Opinion: 5 Ways JJ Abrams Can Make Star Wars Work

May the Force be with Abrams- and failing that, here's how the Trek director can get Episode VII right!
I reckon it's fairly safe to say that there are few film fans right now who would openly be able to express any kind of envy for JJ Abrams. The director of 2009's hit film reboot Star Trek, 2011's spell binding sci-fi drama Super 8 and this year's anticipated sequel Star Trek Into Darkness, Abrams has plenty of experience in the realms of science-fiction, and yet managing the revival of the world's most beloved space-travelling movie franchise has to be one of the toughest challenges know to man for the next few years.

Here's the question, then- how can Abrams win back the troops after the disappointing The Phantom Menace and Attack Of The Clones? For the most part, it's up to the acclaimed writer, producer and director to work that out for himself, with Toy Story 3's Michael Ardnt handed the responsibility of penning the script of Star Wars Episode VII itself. Nevertheless, here are our top five suggestions on the matter, with justification that we hope the production team will take heed of, because the future and fate of the Star Wars franchise hangs in the balance...
1. KEEP IT PERSONAL- When Abrams is working with Ardnt to construct a thrilling script for Episode VII, he'd be well advised to maintain a focus on keeping personal elements of the saga intact, perhaps not necessarily building up a threat of galactic-spanning danger as the Prequel Trilogy attempted. What worked so well with the original three films was that personal focus on the Rebels' battle to save their worlds from the Empire. If in the aftermath of the Fall Of The Empire, then, Abrams can bring us a minor-yet-impactful threat for the Jedi and New Republic to deal with, then Episode VII's plot may be met with much more critical acclaim.
2. UTILISE CGI TO ITS FULL POTENTIAL- For all the qualms that surrounded Revenge Of The Sith (I loved it personally- just as compelling a watch as The Empire Strikes Back), there was definitely one element which every fan agreed was a major highlight- the incredible computer-generated-imagery. I'm sure that Disney and Lucasfilm have got a big CGI budget set aside for Episode VII, and to increase the chance of success in every department, they should endeavour to utilise it to its highest potential for alien characters, exotic planets and beautiful visual combat sequences.
3. REMEMBER THE CONTINUITY- Although for the majority Abrams and co do need to look ahead to the future of the galaxy far, far away (see the next point), it's important that they recall the franchise's past too. From the original Sith War to the second Death Star's destruction, the universe of Star Wars is plentifully packed to the brim with cohesive and thrilling narrative elements that shouldn't be disregarded as rebooted franchises such as Indiana Jones and Transformers have done in the past. We should have reverence of what's gone before at the very least, so as to appease the long-term fans as well as garnering new ones, no matter whether Luke Skywalker and his classic band of rogue heroes make an appearance or not.
4. INNOVATE IN DIRECTION- It's incredibly rare that an opportunity of this magnitude comes around for a director like JJ Abrams. As such, with Star Wars Episode VII Abrams should take every chance to innovate in how he goes about directing his cinematic masterpieces, bringing in new camera technology along the lines of Avatar to make the first instalment of the new trilogy as unique an experience as possible. There's no need to waste time getting fans nostalgic in re-hashed sweeping shots of old locales- instead, let's find new worlds to explore and new ways to do so visually!
5. FEEL THE FORCE- This final point should be relatively obvious, and it was something that Lucas and his team managed to pull off in the controversial Prequel Trilogy. I'd like to see the various mysteries of the Force upheld and expanded upon in Episode VII, whereby we've still got a lot of the secrecy surrounding the Jedi's mystical powers intact as we saw with the Jedi Temple and on Dagobah, but new elements of shock and intrigue can be found within the Force network for Jedi Masters, Knights and Padawans alike. In other words, Abrams would do best to remember that "the Force surrounds us, binds us, draws us all together". Now, just one more question, then- is it 2015 yet?