December 15th, 2017, 01:52 AM
There is a lot to like about this movie. I should stop right there, you know. It's just so much more satisfying than "The Force Awakens". I don't want to sound like I am totally down on J.J. Abrams. I was not thrilled with that movie but he had to do a lot of setup and that weakened his freedom to settle into the story.
Some of the questions raised in "The Force Awakens" are answered in "The Last Jedi". Not all of them. Some questions will, I think, be left unanswered even after the third movie comes out.
We get to see a lot of action, including Force user fighting like you have never seen before. I thought we had seen some incredible Force fighting in "The Phantom Menace" and "Attack of the Clones", but Rian Johnson surpasses all that with his well-choreographed action sequences. And just when you think you have seen it all, he surprises you.
This whole movie is one stage-changing surprise after another. It feels that way even though there are probably only a handful of unexpected turns in the plot and character development.
Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) turns out to be everything you hoped he would be, in a surprising way. His screen time starts out a little slow but the pace picks up. And it's a necessary slowness because he has to give Rey (Daisy Ridley) time to kind of grow up.
General Leia (Carrie Fisher) gets to be amazing in her own special way. I wondered how Carrie's passing would affect the trilogy, since she had not filmed any scenes for the third movie. Thankfully they can say good-bye to her in a graceful way. There is a kind of "out" available for the next movie.
Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and Finn (John Boyega) light up the screen with brilliant performances. Isaac gets to take Dameron in a whole new direction. For a character that was supposed to be killed off early in the first movie, he packs a huge emotional punch throughout the story. Rian uses him to cleverly lead the audience through an intricate series of scenes. It's hard to describe what Dameron is up to without spoiling the movie. I think most people will be satisfied with how he progresses.
Adam Driver (Ben Solo / Kylo Ren) comes into his own. He is not as petulant as he was in the first movie. I don't know if it's Driver's acting, Rian's writing, or a mix of both but you can look back on a few scenes and think, "Hm..." This was the execution I was hoping for in "The Force Awakens". Ben is a flawed villain. The formulaic flawed villain never achieves anything. Ben Solo achieves things, but his work is not perfect. We're getting to see a villain grow in a way that George Lucas could not show us with Anakin Skywalker.
Andy Serkis steps out of the hologram and into the main action as Supreme Leader Snoke in this film. I think people will be very pleased with his performance as the ultimately evil creature whose command of the Dark Side of the Force makes even Darth Sideous look a bit weak. I think Snoke must have been snickering at the way the Sith squandered their opportunities.
Domnhall Gleeson (General Hux) rides the crest of the wave he started in the first movie. He's just the smarmy kind of villain you love to hate. You'll forget you're looking at Bill Weasley, to be sure.
Overall there is a good mix of humor and tension throughout the movie. The gags are perfectly set up and even though you should be expecting humor it's delivered in a smooth, comfortable way. It's like everyone was rehearsing the play for six months before opening night and they nailed their lines.
The plot is about as complicated as you can imagine. With a large ensemble cast everyone has to play a meaningful part or you start to ask why so-and-so is in the film. I never found myself asking that of any of these characters. Even the most minor characters all have meaningful parts. In fact, we get to enjoy some continuity with some minor characters you don't normally see in ensemble stories, except when they are used for "misery gags" (where bad things keep happening to the same background people).
You'll find action, interesting new worlds, and even some reflective time. The new characters all bring some depth to their parts of the story, which is no small feat given just how much ground Rian Johnson's screenplay has to cover. I know some people wonder why the movie is so long (2-1/2 hours) but it really needs all that screen time. I suspect the Director's Cut will run to about 3 hours if not longer.
I give this movie a STRONG RECOMMEND. It's the best "Star Wars" movie I have seen since "The Phantom Menace". It changes a few things around but we expected that when Disney announced they were leaving the Expanded Universe behind. I don't think people will be unhappy.
Ultimately, I think Rian Johnson is the right guy to develop another Star Wars trilogy. I am looking forward to Chapter IX and to the new trilogy as well.
Some of the questions raised in "The Force Awakens" are answered in "The Last Jedi". Not all of them. Some questions will, I think, be left unanswered even after the third movie comes out.
We get to see a lot of action, including Force user fighting like you have never seen before. I thought we had seen some incredible Force fighting in "The Phantom Menace" and "Attack of the Clones", but Rian Johnson surpasses all that with his well-choreographed action sequences. And just when you think you have seen it all, he surprises you.
This whole movie is one stage-changing surprise after another. It feels that way even though there are probably only a handful of unexpected turns in the plot and character development.
Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) turns out to be everything you hoped he would be, in a surprising way. His screen time starts out a little slow but the pace picks up. And it's a necessary slowness because he has to give Rey (Daisy Ridley) time to kind of grow up.
General Leia (Carrie Fisher) gets to be amazing in her own special way. I wondered how Carrie's passing would affect the trilogy, since she had not filmed any scenes for the third movie. Thankfully they can say good-bye to her in a graceful way. There is a kind of "out" available for the next movie.
Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and Finn (John Boyega) light up the screen with brilliant performances. Isaac gets to take Dameron in a whole new direction. For a character that was supposed to be killed off early in the first movie, he packs a huge emotional punch throughout the story. Rian uses him to cleverly lead the audience through an intricate series of scenes. It's hard to describe what Dameron is up to without spoiling the movie. I think most people will be satisfied with how he progresses.
Adam Driver (Ben Solo / Kylo Ren) comes into his own. He is not as petulant as he was in the first movie. I don't know if it's Driver's acting, Rian's writing, or a mix of both but you can look back on a few scenes and think, "Hm..." This was the execution I was hoping for in "The Force Awakens". Ben is a flawed villain. The formulaic flawed villain never achieves anything. Ben Solo achieves things, but his work is not perfect. We're getting to see a villain grow in a way that George Lucas could not show us with Anakin Skywalker.
Andy Serkis steps out of the hologram and into the main action as Supreme Leader Snoke in this film. I think people will be very pleased with his performance as the ultimately evil creature whose command of the Dark Side of the Force makes even Darth Sideous look a bit weak. I think Snoke must have been snickering at the way the Sith squandered their opportunities.
Domnhall Gleeson (General Hux) rides the crest of the wave he started in the first movie. He's just the smarmy kind of villain you love to hate. You'll forget you're looking at Bill Weasley, to be sure.
Overall there is a good mix of humor and tension throughout the movie. The gags are perfectly set up and even though you should be expecting humor it's delivered in a smooth, comfortable way. It's like everyone was rehearsing the play for six months before opening night and they nailed their lines.
The plot is about as complicated as you can imagine. With a large ensemble cast everyone has to play a meaningful part or you start to ask why so-and-so is in the film. I never found myself asking that of any of these characters. Even the most minor characters all have meaningful parts. In fact, we get to enjoy some continuity with some minor characters you don't normally see in ensemble stories, except when they are used for "misery gags" (where bad things keep happening to the same background people).
You'll find action, interesting new worlds, and even some reflective time. The new characters all bring some depth to their parts of the story, which is no small feat given just how much ground Rian Johnson's screenplay has to cover. I know some people wonder why the movie is so long (2-1/2 hours) but it really needs all that screen time. I suspect the Director's Cut will run to about 3 hours if not longer.
I give this movie a STRONG RECOMMEND. It's the best "Star Wars" movie I have seen since "The Phantom Menace". It changes a few things around but we expected that when Disney announced they were leaving the Expanded Universe behind. I don't think people will be unhappy.
Ultimately, I think Rian Johnson is the right guy to develop another Star Wars trilogy. I am looking forward to Chapter IX and to the new trilogy as well.