Utterly Disappointing

Rating: 2/10 (28 January 2018)

Unfortunately, this movie fails: as a middle chapter in a trilogy, a standalone movie, and, finally, as a Star Wars movie. First: admittedly a huge Star Wars fan, I will remove this bias (just as the expert critics say they can do and that's what makes them experts and not us, apparently) to judge the film as both a standalone film and part of a trilogy.
As a standalone film, TLJ drastically lacks character development, cohesion, and pacing and is littered with plot holes, awkward humor, and a logic that 'lightspeeds' beyond the unexpected (which could be considered refreshing if achieved) and into a realm of contrived head scratch-inducing confusion.
I struggled to "feel" for any of the characters as old faces and new faces were thrown our way, nor care when one was disposed (and this happens quite frequently in this film). In fact, when one particularly annoying character performs an act (which could easy have been avoided) that could have had an enormous dramatic and emotional impact (at least it was quite the visual spectacle), I found myself muttering, "thank goodness that person is gone!"
The humor and pacing in TLJ are problematic. The director doesn't allow the film to ponder when it should (often such moments are when some of the awkward humor is tossed in to ruin the emotional impact) and slows down to a halt when it shouldn't (to show us the daily rituals of a particularly important 'character of old'). The final third of the movie could have had a handful of endings several of which may have been better closing points than the one the director chose.
What is astonishing about these issues is how they impact the fact that this film is part of a trilogy. More head-scratching. I felt a lack of cohesion between this installment with the previous film, TFA, where many character arcs and plot devices were jarringly altered or left by the roadside as the plot plods along like the famed OJ Simpson chase. To add, the TLJ did not leave me with an excitement or urgency to find out what happens in the trilogy's conclusion in 2 years. This is a very, very bad mistake in filmmaking indeed.
In the end, the bad guys aren't menacing - more so they are whiny and pathetic. Perhaps that's how they took over the galaxy - when they showed up, nobody took them seriously??? And there is absolutely no emotional connection to the good guys.
As a Star Wars movie (and now the fan in me is turned on, because, apparently to REALLY critique a movie one is supposed to throw away any links between the reviewed film and the trilogy, series, or canon to which it is attached) TLJ was painful to watch. With the "Star Wars" tag in place there is a world that exists that we have all grown to love and we fans (at least I) certainly do want that world to grow, to evolve, to remain *ahem* vital (as director RJ tweeted in a statement that induced equal amounts of head-scratching as the script of the movie) but it should do so from the scaffolding that has been developed over the last 40 years. Meaning, yea - I don't need another bloody Death Star, but please mind the characters, plots, and well-established laws of the galaxy. If there are no rules or logic to follow: a) it destroys any creativity and b) what's the point of making the movie part of a trilogy or canon? Make a new movie instead!
There is a reason Star Wars is huge and has remained so vital over the years - it is us fans- the ones who see these movies 3, 4, 5 or more times in theaters (at least not this time for me!), buy all the home releases and merchandise etc. Without us, Star Wars would not remain vital and this is where the director, RJ, is perhaps the most confused of all.