The final nail in the coffin for the Skywalker Saga

Rating: 4/10 (28 October 2018)

The Last Jedi is the most divisive yet also, I believe, the most maligned Star Wars film ever made. The decisions that were made in this film range from questionable to completely incomprehensible (and I'm referring to both the decisions made by the characters and director Rian Johnson in this statement). Most of the defenders of the film seem to believe that because the film was not in line with the expectations of most fans, it is by default good. This line of thought makes no sense whatsoever and is simply an excuse to handwave away the many mistakes this movie makes.
I suppose I'll start with the characters. Not a single character in this film is compelling or likable in any way. It also appears that Rian Johnson is confused as to who the main character of this trilogy is. The last movie (which set up a poor foundation, to be fair) seemed to make it clear that Rey was the protagonist, yet Rian shoves her off to the side for the majority of the film and makes the entire plot revolve around nearly thirty year-old manchild Kylo Ren, the most overrated Star Wars character of all time. Rey's motivations are absolutely nonsensical -- why would she feel the need to help and see the good in some random guy that she saw murder his own father just a day prior?
Poe and Finn are also relegated to B (and arguably C) plots while new characters Rose and Holdo are only in the film to make Poe and Finn realize how stupid they are. The other two major Force users in the movie, Luke and Snoke are also extremely disappointing. Luke has been reduced to a miserable shell of his former self who wants to die. He did end up getting his wish at the end of the movie after he overexerted himself using the Force...something you can do now, apparently. Snoke was little more than a plot device to help bolster the status of Kylo, unfortunately, and acted like a bumbling fool throughout his middling screen time. Oh! and I almost forgot about Hux and Phasma. Thankfully, the movie did as well so no matter.
The Last Jedi's tone is jarring, sometimes approaching SNL levels of absurdity. Frequent gags are made in what I assumed were supposed to be tense moments. A now infamous scene between Finn and Rose at the end of the movie is followed by the comedically timed destruction of a Resistance base and I'm still not sure whether that was supposed to be funny or not. Other tonally inconsistent scenes include Leia's Superman-esque flight through space, Luke milking a cow, and BB-8 managing to fend off armed guards with a coin launcher. Truly, this film could not have had a better writer.
Though the film does indeed look pretty at times, I did find it to be a tad bland looking overall. I also found the cinematography, an aspect of the film praised by even its most fervent haters, to be downright awful. Awkward close-ups and angles on certain characters and over-the-top lens flare make it seem very out of place with the rest of the saga. I much prefer George Lucas' more documentary-like style. The Last Jedi also features the weakest score of the series, though it's really hard to fault John Williams -- the movie is too uninspired to create something as memorable as Duel of the Fates, Battle of the Heroes, The Imperial March, Across the Stars, or Binary Sunset from.
The Last Jedi is easily the worst Star Wars film ever made. I already knew something had gone wrong with The Force Awakens (the most blatant rehash of all time) but the complete disregard for established canon ranging from in-universe mechanics to the accomplishments of the characters on the part of Rian Johnson is simply staggering. Unless you want to see how hard the heroes of the original trilogy failed, only for a genocidal emo maniac and an overpowered nobody to be the ones to continue their legacy (while being shipped together, nonetheless), then you are better off considering Return of the Jedi the conclusion of the Skywalker Saga. I know that's what I'll be doing from now on.
My Rating: 4/10
(not an average of the categories below)
Characters: 4/10
Story: 4/10
Acting: 7/10
Score: 6/10
Visuals: 6/10