It made a fortune at the box office and there are two more planned. The internet was jammed with clips and jokes about it. So what was all the fuss about? Apart from being a decent film, what drew so many people to it?
Some of it has to do with picking up themes from the original trilogy: a space fairy-tale with elements of the western; Arthurian legend and Robin Hood. The first film pulled in all the classic sci-fi films of the twentieth century (from Metropolis through Forbidden Planet to 2001: A Space Odyssey) and added in 633 Squadron. Han Solo's John Wayne/Humphrey Bogart worked with Obi-Wan's Merlin and Luke the farm-hand/knight in training. Light sabres were used alongside pistols and the mysteries of the Force.
The new film uses all of this in a way the prequel trilogy failed to: they had more special effects and fewer strong characters.
But other than the writing, the key strength of The Force Awakens is its nostalgic element. Seeing Han Solo and Princess Leia is like catching up with old friends. Even the plot is the same as Star Wars: A New Hope.
And that's also its weakness. Rather like seeing a reformed version of an old rock band, it's all good fun but it's not at all original. Like the endless superhero re-boots and new versions of Star Trek and other classic series we seem to be stuck in the past. Endlessly recycling the same old stuff.
Good as the film was, it's nothing new and won't change cinema like the first one did.