Ollie

The Force Awakens is, I think, a more polished and certainly better paced film.
 
This film is more ambitious, and much, much more visually striking, but also has some bad composite and CG shots, serious pacing issues throughout, and a lot of the characters don't feel nearly as compelling, which also extends to the level of their acting and dialogue: this includes all the baddies (Snoke, Hux, Phasma), DJ and, to some extent, Rose.
 
I also think a lot of the aesthetic of the set-design are a departure from the worn-down, "used" look of Star Wars, which The Force Awakens did adhere to, and more of a step in the glossy look of the prequels: namely, Canto Bight and Snoke's chambers.
 
I feel like Rian Johnson lacked restraint in terms of action and stakes (to the point that the film is already so climactic with the ramming of Snoke's ship that it feels like it could come to close, which it doesn't) and in terms of his attempts at surprising the audience: really, all you need is one surprising twist at the mid-point (Snoke's demise) and that's it. You don't need to completely subvert expectation in every single turn.
 
I enjoyed it well enough. But I do think people can't help but feel disappointed at what they hoped would be a truly outstanding film, and wasn't.

Jay excels at spreadsheets. 

I wouldn't be so harsh. The writing is very solid and competent, both in the action department and in the more lyrical passages. The quieter moments have some nice troubadour-like ornaments that I particularly like (apparently, Kamen wanted to do the whole score just on period instruments, but the filmmakers wanted a more traditional approach). Some nice oboe and flute solos in some sequences as well. Kamen wrote in a very "busy" fashion, with lots of notes, perhaps sometimes he went a tad too far in terms of thickness during some accompaniment scoring (nowadays this kind of writing would very much be jettisoned for being "too distracting"), but I sincerely prefer such a balls-to-the-wall approach than most of anemic atmospheric scoring that became the rule a few years later.

I've seen LOTS of good movies where the score made no impact on me whatsoever, or maybe I didn't even like, but I still loved the movie.  Some examples:  Memento, Gravity, Batman Begins, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Fincher), Prisoners, Ege of Tomorrow, Arrival, etc etc.
 
Likewise, there are plenty of great scores to films that aren't good at all (or films I've never seen).  Examples: Star Wars prequels, Batman & Robin, Spider-man 3, Signs, Krull, The Mummy Returns, Grand Piano, half the movies Jerry Goldsmith scored...

Giacchino will win for Episode IX

Just saw Coco and noticed Michael Giacchino has a cameo as the conductor at the Cruz Festival.

I hope so.

I'm 3 out of 4!

I miss @artyjeffrey

The first score is pleasant enough but there is hardly any worthy thematic material worth reprising. I mean, come on.
 
Karol

Say hello to Starkiller II.  They started building it during the events of TLJ.

I don't know. Given that he's going to be directing the third film, at this point I wish Abrams would have just done all three (and never thought I'd say that). I had my issues with TFA, but at least with one director Abrams would have been able to tell a cohesive story where each part builds on the next. As it is Johnson, in what I can only think is pure self-indulgence in service of his own artistic pretensions, completely reset the board, and Abrams will essentially be making a stand alone film.  
 
I don't have issues with Johnson wanting to take the films in a new direction, and even being subversive to what a Star Wars film is supposed to be.  I just don't think one of the Saga films was the place to do it.  We waited 30+ years to see Luke Skywalker in action again...and didn't.  And we'll never have that chance again, because it was simply sacrificed, along with a good part of the mythology, at the altar of a director's own vanity.  Johnson needs to realise that Star Wars is bigger than whatever his pet vision for the story was. 
 
And for letting him to do this, along with the Rogue One and Han Solo fiascos, I'm beginning to question if Kennedy is the right person to head up this franchise long term.
 
 

Actually I'd forgotten about Prisoner of Azkaban, a legitimately well made film. The best one.

What? The Potter movies are the definition of franchise adaptation pedestrianism, they're wholly unremarkable from beginning to end.

Nobody in my peer group would give enough of a shit to develop either strong feelings of 'love' or 'hate' for such a movie. But to each his/her own.
 
At this point, the movie ran already 15 minutes too long. 

Gia!

Poe: "I'll hold"
Hux: "Can he hear me?!?" 
 
Mega-cringe. Two minutes in.

Here’s an interview with Desplat where he mentions leaving Rogue One;
 
https://filmschoolrejects.com/composer-alexandre-desplat-choosing-luc-besson-star-wars/
 
 

Man of Steel is a good score

Who knows?
 
Even if he did it’s not going to change my opinion of how much I enjoy Rogue One. 

Here’s an interview with Desplat where he mentions leaving Rogue One;
 
https://filmschoolrejects.com/composer-alexandre-desplat-choosing-luc-besson-star-wars/
 
 

Gary Kurtz left as well. 

That's how it always starts, they're honoured and humbled. Then comes the running and screaming.

That would be rather funny. 
 
Rogue One End Credits roll, lights come on.......
 
Williams: “Kathleen dear, may we have a word in private?”
 
Williams gently removes his glasses, door slams shut, horrified Disney & Lucasfilm employees hear screaming, muffled words they only though possible in nightmares.....