Post by jammer81386 on Apr 7, 2019 19:14:38 GMT
The Last Jedi has become the new target of the ire of the fandom since its release back in 2016. In many ways it reminds me of all the intense hatred directed at the prequels in the years after Revenge of the Sith. I got so bad that people went as far as to call George Lucas the next Ed Wood. Which I thought was quite absurd and over the top.
Despite their flaws the prequels did excel in some areas, which were getting overlooked due to people focusing solely on the failings of those films. Now that we are in the Disney era, these strong aspects are getting some acknowledgement. Which is nice to see.
However, like the prequels, I think Last Jedi is getting the same treatment, with people refusing to see the good in the film while focusing entirely on the bad. While I am not one of the fans of the movie,(I rated the film as a 6/10) I do feel to need to stick up for the movie where I feel appropriate. Just as I defended the Prequels back in the day. So in an effort to practice what i preach, I decided to list the things about The Last Jedi I enjoyed the most.
It took risks
To start I will give the movie credit for taking risks with the characters and story. It is easy to just stick to what works and call it a day. So it is admirable to attempt new things and subvert audience expectations. Now i will agree that not all of these risks were successful, but i will still give points for the attempt,
Mark Hamill's Performance
I am not the biggest fan of how the filmmakers chose to portray of Luke in the Last Jedi. However, despite that I do think that Mark Hamill's performance as a that character was very effective. Every emotion he was trying to convey felt natural and never contrived.
Luke's Death
On the whole, I did not like Luke's death. They should have either saved his death for Episode XI or actually have him there on the planet. That said, I did appreciated how Luke's journey book-ended its self. Both with the use of the Binary sunset and with the notion of Luke being "A New Hope". Basically Luke's journey ended as it began. Again, it didn't completely work for me, but that aspect of it did.
Luke Condemning the Jedi
This is the aspect of the film that I liked the most due to the fact that is defied expectations and challenged the audience. In the past the Jedi had been viewed as the noblest of figures, however if you re-watch the prequels you'll see that many of the Jedi's action are rather shady. As such it was refreshing to see the order being challenged on those failings.
Adam Driver as Kylo Ren
As with The Force Awakens, I like Kylo Ren as a villain. A mentally unstable dark-sider had not been seem in past films, making the character original, yet still familiar. Adam driver is great in the role making conveying power, insanity, and insecurity.
Finn's story
Of all the main characters of the Sequel trilogy, Finn is my favorite. Despite having a rather unique backstory, he does come off like a typical everyman with shortcomings both physical and moral. Therefore his arc over the past two films has been the most relatable (to me at least).
The Visuals.
This is, without question the best looking of the Star Wars films. I am not referring to the visual effects, I am talking about how the scenes and shots were composed. Whatever you feel about the film as a whole, give Johnson props for his skills at visual story telling. Just looking at these shot ( 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ) really conveys the sense that you are watching a grand and epic story.
So those are the things about The Last Jedi I enjoyed the most. I made this post not to try to "convert" anyone, but to try to put things into perspective. I have stated in the past that I think there is too much negativity in the Star Wars fandom and I hope that this list will help create a more positive outlook for the series and to give credit where it is due. Thanks to all for reading.
Despite their flaws the prequels did excel in some areas, which were getting overlooked due to people focusing solely on the failings of those films. Now that we are in the Disney era, these strong aspects are getting some acknowledgement. Which is nice to see.
However, like the prequels, I think Last Jedi is getting the same treatment, with people refusing to see the good in the film while focusing entirely on the bad. While I am not one of the fans of the movie,(I rated the film as a 6/10) I do feel to need to stick up for the movie where I feel appropriate. Just as I defended the Prequels back in the day. So in an effort to practice what i preach, I decided to list the things about The Last Jedi I enjoyed the most.
It took risks
To start I will give the movie credit for taking risks with the characters and story. It is easy to just stick to what works and call it a day. So it is admirable to attempt new things and subvert audience expectations. Now i will agree that not all of these risks were successful, but i will still give points for the attempt,
Mark Hamill's Performance
I am not the biggest fan of how the filmmakers chose to portray of Luke in the Last Jedi. However, despite that I do think that Mark Hamill's performance as a that character was very effective. Every emotion he was trying to convey felt natural and never contrived.
Luke's Death
On the whole, I did not like Luke's death. They should have either saved his death for Episode XI or actually have him there on the planet. That said, I did appreciated how Luke's journey book-ended its self. Both with the use of the Binary sunset and with the notion of Luke being "A New Hope". Basically Luke's journey ended as it began. Again, it didn't completely work for me, but that aspect of it did.
Luke Condemning the Jedi
This is the aspect of the film that I liked the most due to the fact that is defied expectations and challenged the audience. In the past the Jedi had been viewed as the noblest of figures, however if you re-watch the prequels you'll see that many of the Jedi's action are rather shady. As such it was refreshing to see the order being challenged on those failings.
Adam Driver as Kylo Ren
As with The Force Awakens, I like Kylo Ren as a villain. A mentally unstable dark-sider had not been seem in past films, making the character original, yet still familiar. Adam driver is great in the role making conveying power, insanity, and insecurity.
Finn's story
Of all the main characters of the Sequel trilogy, Finn is my favorite. Despite having a rather unique backstory, he does come off like a typical everyman with shortcomings both physical and moral. Therefore his arc over the past two films has been the most relatable (to me at least).
The Visuals.
This is, without question the best looking of the Star Wars films. I am not referring to the visual effects, I am talking about how the scenes and shots were composed. Whatever you feel about the film as a whole, give Johnson props for his skills at visual story telling. Just looking at these shot ( 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ) really conveys the sense that you are watching a grand and epic story.
So those are the things about The Last Jedi I enjoyed the most. I made this post not to try to "convert" anyone, but to try to put things into perspective. I have stated in the past that I think there is too much negativity in the Star Wars fandom and I hope that this list will help create a more positive outlook for the series and to give credit where it is due. Thanks to all for reading.
