['Hamas' Jenkins]

We ran into some people we knew who were leaving as we were waiting in line, and they were gushing that it was the best one they'd seen.

After leaving the theater and having some time to digest it, I don't agree with that assessment at all. It was fine, and certainly better than the prequels, but there are a lot of things that either fell flat or made no sense to me:

Why spend the entire first film with the audience knowing Snoke is the Supreme Commander, give him the standard bad guy, "I fooled you all" speech, and then kill him off? Where did he come from? Who trained him? They turned a compelling character into General Grievous.

If Leia can preserve herself from death in the vacuum of space and propel herself back into the bridge of the ship, why can't she move some rocks that are in her way?

Why did they modulate Kylo Ren's voice through the first half of the movie, even when he was next to Rey and not a force projection, and then have his normal speaking voice over the latter portion?

Why was everyone on the verge of tears, or crying throughout the entirety of the film?

Star Wars has always had clunky humor, but a lot of the humor in this movie was too forced, IMO, and borderline inappropriate for the tension of certain situations. Snoke tapping Rey on the head with the lightsaber when she tried to pull it, and her comments about shirtless Kylo during one of their mental encounters took me out of the scene, as well as his "They were nothing...nothing," line.

Also, I don't think Adam Driver is a compelling antagonist at all. He's overacting the entire time, trying to over-emote with a shaking visage and tear-filled eyes. I don't
think his performance was much better than Hayden Christensen.

Maybe this is my nostalgia speaking, but I don't think that every old character has to die in the new series. I spent the entire last sequence thinking, "Please, don't kill Luke Skywalker." Is the story harmed by having him merely exhausted after the force projection? Obviously, he can still exist in future installments as a force ghost, like Yoda, but I think his corporeal form had more to offer for the next film.