Saw it last night and my thoughts:
Overall loved the movie because it took me back to my childhood.
The script too closely followed New Hope. Because the prequels sucked so bad, I think they leaned heavily on the same plot elements as the original series, but too much. In the next one they need to branch out a little bit and build a unique universe - after all this is the 'next generation' of Star Wars characters and should have their own story building on the old ones.
I was extremely disappointed that Han died. Not because I needed the legacy actors in this series, but because of all the legacy actors involved in this movie, he by FAR has the strongest screen presence and most unique character. He will be sorely missed, much more than if Leia or Luke had died.
Kylo Ren was a more complex character off the bat than previous villains. I like the fact they are building the next generation from their youth and showing the flaws and growth of each character.
I didn't like the planet killer weapon for 2 reasons. 1- it's just another death star concept. Could they not have come up with something else? 2- Because they should have built up to that threat over the series. What else could they possibly come up with that is more threatening than a planet killer weapon? The next idea will more than likely be a major letdown.
Loved seeing the ships from previous battles in the desert. It really gave the feeling that the old regimes had crumbled and this universe is new and will stand on its own eventually.
I wasn't sure if I would like Daisy as the protagonist. In the trailers I didn't buy her as the right actor for that role. However, I was completely blown away by her performance. She is a star in the making - she can act much better than some of the leads in the original series. And she has a smile that can light up the sun - she is a very respectful and humble person in RL. I cannot wait for my daughter to see her in this movie - a rare, good role model for young women.
Didn't like the romance between Finn and Rey. It seemed forced because I think they needed another scene or two to build the romance from the crush stage. Finn was into her too quickly based upon the early chemistry they had. But I like the overall idea of them being together.
Based upon the comments of Luke's light saber being handed down and Rey finding it and fighting Kylo, I think Rey is obviously Luke's daughter and not Han's. The ending scene where she finds Luke and hands it back to him is obvious foreshadowing. In the next movie, he will take the role of mentor (Yoda), tell her to keep the weapon, and teach her to harness her powers. She will emerge later in the second movie with more focused powers to fight Ren who will be completing (or have completed) his own training with Snoke.
BTW, I hate the name Snoke. I think it sounds more like a Potter villain's name than Star Wars. I expected him to pull out his wand and shoot lightning at some point.
I also didn't like how they made Snoke so large compared to Ren. Were they trying to emphasize the experience difference between the two? What makes villains particularly scary is not their size, but their cunning and ability to fool those that follow them. Snoke seems like a cartoon character and not a menacing master of the dark side of the force.
Loved the xwing and tie fighter battle scenes. Those were done very well and in depth which added uniqueness to the movie. You could really see Poe's skill and how it gave the Rebels an advantage in that space - this was done better than Luke's piloting in the original series.
