While successful, the Star Wars sequel trilogy seemed very divisive to many die-hard fans. Despite finding significant success criticality and financially. Many people found that Disney's new changes to the Star Wars franchise seemingly ruined what made the original trilogy so “special.” Now I know it is a big task to try and replicate the magic of what made an original film series so beloved. But changes are welcome as long as they come from a place of passion and understanding of what made Star Wars a cultural phenomenon. Regardless, the next film in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, The Last Jedi, was met with critical acclaim from critics but very divisive with audiences, so where do I see this movie compared to everyone else?
After the events of The Force Awakens, Rey (Daisy Ridley) finds Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) on planet Ahch-To and attempts to recruit him to rejoin the resistance and teach Rey the ways of the force. Meanwhile, the resistance led by Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) is fleeing the first order and traveling with recruits Poe (Oscar Issac) and Finn (John Boyega) to escape to a new planet. Meanwhile, Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) plans to find Rey using the force and is ordered to bring Rey to the first order’s leader Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis).
I’ll give credit where credit is due, the story in this film takes many chances that are either gonna tick off the standard Star Wars fan or enlighten them into the many twists and turns that make for an exciting adventure that takes place in a familiar universe. As for me, I admire the many different ideas this movie throws at the audience, and the narrative, for the most part, tries to not repeat too much from past Star Wars stories. Luke and Rey’s relationship is very well handled, and the action-packed Sci-fi adventure is enjoyable and thrilling. Although not everything is picture-perfect, some little nitpicks make this movie not as enjoyable as The Force Awakens. Random subplots and character arcs feel a little too forced and take away from Rey and Luke’s relationship's central conflict and the resistance trying to survive the first order. Some of them include Finn and Rose’s Relationship and Poe trying to convince Vice leader Admiral Holdo to change their plan of attack even though Holdo won’t listen. There is also a scene with Leia a little after the beginning that kinda left more questions than answers, and none of the characters ever seem to bring it up that much, which is weird. Although its kinda a step backward, the good stuff is excellent that even the minor issues can be forgiven even if they are noticeable
The Characters, both returning and new, are likable and interesting enough to suffice. Rey's character journey is well handled, and her relationship with Luke Skywalker is genuine and fully realized. Luke is played by the same actor who played him before, Mark Hamill. Some fans don’t like how they made him stubborn and reclusive, but honestly, it makes sense seeing as this is a much older version of Luke Skywalker than what we were used to in the original trilogy. Poe and Finn return and are decent enough, though their subplots with other characters could have been much more smoothed out. The droids don’t make too much of an impact as there is little time with them on screen, but they are just as fun to watch whenever they appear. Leia is once again played by the original actress, Carrie Fisher. She does a splendid job recreating her role. Even Kylo Ren is given more development than in the last movie, and her relationship with Rey is haunting yet intriguing. Some of the other new characters feel a little like throwaway ones, but most of the main characters seem to carry this movie quite well.
The Visuals are, of course, gonna look stunning as I would not expect anything less. Of Lucasfilm and their creative team. Many of the visuals go for a more gritty look as the colors are tinted, making for an environment of uncertainty. Although one of the colors this movie likes to push a lot is the color red, and it shows in scenes like when Rey attacks Kylo Ren in a big red room or the red sand being drifted out of the surface on planet Crait, the practical and CGI effects work side by side to create a fully realized world and the action, especially the lightsaber battles are well laid out and very thrilling. Space has never looked more beautiful, and the wonderful designs of the ships and the droids are definitely noteworthy. There are both old and new elements, but both work together to keep the audience enthralled in a space opera that will still manage to capture the imagination.
John Williams returns once more to score The Last Jedi. Even though most of his tracks mainly focus on popular tracks from previous star wars movies, there are plenty of new music tracks with booming choirs and orchestrations that are very good, even if they aren’t super memorable.
I agree that The Last Jedi is not a perfect Star Wars movie and is a slight step backward compared to The Force Awakens. However, the good stuff is too good to be ignored, from the excellent relationship with Rey and Luke Skywalker, the outstanding visuals, and John Willams's music score. There definitely are some narrative problems that will not satisfy the hard-core fans. However, this is still a well-constructed movie that may not be the most fantastic Star Wars movie, but is still a mostly satisfying experience that builds upon its predecessor and adds many entertaining bits that, in the end, make this movie a decently-crafted Sci-fi flick.
(Final Grade: B)