Twelve films for Christmas, or at least ones I associate with the Holidays, listed between now and through the New Year. I had originally hoped to complete this list for Christmas Day, but a family emergency changed that plan. These are not in any particular order.

Day 2: Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi (2017 dir. Rian Johnson)

Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi is one of the best chapters in the Star War saga, second only to The Empire Strikes Back. Watching it the first time I was reminded of Sam Mendes’ James Bond film Skyfall and how it took a long-established franchise in a different but ultimately rewarding direction. What Johnson and his team get away with here is so deeply psychological, dealing with trauma and motives, I call it a wild act of bravery for the studio to even allow this story to unfold as it does. It is a remarkably emotional experience.

After destroying the First Order’s Starkiller Base at the end of the The Force Awakens, the Resistance evacuates their headquarters, retreating from the persistent pursuing enemy. Having located Luke Skywalker (Mark Hammil), Rey (Daisy Ridley) attempts to convince him to not only reconnect with the force but also train her in its ways in order to help her defeat Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis). More than any other chapter, this Star Wars film is a direct sequel, picking up right where the previous film ended.

The film concerns itself with discordant generational history, accepting the past how it actually was while hopefully not destroying it. The mystery surrounding Ren’s origin works as a template for this approach, exercising a Rashomon-like approach to finding possible truth and exacting justice for the remembrance of things past. Much of the conflict revolves around finding middle ground for explaining why things are the way they are and the different viewpoints that ultimately do not match and cannot compromise.

At the center of this war of history is Luke Skywalker. Expectations about who is he and what he stands for further deepen his dramatic arc in this story because where he is emotionally and what he does are completely unexpected. Mark Hammil’s performance is absolute perfection. In a better reality it would have been Oscar-worthy. The trauma creased into his face and the anguish he allows the audience to witness are also brave choices. He is not afraid to go where the director needs him to go in order to build tension for the film’s climactic confrontation between him and Kylo Ren.

It is unfortunate that The Rise of Skywalker, Episode IX, did not chose to build further upon what Johnson constructed here. Moments like the tender exchange between Luke and Leia (Carrie Fisher) do not exist in that next chapter. Here Luke, finally determined to confront the past embodied by Kylo Ren, makes amends with his sister while also clearly stating her son, Ren, cannot be saved. These actors have worked together for decades and so much emotion becomes clear with simply words and meaningful looks.

It is a beautiful, heartfelt, world-building film, expanding on what came before and giving promise to what might come next. What a gift this movie is.