Just got back from seeing it with my wife, sister, niece and nephew (they're both 15). My niece is more of a Star Trek fan (as in, she likes the Abrams ones; not a knock against her, I really like the Abrams Treks too), and we watched Empire and Jedi last night, but she fell asleep during Empire (sacrilege!!). She did love this one, however.
My nephew and older sister are more into Star Wars, and they also loved it. My sister was the one who got me watching Star Wars back in the early 80's. My wife has also been a huge fan since she was a little girl.
I absolutely loved the movie. I had been spoiled to hell and back, so I was watching it basically just to see how it all played out on screen, and I was not disappointed. I thought the pacing felt just right, and while I do feel like it borrowed it's structure from A New Hope, I think the films are different enough that the parallels didn't bother me. I enjoyed the fan service; Han and Chewie's intro got a nice round of applause (our theater wasn't particularly packed, as it was the first show of the day), as did the intro of other classic characters. The crowd also clapped and cheered when Rey got her big moment during the final battle. Had I not been spoiled, I would have been pleasantly surprised as well. The film wasn't "predictable" because it was aping the format of the OT, it was "predictable" because the show had a lot of foreshadowing and telegraphing of future events. I don't see that as a negative. Besides, I'm 36. Heroes Journey arcs aren't really that surprising or new, whether it be Star Wars, or any other movie. The old crew was great to see, but this movie wasn't about them, it was about the new blood.
And the new blood delivered. The cast is really, really charming, likable, and endearing, just like you hope they'd be. Finn is the standout character, and is most certainly the heart of the film. Rey is a great lead and counterpoint to the often bumbling, in over his head, Finn. Poe isn't in the film enough, but he makes an awesome impact when he is on screen. Very likable, and his chemistry with Finn is a highlight of the movie. Hell, Finn's chemistry with every character he interacts with is fantastic, and more than likely a testament to John Boyega's charisma and charm. He is the glue that ties the characters and movie together. His back and forth with every character he's in a scene with is just fun to watch.
I love that Rey is not Luke 2.0. She is her own character. For all of the structural similarities with A New Hope, Empire, and Jedi, Rey is NOT Luke Skywalker. I had no problems with her being incredibly capable, resourceful, and talented in the Force. Her heroes journey does not have to mirror Luke's 1:1. She is awakening to her potential, which is great. Where that takes her is what's going to make her interesting to follow. She was able to best Kylo Ren because, much like her, his arc is just beginning as well. When we meet Vader in A New Hope, his arc of heroic growth is kind of complete. He isn't at peek power (that'd have been Episode 3 Anakin), but he has been trained in the Force, and is very capable. Kylo Ren is still in training. He's still green, with a lot of raw talent. Sure, he was trained by Luke, and mentored by Snoke, but we don't know for how long.
I think this new trilogy is going to have us seeing both these light side and dark side users coming into their own, which already sets it very much apart from the original trilogy. Kylo is going to want a rematch. Rey is going to be an attempt by Luke to right a horrible failing in his teaching of Kylo, and it's going to be very interesting to see how the two of them come away from another face off. I am not in the camp that thinks that Rey is going to go dark side, but she is going to be tempted, I'm sure. I just feel that having her fall to the dark side as well, diminishes Luke as a character and teacher. Obi-Wan failed Anakin, but did not fail Luke. Luke failed Kylo, I don't think he's going to fail Rey.
I very much like that Kylo is a petulant brat, very much like his grandfather. I think he's going to be a very different, more calculating character in Episode VIII and beyond. I think he could be redeemed. But seeing how the film has set up his arc, I'm not sure that redemption will be his end game. It very much seems that Kylo is a newb Dark Side user, and will grow into a great Dark Side user by the end (probably betraying Snoke and becoming THE major Dark Side practioner in the remaining movies), and Rey is starting off a new Light Side user (yes, she awakened to her potential, but it's silly to think that she's reached it).
The pace is brisk and moves along nicely. There's a lull during the Maz' cantina portion, but it's very short, and once they leave there, the movie is on it's final trajectory to the end.
I'm not sure if Rey is a Skywalker, but I do think she was trained at the Jedi temple, her mind/memories Force blocked, and left on Jakku by Luke until perhaps the time was right for her to re-emerge. She seems to know that there is more to her than she knows, but is still blinded to the specifics. I do wonder if Daisy Ridley's comments prior to the film's release that Rey's parentage would be answered by the end of the film was altered and left on the cutting room floor. I think her vision of being left on Jakku was a lot more revelatory, but for whatever reason, they decided against giving us a definitive answer.
The theater was dead quiet when Kylo killed Han Solo, although I think his death was inevitable the moment Harrison Ford signed on to reprise the role. Besides, the staging of that scene was only going to really have that one outcome. There was no way he was going to turn Kylo from the Dark Side (and the trailer already showed us that we had a lightsaber duel coming up), so the other alternative was Kylo killing Han. There was also a lot of foreshadowing that Han wasn't long for the world. All that talk about him being able to talk his way out of trouble was pretty blatant.
I didn't particularly have a problem with the Star Killer side plot. In my mind, it existed purely to establish the scale of the conflict between the First Order and the Resistance. The New Republic wasn't ever going to be a thing, and when Star Killer destroyed their capital, it cemented in my mind that this new trilogy is going to revolve around the two splinter groups of their respective camps. The First Order is small, yet growing stronger. The Resistance was a small part of the Republic that wanted to take the fight to the First Order. With the Republic wiped out, we only have the Resistance and whatever resources they have (which didn't seem like much), to combat the First Order, which seems pretty sizable.
I think the scale of the galactic conflict in this new trilogy isn't going to be as large as in the prequels or the OT. That could be interesting to see. Two smaller forces vying for control of the system they inhabit. Perhaps Snoke's goal isn't to bring back the Empire, or even wipe out the Republic/Resistance. I wouldn't be surprised if all he cares about is destroying the light side of the Force, not galactic conquest.
I also wanted to mention that the sound design in this movie was excellent, and the soundtrack was very, very good. I didn't think it was as bombastic as the OT or PT, but I think it felt like a reflection of the movie itself. Yes, the callbacks to the classic Star Wars themes were going to tug at you the most, but I think a lot of the original music was very inspired and reflective of the characters and moments they were supplementing. Rey's theme is beautiful, and it intertwines with the OT themes very organically and naturally. I don't think John William's best is behind him, I just think he's like any creative individual, and was experimenting with different sounds and approaches to the familiar. It would have been incredibly easy for him to phone it in and just recycle themes and melodies from the PT and OT, but he didn't. The score shows an incredible amount of restraint, actually.
Overall, it was a fantastic movie, and a return to form of the Star Wars franchise. I had almost forgotten what a good Star Wars movie was like. It is not a flawless movie. It is not the best thing ever, but I think it stands tall with the OT, and is leagues above the PT. I went into the movie with pretty measured expectations, and it exceeded them.