Fun Standalone Film but Poor Conclusion to the Saga

Rating: 7/10 (14 April 2020)

Not many movies in history have had the hype of the 9th episode of the Star Wars saga. Perhaps that was part of problem. There was just no way this film was ever going to live up to that hype. Not only that, I would say it fell alarmingly short. This wasn't a conclusion. The story arcs didn't reach some sort of epic climax. JJ Abrams seems like he had so many ideas and tried to throw every one of them into his screenplay. While many of the scenes could have been special if they had a proper amount of buildup and time devoted to them, most of the 'big' moments felt rushed and empty. The movie wasn't awful, it just wasn't special and it needed to be. The plot holes were more like gaping wounds. I was left scratching my head a number of times during and even after the movie ended. This wasn't the ending that the Skywalker saga deserved.