The Art Of Star Wars: The Force Awakens

When you first open the wonderful new Abrams release "The Art of Star Wars: The Force Awakens" you are struck by one thing: the overwhelming number of stunning images that grace each of the 256 pages. Page after page of concept design art by a myriad of conceptual artists open the book, followed by more and more from the final design of the film. There are production paintings, matte paintings, blueprints, sketches, and even a post-it scribble that J.J. Abrams first made of his idea for the droid BB-8 (originally called Surly).

Opening with the first meeting in January 9, 2013, Rick Carter and his team began brainstorming the look and feel of the new film. Design work began before a concept or script was even on the boards. Going back into the original "Star Wars" archives filled with Ralph McQuarrie concept art along with many others, the team started to dream. New worlds, new lands, and new characters all started to come to life; whether they would ultimately be used or not.

But the most fascinating part of the book -- and why it is well worth it for "Star Wars" fans to add to their collections -- is that it spends half the book discussing the first script by screenwriter Michael Arndt and the characters and worlds he created. Hero characters like, Kira (now Rey), John Doe (now Poe Dameron), and Sam (now Finn). Villains like the red alien Jedi Killer, that later become Kylo Ren whose design and backstory changed multiple times during the course of the scripting process. There are even storyboards that map out the opening scene of the film that involved John Doe and his Wookie sidekick in their own ship being swallowed up by a Star Destroyer -- mimicking the opening of "A New Hope."

There's so much information here that predates the final concept that it feels like opening a treasure chest of secret information. With 600 full-color illustrations and a plethora of inside scoop compiled by Phil Szostak, the book actually goes beyond expectations allowing fans a glimpse into the filmmaking process from first idea to finished product. One can only wonder what the upcoming "The Making of Star Wars: The Force Awakens" will actually consist of being as there's so much revealed here.

The one potential drawback to the book is a sense of disappointment. As much as fans loved the new chapter in the Skywalker saga, seeing some of the ideas and conceptual art sort of makes us long for the movie that almost existed. The ideas seem a bit bigger, the worlds a bit more exotic, and the scope of the story more epic. But I guess going back to McQuarrie's designs for the original trilogy we can get a sense of that too. Artist renderings always make things feel more otherworldly and ambitious. But for future filmmakers and screenwriters, these pages and pages of art and ideas will certainly spark the imagination and give storytellers of years to come the inspiration to dream as big as they can.

"The Art of Star Wars: The Force Awakens"
$40.00
www.abramsbooks.com