"Not the best but certainly the most overhyped"
As the Rebellion tries to evade The First Order, Rey asks Luke Skywalker to teach her the ways of the Force. Meanwhile Kylo Ren is still a whiny POS.
Director/writer Rian Johnson faced a gargantuan task. Two years ago J.J. Abrams did the impossible by making a successful sequel to ‘Star Wars’. Johnson had to follow that up with something more creative because let’s be honest, ‘The Force Awakens’ (TFA) was a copy. He succeeds partially.
When the movie started there were cheers. It doesn’t get any better than the iconic opening crawl with John Williams’ score. Although there’s a certain resemblance to ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ (opening scene, Luke on the remote planet) ‘The last Jedi’ isn’t a copy. Johnson has came up with a more or less original story with new characters and some twists. However, the problem with some of the new characters is that they get too much screen time while contributing nothing to the story. In some cases up to the point where they’re just plain annoying. Benicio Del Toro anyone? Meanwhile we find out nothing new about the characters we got to know in ‘TFA’. Rey, Finn & Dameron still feel new.
The villains are another problem. The most iconic part about ‘Star Wars’ has always been the villains. Darth Vader is an icon. Emperor Palpatine and Darth Maul were also quite impressive. Without spoiling anything I think it’s safe to say Kylo Ren (who’s still suffering from huge mommy and daddy issues), Supreme Leader Snoke & General Hux are terribly underwhelming.
That of course doesn’t mean it’s a bad movie. Although it runs too long it entertains. The effects and choreography are top notch and the overall look of the film is stunning. DOP Steve Yedlin does a fine job. The final battle looks amazing ( the red stripes on the salt plains). Although there’s a bit too much humor for our liking, there’s some genuine funny moments. The Porgs have a bright future ahead of them marketingwise. Of course there’s the nostalgia factor. It’s great to see those familiar faces again and the sound of lightsabres and TIE fighters are music to our ears.
On the other hand it’s obvious Johnson and Disney want to go down a new path. Whether that path is the right one remains to be seen. With the announcement of a new trilogy coming up it feels like they’re milking it. And you can take that literally. What’s up with that milk scene? Cringeworthy.
The biggest problem is that ‘The Last Jedi’ is incredibly hyped. There are reviews that say the movie is dark and that it’s the best since ‘The Empire Strikes Back’. I know opinions can differ but it doesn’t come close to any of the original trilogy.