Reviews of the newest Star Wars movies

Wow...It's been way too long since I've posted any kind of review. It's awards season though and that usually wakes me up for a little while. I'll start off with my short Star Wars reviews...

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2488496)

What can I say that hasn’t already been said about this movie? J.J. Abrams did a wonderful job with inheriting the daunting task of directing the next chapter of the Star Wars saga and he crafted a great movie. This movie is nostalgic as well as fresh as it introduces some great new heroes and new villains to follow. I also enjoyed how strong of a character Abrams made Rey and Daisy Ridley does a great job of portraying Rey’s strength. Bravo J.J., you made a great, fun movie! I believe that the newest batch of Star Wars movies are on their way to greatness and this movie is the launching point. I loved The Force Awakens...9.0/10 stars.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3748528)

This "midquel" (that's a word I just created for this movie considering where it falls into the Star Wars movie timeline) is a very good companion to the "main" Star Wars movies. Now that Disney owns the rights to these movies, we are going to see a lot more of these types of offshoots, which is awesome. This first one builds on the Star Wars mythology & mystique to create a unique, standalone movie that also has enough nostalgia to keep die hard fans happy. The heroes introduced here are fun to watch and the villains (some old, most of them new) offer up new challenges for those heroes. The action sequences are well made and don't feel too "CGI-ish". I really enjoyed Rogue One...8.5/10 stars.