I can’t believe I’m writing this, but The Last Jedi was a big disappointment for me. I saw it last night and it still hasn’t quite sunk in. After the triumphant return to the Star Wars universe with The Force Awakens, expectations for this were pretty high, and the trailers for this next episode didn’t disappoint either. More Rey! More Kylo! More Snoke! And Luke is back!!

It’s difficult for me to describe exactly where my problems with the movie lie. Very early on in the movie there is a very odd attempt at comedy which just didn’t sit right for me. Yes, there has always been moments of humour in Star Wars movies, but this is different. This comedy continues throughout the movie, with varying levels of success.

For two thirds of the movie I found myself slightly bored. Continuous changes of tone and none of the thrills or goosebump moments that I got when watching The Force Awakens. Even the return of Luke is an anti-climax and disappointment for such a huge chunk of the movie. And it is a long movie too, one which could have seriously benefited from a trimmed down run time.

All of this sounds a little harsh. I guess The Force Awakens was more of a nostalgia trip for me, and for many others too, but at some point you have to move on. The Last Jedi is all about doing away with the old to make way for the new, and there’s still a big old universe of characters and stories out there to explore. At the end of the day, this is still an enjoyable Star Wars movie, which I’ll hopefully appreciate more on repeat viewings.

Lee Boardman

Web developer by day, with a movie and TV watchlist that continues to grow as much as my spare time reduces! My favourite movie is Inception and, despite what everyone says, I do not have a man-crush on Tom Cruise.