Seth Hannum

The only thing that makes watchable what I hope is the final Star Wars movie is the onscreen talent and the--I'll say--competent direction. Once again, the endearing charisma of Daisy Ridley and John Boyega elevate thinly written characters, while the magnetic presence of Adam Driver truly carries this film and its messy, contrived, slipshod, stupid story on the shoulders of this trilogy's only realized character. While J.J. Abrams should never be allowed to write anything more than his name on the obscenely large, grossly undeserved checks from Bob Iger, he can and should, in most cases, be given a camera and a crew. There isn't a single moment in this film for any idea or beat to breathe. As soon as something nonsensical and dumb has started happening, something even more dumb has already taken over. The set pieces are unexpectedly flashy and well-constructed, but there's no emotional weight because, as in the prequels, I had no reason to care about anything that's happening. I had no interest in seeing this movie, and I did so purely because of the sunk cost fallacy. I was bored and confused and disappointed for 2 1/2 hours. I couldn't wait to get home and watch The Empire Strikes Back or play Knights of the Old Republic to wash the insufferable taste out of my mouth.