Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. First, let me say that I don’t get all the negative reviews. I liked it. Sure it doesn’t have the look and feel of the original series, it’s been 43 years. The actors, writers, and movie making craft has evolved over time. And well, Disney owns the property now and they have their own brand of story telling. It works for them, and it has, for a very long time.

Non-spoiler review: 4 out of 5 stars. Good acting, decent plot that hangs together well. Plenty of the kinds of special effects we’ve come to expect from the franchise. Yeah, some of the physics doesn’t check out, but that’s never stoped us from enjoying the story before and I certainly won’t hold it against them now. Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac do a good job with the material. Kelly Marie Tran takes more of a back seat in this episode, which I think was a mistake, but I’d be a bit gun shy too after the media hurricane that surrounded her after the last film.

Where it could have been told better: the pace is a little too quick. I would have enjoyed more time with the characters for a bit more depth and development. Also the cameos felt a bit shoehorned.