The most important aspect of an installment of a franchise is the respect shown to the material and its fans. George Lucas has been spitting on the franchise he created for years with sub-par prequels and unneeded film changes and additions to the originals. When Disney took over the Star Wars franchise, fans were hopeful that the franchise would be put back in the right direction. After 3 years of anticipation, The Force Awakens has brought life back into one of the most important franchises in cinema history.

Now in the hands of Disney and director J.J. Abrams, we have a film that not only pays respect to the franchise, but also to its fans. Abrams dives into what made Star Wars great and creates a story we can all look forward to. Gone is the overuse of CGI, the bad jokes, and Jar Jar Binks. With Force, we are introduced to characters we can care about and invest in like we did with Han, Luke, and Leia the first time we watched A New Hope. Daisy Ridley steals the show and is absolutely phenomenal, and I can say with confidence that a new star has been born. Abrams casting of a female, Hispanic man, and a black man as the focal points of the film shows diversity not often seen in a franchise as big as Star Wars and for that he should be commended.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens also gives us a new villain in Kylo Ren, and he was sensational. He was not trying to be Darth Vader, but he was vicious and had motives for his madness, all key things in a good movie villain.

The film is visually stunning, with beautiful wide shots of snow filled mountains, green pastures throughout the film, instead of knowing the actors were behind a green screen, added to its beauty. John Williams once again lent his greatness to the franchise providing a breathtaking score that added emotion to all scenes throughout the film.

I cried, I laughed, and as the film concluded I couldn’t help but smile knowing that J.J. had done what many were terrified he couldn’t do, he brought Star Wars back to life. This is not only one of the best films in the franchise but one of the best films of 2015. One can only hope that the Academy Awards take note and merit this film because it is rightly deserved.

Reel Talk gives Star Wars: The Force Awakens 4 Reels