It's a valid point though. The action-adventure blockbuster is popular precisely because viewers enjoy living vicariously in the shoes of the hero.

Kids love Indiana Jones and Han Solo because they're adults they can relate to (they've retained at least some visible aspects of childhood) who effortlessly master feats of derring-do with a swagger in their step and a quip on their lips.

Once seen for the first time these characters become fixed in our minds like a fly trapped in amber. So even though Harrison Ford ages - "Indiana Jones" remains circa late twenties, early thirties within memory - forever.

Unfortunately, there are only so many miracles you can perform with makeup. So whilst Ford aged a visible fifteen-or-so years from the beginning of Star Wars to the penultimate Indiana Jones - his appearance didn't clash seriously with the viewer's mental images of Jones/Solo. But forty years is just too great a gap to bridge.

Cognitive dissonance really does set in when the brain attempts to square the Ford of this latest Star Wars incarnation with memories of him at his physical and athletic peak.

And whilst kids today are just as likely to want to BE that early Indiana Jones - I very much doubt any will return home from the cinema wishing they could become 70+year Solo.

As for the millions of people to whom Carrie "Slave Girl" Fisher was ever-present in mind during puberty - I can only sympathize over how many blissful memories this movie has tarnished.

The relatively recent phenomenon of old blokes on a rampage however, slightly bucks the trend; or at least gives us some shoes to live in that are a bit different to the norm. With Liam Neeson at the top of the heap in the enjoyably awful 'Taken' series, many have followed - I particularly enjoyed Denzel's middle-aged murder spree using mostly power tools; I wish I'd thought of that when I was in the full bloom of my DIY phase.

Sadly, the same cannot be said for female actors - with very few exceptions, male movie stars, regardless of their advancing years, seem to have their on-screen love interests portrayed by much younger women. Was it ever thus? I don't remember.

In LOTR, when Aragorn "married" on the mound of Cerin Amroth, she was 2,730.

Fair comment - perhaps Elves do not suffer the same discrimination as mortal women.

Although in real life - Liv Tyler is 20 years younger than Viggo Mortensen.

There's old and there's OLD. Recall that during the overwhelming majority of years during which Hollywood has enjoyed dominance the male acting lead was usually over the age of fifty. Think of the likes of Charlton Heston, Jimmy Stewart, Burt Lancaster etc. It's only recently that ages have drastically dropped.

I think the studios have made a critical error of judgement in thinking lead actors need to be just out of their teens. Han Solo/Indiana Jones were cool partly because they straddled the gulf between athletic youth and the wisdom of full maturity. Sure, characters such as Luke Skywalker were also cool. But to a child's eyes such as mine in 1977 he appeared childish and, well, whiny.

Kids don't fantasise about being young men. They want the full package.

I enjoyed it.

Although, after the prequels, Star Wars fans would grasp at anything remotely decent. Thought Abrams did a good job of getting the 'feeling' right of the original films which was lacking from the prequels. I grew-up with the originals so I was always going to enjoy this one...

They don't make films to match the stars of the past.

You need to fall out of love with me Stan. Your constant stalking is just embarrassing now. If I was into fellas I sure as hell wouldn't bother with old in-the-closet fantasists desperate for my attention.

Interesting definition of 'just' ... It was posted two months ago.

Time to curb the snide comments.