I said a few weeks ago that Rogue One was the most fun movie for me to review. However, The Last Jedi is the movie that I have undoubtedly been looking forward to reviewing the most. With back-to-back home runs in The Force Awakens and Rogue One, it seemed as if Disney had really nailed down the ‘Star Wars’ formula. Fans were obsessed with the new ‘Star Wars’, and this obsession was intensified when the attention began to shift towards Episode VIII. We were about to see Rian Johnson, a genius sci-fi filmmaker, take over the reigns and produce what many anticipated to be the best ‘Star Wars’ movie yet. The release of the title made hairs stand up on people’s necks. The first teaser left people gasping for air. And the full trailer flat-out drove people to madness. The hype for this movie was insane, and many fans would say the finished product lived up to said hype, while many others would say it didn’t even come close. Rather than getting the best ‘Star Wars’ movie to date, we got, by far, the most polarizing one. Time to review.
Story: 9
This is going to make people angry. I love this story; it might be my favorite in the saga (which doesn’t mean it’s the best). The reason I love this story so much is because of the themes and morals it brings to the table. The biggest theme brought forth in this movie is failure. Every single main character in this movie fails. Rey fails to bring Luke back into the fight. She also fails in drawing Kylo away from the Dark Side of the Force. Finn fails to escape the fleet. He also fails in disabling the lightspeed tracker. Poe fails in his mutiny to save the Resistance, and Kylo fails in his attempt to end the Jedi and the war. All of this failure has a HUGE impact on the story, so much so that it does a “disservice to the plot” in many people’s eyes. Sure, lots of the subplots do end up going nowhere, but that’s the whole point. They result in failure because the movie, as a whole, is all about overcoming failure. This is most evidenced by the journey Luke Skywalker takes in the film. He failed miserably while training Ben Solo, and he is the main reason why Ben, ultimately, turned to the Dark Side. He lets this guilt take complete control of himself, as it casts him away to a deserted, unknown island for life. At the end of the film, however, he owns up to his shortcomings and decides to become the Luke Skywalker that the galaxy needs him to be. He overcomes his failures, as does everyone else. It’s very joyous to see.
Characters: 10
This is the most character development that we have ever seen in a ‘Star Wars’ movie. Ever. Rey needed her parents and lineage to define herself. Now she stands on her own, stronger than ever. Finn wanted to run away from the fight. Now he’s ready for the next battle. Poe was a cocky hotshot. Now he’s an experienced leader. Kylo wanted to follow the path of his ancestors. Now he wants to create his own destiny. And Luke wanted to let the Jedi die. Now he wants their legacy to live on. The catalyst of all this development is failure, which we obviously touched on before. We really get to see these characters struggle, and it’s these challenging situations that allow the characters to grow to such a significant degree.
Locations: 10
These locations are glorious. Even though the movie comes to a bit of a halt while we’re here, Canto Bight is such a phenomenal set piece. It’s the first time we’ve seen a casino planet, and it’s also the first time we’ve seen the richest individuals of the universe in one place altogether. Crait is another fantastic addition to the ‘Star Wars’ lore. I was, at first, worried that this planet would be too similar to Hoth (from The Empire Strikes Back). However, while there are still distinct parallels to be made, Crait manages to be its own planet with its own identity. The most visually appealing aspect of the planet is the red dust that catapults from the surface every time it is struck by a laser blast (or by the ski of a Ski Speeder). The white flats covered by the thin layer of bright red creates such an amazing image, which is why red and white were the two primary colors utilized in promoting the movie. The best planet, though, is hands down the planet of Ahch-To. It looked really cool when it was revealed at the end of The Force Awakens, but that was it. We knew almost nothing about it. Although, now that Rian Johnson has infused so much lore into the planet and has dug deep into so many different aspects of it, Ahch-To is a million times cooler. It also happens to be my favorite planet in the saga.
Crait
Humor: 7
This is the trickiest ‘Star Wars’ movie when it comes to humor. The original movies were funny. The prequels weren’t. Plain and simple. In this movie, every single joke worked. And there were a lot of jokes. The movie’s humor landed well with all audiences, but the reason I dock off points is because it is not traditional ‘Star Wars’ humor. ‘Star Wars’ humor has always derived from the characters and their interactions with one another. That’s why I thought the humor in The Force Awakens worked so well. The majority of the humor in this film, however, is situational (like this gag with the Porgs). As I said, all of the jokes are funny, but they just don’t always align with what we’ve seen from great ‘Star Wars’ humor in the past.
Score: 9
The score in this movie is interesting because there aren’t a whole lot of standout themes. The best one is probably “The Last Jedi” (yes, there is a theme with the same name as the movie). But this one took me a long time to think of, while it’s obvious for almost every other ‘Star Wars’ movie. The reason I give this film such a high score, though, is because it relates so well to the entire essence of the film. This movie is all about balancing the past and the future. John Williams, knowing this, managed to strike the balance between past themes and new themes, creating a perfect medley to accompany the movie, as a whole. I don’t think there is a ‘Star Wars’ score that is more apt for its movie than this one.
Pacing: 7
This might be the weakest part of the film. Rian Johnson creates a steady pace throughout the beginning of the film, but then the Canto Bight sequence comes along and brings the story to a halt, as mentioned above. Then we get back on track and build up to this huge action-packed climax. But then we still have 40 more minutes left in the movie, and these minutes are used to build up to a more emotional climax. It’s definitely interesting in the way it’s structured, but it doesn’t pay off as well as Johnson had hoped, I’m sure. It’s a 2.5-hour movie, and it definitely feels like 2.5 hours.
Dialogue: 8
The dialogue, for the most part, is phenomenal. There are a number of memorable lines; in fact, there are so many that it’s hard for me to compile them all into this post as examples. These scenes, though, are where the dialogue really shines—in these conversations between Luke and Rey. Where the movie falters in the dialogue category is very similar to where it falters with humor. There’s just some dialogue that takes me out of the ‘Star Wars’ universe. Whether it’s Poe calling a door “big-ass”, or Rose calling DJ a “snake”, or a police officer referring to a parking violation, it simply doesn’t fit in ‘Star Wars’. Overall, though, it’s pretty good.
Action: 9
The action is absurdly good. The opening space battle above D’Qar is a super impactful way to start off the story. The Battle of Crait is a super impactful way of ending the story. And the Praetorian Duel, paired with Holdo’s Sacrifice, provides a whole bunch of stellar action in the middle. Those two moments, actually, are two of the most breathtaking action sequences in the entire saga. Rian Johnson captures the action in such a riveting way, and it truly enhances the quality of the film.
Cinematography: 10
Speaking of Rian Johnson and his ability to capture stuff on camera…
He shines in this movie as a director. Some of the shots in this film are brilliant, mainly due to how much the colors pop on screen. On top of this, he’s able to capture the emotions of the actors in a very effective way. This is most evident by the Force Connection scenes between Rey and Kylo. Practically speaking, the way these scenes are shot is really simple. But that’s what makes these scenes so special. Because there are no gimmicks going on with the camera, you can fully focus on the raw performances of the actors.
Moments: 10
This is the main reason why this film ranks so highly for me. Are there parts of this movie that I don’t like? Absolutely. I am not a fan at all of BB-8 riding an AT-ST or Princess Leia floating through space. But the high-points of the movie far outweigh the low-points. And these highpoints are unbelievable moments in the grand scheme of the saga. We already discussed two with the Praetorian Duel and Holdo’s Sacrifice. But Yoda’s return as a Force Ghost, Leia’s reunion with Luke, and Luke’s Force Projection are all incredibly well-done, as they add on to the long line of great ‘Star Wars’ moments.
Overall Score: 88