Rewatched for a discussion on “Aggressive Negotiations” on The Nerd Party!

I really struggle with whether it’s 3.5 stars or 4 stars. There’s so much good going on here, and it builds up so much goodwill with the new characters that I want to love this movie. But there are myriad plot missteps, and the big arc with Starkiller base is completely unnecessary to the story. You can tell it’s just inserted, because “we need a superweapon.” As a result, something that dominates the back half of the movie is maddeningly not even a real motivation for the characters’ actions - those remain and are strong. Starkiller Base is also a concept that would have been massively interesting developed over the course of several films, but then we’re splitting hairs.

There are some magnificently shot and choreographed moments and strong performances, and so...well, there you go. I guess it’s 3.5 stars but I don’t want it to be.