Star Wars VII - The Force Awakens in IMAX 3D

The last time I was this excited about Star Wars was in 1977.  The queues had gone around the cinema and even as a child I knew it was something special.  My gran took me and it was the first time I experienced another world.  Today there were no queues around the block anymore.  With multiplex screens they can show the film to many more people than back in 1977, but the sense of excitement was still the same.

To experience it properly I booked tickets to see it in IMAX 3D.  As soon as the screen opened with the story and that legendary music, I was emotional.  Would it live up to my expectations?

The story covers a disheartened Stormtrooper called Finn (played by John Boyega) who doesn’t agree with the First Order and their slaughter of innocents.  He meets up with Poe and they escape together only to crash again later.

Meanwhile Poe’s droid (who contains a key part of a map to the location of Luke Skywalker) meets Ray, a scavenger played by Daisy Ridley, who likes the droid and after rescuing him allows him to hang around with her.  

When Finn’s plane crashes he cannot find Poe but only his jacket so he puts it on and it’s not long before he bumps into Ray and the droid.  Pretending to be from the resistance they steal a ship to get off Jakku.  This ship is the Millennium Falcon.  Of course Star Wars fans already know this.

It is exciting when Han Solo makes his entrance alongside Chewbacca.  He is just as loveable as we remember.  And again when we see Princess Leia – although she is now General Leia rather than a princess.  Poor Carrie Fisher has moved on from a gold bikini to a dull boiler suit.  

The First Order are styled very much on Hitler and the Third Reich.  The flags, the hats, even the way they deliver a speech.  A key player in the First Order is Kylo Ren, who is torn between the darkside and the light.  Sound familiar?

There are many similarities between this film and Star Wars IV – A New Hope, I especially noticed the bar scene comparisons.  This film is full of action and lots of everything you love about Star Wars.  I will not tell you too much of the story otherwise it will be spoilers but this film works because you have all three original main characters (Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess Leia played by Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher respectively).  These are key to the film as it’s really aimed at people like me.  People who saw and loved Star Wars IV – A New Hope back in 1977.  They are hoping we bring our kids – we buy the merchandise – and share the love of Star Wars for future generations.

I am pleased and grateful to say the audience I shared this experience with were quiet and respectful.  There was no talking.  No popcorn crunching.  No chair kicking.  No irritated children.  It was bliss.  Maybe parents don’t want to spend almost £20 a ticket to a child who doesn’t love it?  Whatever the reasons I was grateful to be immersed into the film.

Did I laugh?  Yes. Did I cry?  Absolutely.  Did it have action?  Undoubtedly.  Should you go and see it?  Without a doubt.  This film is the stuff of legends.