instal Star Wars Ep. VIII: The Last Jedi

Overall The Last Jedi tries too hard, its brashness and spectacle unable to compensate for flighty tone and narrative unreliability. But this 8th episode has polarized audiences more than any other Star Wars movie, with review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes listing a Critic Rating of 91% but an Audience Rating of 44%-the lowest of any episode to date. The Last Jedi definitely takes risks in exploring new Star Wars possibilities, earning descriptions like 'rousing' and 'bold'. Just as Abrams undermined elements of previous Star Wars episodes while simultaneously rehashing elements from A New Hope (1977), Johnson undermines elements of The Force Awakens while rehashing elements from both The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983). So, I hoped The Last Jedi's writer-director Rian Johnson would deliver something better. While not without positive qualities, The Force Awakens was fundamentally marred by excessive imitation, and left many unanswered questions. Abrams ended up disregarding Lucas's notes and instead copied his original Star Wars film, pandering to nostalgic fans and prequel-haters. Alas, Disney and The Force Awakens (2015) writer-director J.J. I defended the move at the time because the deal purportedly included Lucas's outlines for Episodes VII-IX and his longtime producer Kathleen Kennedy was to remain president of Lucasfilm I thought Lucas had arranged the pieces for his Skywalker epic's proper completion.

When George Lucas sold the Star Wars rights to Disney in 2012, many said they'd ruin the franchise. Surprise and unpredictability are precious narrative qualities, but not if at the expense of the story making sense. But countless storytelling choices displayed here are downright baffling. It's certainly ambitious, over the top, and in many respects deviates from Star Wars tradition.

To be fair, the movie does have its kicks. There's so much to unpack in The Last Jedi that I don't know where to start.

Instal Star Wars Ep. VIII: The Last Jedi