One of my favorite film score moments is actually an un-scored moment: the T-Rex attack on the SUVs in Jurassic Park. Not a note of music in that whole sequence, and it's a great example of how sometimes less (or none) is more.

Worst bit of scoring in my recent experience: John Williams's work on "Lincoln", wherein he felt obligated to interrupt Daniel Day-Lewis' brilliant performances with musical cues to remind us that DDL was saying something important and poignant.

I can't help but wonder what these films will be rated. I'm hoping for PG. SW doesn't need to be PG-13, does it? It seems how PG-13 is becoming the new PG in a way. More and more parents are letting their kids see PG-13 stuff, because that's what all the super-hero movies and the like are rated.

I'm pretty happy with the Abrams choice. Abrams seems perfectly happy to sacrifice sensible plot at the altar of character drama and emotional momentum, and that is SW in a nutshell. You guys pointed out the plot weirdness in Super 8, and ST's plot was a pile of nonsense, but they both score highly because of their commitment to their characters and to the kinetic story energy.

I watched ANH recntly on a bad tv with bad sound, and was struck by two strengths that shine through were the kinetic energy thing and what i can only call sincerity or heartfelt earnestness. The prequels had some earnestness, but none of it was heartfelt. Abrams seems to love actors and characters, and Super 8 and ST both have a real sincerity to them. Also, his not-too-reverent understanding of nostalgia should serve him well on SW, too.

Good point about how we can look forward to fewer cgi sets. I hadn't thought of that, but man is that encouraging!

One of the things that really struck me about Super 8: one of the ways that it achieves it's late-'70s, early-'80s feel is how real the sets and locations feel. When you think of ET, one of the things you think of is realness of the suburban California setting and family life.

On the common characteristics in Abrams' films: he seems to have a genuine sense of fun and a respect for the roots of the material, and knows how to infuse a film with that.