I don't get the hate

Rating: 8/10 (26 December 2017)

Let me establish my Star Wars cred first. I'm 56, I saw A New Hope when it came out in theaters when I was in high school and it was just known as Star Wars. I loved it so much I saw it another dozen times that year, back in the day when you had to actually pay to go back to the theater to see it again (I also had to carry my lunch to school in a pail and walk uphill both ways). This was several years before there were even VCRs. When we bought our first VCR, Star Wars was the first tape I bought. I've seen the original three movies (now episodes 4-6) dozens of times. For the record, I hated the so-called Episode 1, moderately disliked Episode 2, and grudgingly admitted that Episode 3 (Revenge of the Sith) was good.
So where were we. I honestly cannot understand why people are so upset about this movie. Maybe because I've never read a single Star Wars book so I don't know anything about how the characters were developed elsewhere than the films. Since I'm more or less the same age range as Luke and Leia, their development makes perfect sense to me. You don't get to middle age having had all triumphant plotlines. You've had your heart broken, you've had some failures, some disappointments. I've got my share of cynicism. I understand exactly how hard it is to bring yourself to hope again when you've disappointed yourself and the people around you. The way Luke was depicted in this film made perfect sense to me. And also, Mark Hamill has turned into a way better actor than he used to be.
I also don't understand why people are so upset that Kylo Ren might be unredeemable. First of all, this was only the second movie of a trilogy, so it remains to be seen what the final outcome will be. Secondly, how can you complain on the one hand that Force Awakens is just a re-hash of the old movies, and then complain in Last Jedi that something might be truly different? Maybe Kylo Ren isn't redeemable, and maybe that's a realistic plot twist that is something new and different.
And why the upset about Rey's parentage? There's the possibility that Kylo Ren was lying, but on the other hand, why does there always have to be a bloodline connection? I love that the force can be strong in someone who is a nobody (see the little boy at the end, too). And I love the ambiguity of the connection between Rey and Ben. The actors do such a great job of it. It makes the whole thing more poignant that she finally finds someone that she feels a deep, real connection with, but it turns out to be a connection she has to kill. This trilogy is really Rey's, and she is fabulous.
Yeah, Last Jedi is not a perfect movie. The whole Benecio del Toro subplot seemed pointless (although again, second movie of trilogy, that seemingly pointless subplot may become meaningful in the next installment). Yes, it's entirely possible that purple hair may become the new red shirt (to borrow a Star Trek tradition, sorry)--Holdo seemed to be introduced in this movie only so she could be killed off. Yeah, there was shaky physics and unnecessary marketable cute creatures, but those are long-time Star Wars traditions.
But on the other hand, this movie was in some ways the Star Wars movie I always wished they'd make. The characters are *complex* they're not just good guys and bad guys. The acknowledgement that Rey needed to learn about the dark side before she could understand herself fully, but that at some point, self-investigation becomes pointless navel gazing -- I thought that scene with the dozens of Reys was brilliant. And Finn might have a new romantic interest in Rose, leaving the possibility that Rey doesn't need a man at all at the end. Really, there's so much that can't be known until the next installment. But I loved this one, flaws and all. I saw it again last night, and liked it even better the second time, since, among other things, (minor spoiler alert) I could catch all the clues about Luke's location at the end. I'm really looking forward to the next one. Thank you Rian Johnson for a terrific installment.