Porgs are cool. The Last Jedi is not.

Rating: 5/10 (14 December 2017)

Be aware - spoilers ahead.
Porgs are cool. The Last Jedi is not. It is very disappointing movie for somebody looking for answers to really anything Star Wars lore. It has some good moments but after The Force Awakens left viewers such a high-note with the return of the Luke Skywalker - I left feeling empty and wondering if they just should have left it all alone.
The legend of the rebellion and childhood hero for so many Luke Skywalker is a broken man who unfortunately has not learned too much in his time in exile. Something that really puzzles me here is that there are no new revelations about the force as one would expect, especially by somebody in exile with unlimited time, power and the potential to learn.
We're treated to a great performance by Mark Hamill but I wanted Luke Skywalker to be great. He is the hero of the Original Trilogy, by far the most revered and loved and he gets a moment, sure, but it merely serves as an opportunity to 'pass the torch' to the younger cast and it seems so contrived and obvious.
This is all made worse by the real-life passing of Carrie Fisher who plays Princess Leia who seems much more comfortable in her role than in The Force Awakens.
I must admit I had really high hopes for this film, for nostalgic reasons and as much as I really liked the characters in The Force Awakens it's the original characters who we all fell in love with and seeing them treated like this is - as means to simply pass the torch to younger actors is really disappointing. The Force Awakens did it right with Han Solo because it elevated Kylo Ren's villain status enormously.
The problem is that the Rey and Luke dynamic needed to be fleshed out way more. We needed more revelations about the true nature of the force, how it began, something new and we got nothing even though Luke has his hands on the first ever Jedi texts and scrolls, it seems like he hasn't read them because we get absolutely no real insight into what they say. How disappointing is that considering he is in exile? What else has he got to do? I found this totally, utterly frustrating beyond belief.
More wasted opportunities lie with some of the characters. Supreme Leader Snoke's characters 'moment' was a shocking but empty. We got no backstory and nothing clever to bind the saga together. He is literally just a 'bad guy' that just appears out of nowhere and corrupts young Ben Solo, aka Kylo Ren.
Captain Phasma is another throwaway character with nothing to do at all as is General Hux, who just provides comic relief and then there is Rey's parentage which becomes the ultimate disappointment in this story. Another aspect that just left me feeling empty and unsatisfied.
Oscar Isaac's ace pilot Poe Dameron is back and joined by Laura Dern playing newcomer Admiral Holdo. Their story is one of the best side stories that completely pays off. I loved Poe Dameron's energy and enthusiasm in this just like I loved Finn's in The Force Awakens.
Unfortunately Finn's journey is far less compelling now. He is joined by actress Kelly Marie Tran who plays Rose Tico and a friendship, possible romance ensues but it's all very cliche and nothing to write home about nor is the much hyped Canto Bight scenes which resemble something more out of a Harry Potter movie than Star Wars.
The other dynamic is Rey and Kylo Ren's relationship which does manage to keep you guessing for a time. Adam Driver and Daisy Ridley are again, really good in their respective roles but it's not enough to save the story from feeling like a lost opportunity to tie the Skywalker story (the Star Wars story we all fell in love with) together in a satisfying package.

I think Disney have tried to throw one too many curve balls and they're way off. I remember leaving The Force Awakens with so much optimism and I wish it were different but essentially I feel that there is nowhere else to go. We've left in the middle of the desert without a tank of gas at the conclusion of The Last Jedi.