Rey learns the ways of the Force from Luke Skywalker while
the Resistance struggles to escape the First Order fleet. ACTION/SCI-FI
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Star Wars Episode VIII:
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Let me preface this review by saying two things. One, there will be spoilers for this film, as I cannot express my thoughts on the film without referencing certain events. Two, The Last Jedi is the most disappointing film I've seen in theaters since Spider-Man 3. Episode VIII seems to be made by people with a blatant disdain for the franchise, as Rian Johnson was woefully unprepared to take on such a massive franchise, and it shows. The film is visually incredible, with the digital effects really standing out through massive space battles and impressive dream sequences. Unfortunately, this film has no plot and goes out of its way to avoid answering fans' biggest questions from The Force Awakens. By the end, I felt like two and a half hours had passed and there had been zero development in this franchise.
SPOILERS AHEAD FROM HERE ON! The character of Luke Skywalker has always been Star Wars' most celebrated hero, and his appearance in this film destroys his character's arc from Return of the Jedi and turns him into a coward. Mark Hamill does a decent job returning to the role, but his role in the film is minimal at best, as Rey's training with him lasts a whopping few days before she leaves to fulfill a mission he should be doing himself. While this decision is no doubt trying to mirror Luke's own training with Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back, the stakes are infinitely higher in this instance and Luke should've known better. That's nothing compared to the film's biggest sin, which is the sudden death of arch-villain Supreme Leader Snoke, who was built up to be this ultra-powerful force of darkness. With his murder by Kylo Ren, fans will be forever left in the dark as to his identity, motives, or what he did to form the First Order. It seems like a slap in the face to fans. Why bother introducing this ominous new bad guy if you're just going to kill him unceremoniously in favor of another character whose arc is now fractured? The Last Jedi features pointless subplots, extended cameos by Benicio Del Toro and Laura Dern disguised as important characters, and virtually zero evolution of characters and story. I understand the massive fan backlash, as I myself have been a Star Wars fan for as long as I can remember. This episode is easily the worst since Attack of the Clones and, for me at least, will serve as 2017's biggest disappointment. With next year's Solo: A Star Wars Story dealing with massive production problems, it's got me thinking that maybe The Force Awakens and Rogue One were flukes. Maybe the magic really is gone. Only time and Episode IX will tell. |
Well, I have to say, I wasn't expecting to be this disappointed. After waiting two years for questions to be answered and new ones to be raised, The Last Jedi goes out of its way to do absolutely none of that. Along with a story which goes seemingly nowhere in the span of roughly two and a half hours, and you have to recipe for the most disappointing film of the year. And I thought The Dark Tower was going to be the worst film I had to sit through this year.
I don't even know where to begin. Let's start with the fact that this film literally throws everything built up in the previous film within the opening ten minutes. What do I mean by literally, you ask? I'll tell you. Luke's lightsaber, which is a major plot point of The Force Awakens, is quickly thrown off to the side by Luke himself. Not only was this weird to see, it signifies everything that is to follow in this film. Speaking of Luke, the writing for this beloved character has got to be one of the worst things I've seen in recent memory. While Mark Hamill delivers a solid performance and I get why his character would be the way he is now, it still felt like a disservice to the character. None of the hope and optimism that has defined Luke Skywalker was apparent in The Last Jedi. The final thing that really bugged me, before I go on an extra long rant here, is the continued insistence to make Kylo Ren more of a whiny brat, and less of a menacing villain. Seriously, he's starting to rival Aanakin in terms of whining. I'm going to wrap this up before I get ahead of myself. The Last Jedi serves as one of the biggest disappointments in not just the year, but my movie going experience as a whole. A film which seems to go out of its way to kill off any excitement fans had for the return of one of science fiction's greatest movie series. While critics may be loving it, hopefully the fan backlash has Disney course correct for the final episode in this new trilogy. Only time will tell. |