​WARNING: This column is filled with spoilers...

Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi is a watershed moment for the 40-year old film franchise. Not only does the movie tear up the old playbook and take the general narrative in unexpected directions, it also includes many women in the very fabric of its tale – ensuring that this latest instalment is the closest the legendary film series has ever come to feminism. It is, ultimately, an imperfect attempt – but it tries a great deal harder than any of its predecessors – and in that effort lies excellent progress.

We all know that – until Star Wars: The Force Awakens arrived - one woman has been included in the fabric of the Star Wars tale. Princess Leia burst onto the screen in 1977...

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