STAR WARS : The Force Awakens

STAR WARS : THE FORCE AWAKENS

a 2015 American epic space opera film directed, co-produced, and co-written by J. J. Abrams. The seventh installment in the main Star Wars film series, it stars Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong'o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Max von Sydow. Produced by Lucasfilm and Abrams' Bad Robot Productions and distributed worldwide by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, The Force Awakens is set approximately 30 years after Return of the Jedi (1983), and follows Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron's fight with the Resistance, led by veterans of the Rebel Alliance, against Kylo Ren and the First Order, descended from the Galactic Empire.

The Force Awakens is the first film in the Star Wars sequel trilogy announced after Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm in October 2012. The film is produced by Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, Abrams, and his long-time collaborator Bryan Burk. Lawrence Kasdan, co-writer of the original trilogy films The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi, and Abrams rewrote an initial script by Michael Arndt. John Williams, composer for the previous six films, returned to compose its score. Star Wars creator George Lucas served as creative consultant during the film's early production stages. Filming began in April 2014 in Abu Dhabi and Iceland, with principal photography also taking place in Ireland and Pinewood Studios in England.

PLOT

Approximately 30 years after the destruction of the second Death Star, Luke Skywalker, the last Jedi, has disappeared. The First Order has risen from the remains of the fallen Galactic Empire and seeks to eliminate Luke and the Republic. The Resistance, a military force backed by the Republic and led by Luke's sister Leia Organa, opposes them while searching for Luke to enlist his aid.

Resistance pilot Poe Dameron meets with village elder Lor San Tekka on the planet Jakku to obtain a map to Luke's location. Stormtroopers under the command of Kylo Ren destroy the village and capture Poe, whose droid BB-8 escapes with the map and comes across a scavenger named Rey at a junkyard settlement. Stormtrooper FN-2187, repulsed by First Order cruelty, frees Poe and they escape in a stolen TIE fighter; Poe dubs FN-2187 "Finn". They crash on Jakku and Finn appears to be the only survivor. He encounters Rey and BB-8, but the First Order tracks them and launches an airstrike. The three flee the planet in a stolen run-down ship, the Millennium Falcon.

The Falcon breaks down in space, leaving them stranded. They are brought aboard a freighter piloted by Han Solo and Chewbacca, who reclaim their former ship. Han explains that Luke tried to rebuild the Jedi Order, but disappeared after Ren, originally Luke's apprentice and Han's son Ben, was seduced by the First Order's Supreme Leader Snoke to turn to the dark side. The Falcon crew arrive at the planet Takodana and meet Maz Kanata, who offers to help BB-8 reach the Resistance, but Finn wants to flee on his own. Rey is drawn to a vault and finds the lightsaber that belonged to Luke and his father before him. She experiences a horrific vision and flees into the woods, rejecting Maz's attempt to give her the lightsaber, which is given to Finn for safekeeping.

The First Order attacks and captures Rey, who is taken to Starkiller Base, a planet that has been converted into a superweapon capable of destroying entire star systems. Han, Chewbacca, and Finn are saved by a squadron of Resistance X-wing fighters led by Poe. They arrive at the Resistance base on D'Qar, where they meet Leia and the droids C-3PO and R2-D2, the latter of whom has been inactive since Luke's disappearance. As Starkiller Base prepares to fire on D'Qar, the Resistance devises a plan to lower the planetary shield so their fighters can attack. Using the Falcon, Han, Chewbacca and Finn infiltrate the base. They lower the shield, find Rey, set explosives and encounter Ren. Han confronts his son and implores him to abandon the dark side. Ren appears conflicted, but kills Han. Chewbacca shoots Ren in retaliation before setting off the planted explosives.

The First Order attacks and captures Rey, who is taken to Starkiller Base, a planet that has been converted into a superweapon capable of destroying entire star systems. Han, Chewbacca, and Finn are saved by a squadron of Resistance X-wing fighters led by Poe. They arrive at the Resistance base on D'Qar, where they meet Leia and the droids C-3PO and R2-D2, the latter of whom has been inactive since Luke's disappearance. As Starkiller Base prepares to fire on D'Qar, the Resistance devises a plan to lower the planetary shield so their fighters can attack. Using the Falcon, Han, Chewbacca and Finn infiltrate the base. They lower the shield, find Rey, set explosives and encounter Ren. Han confronts his son and implores him to abandon the dark side. Ren appears conflicted, but kills Han. Chewbacca shoots Ren in retaliation before setting off the planted explosives.

The Resistance X-wing fighters attack the weakened weapon, beginning a chain reaction that gradually destroys the planet. The injured Ren chases Finn and Rey to the surface, where Finn battles him using Luke's lightsaber. When Finn is wounded, Rey takes the lightsaber and fights Ren. She overpowers him with the Force and wounds him before they are separated by a fissure. The First Order evacuates the collapsing planet with Ren while the Resistance fighters escape to D'Qar, where the Resistance celebrate their victory while Leia, Chewbacca, and Rey mourn Han's death. R2-D2 awakens and reveals the rest of the map. With R2-D2 and Chewbacca, Rey follows the map to an island on a distant planet where she finds Luke and offers his father's lightsaber to him.