some of the old along with some of the new like BB-8 who run freely over the planets.

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​The family dynamic that is present in all of the Star Wars movies is still there and I think this is what makes the series so special. Wanting to do what is best for a son, daughter, wife, husband or friend, or you, this continues and with a different director in charge, and I was initially worried that this would be placed in the background. It was not and I know that is why I like this movie as much as I do. You get to see the emotions that the original trilogy made you cry over and while there may be some dysfunction around the universe, family always comes first.

And finally, the action sequences. One thing that J.J. Abrams is good at is action, if you have not noticed yet, and the scenes in this movie are nothing less than astounding. But there are two ships that I was been dying to see that brought tears to my eyes. The first, of course was the Millennium Falcon. Seeing this old bird in action once again made me very happy and I even squealed a little bit when it took its first flight. The second was seeing the X-Wing and when it engaged for combat. I know I am a little bit of a dork when it comes to this, but seeing the wings open up takes me back to the better days when there were pilots who actually knew how to fly these ships to take down the Empire. I must throw a shout out to the TIE Fighters, you saw them in battle in the trailers, but upon further review, they have been updated a little bit and are just a little bit cooler than you might remember them to be.

Well there you have it, and I hope that every time you watch this movie, you are brought back to the good old days of the series, I know I was sent back to my childhood with plenty of joy. My biggest takeaway from this movie is that change is not a bad thing and BB-8 proved that to me in so many ways.  Although I am still not sure how people are able to understand droids, it must be a planetary thing. The new comers are great and I cannot wait to see what they bring to the table in The Rise of Skywalker. Oh, and by the way...May the Force be with you (I always wanted to type that).

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