Going for second viewing this afternoon, this time in a much nicer theater. My opinion of TFA took a quantum leap on a follow-up viewing, so I'm interested to see if the same holds for TLJ. Will report back...
[SPOILERS] Star Wars: The Last Jedi
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Please bring back juicy details that first time watchers would miss... many thanks, kind Regards... the Fluf
Second viewing vastly improved the experience for me. I would now put this one well ahead of TFA, and challenge ROTJ for a spot in my Star Wars movie pecking order. Spoil-o-matic:
Watching a second time got me past the critiquing fanboy stage and allowed me to just sit back and appreciate the movie for what it was. And for the most part, it was very, very good. I'm now certain that I liked the Leia Force flight scene. It was a very poignant moment, and was bolstered by the fact that we saw Leia using the Force, albeit passively, at several points in the film. That said, the only part of the movie where I actually teared up was at Leia's and Holdo's parting, though that may have been due to reading this week that Carrie Fisher herself script-doctored that scene.
I think what I liked the most about the movie this time was that each major character had a defined arc. By the end, Rey, Kylo, Poe and Finn had all been through experiences that will help shape them going forward.
Rey has learned the nature of the Force and her importance to the cause of the Resistance. She's also learned that she is capable of more than she'd previously considered. Like Luke in the OT, she now knows that the burden of harnessing her power for the greatest good is on her and is not dependent on anyone else (i.e. Luke). Will she be the one to bring the Force into balance? It certainly looks that way. Although I also kept a close watch on the symbolism in the film, particularly the mosaic on the floor of the first Jedi temple. That thing is showcased a number of times. I'm still curious what it will end up representing.
Kylo, in destroying Snoke, has assumed the agency he has so desperately craved, but still feels an emptiness he can't quite overcome. I still think it's possible that he can be redeemed because he's so obviously tortured by his nature. Can I just interject here that Adam Driver is absolutely killing it in this role? He brings a nuance that is difficult to achieve. Far from just the petulant child, he is in fact a torn and dismantled soul and he plays that out in every second of screentime. It's amazing to behold.
Poe has learned what it means to be a leader. It means patience, compassion and sacrifice. The look that Leia gave him on Crait when he led the survivors to their escape was very telling. In that moment, she knew that he got it. He finally understood that being "the hero" wasn't important. He learned this both from his failures and also from Holdo's sacrifice. He probably grew more than any other character in the story from start to finish.
Finn learned from Rose that running away from your problems never solves anything. He took her courage (as just a "regular person" with no special training, no status) and learned from it. Her resourcefulness and pragmatism saved him more than once from decisions he would have later regretted, or that would've cost him his life for nothing. I'd also note that I have much more appreciation for Rose after this viewing than I did after the first. Hell, I even enjoyed Canto Bight this time around.
In short, every character of note is set up to be much more interesting in IX than they were at the beginning of TLJ. It's hard to ask for much more than that.
I think what I liked the most about the movie this time was that each major character had a defined arc. By the end, Rey, Kylo, Poe and Finn had all been through experiences that will help shape them going forward.
Rey has learned the nature of the Force and her importance to the cause of the Resistance. She's also learned that she is capable of more than she'd previously considered. Like Luke in the OT, she now knows that the burden of harnessing her power for the greatest good is on her and is not dependent on anyone else (i.e. Luke). Will she be the one to bring the Force into balance? It certainly looks that way. Although I also kept a close watch on the symbolism in the film, particularly the mosaic on the floor of the first Jedi temple. That thing is showcased a number of times. I'm still curious what it will end up representing.
Kylo, in destroying Snoke, has assumed the agency he has so desperately craved, but still feels an emptiness he can't quite overcome. I still think it's possible that he can be redeemed because he's so obviously tortured by his nature. Can I just interject here that Adam Driver is absolutely killing it in this role? He brings a nuance that is difficult to achieve. Far from just the petulant child, he is in fact a torn and dismantled soul and he plays that out in every second of screentime. It's amazing to behold.
Poe has learned what it means to be a leader. It means patience, compassion and sacrifice. The look that Leia gave him on Crait when he led the survivors to their escape was very telling. In that moment, she knew that he got it. He finally understood that being "the hero" wasn't important. He learned this both from his failures and also from Holdo's sacrifice. He probably grew more than any other character in the story from start to finish.
Finn learned from Rose that running away from your problems never solves anything. He took her courage (as just a "regular person" with no special training, no status) and learned from it. Her resourcefulness and pragmatism saved him more than once from decisions he would have later regretted, or that would've cost him his life for nothing. I'd also note that I have much more appreciation for Rose after this viewing than I did after the first. Hell, I even enjoyed Canto Bight this time around.
In short, every character of note is set up to be much more interesting in IX than they were at the beginning of TLJ. It's hard to ask for much more than that.
So I watched it today, and man am I glad Snokes is dead, he was a poor man's Palpatine.
You know the comedian Jim Norton watched Episode I a decade after it came out and said Darth Maul's name might as well have been "Mean Man Scary Face" I think that would be a good name for Snoke as well.
I still think that perhaps we haven't seen the last of Snoke.
I mean Maul and Snokes both had no discernable motivation whatsoever. Palpatine may have been 1 dimensional in that he mainly just seemed to be power hungry (and at other points just seemed to love being evil) but I would be interested if anyone on this forum could tell me what Snokes and/or Maul planned to do. Beyond destroying the Jedi, I mean.
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The fact that you don't even know that it's Snoke and not Snokes tells me you aren't really invested in it enough to care about a proper answer.
But anyway, nobody knew the emperor's motivations when the original trilogy came out. He was just an ugly powerful dude, like Snoke. You can garner some bits and pieces of his motivation, as some sort of influencer of the force. He seemed more concerned with Kylo's success as a force user than anything else. Very curious. I am going to hold off my judgments about this until the next film, but if we don't get any more context I am going to be pretty disappointed.
There is extensive backstory on Maul, but he was just a tool of the emperor in the movie. Lots of baddies in movies serve a similar role.
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Pretty much agree with all of this.
I still find the Leia scene uncomfortable. The thing that bothers me is actually how long it lasts. You see her go all the way up to the ship and then continue into the ship with basically no cut away or one cut away and it's like it just keeps going for just a smidge too long. I don't have a big problem with it, but I still feel like it just wasn't nailed quite right. You compare that with a lot of other things all throughout the movie that were perfectly executed and it just feels like a weak spot which hits harder with how much weight it carries.
Really enjoyed it a ton more the second go though. All of the temple scenes are wonderful. The Snoke throne room sequence is all definitely a top thing for me. That opening sequence is sooo great too. I did not appreciate it enough the first time at all. Just outstanding.
I am hoping the final stand with Luke will bear more significance with the next film. It was very well executed though, and I appreciated the way it went down quite a bit more now than I did while dealing with the shock of it during the first viewing.
Really enjoyed it a ton more the second go though. All of the temple scenes are wonderful. The Snoke throne room sequence is all definitely a top thing for me. That opening sequence is sooo great too. I did not appreciate it enough the first time at all. Just outstanding.
I am hoping the final stand with Luke will bear more significance with the next film. It was very well executed though, and I appreciated the way it went down quite a bit more now than I did while dealing with the shock of it during the first viewing.
Can we stop talking about the ugly bad guy and pull our focus onto Kylo again.... you make it really hard for me to daydream...
@infinite dreams thanks for the feedback! I agree, Kylo is going to surprise us, and he’s probably going to be weak (good) in a moment that causes his demise at the end of it all... that makes me sad, but I’m generally wrong with such things.... so don’t listen to me
Also, in the history of the brand (movie-wise) has there ever been a female sith? If not why not cause I’d love to see that too!
@infinite dreams thanks for the feedback! I agree, Kylo is going to surprise us, and he’s probably going to be weak (good) in a moment that causes his demise at the end of it all... that makes me sad, but I’m generally wrong with such things.... so don’t listen to me
Also, in the history of the brand (movie-wise) has there ever been a female sith? If not why not cause I’d love to see that too!
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There were some in the expanded universe. I don't know what is considered canon anymore but we should see some Sith Ladies. It would be great! There is a very popular female dark side user, though she is not a Sith. Her name is Asajj Ventress.
Yes yes yes, bring her! Maybe now that we have a female lead using the light side of the force..... it will come.... everyone loves to see two badass women fighting, am I right or am I rightThere were some in the expanded universe. I don't know what is considered canon anymore but we should see some Sith Ladies. It would be great! There is a very popular female dark side user, though she is not a Sith. Her name is Asajj Ventress.
Ouch.
Maul's backstory was probably filled in by a million comics/novels and things like that but I would just like to point out, that with the exception of some minor nit-picky sort of things the original trilogy needs no fixes, the characters and plot stand on their own.
Snoke and Maul both suffer from a lack of screen time/dialogue, we could at least surmise that Palpatine took over the government to wipe out the jedi order, which was a massive institution and had this secondary goal of conquering the galaxy (basically for his own amusement it seems).
With Snoke there's nothing, he wants power to do... something. He's just kind of generically evil.
I really hated almost all of the jokes in the movie. Especially since they were usually sandwiched between serious scenes where people are in dire situations. That movie also found a way to make me hate owls. I didn't think it was possible, but those CG owls riding in the Millennium Falcon made me hate my favorite animal.
So unpalatable was the blend between those jokes and the serious scenes around them that the dumb theater audience which always laughs at everything didn't laugh at most of those jokes at the screening I went to. If you cut out most of those stupid jokes I probably would have rated the movie as being much higher, but the bad comedy flopped more often than it succeeded and ruined some of the serious and dark atmosphere that the film had built up.
EDIT: I know i'm being negative in this thread but I actually thought the movie was okay.
So unpalatable was the blend between those jokes and the serious scenes around them that the dumb theater audience which always laughs at everything didn't laugh at most of those jokes at the screening I went to. If you cut out most of those stupid jokes I probably would have rated the movie as being much higher, but the bad comedy flopped more often than it succeeded and ruined some of the serious and dark atmosphere that the film had built up.
EDIT: I know i'm being negative in this thread but I actually thought the movie was okay.
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You should hate puffins more
I see this sentiment repeated in a lot of videos. Both times I went, people laughed quite a lot. Much more on opening night of course but still I never heard any snickers or saw any walk outs or anything like that. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but I haven't seen it.
I went back and watched Rouge One, Episode 7 and also Empire Strikes Back. Honestly, Ep. 8 has given me a cool new perspective on Empire Strikes Back. I enjoy all of the fan service, and I'm enjoying the transition into a new era.
To it's credit, Episode VIII went it's own way. Everyone accused VII of being the result of Disney Thinktank committee decisions (perhaps rightly so) but I don't think anyone could say the same of Last Jedi. I really enjoyed the double betrayal in the throne room, that was probably my favorite part of the movie. Reminded me of Richard Burton in Where Eagles Dare.