A beautiful, humorous and magical Star Wars movie!

Rating: 8/10 (16 December 2017)

I've been a Star Wars fan since I was 7 years old, and I even remember seeing Empire and Jedi on the big screen as a kid. Yeah, I'm old. But, I'm a little shocked at so many haters of this movie, many of you have given a 2! A 2???? Seriously?
I've given The Last Jedi an 8. It's an epic and original Star Wars movie, with gorgeous cinematography and incredible music from the wonderful John Williams again. Rain Johnson has managed to expand the force mythology, inject some good ol' humour back into the saga, and throw in some wonderful surprises, that I believe, we all needed. It seems like many of you do not like change, or are not prepared to enjoy a Star Wars movie that takes risks. This movie takes huge risks; it dares to offer something fresh in a franchise that is over 40 years old. It also pays homage to the original trilogy in a beautiful and tasteful way. So, no, I do NOT understand the haters out there.
Nevertheless, it's not a perfect movie. There are some risks that Johnson takes, that will upset some fans, but some of those decisions have made me ponder the force in a new way. One of the main problems for me was the 'detour' from the main storyline with Finn and Rose. This storyline felt a bit sluggish, 'forced' and feels kind of shoehorned in there, and it also doesn't really serve the greater story-but then again, maybe it DOES. I will need to see it again to decide on this. There were also a handful of 'dumb' little moments, that I won't get into, and certainly at times I was reminded that Star Wars movies were originally made for children, and while we have our darker adult themes at work here (and even spiritual themes), there are also many magical moments for children. Maybe us 'grownups' need to stop taking it all so seriously and learn to be kids again?
For the most part, this is a solid, original and gorgeous Star Wars movie that I believe, makes The Force Awakens seem a little bland and unoriginal. Go and see it, it's the best Star Wars movie since Empire.