DominicCobb said:
That’s the point, though. He’s not intimidating without the mask - that’s why he wears it. Driver typically has a beard and looks very much his age (32). He very purposefully looks younger than that here. The problem is you’re thinking the “kind of role” is a Darth Vader type. It’s not. It’s someone who wants to be Darth Vader. It’s a different kind of role.

So you are conceding then that this film has no threatening villain? There is no villain or obstacle that the heroes must overcome against all the odds in order to succeed? There are just placeholder enemies that only get in the way for two hours until the protagonist remembers her secret powers that she forgot for the first two hours of the film.

Does anyone else think that is good or effective storytelling?

DominicCobb said:
Did you read my post? He’s supposed to be a Hitler youth type (uber-dedicated to the cause, shooting up through the ranks at a young age). Gleeson, like Driver, usually has a beard (and is also 32). He is supposed to look young here. The First Order is not the Empire. Hux is not Tarkin.

See above. I think you are trying to argue that the filmmakers did exactly what they wanted to; and I am arguing that they apparently have no idea how to tell a story.

That is consistent with my criticism of this film. JJ Abrams did give us some “fun” scenes and sequences. The movie does have more heart and spirit than the prequels, it’s better than those films. We aren’t watching whole movies where people just walk and talk, sit down and talk, walk and talk some more, mixed with wildly inconsistent tone.

TFA is better than any other Star Wars movie in the last 32 years.

However, from a storytelling aspect, I think the movie was atrociously bad. Poorly designed and poorly executed.