RATING: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
Most of you have probably seen this film, but just in case, SPOILER ALERT!
ONE SENTENCE SYNOPSIS: Once again, the galaxy is in turmoil with a fight against the Dark and Light Sides.
This is long in coming considering that The Last Jedi opened in theaters over a week ago; nonetheless, here are my thoughts on the film. I like new takes on old stories and really appreciated the direction Rian Johnson went with this latest installment.
The three main plotlines of the film focus on Poe and the Resistance fighters (these being led by General Leia Organa), Finn and newbie Rose, and Rey, Luke, and Kylo Ren. While the Rey/Luke/Kylo storyline is what I assume to be the main plotline, its runtime is short in comparison with the duration of the other two. Frankly, I loved this plotline and am disappointed that Johnson didn’t spend more time exploring it.
For the most part, the Poe plotline works fine, but you would have to be a hardcore fan of the character to be glad that it lasted as long as it did. Conversely, the Finn and Rose storyline does not work. It’s not that I don’t see these characters fitting into this universe, because they do and are interesting characters, but the mission that they are sent on takes up way too much runtime and is irrelevant to the rest of the film. If anything, this plotline steals time from exploring the Rey/Luke/Kylo storyline, which could have used a bit more development.
The film brings up new techniques for users of the Force that previous installments never dared to explore, and much of this is covered in the main plotline. Johnson handles these new ways well with little to no CGI being employed.
As far as the usage of special effects and CGI goes, this film looks very clean and frequently, is quite beautiful. I mean, what else would I expect? Johnson introduces some beautiful new scenery in the form of Crait, a planet covered in white salt, under which is a vibrant red mineral. We meet new creatures as well—you might have seen the Porgs and Crystal Foxes in the trailer. These new additions are short and sweet and bare little impact on the film, save for the end.
Speaking of the end, several “key” characters in The Force Awakens die. Frankly, these characters never interested me in the first installment of this new trilogy, and their deaths were subsequently met with little care. One of the character’s death is very integral to the development of Kylo, who must now realize his true power, and the other one’s death is lingered upon too long for a character of such a small caliber.
Even though the overall experience of The Last Jedi is a bit uneven, it is an enjoyable film that offers enough new material to make up for the fact that the film ends up in exactly the same place that it began: no Luke, an unsatisfactory resolution to Rey’s lineage, no redemption for Kylo, a living Leia, a pining Finn…you get the idea. The journey to the resolution-not-a-resolution is for the most part great!
THE FILM ALIEN 