Quite disappointing, some reedeming qualities

Rating: 5/10 (2 January 2020)

I was never the biggest Star Wars fan, and I didn't really have such a big attachment to them when I was younger (~2007-2013). Let me make that clear. I have actually always found them rather average and overrated to be honest (even the original trilogy, unpopular opinion). What I do realise is that they are some of the most important movies ever made, and that they are basically millions of people's childhoods.
Therefore I find this movie and the sequel trilogy in general to be a huge respectless insult to the Star Wars fanbase. Star Wars was obviously always about telling a tale of good and evil; how the latter could rise in the prequels and how the former could return in the originals. What where the sequels about ? Who knows. The Force Awakens is no fantastic movie, but at least it could have had something going. What followed can be described as a game of chess between Johnson and Abrahms, each of them trying to counter the opponent's moves (plot points) with the Last Jedi and this one, the Rise of Skywalker.
The relation of the sequels to the rest of the movies in the Star Wars saga can be summarised like this; if the original trilogy and the prequels are a human body, the sequel trilogy is an extra mutated limb. It doesn't need to be there, nor should it.
On to the actual movie review.
The Rise of Skywalker is the worst Star Wars movie. The plot is scattered with holes and not very interesting, many new pointless characters, the acting is just bland (props to Driver although) and there is no soul to speak of. But worst of all; the comedy. It feels like something imported from Marvel, but not adjusted well enough to fit Star Wars. The result ? Disgusting. There are a few revelations, but nothing shocking nor anything that you couldn't see coming. I left the theater with the feeling that the movie was simply a checking of boxes on a checklist for the sake of fan service.
What I must give positive critique for are the visuals and the music. They truly did do an great job with the former, and some scenes are down right works of art. The crux is that the majority of large budget Hollywood movies these days look pretty similar to this one, so still nothing special. As for the music, John Williams is always a safe bet.
All in all, the Rise of Skywalker comes off as quite disappointing, with only some reedeming qualities. I do understand that it and the rest of the sequels had large boots to fill, but to quote Master Yoda;
"Do, or do not, there is no try."
5/10 stars