Star Wars: The Last Jedi

The force is not strong with this one.

91% score from the "critics". 48% score from the audience. That is the state of impression on Rotten Tomatoes so far. 48% is the lowest audience score for any Star Wars installment ever. So if you are someone who pays attention to the ratings before grabbing the popcorn, you might ask, "which side of the force should I join?". In order to answer that question and properly review "Star Wars: The Last Jedi", my Star Wars fan alter ego (although not a hardcore fanatic myself) will come into play. Normally, it is dangerous to introduce a bias for reviews, but this is Star Wars. This means that part of the evaluation will be held at a higher standard, and whether the newest installment feels like "Star Wars". However, to stay true to impartiality, the film will also be judged through the lenses of an average moviegoer, someone who is not necessarily a franchise zealot. 

Let me start out by saying that "The Last Jedi" is not a bad film. But unfortunately, as a successor and bearer of the title "Star Wars", it is a disappointment, because it fails to capitalize on the most important component of the franchise: the writing. The first installment of the new trilogy, "The Force Awakens", introduced the audience with so many new facets to the world of Star Wars. Canon or not, we saw new characters, new enemies, new lore, new spaceships, new droids, and new planets. And naturally, with a trilogy planned ahead, J. J. Abrams and his "The Force Awakens" had a responsibility to create meaningful character developments and lore that was going to last three films. This was done successfully. Meanwhile, the new director, Rian Johnson, and his sequel "The Last Jedi" had the responsibility of picking up where Abrams left off, and finally providing some answers to the multitudes of fan theories that roamed the internet for 2 years. The major reason why "The Last Jedi" is a disappointment is because it fails to be responsible in that regard. 

"The Force Awakens" left most of us asking mainly three question: How is Rey related to the force? Who is Snoke? Who are the Knights of Ren? After two years of non-stop speculations and theories, we get something that either completely neglects or throws them out the window. Instead, this film has stirred up even more questions to the point where nothing seemed coherent between itself and the prequel. Nevertheless, we aren't new to this kind of slap in the face. Recall "The Clone Wars" when people were wondering what the distinct colour of purple of Mace Windu's lightsaber meant in the Jedi Order, only to be curve-balled by the fact that it was simply just Samuel L. Jackson's personal preference. But here is the thing. None of the Star Wars films ever attempted to elicit attention or speculations about lightsaber colours. In Snoke's case for example, "The Force Awakens" explicitly puts him in a position of power and looming evil with scarce screen time. Personally, Snoke was the biggest reason why I was so excited to watch "The Last Jedi", because Abrams built up his presence in the "The Force Awakens" so well. And naturally, I expected Snoke to have a more significant role in the sequel, only to be downright devastated by the contrary. It is this so-called "Rian Johnson cut" in many parts of the plot that makes this film painfully shallow. And as far as having your questions answered from "The Force Awakens" is concerned, you will not receive that gratification here at all, fanboy or not.

As mentioned before, the continuity between "The Force Awakens" and "The Last Jedi" is basically non-existent. The film starts out strong in the beginning, as things gradually unfolds, it becomes apparent that the plot components either don't add up, or serve no purpose at all. There is one stretch of act that exemplifies this irritating shortcoming, and that is the Canto Bight (casino) sequence. ' So Finn and the new character Rose Tico (whose role has brewed up controversy) travel to this luxurious & elitist planet called Canto Bight in order to find a hacker that could help the Resistance. Alright, doesn't sound all too unnecessary yet. However, Rose, who spent her childhood on this planet, suddenly brings us to awareness about some dark secrets behind the extravagance. Child mistreatment, animal abuse, dirty capitalism, weapon manufacturing, resource-over-consumption. The problem is that this Canto Bight sequence was more about inconsequentially furthering social justice themes from reality, rather than adding any meaningful conflict or emphasis to the plot (which is a similar argument around Rose's contributions in this film). For example, Rose briefly exposes how the people at the casino got so rich by selling weapons to the First Order, but after that, no mention about it ever again. Never. One line about dirty capitalism and never explored again. Then what is the point of it other than simply tugging in a political statement for the sake of it? Therefore, it is my personal opinion that implementing legitimate political statement should not be in an entertainment film, unless if it is the entire point or the overall theme of the literature. If it doesn't put the audience through a compelling adventure about a political theme and giving them food for thought after the credits, why bother? 

There is no denying that "The Last Jedi" has set a new standard for the art behind film making. Incredible production, stunning visuals, blood-boiling actions, evocative score. Over the years, the technicalities are what the modern Star Wars franchise seems to excel at, but in terms of the writing, it can't seem to liberate itself from controversies. In the past, there has been much uproar about Rey being the female lead and Finn being casted as a black character. Personally, I didn't find any problem with Rey and Finn because they have fulfilled their roles successfully relative to past characters like Anakin, Luke or Obi-Wan. However, the reason why I do find issue with Rose is because she does not add anything to the quality of the film. With or without her, "The Last Jedi" does not feel any different. Again, the same goes for the entire Canto Bight sequence, which is specifically included to fully integrate Rose into the storyline. Make no mistake, political commentary is not something to be always frowned upon. Sometimes adding parallels from reality can emphasize a film's desired ambiance and be of great knowledge for the audience. Rey's feminine stature or Finn's ethnicity does not matter to me at all because it diversified the Star Wars universe and was an indication of a new direction for the franchise. Besides, it was about time we got a female Jedi! On the other hand, I cannot find myself to appreciate Rose in any way. Sure, as an Asian, she is another addition to the diversification project here. However, she is not a Jedi, she cannot fight, and she doesn't bring effective romance that could have brought back something similar to Anakin and Padme. On top of that, pairing Rose with all that Canto Bight stuff? I'm not sure how and why it does "The Last Jedi" any justice.

The ending. No spoilers. Well, the ending will leave a confusing impression to some people, as if they need an explanation from the director Rian Johnson separately. This also happens to be the case for many parts of the plot, and the fact that the "The Last Jedi" fails to explain itself shows how overdone the film is. So overdone that it basically serves no purpose in the trilogy. Does it show who the Knights of Ren are? Nope. Does it give a backstory of Snoke? Nope. Does it take time to develop side characters like Phasma and Finn? Nope. There is no depth in any of the characters or their developments. This is a huge shame because in any trilogy, the format goes from introduction, development and final showdown. "The Last Jedi" was supposed to serve as the development part of the trilogy and it surprisingly did very little of that even with 2 hours and 30 minutes. 

I can see what Rian Johnson tried to do with this film. He is a competent director and he respectably paved a new direction for the Star Wars franchise. But boy, does J. J. Abrams have a huge mess in his hands. If I took anything important out of "The Last Jedi", it is that changing directors in the middle of an ongoing trilogy is a huge risk. Yes, the Marvel film franchise does this on a consistent basis, but the structure of a traditional Star Wars trilogy does not seem to thrive in such form of production. Nevertheless, when I first watched "The Phanton Menace" as a child, I enjoyed every minute of the film even though it was the worst audience rated Star Wars film at the time (currently second worst to "The Last Jedi"). The point to be made here is that children of this generation will likely feel the same way for "The Last Jedi" as I felt for "The Phantom Menace". These children today will be mesmerized by the sheer imagination and exhilaration behind Star Wars, and from there on the legacy of the franchise becomes immortal. George Lucas himself mentioned how beautifully made "The Last Jedi" was, and frankly, that is enough to captivate the attention of the current youth for years to come. "The Last Jedi" is a dazzling work of art in this century, but if one ever delves deeper into it, disappointment may await for those who have the passion. Just listen to what Mark Hamill has to say.

Verdict: Agreeable 6

Box Office: $1.330 billion

Release Date: December 15, 2017

Rewatchable: No

Can't have a Star Wars film without Luke Skywalker's approval.