The Best-Case Scenario: ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’

A group of stormtroopers from the First Order opened the red carpet for the European premiere of Star Wars: The Force Awakens held at London’s Leicester Square.

But does JJ Abrams’ new film live up to the hype and expectations?

John Hiscock, in the Daily Mirror, said: “All I can say is The Force Awakens evokes magical memories of 1977′s Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, with plenty of humour, action, drama and heart”.

Sean Fenwick was just four years old when he saw the first Star Wars film in 1977.

“Star Wars” fans rejoiced at the chance to see the much-anticipated next instalment of the sci-fi saga on Wednesday as the movie began hitting cinemas worldwide, winning mostly glowing reviews.

At the outset, the lead good guy is pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) – he’s the one carrying the adorable BB-8 droid on which your youngest niece’s Christmas list is perhaps founded.

The “real star of the show”, he declared, was British actress Daisy Ridley, whose performance as scavenger Rey should “send her career into orbit”.

With the aesthetics of “The Brady Bunch” credits and the musical stylings of Pentatonix, watch as Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Gwendoline Christie, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford all join into lend their vocal talents to this musical tapestry. Last but not least C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) and R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) also make a return.

The Force Awakens premieres in the United Kingdom today ahead of general release tomorrow, when Brighton Premiere and entertainment agency the E3 Group will be hosting a special charity gala screening of the film at the Odeon on King’s Road on December 17.

Verbal references and visual nods to earlier chapters abound: the thrum of duelling lightsabers, the beeps of deadpanning droids, the slow and steady countdown to interplanetary doom by hulking superweapon.

STAR Wars is back and it’s the ideal mix of everything we loved about the old films and everything the franchise needed to charm sci-fi, CGI-hardened audiences.

Ford has lost none of his bounder’s roughly hewn, twinkly-eyed charm, delivering droll one-liners with consummate ease.

Where can I buy tickets?