It's clear that this is one of the more divisive SW films. People that loved TFA were a little more lukewarm or even disliked this one. People that were unsatisfied by TFA were more won over by R1.
I'd say that this movie is more of a treat for those diehard fans of Empire Strikes Back. Being the darkest and most mature of the SW films prior to this, R1 brought a lot of similarities.
Some people prefer their SW to be 'feel good', lighthearted and fun with likeable/loveable characters, and probably appreciated the Disney touch that was brought to TFA. I don't think these characters were necessarily meant to be as likeable, though. And this movie was very un-Disney for having the label on it. It focused very much on the brutality of the Empire.
This was I think meant to be strictly a war film, set in the universe of Star Wars. Not a film about jedi/sith. I mean just look at all the military text captions when moving from location to location. The subtle hints are there.
As a poster had discussed in another forum about the film, and I agree, I think the movie characters are meant to be relatively undeveloped, because it's supposed to be about the "faceless soldiers" that make a sacrifice for the greater good. If R1's characters had the same depth and likeability as characters in the main saga, people would expect their names and sacrifices to be discussed in the following films with more importance, and it would be an even darker film with them all giving their lives (perhaps too dark). The point is this was the story about disposable soldiers that were forgotten in the war, who gave their lives for something bigger than themselves, which I think that parallels with war in real life and the sacrifices soldiers make. And I think that was meaningful in its own right.
With that in mind, I could appreciate the movie much more.
All that aside, I think R1 despite having less meat on its characters still managed to have more intensity and maintain a feeling of higher stakes and better action sequences that were fun to watch, and that's impressive. TFA's battles felt more hollow and without substance, despite an entire star system being at risk. I just didn't feel the weight/importance of that battle. Maybe because the characters were cracking jokes when there was supposed to be suspense? I dunno, that part of the film sort of rubbed me the wrong way. I'd argue the "fan services" were better done in R1 too, because of all the subtle details that brought the OT universe to life again, and the cameos fit into the story nicely, as opposed to being shoved in the viewer's face purposely (In a "See? Look we just did that!" sort of way). I appreciated how nonchalant R1 was about that.
I love the Saga characters more, hands down, but this story was more original, and more satisfying..maybe due to it being all encapsulating to one film. Props to Disney and the writers for killing off the entire squad. That was bold, and it gave the movie an emotional payoff.
Really good movie, IMO. The fan in me is giddy.
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