Hopeless version of the last Jedi.

Rating: 4/10 (26 December 2017)

The Last Jedi takes place a long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, and in an alternate reality. The main problem with the movie is the story line developed for Luke. In "The Force Awakens" it seemed out of place that Luke would simply leave everything and everyone behind. Still I thought that could be resolved in this movie. However after seeing Luke toss his old lightsaber aside then it became increasingly obvious he really didn't want to be found, but why?
Simply sensing darkness in his nephew Ben Solo would not have been enough to give him the impulse to ignite his lightsaber with the intent to kill. By that time being a seasoned Jedi Master, he would only have done that after something major like Ben killing the other students. Luke believed in the goodness that remained in his father that had committed far greater atrocities. Why wouldn't he believe he could save his nephew, or at least combat the new threat? While some Jedi can turn, dark characters can pop up from anywhere and the good guys are needed to stop them.
Even putting aside expectations on Luke, the second flaw in the movie is killing the main villain Snoke so early and easily. There was no explanation of where he came from and mainly how he turned Ben. Now Kylo is the main villain. However he was already defeated in the first movie by a self-trained Jedi, Rey.
That's another disappointing aspect of the movie. Luke hardly gave Rey any training. The movie wasted time on the pointless casino scene when it could it could have devoted that time showing more training between Luke and Rey or even Snoke and Ben. Instead the movie introduced two forgettable characters. Still somehow Rey was able to learn more and apparently became better than Luke. I guess the movie's message is that mentors aren't needed which completely breaks away from the spirit of Star Wars.
The last scene was good. I half expected Luke to show up in his x-wing to save the day but of course he couldn't. Instead he pulled of the greatest Jedi mind trick of all time and projected himself across a galaxy. With this illusion he was able to help the last of the resistance and sacrificed himself in the process. That was actually very Jedi-like.
Maybe the third movie can resolve some of these disappointments but it would be difficult.