Blasting viewers to a galaxy, far, far, away, the latest installment in the Star Wars franchise, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, bursts with exciting twists, exquisite cinematography, and enthralling characters. Directed by Rian Johnson, the film is a continuation of its highly successful predecessors and builds upon the cherished Star Wars universe by tying in parallels from the previous films, as well as introducing new elements.
The Last Jedi follows the Resistance, led by General Leia (Carrie Fisher), in their tireless attempts of avoiding destruction by Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson) of the First Order. To aid the cause of the Resistance, Rey (Daisy Ridley) seeks out the legendary Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) in an effort to convince the Jedi master, who had fled in grief after the tragic fate of his young Jedi trainees, to return to the fight and restore hope in the Resistance. Paired with clever twists and action-packed scenes, the film succeeds at intertwining the familiar and the unexpected.
In a particularly breathtaking scene, speeders fly across the white-salt planet of Crait in a mesmerizing formation. Their stabilizers create blood red plumes of dust as they scrape the ground, in contrast with the purity of the white landscape. This stunning, yet sinister spectacle is one of the many examples of the beautiful cinematography present in The Last Jedi, which is sure to captivate the audience and leave them in awe. The film incorporates the overarching theme of evil and its ability to entice individuals, which is illustrated in the numerous artistic choices to highlight the colour red.
Adam Driver does an exceptional job of bringing intensity to the complex and volatile antagonist that is Kylo Ren. In numerous scenes, Ren challenges the binary of good and evil and demonstrates that villains are not simply born evil, but can sometimes be inadvertently “created.” Unlike many other villains, viewers can come to understand the motivation and rationale behind his actions, and explore the evilness behind Ren.
Moreover, the film introduces new, powerful female leads such as Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) and Admiral Holdo (Laura Dern) who contribute to the Resistance’s strong efforts of defending themselves against the First Order. However, the lack of chemistry Rose shares with the other characters makes for some forced scenes that can be considered more awkward than effective.
Though the 152-minute film definitely has its strengths, it does contain prominent plot holes or unnecessarily long scenes that do not seem to contribute much to the overall story, and many of the larger problems seem to have simple solutions. Likewise, The Last Jedi fails to adequately and effectively resolve some popular questions conceived from The Force Awakens as it races to introduce an array of new elements.
The Last Jedi also tries too hard to appeal to young children by adding in multiple scenes that are overly silly and pointless. Some characters seem to only be in the film to sell a new action figure or plush toy rather than making meaningful contributions to the plot. In one scene in particular, Chewbacca roasts a porg, which is a tiny and adorable sea-like bird native to the island of Ahch-To, over a crackling fire. Much like the character of Jar Jar Binks in previous episodes of Star Wars, the silliness takes away from the seriousness of the film.
Overall, Star Wars: The Last Jedi was an average film that fails to compete with its predecessors, though it certainly has its strengths visually. It was a pleasant tribute to Carrie Fisher and definitely contained nostalgic elements that fans of the franchise will appreciate.
