Revisiting The Last Jedi

by Mike Lunsford

Just this month, Netflix brought the most recent "Skywalker Saga" Star Wars film to their streaming service in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Normally, when a new Star Wars property comes available to watch at home, I watch it as soon as possible. There is no subtext, no other reason for me to watch these movies except for sheer enjoyment. Period. End of sentence, roll the title screen. Last Jedi though... there's some serious subtext in the matter of viewing of this film a second time.

I saw the film in theaters on opening day and I really enjoyed it. Did I walk out of it thinking it was the greatest Star Wars movie I had ever seen—no. I actually liked it more than Force Awakens but less than Rogue One, but not by much. To be fair, Rogue One has one of the greatest scenes in Star Wars history. 

I've seen this scene at least 20 times and it never gets any less awesome. BUT THIS ARTICLE IS ABOUT LAST JEDI! GET BACK ON TRACK, MIKE!

Sorry about that....*ahem* back to The Last Jedi. 

When it came out back in December, I was in the midst of some pretty gnarly pain. I had a kidney stone. If you've never had one, let me state this: I've broken my arm, my fingers, my ankle, torn ligaments in my ankles and knees and had concussions. None of these hurt NEARLY as bad as a kidney stone. It sucks, big time. 

As I made my way into the movie theater to see the latest Star Wars film, I was on some pretty wicked painkillers. After viewing the movie and subsequently gushing about it with my cousin, my pain meds wore off. I began to wonder: did I maybe think more of this movie because of the drugs? Kind of like stoners and Taco Bell—did I make it out to be way better than it actually was? Did my love of Star Wars cloud my judgement? Did the opioid-based painkillers numb any of the issues with this film? Did my 3 1/2 lightsaber review from December still hold up today?

There were 3 reasons for my viewing:

1. I friggin' love Star Wars.

2. The painkiller effect

3. I wanted to address the elephant in the room, that subtext I mentioned above.

There is a very loud contingent of fans who think this movie was awful.  Its not that they just didn't like it —words like "abomination" are flying around. They point out flaws in the script, they talk about lacking motivation for characters, wasted scenes and poor locales. That should be enough to have a civil conversation about the film and it's merits/detractions. Unfortunately, it often doesn’t stop there. They also have issues with what they feel is forced diversity for the protagonists. These concerns border on racist and sexist, making it exceptionally difficult to take any of their other concerns seriously. In fact, there are plenty of fans who DON'T have an issue with diversity but just felt the film could have been much better. 

"Some Hispanic dude, Chewie, 2 girls and a black dude are heroes???? THAT'S FORCED DIVERSITY!" Even if it is, so what? We had nothing but white dude protagonists other than Lando and Leia for 40 years...we can mix it up a bit. You'll be ok.

Before I go in to my thoughts on Star Wars: The Last Jedi, I want to address the problems that these "fanboys" are pointing out. Whether it's Citizen Kane, Casablanca, Chinatown, The Godfather, or any other well respected film, there are going to be issues. Movies are not perfect. They are created by humans who are, in fact, not perfect either. Imperfect creations created by imperfect beings —there are ALWAYS going to be flaws. That's why art is so wonderful: in spite of all of the hard work, dedication, working with others, and refining their final product, art is still, in itself imperfect. That's why it is so beautiful. Art is also subjective, too. Just because you didn't like something doesn't make it bad/blasphemous. 

What I find baffling is how Star Wars is treated. There are those out there who act as if these movies are some sort of gospel. If we're being honest with ourselves, the original Star Wars trilogy was a summer popcorn flick. It's a great fantasy movie, it might be the best and has embedded itself into our pop culture DNA. It's enjoyable, in fact it's my favorite series of movies of all time—but it is not, above improvement or new interpretations. 

Fans have a reverence for it and it's subsequent sequels and prequels. That reverence, in itself, has become a huge issue with the Star Wars fan base in the last 20 years or so. Fans have an unrealistic expectation for these films and it has caused some unconscionable effects. When Phantom Menace came out, people were so viciously critical of Jake Lloyd, A MERE CHILD, that the poor kid had to stop acting and has some serious mental stability issues. Now, were they pre-existing? It's possible, but being ridiculed by fans is beyond cruel. His successor as a young Anakin Skywalker, Hayden Christensen, received equal if not more contempt for his performance. It got so bad that Christensen stopped acting and appearing at Star Wars events. This is a serious problem especially when George Lucas himself has stated that Hayden played Anakin "perfectly." 

Ahmed Best, the often made fun of Jar Jar Binks was so ridiculed for his role that he contemplated suicide. Seriously, Jar Jar was an idiotic comic relief character meant to make the little kids laugh, but it's still a guy doing the voice and motion capture for the character. Your love of a movie series does not give you the right to say things like "you ruined my childhood" to an actor who did the best job he could. You can dislike a performance/script without making it a personal attack but in the end, it’s just entertainment. Just because it failed to meet your expectations does not give you the right to be a horrible person. Separate the art from the artist but also make sure you remember that your love for a series does not entitle you to anything. 

The Second Viewing

I watched The Last Jedi as objectively as I could. However, all this fervor and non-sense that's been in the news lately left me hoping to find some sort of hidden beauty or level of perfection that I had missed the first time. I literally was saying to myself, "there's no way these mouth-breathers are correct." Some of the things that they had issue with were not unreasonable —I just found most them to be trumped up and unfounded, which I will tackle in a later article. 

One thing that did bother me was Rey. We still have not been given any clue as to why she is as powerful as she is so easily, so quickly.  That may be addressed in Episode IX, but it is still disappointing at this juncture of the series to have nothing. This is troubling, especially with J.J. Abrams track record of promising big with projects and then not delivering (Lost for example). 

"You were trained at a Jedi Academy and have been a Force user for years? I just found this blue lightsaber in a box and started using it like 2 minutes ago! Oh wow, I'm winning? COOL!!!"

The big reveals of this movie, Rey's parentage and Supreme Leader Snoke's untimely end, were still enjoyable to watch the second time. There were some who were quite upset that they were handled so dismissively. The Force Awakens built up Snoke as did the fans. There was so much speculation as to who he really was, where he came from, how he was so powerful, etc. The Last Jedi promptly answered that with a resounding "IT DOESN'T MATTER!" as Snoke was sliced in half with a lightsaber. I still loved this scene because it makes Ben Solo/Kylo Ren a stronger character and not just some Vader fanboy who will listen to anyone strong with the Dark Side. He took control of the situation with Snoke and turned on him, completely disregarding traditional Sith rules. As we've been reminded many times, Ben/Kylo is not a Sith and he proved that by finally having enough of his master's taunts.

As far as Rey's parents, who were revealed to be drunks of no consequence who left her on Jakku, I actually liked that. Unless changed in episode IX, it's refreshing that Rey is not of some special lineage. Luke makes a point that the Force does not belong to the Jedi or the Sith, it belongs to the galaxy. This belief is proven with Rey essentially being born of two non-Force users who had no previous connection to either affiliation (again, as of right now if not changed).  It really changes the dynamic of who can be a Force wielder going forward. This was a huge issue I had with the prequels when it was revealed that midichlorians were the deciding factor in who was/who wasn't Force sensitive. It essentially became an aristocracy and you could only be a Jedi if you had the "magic blood." If Rey's story holds true, this opens up the entire galaxy in a time where there are no Jedi left and as "the last jedi" said himself:

And this is the lesson. That Force does not belong to the Jedi. To say that if the Jedi die, the light dies, is vanity. Can you feel that?

When Disney bought Lucasfilms back in 2012, there was a mixed response from fans. How would Disney, a typically strict studio to work with, handle their beloved franchise? What would happen to the Extended Universe?  Many feel betrayed that Johnson, and previously JJ Abrams, have completely abandoned the former Extended Universe-currently-named Legends canon, which were beloved by fans. Why create a whole new narrative for Luke when a wonderful one was already in place? It's been one of the few pure arguments against the new films that hasn't been grounded in some dark places. 

As far as my feelings? I was unaffected by this perceived slight to the excellent "Legends" stories. Growing up, I loved reading Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire trilogy. I would have loved to see them as films...however here we are. It's too late to see them as films at this point and we must deal with the hand that we're given. That being said, I like creativity and I especially like when a director/writer isn't married to canon. However, the story must be strong enough to justify this break. In this case, Johnson does this...mostly. What the story lacks with movement and adherence to tradition it makes up with a bold take on hero worship, the grey area between heroism and villainy, the importance of patience in leadership and the critical nature of hope.  

What this movie does lack though, is a a proper pacing for the second installment in a trilogy. The middle part of a 3 part story needs to move forward more and really form the backbone of the series. There are far too many things that are glossed over in this film that could help strength that core. For example, there really isn't any depth to Rey as a character other than:

1. She was a scavenger

2. She was hoping to find her parents but Kylo says they're dead and they sold her for booze money

3. She's a good pilot

4. she's good with a lightsaber after only basic training

5. she's ridiculously strong in the Force for no known reason

6. Her and Chewie are like BFFs. Maybe she's a rebound life-debt after Han died.

She's even sitting in Han's seat! Chewie! Have you no heart??

This is the main protagonist we're talking about. She IS the new Luke for all intents and purposes. We knew way more about Luke at this point when Empire Strikes Back concluded. For example: 

1. Luke was powerful with the Force because of his lineage, his father was a powerful Jedi.

2. Luke thought his father was killed by a dark Jedi named Darth Vader.

3. He was a good pilot but it's stated that he flew his T-16 Skyhopper back home, so his experience was clearly stated.

4. Luke was over-matched in combat against the very powerful, very experienced Darth Vader. Rey kicked Kylo's butt in their first encounter (in his defense, he was bleeding pretty badly after taking a crossbow bolt to the chest).
   

I'm just not sure what they're going with by not revealing who she is or why she feels the way she does. Plus, having this movie pick up moments after Force Awakens ends leaves no potential for exposition between the films, which Empire Strikes Back and Attack of the Clones both did for the Skywalker protagonists of Luke and Anakin respectively. I have a theory as to why she may be so powerful this quickly...but we'll get to that in a later article.  

As it stands now, Episode IX has a heavy burden of having to answer a ton of questions and resolve many plot elements. The movie may end up having to be 4 hours just to conclude these pieces which may end up hurting the overall product. The same could be said about the burden Empire Strikes Back put on Return of the Jedi, which, regardless of your feelings about Ewoks, did an excellent job of concluding the series without being ridiculously long a la Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. That distinction is important as in my previous review of The Last Jedi I made the point that it felt much more like Two Towers than it did Empire Strikes Back.

impenetrable fortress, massive bad guy army with a secret weapon to blow the fortress open, ridiculous odds against the heroes and a "white wizard" who saves the day? Yeah, this is Two Towers

Can I unequivocally say that this movie was "amazing" and "one of the best" of the franchise? Nope. There's too much missing. There are some really good moments in The Last Jedi, and visually, the movie is stunning. It gives a depth of character to Luke Skywalker that is fitting to his arc and adds some much needed perspective to Star Wars that brings the narrative style into the 21st century. With these changes comes an unfamiliarity with many fans. You'll hear many say "it didn't feel like Star Wars." That is something that can not be quantified. Feelings are feelings and they are completely subjective. This was the risk Rian Johnson took in doing something that bucked the expected path. Instead of a narrative moving forward, the characters are moving forward. They had the biggest change in their motivations without much actually happening as far as the overall story. This movie may end up being a turning point for the Star Wars franchise as it evolves for a new generation of fans, for better or worse.

I stick by my rating of 3.5 out of 5 glasses of green milk: the "green milk"  takes you out of your comfort zone but if you can get past the fact that it's different than what you're used to, you might actually enjoy it. Or, you could hate it and want the regular, boring white stuff. Whatevs. That's art: not everyone is going to like when you take risks.

TASTY AND CONTROVERSIAL!

I liked it, I had some issues I didn't notice the first time (hydrocodone is a hell of a drug, man) but overall I still enjoyed the flick. It left a lot unanswered, it didn't take the typical path to get there and it evolved the characters in a strange way: we know their motivations and WHY they're fighting this war but we still don't know them that well. This may be an unfair point. I was reminded by another fellow Star Wars fan that if you take yourself back to childhood, when you first saw these movies and think of what you knew about the original characters, we didn't really know that much about them 2 films in either. We have the advantage of hindsight with the original trilogy and filled in the gaps as far as character depth with novels, comics, and other media. Even with Rey, we may not know a lot about her, but we still have at least one more movie to go before this story is done. All may be answered in due time. Regardless of my issues, I still give Rian Johnson credit for creativity and bold decision-making and for not feeling pressured to stick to a formula. And before you say "For someone who liked the movie, you sure have a lot of critical things to say about it," take a look at that score. Translate that to grade in high school. 3.5 out of 5 is a 70%. That's a C. Pretty good, but not great. Its worth multiple viewings and the things that are "wrong" with it don't take away from the overall product. 

However, let me make this abundantly clear: if your concerns have to do with "forced diversity" or "Mary Sues" then you need to re-evaluate your life and take a look in the mirror. Try and be empathetic to women and people of color who have had limited access to those who look like them in heroic roles. Now, for those of us who enjoyed the movie, don't immediately dismiss those who are critical of the movie as "trolls" or "toxic fan boys." Not every fan who disliked the direction is toxic, so at least hear them out, but don't allow racism and sexism into the conversation. Period. Cut that off immediately. Diversity is never a bad thing. If you can only accept your heroes if they look like you, then you are missing out on a ton of great media and you risk having others disregard anything else you may say. 

This series continues with a breakdown of the biggest complaints against The Last Jedi and why I think they're completely bogus. Plus, I will address the issues that this movie has without being all "forever alone" about it. In total, a 3 part break down on the most controversial thing to happen in Sci-Fi since Captain Janeway's haircut.