It's Star Wars, but it's inconsistent Star Wars.

Rating: 7/10 (15 December 2017)

Directed by Rian Johnson (who directed 2012's novel and sometimes brutal Sci-Fi epic "Looper"), "The Last Jedi" picks up just before where "The Force Awakens" finishes with a dramatic and action-packed recreation of a WW2 bombing mission, featuring Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac, "Ex Machina", "Inside Llewyn Davis") in fighter-pilot mode. With perhaps the exception of "Rogue One"'s finale, never has the heroism and loss of the plucky rebel band been better portrayed.
We then flip to that rocky (definitely not Irish!) island to see what happens when Rey (Daisy Ridley) gives the light sabre to Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill). The answer may surprise you. Rey, haunted by her quest to understand her powers and her parental lineage, is there to persuade the hermit-like Skywalker to reclaim his hero-status and return to fight for the rebellion. But that help had better come soon, since the evil supreme leader Snoke (Andy Serkis) and his henchman Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) are tracking and pursuing a rapidly dwindling number of rebel fighters, led by Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), in what could be the rebellion's last stand.
First and foremost, there's a lot of good things to like in this film. For a genre that's often eschewed strong female roles, here is a film where women use light sabres to smash through the Sci-Fi glass ceiling. Rey is an enormously strong role-model for young girls: intelligent, plucky and resourceful as well as being athletic, emotional and gorgeous. In the words of Whitney Houston, she IS every woman. But the XX chromosomes don't stop there, with a new heroine in the form of the low-tech Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) breathing some fresh air into the younger-hero dynamic with Finn (John Boyega). And notably, the key leaders of the rebel alliance - Leia and newcomer Vice Admimal Holdo (Jurassic Park's Laura Dern) are, as older women, both strong and unquestioned leaders of men.
All the acting is above par, with Hamill in particular having enormous fun with his role and Serkis as Snoke oozing evil even through his Mo-Cap CGI. There are some very funny one-liners and sight gags that enliven the action significantly without (I felt) ever going over the top into "Kingsman" territory: a brush of dirt off the shoulder by Hamill is a high-point to watch out for. Benicio del Toro ("Sicario") is also great value as a mercenary "darker Han Solo" character.
And acting is required, for there is some significant dramatic content delivered through the story. The conflict and animosity between the connected Rey and Ren - a sort of telepathic Facetime - has to be worked through and, with Carrie Fisher's untimely death, you could probably predict that there will be at least one high-profile exit from this episode.
Technically, the film excels. John Williams again delivers a rousing score, and at times has so many themes to play with from the eight main films that he hardly knows what to do with them all in the bars available! The film also delivers (from special effects coordinators Chris Corbould and Branko Repalust) some eye-widening CGI, especially for scenes set on "bloody salt flats" (there's no other way to describe them) being particularly impressive. There are moments of sheer cinematic joy, with a dramatic and devestating jump to light speed being visually and aurally one of the most gasp-inducing bits of cinema I will see this year.
Rather disappointingly though there seems to be little novelty shown in the edited department. Star Wars was always known for its clever scene transitions, but here we jump from location to location in a notably choppy and clunky manner.
Where the wheels come off though is with the story, also by Rian Johnson. More on this is in a spoiler section on my review site (since it's difficult to make spoiler-free comments), but enough to say at this point that the film is (unnecessarily) over-long, has a very inconsistent pace, and (with retrospect) some key aspects of the story just don't logically stand up to scrutiny.
So, did I enjoy this film? Yes I did. But did it fully meet my (high) expectations? No it didn't. And curiously, the more I have dwelt on the plot, the less satisfied I have become with it. Whereas I left the theatre with an 8* rating in mind, with reflection this has dropped (and might drop further)
(For the full graphical review - including a spoiler section discussion - please visit bob-the-moie-man.com)..