The rub here is, though, that a reboot wasn't exactly what was called for, just a continuation of the original trilogy that buries the memory of the largely execrable prequels. While it does the second part of the remit with efficiency, making sure that cutesiness and helplessly clunky dialogue are largely avoided (although the expository nature of Han's and Leia's lines in their brief re-meeting scene is somewhat painful to behold), generating an entirely fresh storyline seems to be somewhat outside Abrams's range. Basically, an orphaned youth on a desert planet dreams of the galaxy beyond and is then flung into taking a droid with vital information in it to the rebellion, who then proceed to attack the Empire's planet-destroying machine. It's a shame that more effort wasn't put into this, which really cannot be counted as a spoiler, when there is so much that really works, too. The actors' performances are never less than solid, the references to the minutiae of the canon are witty and aptly placed and the visual aspects, such as the sight of the wreck of a star destroyer buried in the sand, are also quite awe-inspiring at times. And, perhaps the most importantly for fan-gratification and studio alike, it provides a few genuine shocks and sends the audience home with plenty of teasing questions still buzzing around in their minds.
So, on the whole, high marks for execution and middling ones for originality. Star Wars fans may be a conservative beast en masse, but they can surely be taken a little more out of their comfort zone. Maybe the next part, under the helm of the director of time-travel movie with a brain, Looper, will dare to do that.
7/10