A new journey: ‘Star Wars - The Last Jedi’ (2017)

Tonight is the night. The new installment of the Star Wars saga is finally in theaters, and if Rotten Tomatoes and the comments section in YouTube are to be believed, it’s already dividing audiences.

I was fortunate enough to watch it on Thursday night, and I’ll probably watch it again soon. However, since many state that this is a film that requires a second viewing so it can be better appreciated, I wanted to take stock of my initial emotions and thoughts before watching it again.

So here is my partial –and probably temporary- review of the film. Heed the warning: this will contain Spoilers, so if you haven’t watched it yet I highly recommend you stop reading right now.

The Last Jedi is, indeed, a polarizing film. And I can see why.

The film pulled the rug from under the feet of everything that has been established so far, setting a fresh path for the saga, while also harkening back to elements we’ve seen in other installments. It’s a risky choice, and despite all the decry about needing something new after its predecessor, the fandom might not be on board with all of it.

So, let’s start:

Rey, Luke and Ben/Kylo Ren

This storyline is at the very core of The Last Jedi, and its effectiveness is crucial for the movie to work. Fortunately, it’s a riveting triangle of complex relationships which unfolds wonderfully as the film goes on.

Our first encounter with a troubled and unyielding Luke will probably shock an audience, which, like Rey herself, has idealized him as a hero and legend for years. When he finally takes his father’s lightsaber, it’s an exciting moment. But like our expectations –which have been nurtured by 2 years of speculation, plus more than 30 years of waiting in some cases-, it’s unceremoniously tossed away.

And although it might not sit well with many who expected an epic, larger-than-life moment, it’s exactly what is needed to shake us all out of our comfort zone. It’s a shocking yet silent declaration: this is not the restart of the same tired myth, this is the birth of a new one. One that is profoundly self-conscious about its past missteps, yet also hopeful about the future.

The past plays an important role in this particular triangle of personalities: Luke tries to run from it, Rey is desperately holding on to it, and Kylo is set on extinguishing it at all costs. All of them, flawed standpoints with huge consequences for each character.

This makes the bridge set between Kylo and Rey particularly interesting. He leads Rey on a path of discovery, not only about her own past, but also about Kylo and Luke’s. This forces the latter out of his complacency, and it ultimately leads to the three characters discovering that it is action, and not just history, what defines a person.

It’s also the perfect way to finally dispel the multiple theories about Rey’s parentage. It’s simply not important, because it’s what she decides to do with what she has what matters. This is a powerful statement for a fandom that has been continuously obsessed with the Skywalker lineage and its status as ‘Force Royalty’.

All in all, this was the most satisfying storyline in the movie.

The chemistry and interactions between Kylo and Rey were superb, and at times it did make me feel like they were hinting at a potential romance between the characters, which would set up Ben’s ultimate redemption. Yet, once more, my expectations were promptly dismissed, although not before giving us one of the greatest sequences in any of the Star Wars films.

Luke’s journey was also both heartbreaking and tremendously satisfying. It’s an earned, painful, and eventually fulfilling path. He is a complex hero. He is Achilles and Hercules questioning the decisions he has made and the purpose of it all. His final scenes, with him taking his destiny into his own hands, was a glorious ending for a wonderful character. Like Yoda’s, it was a beautiful and worthy demise, with ‘peace and purpose’.

By questioning the effectiveness of the Jedi order as a religious institution, we are both straying away from its dogmatic viewpoint, and simultaneously writing a new page on what their mission and principles should be. And as Yoda seems to hint: it’s not about books, creeds or temples –although Rey does seem to have those Jedi books in her possession after all. It’s about finding your place in the world, it’s about fighting against injustice, and it’s about learning from the past and moving on accordingly.

If anything, the resolution of Snoke’s destiny is, perhaps, the most unsatisfying part of this storyline. Although he was proven to be a menacing and powerful enemy, his passing did feel a little swift and unfulfilling, especially after not receiving answers regarding his backstory. Yet, it must also be said that in the Original Trilogy we didn’t get much information about the Emperor either, and that the character’s death does work when considering Kylo Ren’s journey.

Poe, Leia and Holdo

Another great storyline in the film pertains to the character of Poe. Oscar Isaac was given much more to work with within this film, which is a pleasure to watch as the movie progresses.

The trigger-happy, dashing and rebellious Poe is not without his own conflict in the film, as he is forced to learn that his recklessness has severe consequences, and that sometimes obeying and retreating are the proper courses of action.

His chemistry with Leia is amazing, and their relationship is even more layered in this film than it is in The Force Awakens, where we saw glimpses of the fondness and respect they had for each other. In this one, Leia is not afraid to put Poe in his place when needed, but also, at times, trust in his judgment and talent as a pilot and leader. It’s a push-and-pull that, eventually, leads to Poe helping save the last people in the Resistance.

Holdo’s involvement with the storyline is marginal, but effective. Although I would have enjoyed seeing more of her character –especially given the circumstances of Carrie Fisher’s passing-, her lessons will, hopefully, live on within Poe, and her sacrifice carries enormous weight in the fate of the Resistance.

Now, off to Leia: what a treat! Although she is not active throughout the entire story, her moments are resonant and beautiful, and Carrie Fisher gave us a parting gift with her wholehearted portrayal of the character.

We finally saw her use the Force, and although it was an odd moment –something we have never seen before, except, perhaps, in the TV shows and complementary material-, it was a wonderful payoff for years of waiting for it to happen.

Another wonderful moment involving Leia came with her reunion with Luke. I admit that I was waiting for that moment since The Force Awakens, and I savored every second of it. Personally, I’ve always found the twins to be one of my favorite elements of the OT, and after Carrie’s passing, I was quite concerned that we would never see them together again. But, alas! It happened! And it was a brief yet heartwarming instant that pulled at my heartstrings.

I do feel, however, that Leia’s fate is still up in the air at this point. There is no definitive answer or hint about how the absence of Carrie Fisher will be dealt with in the third installment of the trilogy. In fact, the story sets up Leia as Rey’s final tutor –after all, Han took her under his wing in TFA, and Luke reluctantly guided her in this one.

The question is still there, and it’s a tragedy that we will never get to see what Carrie could have brought to the last part of the trilogy.

Rose and Finn

From what I’ve gathered from multiple reviews and comments I’ve seen, this is the storyline that has received the most criticism, and it is, indeed, the weakest. Although I did enjoy the exploration of aspects of war we’ve never seen before, and comments regarding how slavery of the weakest continues to exist, I do think it was a little underwhelming considering the other two large journeys.

Still, I do have to admit that although it’s the storyline with the frailest moments and points –for example: the misdirection with the codebreaker character, the swift introduction of DJ, Maz Kanada’s blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo, etc.-, it’s also the storyline that serves to materialize what the other two are striving to set up. That is, the Force-sensitive kids.

Although Rose and Finn’s journey and quest seem to lead almost nowhere in the end, the introduction of these minor characters is directly linked to Rey’s journey and the fight of the Resistance. One of the lessons that derives from those storylines is that strength and talent can come, quite literally, from anywhere. If Kylo Ren is to be believed, Rey is a nobody, yet she is his equal in the use of the Force. Likewise, other children and people in many places of the Galaxy must be Force-sensitive and aligned with the ideals of the Resistance. It’s a hopeful message for a movement that has been abandoned almost completely by its allies.

Nevertheless, other moments of this storyline simply don’t work or feel too rushed. For example, Finn and Phasma’s confrontation, and Rose and Finn’s forced romance, none of which are fully satisfying.

I was also conflicted with Finn’s semi-sacrifice. Finn’s journey up to that point is that of a person that needs to be convinced of fighting –much like Luke. At first, Finn is ready to look for Rey with the same singlemindedness than in the first film. But after learning about Rose and the other children’s past, as well as intricacies of wartime like how the rich benefit from it, he decides not only to fight, but to sacrifice himself in order to blow up the weapon that would end the Resistance.

However, the moment is stolen by Rose, whom, although she makes a good argument in favor of ‘saving’ against ‘destroying’, also affects what could have been a very powerful scene. Don’t get me wrong! I was chanting ‘no, no, no…’ as Finn approached the cannon, but I do believe it would have much more weight than, for example, Holdo’s self-sacrifice. It would have been a great ending for a great character, although I shan’t complain too much about it, since I do want more of Finn.

Closing Thoughts

An aspect of the film that I don’t think has been mentioned in most reviews but in passing, is that there are elements of it that harken back to the Prequels and TV shows. From creatures to the way some of the stories are structured, I do believe that there is a bridge within the entire universe that has been subtly built in this movie.

I think those of us that have invested time in Clone Wars and Rebels, for example, will identify many little elements from those in this tale. Which is a nice surprise, as the world keeps expanding, allowing us to tread new waters.

The Last Jedi will undoubtedly challenge those who are unwilling to see the story go new places. Yet, it’s an exciting although admittedly imperfect new chapter that promises many possibilities and much more to come.

A few elements that require mentioning:

The Great

• Luke and Leia’s emotional reunion
• Luke facing Kylo and becoming one with the Force
• The connection and interactions between Kylo and Rey

The Good

• Challenging the mythos
• Beautiful cinematography

The Not-So-Good

• Some pacing issues and odd transitions between storylines
• Inclusion of some unnecessary creatures
• Some questions that still need to be addressed (e.g.: who was Snoke, fate of the Knights of Ren, etc.)
• Some underused characters
• Some odd comedic moments