Starring: Daisy Ridley, Mark Hamill, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Carrie Fisher, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Laura Dern, Gwendoline Christie, Benicio Del Toro, and a whole bunch of Porgs
Synopsis: While Rey seeks to lure Jedi Master Luke Skywalker out of exile, the Resistance is on the run from the might of the First Order.
Everything in this review will be a spoiler. If you haven't seen
The Last Jedi yet, stop reading. Granted, as late as this review is, you probably have already seen it.
It's been a month now since I saw the movie. During that time I've mulled over how best to write my thoughts on a film that I initially enjoyed but have plenty of qualms with. I don't consider myself an avid
Star Wars fan. I wasn't counting down the days till the film's release. But I'm enough of a fan to know quite a bit about the films. And apparently, I'm enough of a fan to feel very strongly about certain aspects of the film and where the franchise is headed.
In some ways, the entire film can be summed up in one gesture: Luke Skywalker tossing his old lightsaber over his shoulder and over the cliff.
That's what this movie has to say about all the dramatic fan theories and expectations: "Whatever. Moving on." There's something very cavalier about
The Last Jedi, in its humor and in its place within the saga. I'm not fully on board with that.
After much thought, the simplest way to analyze
The Last Jedi is by character. So here goes:
Porgs: Yup, they are pretty cute and amusing. I was entertained by them. They came close to being overdone, but never passed that point for me.
Droids: Yes, I'm going to lump all of them. It's not
Star Wars without C-3PO, but I'm glad his part was limited and poked fun at his worrisome nature. BB-9E was apparently just a marketing ploy to sell more toys as it has almost no role in the movie itself. R2-D2 wasn't in nearly enough scenes but has one of the best moments when he plays the message that started it all: "Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope." As for BB-8, he is as adorable as ever and the only redeeming feature of that storyline.
Lando and Wedge: Could we
please find out what became of them?
Poe Dameron: I really liked Poe in
The Force Awakens. I no longer like him. He's kind of an arrogant, insubordinate jerk for most of the movie. In doing so, he gets lots of people killed and loses all the Resistance's bombers. Leia was right to demote him. Holdo probably should have told him a bit more for the sake of morale. But overall, I was left with a distaste for his character. I hope he manages to have some sort of character growth in the next film.
Vice Admiral Holdo: I liked her character overall. But I don't think they handled her very well. As mentioned above, she probably should have been more open. Not because Poe deserved to know more after his actions and demotion, but because it would have promoted better morale and maybe prevented a senseless mutiny. I did like her simple farewell scene with Leia. It felt genuine. But what's with movies lately having to have someone "go down with the ship"? I can sign off on that to some degree, but what was most irksome was just how long it took her to figure out to go kamikaze. She
knew she was going to die. She could have saved a number of ships and lives if she had
immediately turned and gone lightspeed. It's an incredible scene ... that took too long in coming.
General Leia: Why did she survive the film? Carrie Fisher has sadly passed on. There is no good way for them to deal with that fact come Episode IX. She should have died, either when the bridge was destroyed and she almost did die or in passing the baton to Holdo and being the one to go down with the ship. Yes, her scene at the end with Luke was nice. But I just can't see how they'll resolve her character in the next film. Princess Leia deserves better than an offscreen death. And her "skywalking" moment in space was rather awkward. When did she become that powerful with the Force? And if she's that powerful, why couldn't she do other things?
Maz Kanata: I still don't get why this character exists other than as a plot device when convenient. In
The Force Awakens she's a friend/acquaintance of Han Solo. Did Finn really interact with her enough that he can now put her on speed dial to get the name of a codebreaker? And what kind of a resistance are they if they don't employ -- or at least know -- their own codebreakers? There was no purpose for her inclusion in the film.
Finn: I kinda wish Finn had stayed in a coma the entire film. His storyline to turn off the tracker was forced, awkward, and ultimately futile. The plot point itself was never adequately explained. They say it's impossible to track through hyperspace, but the First Order is doing it anyway. No explanation is ever given. That's just what worked in the script. What bothers me about Finn is that he could be so much more. He ends up being a rather flat character with cliched, sometimes eye-roll worthy dialogue. He was raised to be a stormtrooper. He has no family and was essentially brainwashed from childhood. He could be such an intriguing character with all sorts of psychological baggage and a rich character arc. But he's more comic relief it feels like. And did we really need a love triangle with him, Rey, and Rose?
Rose: Meh. If she were just some side character, she'd be fine. But she becomes one of the main characters in
Star Wars. This is the franchise with Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Darth Vader. This is not the franchise for "meh." Yes, she was likable enough and did quite a few helpful things. But every single character in
Rogue One was more interesting and engaging than she was. And her sudden love story with Finn at the end was just awkward, especially when she apparently dies but then doesn't.
Captain Phasma: A big deal was made about Gwendoline Christie landing a roll that was originally intended to go to a man. So you'd think they'd then do more with the character. She's scarcely in this film. Her role is entirely cliche. Her final battle with Finn is riddled with groan-worthy lines of dialogue. And that's it. She's dead. They could have done so much more with her and her vendetta against Finn. It would have improved
both characters. I had been hoping to see more of her in Episode IX. So much for that. Also, why is she the
only stormtrooper with blast-proof armor?
DJ: If he could easily get out, why was DJ in that cell to begin with? As a character, DJ otherwise works. He represents the grey areas of the galaxy. Not everyone is going to join the Resistance or march to the drum of the First Order. Some people are only interested in self-preservation. Del Toro does a good job portraying the amoral codebreaker.
Snoke: Who is Supreme Leader Snoke? How did he rise to power after the fall of the Empire? How did he get so strong in the Force if he isn't a Sith? How did he get such powerful control over Kylo Ren? If he's so powerful that he can manipulate Kylo Ren and Rey from across the galaxy, then why can't he see the truth about Kylo Ren's intent at the end? If Snoke can connect Rey to Kylo, how come he can't also tell where she -- and thus Luke Skywalker -- is located? What happened to his face? It seems likely we may never know the answers to those questions as the Supreme Leader's reign was (literally) cut short. Maybe Episode IX will reveal more of Kylo Ren's backstory ... but I'm not going to hold my breath.
General Hux: I would like to know how someone so young rose so quickly within the First Order. Was it simply because Snoke recognized he'd be the perfect puppet?
Chewbacca: He didn't have much to do in the film, though I did like him tearing off the door so Rey could talk to Luke. It's always nice to see Chewie. His scenes with the porgs were a bit twee, but tolerable.
Kylo Ren: Kylo Ren (aka Ben Solo) proves to be the most interesting character in
The Last Jedi. He's still never going to be as cool as Darth Vader, and I liked how the film has him stop trying. He's his own character with his own demons. He was able to kill his father, but stopped short of killing his mother. He seeks for power, and ultimately gets it, but doesn't seem entirely sure what to do with it. He wants to prove himself, but to whom? His father? His mother? Snoke? I enjoyed his connection with Rey and their tug-of-war first of wills then literally of the lightsaber. Their scenes echoed Luke and Darth Vader's from
Return of the Jedi. Even the outcome starts off the same, with Kylo turning on his master to save Rey. But then Kylo decides to fully embrace the Dark Side. One of the most intriguing things about Kylo is how young he really is. That leaves lots of room for his character to grow and even change in Episode IX. I look forward to seeing what he does now that he is in command.
Rey: I might be in the minority here, but I'm glad Rey is a "nobody." Before the Skywalkers, there weren't really Jedi generations. The Jedi were celibate. That then meant that new padawans came from wherever. They came from any family where the Force was strong. They didn't have to be related to anybody else in the Jedi order. In all likelihood they weren't related to anyone else. Rey gets back to that. The Force is strong with
her, not because of any birthright. As for her role in the film, I enjoyed it. I enjoyed her growth and her seeking to understand her role in everything. I liked her interactions with Kylo and how complicated they were. I like how strong she becomes by the end. And I was amused that she never could do right by the Jedi fish nuns (or whatever they were called.)
Yoda: Yes! Seeing Yoda again warmed my heart. Every second of his scene with Luke is terrific. His familiar quirkiness made me happy. Pretty much every line he says is perfect, but especially his line about how Rey already has all she needs (since he knows she smuggled the ancient Jedi texts away). Thank you for including Yoda. Best scene in the movie.
Luke Skywalker: Yes, I saved the most controversial for last. That's
not Luke Skywalker. He was an interesting, layered character who had a good arc and an awesome/epic finish that I really enjoyed. But that's not Luke, not the Luke I grew up with in the original trilogy. Yes, a lot can happen over that many years. It's perhaps not even that Luke
couldn't have become that grouchy, defeatist hermit. But that's not the Luke I knew. Luke's character arc in the original movies culminates with his famous line in
Return of the Jedi: "I am a Jedi, like my father before me." That is who Luke has become. That is the trajectory we leave him on. He knows the Jedi aren't perfect. But he has chosen that path and will do his best. In spite of everything, he still sees the good in his father, who has embraced the Dark Side for decades.
That Luke wouldn't have so readily given up on Ben Solo.
That Luke wouldn't have turned his back on his sister and the rebellion/resistance he had so long fought for and been willing to die for.
[I saw a meme that compared Luke in this film to Ben Kenobi in
A New Hope, saying that running away and hiding is the Jedi way. Not so. Ben isn't simply in hiding. He's watching over Luke, biding his time until the boy is ready. And the
moment Obi-Wan receives Princess Leia's distress call, he grabs his lightsaber and is ready to go to her aid, with or without Luke.]
Honestly, I had the same general reaction to Han Solo in the last film. He was likable and had a good arc and a fitting finish, but he never felt like Han Solo to me. For Han to turn his back on the woman he loved and the rebellion he had learned to dedicate his life to and change his ways for felt like a let down. Why must the new films be so disillusioned about the heroes of the original trilogy that they basically take all of them back to square one as we first found them in
A New Hope?
As a final note,
Rogue One is, in my opinion, the best
Star Wars movie.
That film knew how to tell a story about rebel fighters in a way that made us care about the characters ... even when we knew they were likely doomed.
That film still gives me hope for where
Star Wars is headed in the years to come.
I still have mixed feelings about
The Last Jedi. In some respects it was awesome and epic. I had a blast watching it. But in other regards it was a mess and a letdown. I was impatient for things to get going again. Perhaps my opinion of this movie will change once the trilogy is complete with Episode IX. Although I really don't know where that film has left to go. They've set it up to be a new beginning, not a conclusion.
Those are my thoughts/opinions. Feel free to disagree.
