My Star Wars: The Last Jedi Review That Is So Long and Full of Spoilers Because I Just Can't Help It12/21/2017 My long Christmas holiday has officially started! During our last working days of the year, my co-workers who celebrate Christmas were busy preparing for the celebration while the ones who don't were planning their trips. What about me? Oh yeah, I was busy planning the day when I was going to see Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Yup, the highly anticipated eighth episode of the main Star Wars saga is finally here. Star Wars: The Last Jedi is directed by Looper director (it's a really cool movie, by the way) Rian Johnson. Most of the cast members of the previous episode, like Daisy Ridley, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver and Domhnall Gleeson (when I say "most", it means no Harrison Ford *sob*), reprise their roles in this one. There are also some new faces joining the cast, such as Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern and Benicio del Toro. The Last Jedi tells us what happened after Rey finally found the legendary Luke Skywalker in his hiding place. I've got SO MANY things that I want to say about this movie. There are so many shocking and unexpected moments that make the movie so great and satisfying, especially for fans of the saga who have seen and loved all the movies. So, this post contains major spoilers from The Last Jedi. If you haven't seen the movie and want to enjoy the suprises, please stop reading and come back after you've seen it. Here we go! THIS MOVIE MADE ME FEEL NOSTALGIC After I saw The Last Jedi, I thought about the storyline and realized how it is similar to the fifth episode, The Empire Strikes Back. In The Last Jedi, Rey, a girl from nowhere, found the Jedi Master Luke Skywalker in an isolated island and intended to undergo her Jedi training with him, just like Luke the farm boy from Tatooine who went to Dagobah to begin his training with Yoda in Empire Strikes Back. Luke was reluctant to take Rey as his apprentice, again, just like Yoda was. But they eventually did the training and discovered just how powerful the young ones were. Then, near the end of the movie, Rey decided to leave her master to do something that she thought was very crucial to do, and, you know, Luke did the same thing in Empire Strikes Back. But when Rey flew away from the island and landed on the bad guys' spaceship, things began to look like the final act of the sixth episode, Return of the Jedi. Kylo Ren was waiting for Rey to come and immediately took her to his master, Snoke, when she arrived. He was lurking behind Rey with conflicts within his heart while Snoke was doing his evil talk and showing Rey how her friends were struggling to survive. Sounds familiar? Maybe it's because the scene also happened in Return of the Jedi with young Luke, Darth Vader and the Emperor. The scene in The Last Jedi ended quite differently, though. While Vader killed the Emperor and turned back to the Light Side before he died, Kylo surprisingly killed Snoke and then asked Rey to join him and rule the galaxy in their own way. The twist reminds me more of Vader in Empire Strikes Back and Vader's old self, Anakin Skywalker, in Revenge of the Sith. One of the most shocking moments in The Last Jedi is when Luke DIED, and made my jaw drop because I was truly shocked, at the end after his spirit confronted Kylo Ren. When I thought of it, I realized that it is another throwback moment. When Luke died, his body disappeared as the wind blew his cape. This peaceful and graceful death reminds me of Obi-wan Kenobi's and Yoda's deaths in Episode IV and VI (and also Master Oogway's in Kungfu Panda, to be honest hahaha). I like what they have decided to do with Luke's death. It puts him among the great Jedi knights like Yoda and Obi-wan, who died in the same way and possessed the ability to appear in the world of the living as a Force ghost. Besides Rey, Kylo and Luke, the film also features other subplots; one of them is the one that centers on Finn and Rose. Finn and his new friend, Rose, went on a secret mission in Canto Bight to find a code cracker who could help them beat the First Order, which has been hunting the Resistance down using hyperspace tracking. They found a code cracker, not the one they were looking for, though, who helped them get into the First Order's spaceship. However, the code cracker, played by Benicio del Toro, shockingly betrayed Finn and Rose by selling information about the Resistance he got from the duo to the First Order. Benicio del Toro's character and his betrayal remind me of Lando Calrissian, who betrayed Han and Leia in Empire Strikes Back. I think we haven't seen the last of Benicio's character (I don't know the character's name, by the way). He might come back in Episode IX to redeem his betrayal, just like Lando did. And also, it's Benicio del Toro, man. You should not let him be wasted. Some other nostalgic moments that deserve to be noticed are the appearance of the white, salty planet where the ending takes place, which looks very similar to the icy planet Hoth in Empire Strikes Back, and the moment when Luke reunited with R2-D2 and the droid played Leia's old hologram message to him. I love all the moments that I mentioned above, but the award for the most shocking and the most nostalgic moment in the movie must be given to.... OUR LITTLE GREEN FRIEND, GRAND MASTER YODA! YES, MASTER YODA MADE A CAMEO PERFORMANCE IN THIS MOVIE! When Luke was distressed after Rey left to find Kylo and going to destroy the old Jedi books, Force ghost Yoda surprisingly appeared behind him. With his signature wisecracking style, Yoda gave Luke some wise words that enlightened his distraught mind. I don't remember the exact words, but Yoda told Luke that, as a teacher, he shouldn't just teach his students the great and good things that he knew; he must also tell them about the failures and mistakes that he had made. It's because failure is the greatest teacher, he said. I really love his advice, maybe because I'm a teacher. I think what Yoda said is very true but often forgotten. This shows that, even though Luke was a great Jedi, Yoda will always be a better master. In my opinion, this Yoda scene is the best scene in this movie. Another interesting thing about it is how they seem to use the puppet Yoda, like the one you can see in the original trilogy, instead of CGI Yoda, which was used in the prequel trilogy. I think it is, again, a way to honor the original trilogy. GOOD CHEMISTRY IS EVERYWHERE The Last Jedi divides itself into several storylines that focus on different characters. I like this because it allows us to see how certain characters interact with each other. I found some great pairings with good chemistry here. I really enjoyed watching Oscar Isaac's Poe Dameron and Carrie Fisher's Leia interact with each other. Poe was a young pilot who was so eager to blow things up (he kinda reminds me of young Luke and young Anakin), but as the story approaches its end, we can see how he learned to control himself and think before acting from Leia, who was always patient with him but was never hesitant when she had to scold him. I think they have a really great chemistry. I was also very touched by a scene that Leia shared with Admiral Holdo, played by Laura Dern. It's the scene where Holdo was basically saying goodbye to Leia before sacrificing herself to save the Resistance. In the scene, both female leaders were so warm and loving, but, when you think of it, what they were doing is actually really brave and heroic. That scene has made Admiral Holdo one of my favorite characters in the movie. One of the things from The Force Awakens that stung me is the fact that Han Solo died (*sob*) and would never reunite with his old pal Luke. Before seeing The Last Jedi, I wondered if Luke would get the chance to reunite with the other member of the iconic trio, Leia. And the answer is apparently yes. Luke and Leia finally reunited in a scene near the end of the movie. It was Luke's spirit that came to Leia, not his actual self, but the reunion is sweet and emotional. You know, that scene got my eyes wet. Now let's talk about the new characters and their chemistry. Maybe I'm the only one who thinks this way, but I really like watching Kylo Ren and General Hux together. Despite being on the same side, the two don't share many scenes in the movie, but there is one scene that features the two of them that I really like. When the First Order troops were pushing through the Resistance's last defense under the command of Kylo, there was a moment where Hux realized that Kylo was starting to lose control. Hux's face was stunned before he finally said, "Enough." I don't know why but I really like that. Hux hated the Resistance and found joy in the destruction of it but I think he still knew what is necessary and what is not while Kylo didn't. They both are evil but they are different to one another. It's interesting when the bad guys are not just bad but complex. I really want to see more of them together. I just found out that people have a ship name for these two, which is Kylux. Oh yeah, I ship Kylux hahaha. And I like the actors too. I know Domhnall Gleeson is a brilliant actor (you should see him in Ex Machina with Oscar Isaac and Alicia Vikander; so good), but this movie makes me a fan of Mr Adam Driver. A pair that has a lot of screen time together in The Last Jedi is Reylo aka Rey and Kylo. In the movie, they developed a connection through the Force that allowed them to communicate throught their minds. Their conversations surprisingly created an emotional connection between them. This connection even affected the two's decisions. Rey decided to leave Luke because she was sure that she could turn Kylo back to the Light Side and stop the war. I think I've said this in my review of The Force Awakens but Rey is so much like young Luke who was sure that there was still a bit of light within his father's heart. Kylo's connection with Rey also made him slice his own master, Snoke, and invite Rey to rule the galaxy with him, which is so Anakin/Vader. I like the dynamic of this duo and I'm curious about how things will be between them in Episode IX. Will it end the way Luke and Vader's relationship did? Hmm what do you think?
I COULD HEAR THE ICONIC QUOTES It's not a Star Wars movie if it doesn't have the iconic "May the Force be with you" line. This time Laura Dern gets the honor to say it. I don't remember whether there are other characters who say the line in this film or not, but if there are, my favorite is definitely Holdo's turn because it's, like I said, so warm and heroic at the same time (she said it during the scene that she shared with Carrie). I don't remember hearing "I have a bad feeling about this", which is a bit disappointing since it's one of my favorite quotes. I'm pretty sure Yoda's wise words will soon become iconic like all of his other quotes. However, my favorite quote from the movie has got to be the one uttered by Kylo near the end of the movie. "Blast that piece of junk OUT OF THE SKY!" screamed Kylo when he saw the Millenium Falcon flying around. I grinned when I heard the line because, despite their issues, at least Kylo agreed with his uncle Luke when it comes to the Falcon. WHO RUN THE EPISODE VIII WORLD? GIRLS! So far, three Star Wars films have been released after Disney bought Lucasfilm. All three of them have women as their leads. However, The Last Jedi feels even more special because it has more female characters that are unique, layered and cool. The opening sequence ended with a breathtaking, heartbreaking sacrifice made by a Resistance soldier who is a woman and an Asian. We can also see many female pilots looking just as fierce as the male ones. Captain Phasma looks so badass in her armor, but she desperately needs more screen time and backstory! Holdo is, like I said, such a heroine. She might seem annoying at the beginning, but she bravely stayed in the ship while the other Resistance members left and sliced that First Order's ship in a very jaw-dropping way and managed to look stylish while doing all of them. She's just an awesome leader. And don't forget Rey, who basically leads the movie and naturally proves that a female Jedi is just as cool as a male one. However, the most iconic female character in the Star Wars saga will always be... OUR PRINCESS, LEIA ORGANA. As you all may have known, Carrie Fisher, the actress who played Leia Organa in all the Star Wars movies, passed away last year, around the time when Rogue One was released. So, The Last Jedi is Carrie's last film. Even though the movie wasn't planned to be her last, the film feels like a tribute to her because it depicts her character very beautifully. I've mentioned about her lovely storyline with Poe and Holdo and her heartwarming reunion with Luke, but there is another part of the movie that shows just how powerful Leia is. Quite early in the movie, I was shocked by a scene where Leia seemed to have died. In an attempt to destroy the Resistance, Kylo joined his troops and started shooting the rebels' spaceship. He could sense his mother's presence in the spaceship's bridge and was ready to blast her. However, he was incapable of doing it and the troops ended up finishing the job. The bridge exploded and everyone in it, including Leia, were sucked into the airless space. I almost got a heart attack at that time. I kinda expected her to die in this movie, to be honest, but I didn't expect it to be so brutal and fast like that. I thought, is she really dead? Just like that? No, she can't be! And nope, she wasn't. The camera surprisingly came back to Leia's frozen body that was spinning around the space. AND THEN HER FINGERS MOVED AND SHE OPENED HER EYES AND SHE USED THE FORCE TO FLEW HERSELF BACK TO THE SPACESHIP. Yes, that really happened. My eyes almost popped out when it happened. It's just super cool. I haven't been reading other people's reviews of this movie because I want to make my own first, but I've been seeing headlines that indicate that this movie has received mixed reviews from fans. A lot of fans are even hating this movie. To be honest, I don't understand why people dislike this movie; as a fan I am very happy with it. I can't wait for the upcoming Star Wars films, especially the ones that explore the adventures of the characters outside the Skywalker family. The Han Solo movie is coming next and the team behind it seems pretty solid and convincing, but I'm most excited about the rumored Obi-wan Kenobi movie. I really hope they're going to make that movie and bring back Ewan McGregor because Obi-wan is my favorite Star Wars character.
Happy holidays! Rating: 4,5/5
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