Good Sci-Fi movie... TERRIBLE Star Wars Movie!!!

Rating: 6/10 (27 December 2017)

If this movie didn't have Star Wars in the title, I would have given it a much higher rating. But it does, and with that comes the history of the movies before it.
The Good: The special effects are awesome. The scenes in the movies are excellent. John Williams score is fantastic. The acting is very good as well. Adam Driver is great throughout the movie as is Daisy Ridley.
The Bad: The writing and the story. The main issue I have is with the character of Luke Skywalker. (SPOILERS HERE) This is a character who questioned Han Solo in Episode IV when he was planning on taking his reward and leaving when things weren't finished and of course in Episode VI he risks his life because he sees a glimmer of hope left inside his father, to not only take on Darth Vade but the Emperor as well. Am I surprised he failed as a Jedi Master? No, of course not, he was trained by Obi-Won for a few hours and Yoda for a few months. Luke's failure is an obvious and natural way for the story to go. However, I cannot believe he would stand over his sleeping nephew, with his lightsaber ignited, because he had a passing thought about killing Ben because he sensed darkness in him. Not a new student mind you... his nephew, which he had known his whole life. And after Ben had turned into Kylo Ren, instead of Luke trying to turn Ben away from the Dark Side, he goes and hides on Ahch-to, and is waiting to die. I'm supposed to believe he went from hero to coward in a few years?! This is forced and unbelievable way for the story to progress.
Vice Admiral Holdo is a useless character and her story arc should have been Admiral Ackbar's. Ackbar, a hero from Episode VI, dies on the bridge when Leia ends up using her Jedi powers and Holdo, someone most viewers had never heard of, gets to die heroically at the end of the movie. This was a wasted opportunity, Ackbar, an established hero, dying here, would have meant more than Holdo, who the movie didn't even show could be a good leader, let alone dying a hero's death.
As a writer, when you take on a movie which is Episode VIII, you have a responsibility to remember what came before you in the story and add to it, not subtract from it.