I read this review today without seeing the damn movie and he described it from a Star Wars fan pov so I'm going with it.
Spoilers ahead - but if you read the review already its not my fault.
I see the reviewers points, but not knowing the characters full story gives you a mystery that pulls you in. How many good books lay out everything about every character on the first page they are introduced? If he is a "story telling geek", he should know that some amount of mystery pertaining to character and motivation is a good thing. I am not sure that this reviewer knows what good storytelling is.
Maybe is because they cleverly lowered my expectations with the pre-quels, but by the end of this film I found my self liking these characters, finding them interesting and ready to hear more. Yes there are certainly open ends with the new characters - even when we are told (instead of shown) the "short versions" of their back stories, it doesn't explain the motivations - the how and why, and I don't know why he thinks a "good story" has to start with that - everything neat and in chronological order.
Yes, I was disappointed they felt they had to blow up another Death Star. (After building two and being defeated where did these New guys get the money and time to build yet another even more awesome death star?!?.. though the effect was pretty cool) That was in fact my big disappointment with the film was that they went there instead of finding some other way to encounter the enemy. . The other homage and rhyming was often appropriate and drew me in more.
"This could have been a film about Rey’s coming of age and discovering her place in the battle between good and evil (ala Luke Skywalker in Episode IV), but it doesn’t spend enough time and detail on that storyline to make it the centerpiece. It could have been a film about the redemption of former storm trooper Finn, but that magically happens in a snap and is never dealt with again. It could have been about the rise of the new Sith lords, but it’s not. It could have been about the return of Han Solo and Princess Leia’s prodigal son, but it’s not. It could have been about reconciling Solo and Leia’s estranged relationship, but it’s not. It could have even been about finding the missing Luke Skywalker, but in one of the most blatant and textbook examples of a bad filmmaking technique called Deus ex machina, even that gets magically and inexplicably solved in a snap."
But it was about ALL of those things. It just doesn't resolve them in a neat gift wrapped box with a bow on it. Yes, we have a bit of Deus ex machina because R2D2 was sulking. Or was he? Maybe Luke just told him to stay quiet until he was needed. Who knows. THEY HAVEN"T TOLD US YET!
No. Its not a self contained film. It ends on a cliff hanger. We already know there are AT LEAST two more coming. Luke didn't become a Jedi or "come of age" in the first film- he merely started the journey. Han didn't get fully over his selfishness in the first film. Leia didn't get together with either of them. What happened to that Ben Dude when he just disappeared? Why is this that Darth Vader dude such a dick, and what happened between Vader and Luke's Father? The Empire wasn't finished by any means. But for some reason - with all of those questions left open, the original Star Wars gets a pass from this guy.
Its fine he didn't like it,and yeah, some of the homage to previous films may have been too much. But in my opinion the storytelling overcame those shortcomings. They gave me enough to want more, while proving their street cred that they "get it"
Yes I hope they tell more story in the next one, but yes there is a plot, and yes it borrows heavily from things you have seen before - but that doesn't mean there wasn't a plot. Told properly Star Wars is the Joseph Campbell Mono myth- WE ALL KNOW THE PLOT. Its the some one that has been in use for LITERALLY thousands of years. If the plot seems tired and old, that is part of the reason why.
And no, the characters that aren't fully developed because they are involved in a 3 movie arch.. get a grip folks.
Its not Episode IV. Its also not Episodes I-III - Its a good effort with a lot to like, and yes, it was, in my opinion, good storytelling. Maybe not great. But good. Yes it could have been better. Return of the Jedi could have been better too. It wasn't a prequel grade POS, and if you are a fan of the original you will probably like this one.