A pleasantly unpredictable and mature spectacle.

Rating: 10/10 (19 January 2018)

I'm an old dinosaur who has seen all the original movies on their release in cinemas and still enjoyed the slightly disappointing prequels. Then this new trilogy came along and brought back the magic and nostalgia of the classic movies of my childhood. The Force Awakens was a fantastic introduction to our new characters and a great first chapter of an exciting new tale.
Now we have the second part of the story and boy, did it surprise me in a good way. The movie opens with a fantastic space battle that provides genuine tension and thrills. Then the story progresses into a desperate fight for survival for the Resistance who have been decimated with the loss of the republic and now only number a handful of ships and crew, relentlessly pursued by Kylo Ren's superior forces. I won't spoil anything but this movie throws many an unexpected twist and turn at you and the results weave a new and refreshing narrative which take the franchise into unexplored territory.
Mark Hamill is great as Luke and we get to see the result that those missing 30 years have had on the man and is dealt with in a mature and realistic way. In fact, all the cast put in great performances, including the newcomers. We get some answers but not all, and are left dangling with some other questions which I'm sure we'll get explained in the final part. The cinematography, scenery, lighting and special effects are all superb, however I am knocking a star off for some slightly suspect CGI in the casino planet section.
Highly recommended and great fun for all ages.