Star Wars: 5 Awesome Reveals From The Disney D23 Expo (And 2 That Are Worrying)

4. The Force Awakens Is 124 Minutes Long

With no new footage released and plenty of other Star Wars announcements made, there wasn't much new to learn about The Force Awakens outside of what was on that awesome poster. Although there was one big thing that, while hardly groundbreaking, furthers the feeling of confidence around Episode VII - the current cut of Star Wars: The Force Awakens is 124 minutes long. This is identical to The Empire Strikes Back, and a good quarter of an hour less than the prequels at their most indulgent, which is probably far from a coincidence. While The Force Awakens is the triumphant return of Star Wars after a ten-year hiatus, to make the movie itself as overblown as the hype would merely lead to something leaden trying too hard to be epic. Outside of all the fan hype everyone online's subscribed to, it also fits the universal appeal of the franchise. Blockbusters are now almost expected peek over the two hour mark, with something coming in at around ninety minutes perceived as feeling slight (Fantastic Four would seem like a prime example if it wasn't for the production issues that led to its short runtime), but the current trend of making something minor into an epic the length of 2001: A Space Odyssey is beginning to feel lethargic.