Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens may be the most anticipated film event of the 21st Century (particularly since The Phantom Menace taught us in 1999 not to be too hopeful over Episodes II and III). Yet as crazy as it sounds, some people just aren’t interested in seeing JJ Abrams’ spin on George Lucas’ epic.

My wife is one such person.

After avoiding it her whole life, I finally convinced her to watch Episode IV last year. The wife was not impressed, and could not be coerced into watching any of the other five films. Hmm.

It’s not a major problem, there’s no shortage of willing friends who will want to see the new Star Wars – but I really feel like my significant other will be missing out.

So when she asked me if there were any good movies coming out in the next few months, I rattled off a couple that had good trailers, then baited my hook…

Joe: Actually, there’s one movie coming out just before Christmas that looks awesome.

The Good Wife: Oh yeah, what’s it called?

Um… Nope, I cannot for the life of me remember.

Well what’s it about?

Well they’re being deliberately secretive about the actual plot details, but it’s this sweeping family epic, with a pseudo-Western vibe and Samurai themes.

It’s directed by one of the guys who worked on Lost – hence the hush-hush nature of the film.

Right. So who’s in it?

Ah, Oscar Isaac.

Was he the ginger computer-nerd in Ex Machina?

No, that’s Domhnall Gleeson – although, actually, he’s in this movie as well – Oscar Isaac was the hench bad guy in Ex Machina, and he was nominated for just about every award bar an Oscar for Inside Llewellyn Davis.

Didn’t get the Oscar nod though, huh?

No, but Lupita Nyong’o is in it too, so there’s your Oscar winner. Plus Adam Driver is one of the bad guys –

– Loved him in Girls! –

– I know, and Andy Serkis is the other baddie.

“What’s taters precious, what’s taters ey?”

The rest of the cast are relatively unknown, although Harrison Ford has a small role in it too.

Okay, that’s solid.

Right? And they’ve got some awesome people working on it behind the scenes as well. Lawrence Kasdan is one of the writers.

Kasdan… Does he work on New Girl?

Nah, that’s his son, Jake. Lawrence wrote The Bodyguard, Continental Divide, and directed The Big Chill.

Decent.

Yep. And the guy who wrote Little Miss Sunshine and Toy Story 3 has got a writing credit too.

Plus it’s being produced by Kathleen Kennedy.

Means nothing to me.

She’s one of the most successful producers ever – worked on ET and Schindler’s List with Spielberg, and has been nominated for like eight Academy Awards.

Schindler’s List? Is this going to be some uber-depressing movie, because you know I hate those.

No, it’s the opposite. It’s going to be a film for the whole family.

So it’s a kids’ movie?

No – like, it’s being pitched at everyone from age one to one hundred. One of those adventure movies that’s also a bit emotional, and also funny – bits of everything, kind of like The Avengers. Actually, it’s from the studios that made The Avengers.

So it’s a Marvel comic-book movie?

No, Marvel is owned by a bigger studio.

Still, if it’s from that studio, isn’t it going to be a CGI-drenched crapfest?

Well that’s another cool thing about it – though I’m sure there’ll be some CGI, the director is promising to use it sparingly and is doing as much of it as he can the old-fashioned way. Stunts and explosions and stuff!

Well, it’s certainly got all the right elements.

Yeah, we should definitely go see it when it comes out.

Sure, why not.

Aha!

***

Sadly, agreeing to see a movie based on a vague description is not a binding, legal contract (where are you on that one, Malcolm Turnbull?), so I’d say the odds of my wife joining me on a cinematic journey to a galaxy far, far away remain slim.

But when you pull The Force Awakens apart, and look at the individual pieces, it’s such a promising film.

Brilliant director, great up-and-coming cast with a healthy mix of established talent sprinkled in, a screenplay created by blokes with serious writing chops, and a producer who has been involved with films that have earned over 100 Oscar nominations.

Throw in a score from John Williams, the greatest film composer of our time, and a studio that spared no expense in production, and it’s cooking with some of the best cinematic ingredients ever.

And while a film can be less than the sum of its parts (American Hustle screamed brilliance, but bored me to tears), when all the significant pieces are as promising as they are for The Force Awakens, it’s silly to write it off as ‘just’ another Star Wars film.