After the hugely entertaining Force Awakens, Johnson is more keen to explore new territory than tread down familiar paths and what makes The Last Jedi so successful is not just that he is willing to subvert expectations that come with a Star Wars film, but also that he has a singular focus on developing all the central characters and it is this that makes this film so emotionally involving and gripping to watch. Johnson has picked up on the key story threads from the last entry, but unlike Episode VII which relied heavily on nostalgia and familiar scenarios, he has chosen to use his legacy characters to create a rich and thematically compelling entry into the saga that doesn’t simply rely on the audience’s nostalgia for previous films. It is to his credit that he has challenged not just the new characters but also the old, none more so than Luke, whose past and our awareness of it allows the filmmaker to contrast the nature of myth and legend with the reality of flawed character and all too human failure. Indeed, much of The Last Jedi’s central theme revolves around not just failure, but how each central character deals with it. Everyone from Luke to Hux experiences failure on some level during the film and Johnson is keen to explore each character’s central flaw, from Rey’s loneliness and need for a father figure/companion to Poe’s hot-headedness, and emphasise how each character develops as their flaw is exposed and challenged in some way. It makes for a fascinating film and for the first time since The Empire Strikes Back, there is palpable sense of tension that comes from a story moving into unfamiliar territory for every single character.
The performances across the board are strong and both Hamill and Fisher do some of their best work as Luke and Leia, without ever overshadowing the new characters. Indeed, every moment with Leia is tinged with sadness, given the cold reality of real life, but one of the many tragedies is that Fisher is no longer here to earn the plaudits for her performance that would have made her presence in Episode IX such an exciting prospect. Unfortunately it is not to be, but this is a wonderful note to go out on.
Like Force Awakens, there are some minor flaws - it’s one of the funniest Star Wars films, but the humour occasionally feels oddly anachronistic with the setting and classical nature of the series. Whilst the adventures of Finn and Rose on Canto Bight serve a purpose to expand on the themes of the film, they do feel extraneous and affect the pacing.
Perhaps the greatest flaw however that has been exposed by this film is in fact the central flaw of the entire sequel trilogy - the audience’s understandable desire to see Luke, Han and Leia again has ensured their happy ending from Return of the Jedi was inevitably going to be challenged and perhaps all of them would have been better utilised as legends to inspire the new. It is to the credit of both Abrams and Johnson that their inclusion has never felt wasted or betrayed, but as the saga inevitably moves beyond the past and embraces new characters, one can’t help feeling regret and sadness that the fairy tale nature of a happy ending has been exposed by age and inevitable death.
But that shouldn’t detract from a film that delivers everything one would hope for in a Star Wars film. It is the balance of old and new elements that Johnson has got spectacularly right, delivering the requisite moments of adventure, fun and spectacle, but at the same time delving into new territory that leaves the saga at an interesting turning point. As the film closes with an indelible image that will surely speak to every fan who grew up with a childhood dominated by the series, the mysteries of Episode VII may have largely been answered, but Episode IX is wide open and it’s anyone’s guess where the films will go. That is an exciting prospect.
Review by Simon MasseyVIP 11BlockedParent2017-12-26T02:15:04Z
After the hugely entertaining Force Awakens, Johnson is more keen to explore new territory than tread down familiar paths and what makes The Last Jedi so successful is not just that he is willing to subvert expectations that come with a Star Wars film, but also that he has a singular focus on developing all the central characters and it is this that makes this film so emotionally involving and gripping to watch. Johnson has picked up on the key story threads from the last entry, but unlike Episode VII which relied heavily on nostalgia and familiar scenarios, he has chosen to use his legacy characters to create a rich and thematically compelling entry into the saga that doesn’t simply rely on the audience’s nostalgia for previous films. It is to his credit that he has challenged not just the new characters but also the old, none more so than Luke, whose past and our awareness of it allows the filmmaker to contrast the nature of myth and legend with the reality of flawed character and all too human failure. Indeed, much of The Last Jedi’s central theme revolves around not just failure, but how each central character deals with it. Everyone from Luke to Hux experiences failure on some level during the film and Johnson is keen to explore each character’s central flaw, from Rey’s loneliness and need for a father figure/companion to Poe’s hot-headedness, and emphasise how each character develops as their flaw is exposed and challenged in some way. It makes for a fascinating film and for the first time since The Empire Strikes Back, there is palpable sense of tension that comes from a story moving into unfamiliar territory for every single character.
The performances across the board are strong and both Hamill and Fisher do some of their best work as Luke and Leia, without ever overshadowing the new characters. Indeed, every moment with Leia is tinged with sadness, given the cold reality of real life, but one of the many tragedies is that Fisher is no longer here to earn the plaudits for her performance that would have made her presence in Episode IX such an exciting prospect. Unfortunately it is not to be, but this is a wonderful note to go out on.
Like Force Awakens, there are some minor flaws - it’s one of the funniest Star Wars films, but the humour occasionally feels oddly anachronistic with the setting and classical nature of the series. Whilst the adventures of Finn and Rose on Canto Bight serve a purpose to expand on the themes of the film, they do feel extraneous and affect the pacing.
Perhaps the greatest flaw however that has been exposed by this film is in fact the central flaw of the entire sequel trilogy - the audience’s understandable desire to see Luke, Han and Leia again has ensured their happy ending from Return of the Jedi was inevitably going to be challenged and perhaps all of them would have been better utilised as legends to inspire the new. It is to the credit of both Abrams and Johnson that their inclusion has never felt wasted or betrayed, but as the saga inevitably moves beyond the past and embraces new characters, one can’t help feeling regret and sadness that the fairy tale nature of a happy ending has been exposed by age and inevitable death.
But that shouldn’t detract from a film that delivers everything one would hope for in a Star Wars film. It is the balance of old and new elements that Johnson has got spectacularly right, delivering the requisite moments of adventure, fun and spectacle, but at the same time delving into new territory that leaves the saga at an interesting turning point. As the film closes with an indelible image that will surely speak to every fan who grew up with a childhood dominated by the series, the mysteries of Episode VII may have largely been answered, but Episode IX is wide open and it’s anyone’s guess where the films will go. That is an exciting prospect.