Fans of old and new to the Star Wars franchise can come together to see the next installment of the long awaited trilogy; “The Last Jedi.” In the last movie, “The Force Awakens,” viewers were left off on a cliffhanger as to what’s next for the Resistance and what’s next for our protagonist, Rey (Daisy Ridley), who finally comes face to face with the fabled Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill). This sequel gave us answers in the form of another journey, allowing us to learn more about the characters we learned to love in the first movie, and meet new ones. However, there were ups and downs that made the film hard to watch at some points and left me unable to look away at others.

The film, while visually beautiful, almost made me cringe at certain supposedly humorous moments. I never find humor unwelcoming in the Star Wars franchise, but for some reason I couldn’t help but feel as if there was so much that was awkwardly placed, out of character, or unnecessary. If Jar Jar Binks came out of nowhere for this movie then of course I would expect many humorous antics from him. However, characters that I thought I knew pretty well from the last film turned out to be a little less serious than expected. Even one scene that should have been a big battle between the First Order and Resistance had me going “uh are they really doing this?” in a very unlikely confrontation that was supposed to be funny. It was just so unrealistic (I know, ironic for the sci-fi movie Star Wars) but it just didn’t really fit with the atmosphere.

While this movie would look like it’s a bit slow and unremarkable plot wise in comparison to the first movie in this trilogy, the writing and the characters is what keeps it good. Though there wasn’t as many of the exciting and cool arial fight scenes between the Resistance and the First Order, that wasn’t what was the most important aspect of the film. In “The Last Jedi”, we get to find out more about the internal flaws and strengths of each individual character; what really makes them who they are. We find out more about Rey and her growth as she learns more about the force and what type of person Luke became after all this time. Most importantly, we find out more of the history of Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and what led him to become who he is. It’s all so intriguing and eye opening that even the lack of stormtrooper blasting their guns or lightsabers being thrown around doesn’t stop this movie from keeping all on their toes.

The film definitely has more on the positive side than the opposite. Beautifully done scenes, a good amount of action, pure wholesome character growth, and the emotional connection audiences are able to have with them is what made this one of the best Star War films to date. Though it wasn’t perfect, the film overall has wonderful perks that will kept the series’ long train of captivating and loved movies alive.