Rey Mysterious

Rating: 6/10 (9 January 2020)

Ahead of watching Episode IX at the cinema, I decided to rewatch the previous two film from this trilogy as preparation. Interestingly, I found that though my recollection of this film was that I enjoyed it, and that it was still the case, it does feel like a basic retread of the formula from the original trilogy.
Rey (Daisy Ridley) a scavenger on the desert planet Jakku, and Finn (John Boyega) a deserting Stormtrooper, escape the planet on an abandoned Millennium Falcon with a plan to return a droid, BB-8, to his rightful place in the Resistance. Though the Empire fell, the First Order rose in their place (and with their clothes) led by a Sith Lord, Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and his mysterious master, Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis).
Technically, the films marvellous. CGI is second to none, the scope of the planets, the backdrops of the destroyed Star Destroyers. I like all the performances, and all the new characters (with perhaps the exception of Maz Kanata who I don't feel was an interesting design or necessary to have as a motion capture character - I'd rather have just seen Lupita Nyong'o on screen).
I mean, it's a film that I like, rather than love. It's a nostalgic bump of childhood, solid but not exceptional. Its conclusion is almost identical to the end of "Return of the Jedi". It has a painful sacrifice, like "A New Hope". It has a gun capable of destroying world, a droid with vital information in it. I feel, especially having watched Episode VIII again too, like it's disappointingly unwilling to do anything new with the universe at its disposal - so we're left with a film that's consistently OK, but never great.