Most Grounded and Poignant Star Wars Movie

Rating: 10/10 (15 December 2017)

First, lots of negativity here guys, damn! Who hurt you?
Yes, it is long. But despite needing to pee during more than half of it, it didn't feel that way to me. The Last Jedi kept a lot of the lightheartedness from the Force Awakens but also gave it some depth.
This is really all about Rey and Kylo Ren. It's their connection and their shared struggles that ultimately make the film worth watching. I've never been an Adam Driver fan and I found Kylo Ren in the Force Awakens to be annoying and grating. That changes in the Last Jedi. He's still fundamentally the same character but he has layers. You can see the human underneath; conflicted and confused. His is the strongest performance in the movie. I also kind of loved the reveal that Rey's parents were nobody. We've all been speculating for ages about how Rey fits into this story...and the truth is that she doesn't. It's perfect really. It's a very human thing to want to feel special...to feel important. That's what Rey wants. Sometimes realizing that you're neither is a hard truth you learn as an adult. Though, in reality Rey is, in fact, special. It just has nothing to do with her parents.
A lot of people seem to be complaining about Snoke dying. I am not one of those people. I personally thought Snoke was the worst part of the Force Awakens. He was lame, lifeless and added nothing to the plot. Dr. Claw would have been a more nefarious foe. (yes I referenced Inspector Gadget...what are you going to do about it?) Some people apparently wanted to learn more about Snoke. Who was he? What was his background? How did he meet Kylo Ren? I just wanted him to die. At least one of us is happy.
Are there things I would change? Of course. As much as I lit up at the sight of Yoda I just couldn't take the scene seriously. It looked like a bad B movie. I also didn't love Kylo Ren flip flopping so quickly back to the dark side. However, I do understand that if he completely gave up villainhood we wouldn't have an antagonist for IX. I don't like Laura Dern being used as a red shirt. She's better than that. Rose kissing Finn was also a bit much. I can't tell whether they're trying to build a love triangle or just quash hopes for a Finn-Rey pairing. Finally, I wasn't a fan of the anticlimactic exit for Luke. He didn't need a violent death but just disappearing seemed like a poor finale for the heart of the series.
Overall there's way more to love about this movie than to criticize. Poe continues to be predictably awesome as does BB-8. The porgs alone should merit 5 stars (I'm only halfway joking because they're kind of amazing).