“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” came to theaters everywhere back on December 18, and since then, has raked in a lot of money. In its opening weekend alone, ticket sales totaled an estimated $248 million (according to CNN).

“The Force Awakens” does a spectacular job in its plot development. Director J.J. Abrams creates a new saga in one of, if not the most renowned movie franchises by setting it 30 years after “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.” Oddly enough, that’s how much time had elapsed between the release of the two films. “The Force Awakens” not only creates its own story, ushering in a variety of new heroes such as Finn (John Boyega) and Rey (Daisy Ridley), along with the new evil group known as The First Order including new villains like Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and the mysterious Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis), but it also pays homage to the original trilogy by bringing back familiar faces from those movies, including Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher), Han Solo (Harrison Ford), and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew).

With both groups of characters having their stories intertwine throughout the film by working together to thwart the new evil in the galaxy, it gives one the feeling that the original cast will be passing the torch onto the new cast to build off of the first trilogy’s success and to carry on with everything that makes “Star Wars” what it is, what it has been, and what it will be.

The action sequences in the movie are phenomenal. There were several times where you will be on the edge of your seat. As is customary, in any “Star Wars” movie, “The Force Awakens” features epic light saber battles, and scenes of the good old Millennium Falcon flying at light speed and battling through space.

One aspect that also should not go unnoticed is the soundtrack. No “Star Wars” movie would be a “Star Wars” movie without the beautiful sound of legendary composer John Williams with the London Symphony Orchestra creating the perfect mood for each scene.

Many people prior to the release of the film were skeptical about J.J. Abrams directing this movie, but he did a superb job in continuing one of the most beloved franchises of all time. In fact, many people feel it was so well done, that “The Force Awakens” is better than the “Star Wars” prequels (prequel trilogy). This is the first of a new trilogy in the series, and so far it has taken a step in the right direction. If you haven’t seen it yet, you should really consider a trip to the movies soon. Go see “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” in theaters now before it’s too late.