OT: The Last Jedi (SPOILER Edition)
Spoiler WARNING. For anyone who wants to discuss TLJ feel free to include any spolier info you want. Here are my thoughts.
Best Parts:
- throne room fight
- Poe tooling with Hux
- Luke with Leia toward the end
- R2 convincing Luke to come back
- Yoda
- Holdo with the Hyperspace kamikazi move - beaurty of a sceen
- Rey vs Luke in the rain
- the flashbacks
- DJ the slicer
Parts that I thought weren't so good:
- Super Leia (could have killed her 2-3 ways that would have been fine)
- Maz from star tours (can't have her on the ship with the resistance? Have her point Finn et al to Lando maybe?)
- BB-8 piloting an AT-ST
- Luke milking that thing - I guess it really sets up his character status but that was just weird
- some of the canto bight stuff went long so it didn't bother me really
I thought it was some amazing screenplay and story telling- every main character had a legit moment of "are they doing the right thing"? Even the secondary characters like Adml Holdo- you didn't know where she was going. Lots of questions answered. Lots of ways to go in the next one. Overall, this was the movie to move the SW story forward and not keep looking backward. Who knows what EpIX will be.
December 17th, 2017 at 10:40 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:50 AM ^
Did you not read the "In the theater" part of what he wrote?
From what I understand this is basically the priceline.com of movie tickets. Theaters sell the seats they don't fill for cheap and at least get some revenue for it. Plus, they're trying to get people to come in and spend money on the popcorn and soda(the high prices of which are why I don't like going to the theater as my wife is incapable of NOT getting popcorn at the theater).
December 17th, 2017 at 11:08 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:45 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:50 AM ^
Yeah, Moviepass is actually a ridiculously good deal for watching movies in the theatre as others have already explained! Probably not available in Australia.
December 17th, 2017 at 10:55 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:22 PM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 9:51 AM ^
December 18th, 2017 at 2:11 PM ^
What's a little ironic is that the Vader scene in Rogue One was something they tacked on at the end, wasn't part of the original story plan. One of those "Hey, this would be cool, why don't we do it?" kind of things. Probably one of the best things in the whole movie. Finally we got to see Vader at his most terrifying capability.
December 17th, 2017 at 9:47 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 9:53 AM ^
Some of the humor worked, some didn't. I did like how they got rid of that "stupid mask."
December 17th, 2017 at 10:42 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 6:35 PM ^
December 18th, 2017 at 5:11 AM ^
Did anybody else notice when Yoda broke into a soliloqy that there was no Yoda speak?
December 17th, 2017 at 10:00 AM ^
I feel like my opinion of this film in the long term will depend on how well Episode IX builds on it and ends the story.
I remember feeling the same way after watching the second Matrix movie and we all know how that turned out.
The extended starship chase made no sense - why didn't the First Order send some of its ships on a short hyperspace jump in front of the fleeing resistance?
December 17th, 2017 at 10:42 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 12:24 PM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 2:38 PM ^
Felt like that was answered when Holdo did the lightspace jump through the fleet. Blew her ship up and the fleet. You'd have to do a couple of jumps, but that seems like a lot of hassel if you know its going to run out of fuel soon.
December 18th, 2017 at 2:16 PM ^
Because the First Order is actually Cobra from GI Joe - very powerful and unlimited resources but dumb as hell.
I guess there was a reason Vader was constantly ripping on the officers in Empire Strikes Back. The Peter Principle is in full force in the Imperial/FO navies.
December 17th, 2017 at 10:00 AM ^
Initially, I thought that it wasn't very good. As I've thought about it with a different filter, I really like it.
The key in changing my opinion was to look at the main the main themes: 1) Learning from our failures, 2) Good/bad depends on your perspective, and 3) The renewal of hope.
For example, Poe refusing to break off from the initial attack. The attack is successful, but Poe's insubordination results in too many casualties. Good/bad.
The best microcosm of the movie's theme is from when the code breaker is showing how the casino players made their money... by selling equipment to BOTH sides.
Another example is the storyline of the fateful night between Luke and Kylo. It shows that the good/bad opinion is based on perspective.
I thought there were some very powerful scenes. The jump to lightspeed into the fleet... the throne room battle... the space battles.
I also liked the attention to detail with some of the story telling. The red salt that gets kicked up. Great for imagery, but Luke (who we all think is present), isn't kicking up any salt when he moves.
I would have liked to have some more answers with regard to who Snoke was and the Knights of Ren. Maybe those answers will come later. Maybe they will be standalone movie fodder like "Solo" and "Rogue One."
Overall, great film.
December 17th, 2017 at 11:38 AM ^
Good observations, MJs_PJ_Party. Add to them, Poe's 180-degree change of perspective from being the renegade fanatic in the initial attack to ordering Finn to break off the final attack--and Finn refusing, just as Poe had done previously. And the complexity of the Kylo/Rey interaction was intriguing, not a cliche of straight-line development of enemies-to-friends.
The movie didn't leave me with a satisfying feel of Aristotelian unities, and I'm not ready to call it great. But maybe episode IX will be a good wrap-up. I hope so. In the meantime, there were good points in episode VIII that quite a few people are ignoring, and I'm glad that you've brought up some of 'em (as well as where more explanation would have been good).
December 17th, 2017 at 2:40 PM ^
I think all of that probably sets up the final film pretty good too. Light side/dark side is always about good vs. evil, but if everyone is a mix of good an evil, like Luke said, what's the point? You don't really need any of the force.
December 17th, 2017 at 6:57 PM ^
Yep. Also the theme in this movie, and the 789 trilogy, of dealing with the past and how it affects the present and the future. Very metafiction, that one.
I would also refine your theme 2 into a "perspective affects judgment" theme, with the new idea that peace vs violenece (white vs red) is the new light vs dark (white vs black). Because I don't think anyone will walk away from this movie - nor were they intended by Johnson and Abrams to walk away from this movie - thinking that really, Kylo Ren is a good person and Rey is an evil monster, if you just take a different but valid point of view.
December 17th, 2017 at 10:15 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:25 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 11:23 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 12:08 PM ^
December 18th, 2017 at 2:20 PM ^
Damn, now I'm really depressed. Thanks a lot.
December 17th, 2017 at 1:22 PM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:05 AM ^
I really enjoyed the movie, and while not an "ultra fan", I would consider myself pretty well-versed in Star Wars. Those who are saying it is the second worst I think are way off. Last Jedi is way better than any of the prequel trilogies. Some stretches of Last Jedi were forced, but I guess that's to be expected in a 2 1/2 hour long movie. I thought the subtle force pull of the broom at the end of the movie by the little boy was really cool. Nobody in the theater reacted so I didn't know if I imagined it or not
December 17th, 2017 at 11:41 AM ^
"I thought the subtle force pull of the broom at the end of the movie by the little boy was really cool. Nobody in the theater reacted so I didn't know if I imagined it or not "
You didn't imagine it; it was there. A few people chuckled at that point in the theater at which I saw the movie.
December 17th, 2017 at 12:27 PM ^
Yep, just didn't know at the time if it really happened bc it was so quick and my buddy didn't notice and nobody esle seemed to
December 17th, 2017 at 1:04 PM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:09 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:18 AM ^
Nah, Rogue One was good and Episode VII had some good moments and had potential to be awesome, but then they went ahead and ended it by remaking episode IV only with emo Darth.
December 18th, 2017 at 5:19 AM ^
Rogue One was so good there was a woman crying at the end, talking quietly with her boyfriend until she loudly wept "But I didn't think EVERYONE would die!"
It was just fantastic.
December 17th, 2017 at 10:30 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:17 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:26 AM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 10:32 AM ^
The fact that half the movie was a “oj Simpson style” pursuit was pretty lame.
December 17th, 2017 at 2:13 PM ^
December 17th, 2017 at 3:47 PM ^
re: the bombing scene: I mean, gravity exists in space above a planet. Also, why start applying science accuracy to these movies now? You know how sound works in space right? And fire? Ans: they don't.
re: Juuuust getting all the rebels off- yeah, seems convienient that EVERYONE escapes but then 80% or them get killed later. They zigged the way everyone expected them to and then zagged when NO ONE expected it: as they got tracked thru hyperspace. And a small handfull of pods make it down to Krayt. not just one. Christ, they killed Akbar and almost everyone.
Being upset about predictability or the "good guys just barely make it out" aspects for this film is kind of the wrong hill to die re: complaints about this movie. This is litterally the most surprizing and unpredicable and not-derivative movie they could make since ESB.
December 18th, 2017 at 8:04 AM ^
My only complaint after thinking about it is not enough Finn. I don't understand his character at all. What was that water suit? Maybe it was from TFA and I forgot?
December 18th, 2017 at 9:19 AM ^
December 18th, 2017 at 12:57 PM ^
The bomber had artificial gravity. The bombs "fell" toward the bottom of the bomber, just like the bombadier and her remote control. The bombs then continued through space in the same direction.
December 28th, 2017 at 9:47 AM ^
That holds together on the Star Wars physics. It's still IMHO stupid on a tactical and probably plot level, but it makes more sense than I originally thought.
Space is really, really big. The rebels' plan is to build a whole squadron of ships that attack taking a whole banta-poodoo-load of explosives and accelerating them in the same direction, at the same time, at 1G for about 4 seconds, then hoping they somehow make it to the right place?
You can sort of hand wave it by saying that the bomber squadron wasn't designed for space combat, it was designed for attacking land targets, and using them in space is just the kind of crazy thing a wild flyboy like Poe would think of, except using unguided explosives in ground campaigns is pretty close to a war crime when it's possible to use guided munitions, so I'm not super convinced that the rebels would have these large and elaborate weapons designed mostly to evoke WWII nostalgia.
December 17th, 2017 at 11:15 AM ^
Ahem... Not wanting an apology. But if we ever meet, you can buy me a beer.
"LOL there is always that guy who says something that is loved by so many that it's not cool. Always. I feel people say that just to get reaction."
December 17th, 2017 at 2:12 PM ^