Star Wars: The Force Awakens

This seals my love for Star Wars once and for all. Thank goodness for J.J. Abrams for showing how much he loves Star Wars and not letting the next episode just be a way to get bucks out of viewers. I almost don't understand how he did it, but the atmosphere is there with everything, from beginning to end. How could I live without that? (12/17/2015)

I envy everyone who watched the regular seventh episode. I watched "only" the nostalgic, modified first... I mean, fourth episode. Fortunately, it was for the better. Abrams is a better filmmaker than Lucas and he was really lucky that George did not write dialogs. In addition, Boyega, BB-8 and especially Keira (although the creators claim that his name is Ridley) carry it better than the non-charismatic Hamill and Fischer, and even C-3PO, have ever done in their youth. Of course, this is not the case with Ford. He carried it last time and he carries it now too. It is true that the first half is better than the second, when it partially loses pace (unnecessary part with smugglers) and the scenes made solely to please fans every other second of the footage (at the expense of time when more could be clarified about the new mythology) and so kind fatefulness that looks so unnatural. The Prequel trilogy succeeded at least (or only) in presenting a living universe with thousands of races and interests. This is a step back. Again, we are purely in the wastelands, and the eventual destruction of a "kind of planet somewhere in space" has absolutely no effect on anything or anyone. Nevertheless, an undeniably decent filmmaking, which is pleasure to watch. Especially in moments when it is not afraid to step out of the shadow of the original trilogy and start casting its own shadow. There are only few such moments, sadly, but they are there and they are amazing. So hopefully it will work out in two years in the eighth episode, which will no longer be just a respectfully modified second... I mean, the fifth episode. (12/19/2015)

Disclaimer for fans: if anyone liked this film, I’m glad for them, the problem is mine. Star Wars has never meant anything to me, and The Force Awakens didn’t hype me for any experience, either. The plot is very predictable, I didn’t see anything original o interesting. The variations of the themes of previous episodes may be fun for the fans, but they don’t mean anything on their own. The dialogues are made of empty, nostalgic phrases, the characters have unexplainable deep bonds, even though the story takes place in, what, a couple of days at most? Sometimes this aspect becomes almost a parody, like, for instance, when Kylo Ren says that Han Solo is for Ray the father she never had (even though it seems that they’ve known each other for only a couple of hours), or when Finn and Poe reunite and fall into an embrace almost as if they’ve gone through at least the Vietnam War together, but actually the only thing they’ve done is a semi-successful escape from a ship that can’t have taken more than half an hour. Really, sometimes it feels as if it was written by an idiot, or by someone takes the viewers for idiots. And this sci-fi cancer will now take space at the cinemas for another few years and will employ many young hopeful directors who instead of this could be working on something more meaningful. Great :-/ (03/23/2016)

It's all there. Abrams promised that his Star Wars would be traditional, classic, and fans would be excited about it, and he delivered. It's all right here. When the old heroes show up, be they human, alien or mechanical, it's almost touching. Plus, the new ones fit in perfectly alongside them, and the trio of Boyega, Ridley and Isaac are spot-on and perfectly cast. The action clicks, the twists and turns work, and as a film designed to please the cognoscenti and introduce this universe to a new generation, it works brilliantly. Maybe too much so. Whereas with Star Trek Abrams had the courage to go further and cross the shadow of the franchise, that sadly doesn't happen here. He does his job brilliantly and sacrifices everything, often including his distinctive directorial style, to make "the right Star Wars". And in the end, he has no time left to shock, move or entertain beyond expectations. I don't mean to sound disgruntled, I liked Star Wars Episode VII, but the feeling that it played it unnecessarily safe is just too strong to speak of absolute enthusiasm. It's enough for a damn good movie, though, without any problems. (12/16/2015)

I’ve been waiting for the story to continue for many years and suddenly it was over. The result? I could find a lot of reasons to criticize the seventh instalment. Mirka Spáčilová in her review for Mladá Fronta did not disappoint. Sadly, she only stated in her review what could be somehow expected of this instalment. I wouldn’t be surprised if she just got up after the opening credits and left. Anyone could criticize that the story dilutes the original trilogy and does not bring anything new. However, introducing new characters in a universe like that is also a craft that not everybody can do, and I think J. J. Abrams managed it really well. Personally, I feel that towards the end of the year I couldn’t encounter better movie in the cinemas. There are fewer digital effects than real ones, which is really to the creators’ benefit. New characters played by Daisy Ridley and John Boyega are also really nice. Adam Driver also fulfills his mission in this story. He is a scumbag at first glance with clearly a weak will to be a weakling. However, the circumstances make him into a real monster. Add in an epic story like in the first trilogy. What else could you ask for? I really don’t know. (12/24/2015)