Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019), directed by JJ Abrams

What a hot mess this film is. The dead rise again and again and again, to the point that it’s almost a zombie movie. The parts that use outtakes of Carrie Fisher from previous films just don’t look right and the script has very obviously been tailored around them. There are few surprises, as most plot points are heavily telegraphed. It is just not possible to be carried away by the story as there are way too many eye-rolling ‘oh really’ moments, many involving how people get to places and how they survive the many, many crashes and shootouts. Daisy Ridley as Rey is the best thing about the film; she does her best with limited material. The end of the franchise really deserved better, but hopefully it is now finally dead and buried.

Annihilation (2018), directed by Alex Garland

Lena is a biologist, formerly in the Army, whose soldier husband went MIA while on a secret mission a year ago. She is depressed and isolated but continues with her academic career. A strange circumstance sees her investigating Kane's disappearance, along with a team of military scientists, who happen to all be women. Written by Alex Garland, with a stellar cast including Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Oscar Isaac, the film is somehow less than the sum of its parts. Portman is good as Lena; Isaac’s role is barely more than a cameo; and JJL’s performance as a detached psychologist is just odd. There are good things about it; there is a suitably creepy atmosphere, some gripping action and suspense. The flashbacks work well to reveal the reasons for Lena’s mindset. Some interesting, even intriguing concepts are introduced but not fully explored, possibly because it is based on the first book of a trilogy. But the tone is off. For a good portion of the film Portman and JJL speak in a monotone, which is clearly a deliberate directorial choice, but is irritating. Ostensibly a sci fi/horror flick, the film seems confused about what it’s really all about – is it actually an allegory for grief and redemption?

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017), directed by Rian Johnson

The latest episode of the Star Wars juggernaut is watchable good fun with a hokey plot. It picks up straight from the final scene of the previous film, on the spectacular jagged island. It’s all about Luke Skywalker and Mark Hamill is wonderful in the role. There are parallel stories of Rey’s interaction with Skywalker and the rebels under extreme pressure from Snoke and the First Order. It is both sad and lovely to see Carrie Fisher as the leader of the rebellion in what was presumably her last film. Adam Driver is more compelling in this outing, less like a spoilt brat as Ben Solo/ Ren Kylo, and his relationship with Rey is interesting. There are some nice smaller roles for some classy actors, especially Laura Dern, although Benicio Del Toro’s codebreaker was a caricature too reminiscent of something else. A plethora of strange creatures enliven proceedings, including some that are grotesque and some cute and funny, which will undoubtedly make for good merch sales. Some of the film was beautiful, some of it was funny, most of it was action-packed – none of it was transformative – and for that many millions in budget it should have been.