Movies: Star Wars VIII The Last Jedi, for those who have seen it! (SPOILERS) | Part II

[Moon Man]

He makes a good point about how unwise it is for the Imperial ship to fire its supercannon at the planetary base, trying to prevent the last transport from escaping, rather than firing at the Resistance cruiser that that transport is trying to escape to. If they would've destroyed or scared away the cruiser, instead, they could've captured that last transport, extracted intel from their captives and then recovered even more intel from the still intact base. Instead, the transport gets away, the cruiser gets away and they're left with a worthless, destroyed base.

BTW, for those who don't want to watch the whole thing, if you care to see glimpses of the some of the deleted scenes, they're at the 26:54 mark.

Lol! Those scenes are so bad. This franchise has been decimated beyond repair.

The three original main characters (that the entire franchise was built upon) have been transformed into unsuccessful old bums, just to be killed off one by one, Lol! Complete destruction.

 

[Shockmaster]

Disney has been pretty clear they don't give a bleep about your average hardcore Star Wars fan, which is where most of the non-racist criticism of the movie comes from. My parents are casual Star Wars fans and liked TLJ, a view shared by quite a few casual moviegoers unfortunately. I'm sure Disney views Rian's creative direction as a positive.

The movies have all been the opposite of risk. TFA was a ANH in a new skin, and TLJ was a stereotypical blockbuster with a Star Wars skin. They went for the most obvious and easiest way to make money, that's not a risk.

It felt like Johnson wanted to make his own movie and just used Star Wars to do it rather than staying true to the previous films.

 

[Baby Punisher]

So, when I saw this in the theater I fell asleep during the casino planet scenes. I missed most of that part. I did enjoy the movie in the sense that it was good to see a Star Wars movie. But, after it was over I had no emotional attachment to it. I left the theater thinking that I just don't care about this new generation of characters on either side, but especially on the rebel side. I don't care what happens to them.

I saw the movie again on Netflix in it's entirety and my opinion overall leans towards not liking it at all.

I actually think I will skip the final installment in the theater. The same thing happened to me with the last Transformers movie. After how bad AOE was I was done with it. I actually liked the Solo movie more than The Last Jedi and the Solo movie wasn't great. The Star Wars franchise is dead. Disney beat it to death.

 

[Cole Caulifield]

I loved the part where Rich Evans poured the wine next to the glass. So subversive, so brilliant

 

[Do Make Say Think]

I watched the Plinkett review last night around 1:00 AM and thoroughly enjoyed it (and work is not getting done at the office today...)

I disagree that the movie was a disaster but it is a great example of mostly positive criticism of TLJ, the "Comedy of Errors" and "From Point A to Point B" bits really hit home, and props to Mike for at least addressing the cottage industry of movie critics still trashing this movie today.

It's the kind of critic that makes me very hopeful for Episode IX: there is a lot to learn from TFA and TLJ in terms of "how to do justice to a franchise you bought and are bringing back after the first revival was an unmitigated disaster"

 

[Pilky01]

It really struck a nerve with the most insufferable segment of Twitter.

Its great for that bit that Rich Evans looks so much like Rian Johnson too.



Star Wars nerds are crazy bitter that their franchise isn't universally beloved.

 

[ArGarBarGar]

The most recent Plinkett review seems to have about as divided a reaction as TLJ did. And a lot of the people who did not like it indicated they like RLM in general, too.

I personally think their Plinkett reviews since TFA have been pretty meh. Ghostbusters was their best of the recent batch. Their BOTW and HITB stuff is so much better, so I don't know why they continue to bring out that character.

 

[GlassesJacketShirt]

The Last Jedi is quickly becoming the most overhated and overrated movie in cinematic history.

Never before have I seen so much passion over a film that is so innocuous yet brain dead as this one.

As for the Plinkett review, the one thing I did find eye opening was the part about the deleted scenes. It helps explain why the movie's tone didn't sit well for me. And why Rian Johnson should avoid doing comedy in the future.

 

[Osprey]

Somewhere (probably on a beach, in a "Hawaiian" shirt), George Lucas is relishing that someone else, for once, is taking the flak for ruining Star Wars. I'd love to know his true thoughts. Is he as spiteful as ever at these same fans who used to take the pitchforks to him? Has he softened on them because they've turned the pitchforks toward the same folks who threw out his ideas for the sequels and killed off his characters? Does he feel a little satisfied with himself because the fans have come to appreciate his talents and even the prequels a little bit more? I want to know these things.

 

[Pilky01]

I don't really watch RLM that much. I am not much of a film buff, and they don't focus on superheros, Star Wars or established IP near as much as a lot of other YouTube critics, so I watch way more stuff from the likes of Lindsey Ellis, Dan Olson or Moviebob instead of them.

It is massively overdiscussed though. Overrated, overhated, all those things apply. But that comes with the territory of the Star Wars brand.

 

[ArGarBarGar]

With regards to Star Wars and the relationship between the fans and the actual property, "The People vs. George Lucas" is a fantastic documentary. Worth checking out if you haven't already seen it.

 

[Shockmaster]

Somewhere (probably on a beach, in a "Hawaiian" shirt), George Lucas is relishing that someone else, for once, is taking the flak for ruining Star Wars. I'd love to know his true thoughts. Is he as spiteful as ever at these same fans who used to take the pitchforks to him? Has he softened on them because they've turned the pitchforks toward the same folks who threw out his ideas for the sequels and killed off his characters? Does he feel a little satisfied with himself because the fans have come to appreciate his talents and even the prequels a little bit more? I want to know these things.

Maybe it has to do with the fact that social media was mostly non-existent in the early 2000's, but despite the many issues with the prequels it still doesn't feel like there is as much vitriol towards those films as there is towards The Last Jedi.

 

[Pilky01]

Maybe it has to do with the fact that social media was mostly non-existent in the early 2000's, but despite the many issues with the prequels it still doesn't feel like there is as much vitriol towards those films as there is towards The Last Jedi.

I think it is because people really liked TFA. Everyone acknowledged that it was a soft reboot of ANH, but it was still an enjoyable movie that got people hyped up for where the story would go. The Phantom Menace tanked the prequel trilogy right out of the gate so there wasn't that tease of something greater.

I went to see TPM in theatres but never went back for the next two. I saw TFA and TLJ in theatres but doubt I will go back for the next one (like how I didn't go back for Solo).

 

[wedge]

Maybe it has to do with the fact that social media was mostly non-existent in the early 2000's, but despite the many issues with the prequels it still doesn't feel like there is as much vitriol towards those films as there is towards The Last Jedi.

I can't imagine how TPM would get trashed if social media existed. Even back then, we heard everywhere that the movie sucked. It remind me of a movie (Fanboys) where SWfans drive across the US to see the movie for a dying friend, but when they finally see it, one guy asks "hey guys, what if the movie sucks?". Golden quote. With TPM, we heard about it being bad even before the premiere and the bandwagon continued and is still on. And personally, I don't understand how people can prefer TPM to TLJ. Besides Maul and Palpatine, there's nothing interesting in the movie. I hate it and still skip it automatically when I do a rewatch. I find it unwatchable. TFA is still an entertaining movie and I like it. TLJ has horrible sequences (Leia Poppins and Canto Bight) but as a whole, is a lot better than TPM.

 

[Pilky01]

Yeah I very much remember the pre-release rumblings that TPM wasn't very good. Even pre-internet, word about those kinda things got around.

 

[ArGarBarGar]

I think the difference is there was no such thing as the "long form video essay" when the prequels came out, and up until recently there didn't seem to be a platform for anyone with a mic and video-editing software to voice their opinions.

Plinkett kind of set the stage for that sort of thing.

 

[kingsboy11]

I can't imagine how TPM would get trashed if social media existed. Even back then, we heard everywhere that the movie sucked. It remind me of a movie (Fanboys) where SWfans drive across the US to see the movie for a dying friend, but when they finally see it, one guy asks "hey guys, what if the movie sucks?". Golden quote. With TPM, we heard about it being bad even before the premiere and the bandwagon continued and is still on. And personally, I don't understand how people can prefer TPM to TLJ. Besides Maul and Palpatine, there's nothing interesting in the movie. I hate it and still skip it automatically when I do a rewatch. I find it unwatchable. TFA is still an entertaining movie and I like it. TLJ has horrible sequences (Leia Poppins and Canto Bight) but as a whole, is a lot better than TPM.

Great movie

 

[Emperoreddy]

I watched the Plinkett review last night around 1:00 AM and thoroughly enjoyed it (and work is not getting done at the office today...)

I disagree that the movie was a disaster but it is a great example of mostly positive criticism of TLJ, the "Comedy of Errors" and "From Point A to Point B" bits really hit home, and props to Mike for at least addressing the cottage industry of movie critics still trashing this movie today.

It's the kind of critic that makes me very hopeful for Episode IX: there is a lot to learn from TFA and TLJ in terms of "how to do justice to a franchise you bought and are bringing back after the first revival was an unmitigated disaster"

I definitely think he made some overall spot on points, especially the “comedy of errors” and how it really did feel like Ryan wanted to make a comedy.

I also thought he was right that salt planet battle most likely should never have happened as the movie climaxed with the lightspeed move. Plus leaving Rey and Kylo on that cliffhanger, and leaving Luke to his grumpiness until the next movie made sense too. I agree with him that the Kylo not being THAT bad, and Rey maybe wanting to be a bit edgier and they become this chaotic neutral force for a bit would have been different and potentially interesting.

Rey really had nothing good to do after Kylo went man baby rage again either. She really was just...there after that. Brings it right back to the salt planet battle not really needing to be there.

He made a passing comment about Disney wanting five locations so Ryan had to write his way to getting everyone off the slow speed chase. I wonder if their was some truth to that. That the original idea was just to center around the slow speed chase as the B plot to Rey’s training A plot, but Disney wanted more locations to merch and they had to bloat the movie? IDK just guessing.

 

[Emperoreddy]

TPM was absolutely trashed when it came out. It was just a different time. People did it in chat rooms, or on really old, crappy message boards (HF is a bit of a relic when you think about it).

There was a lot of hype from fans of the franchise, and TPM was just a massive disappointment all around.

Another difference is this was the first “bad” Star Wars movie. People weren’t jaded yet, so were a lot more forgiving, and willing to give the next two a chance. Attack of the Clones did not get nearly as much shit as it deserved at the time of the release.

Finally there wasn’t a cottage industry built yet in posting your full fanboy rage online for the amusement of others. Guys like AVGN, and Nostalgia Critic sort of started that trend that people to this day still try to emulate. They just don’t understand you need some substance behind all the rage and yelling.

 

[Mr Fahrenheit]

With all the faults of the prequels the story felt like Star Wars, TLJ's story feels like a college students project

 

[Osprey]

Newsgroups were one of the main go-to outlets for nerds to get hyped and unleash their anger back then. They were the "message boards" of the 90s, but they were unfiltered and unmoderated, sort of like Reddit, and you know how bad Reddit can get. Then, as Emperoreddy said, there were chat rooms (like on AOL) and IRC. Unless you were into reading newsgroups (and only the real nerds were) and unless you were actually in the specific chat rooms and IRC channels when others were complaining, you could've very easily missed all of the vitriol when TPM was released. It wasn't like today, where it's a lot harder to escape it, since it's so much easier for content to be shared.

 

[The Shadow]

TPM was absolutely trashed when it came out. It was just a different time. People did it in chat rooms, or on really old, crappy message boards (HF is a bit of a relic when you think about it).

There was a lot of hype from fans of the franchise, and TPM was just a massive disappointment all around.

Another difference is this was the first “bad” Star Wars movie. People weren’t jaded yet, so were a lot more forgiving, and willing to give the next two a chance. Attack of the Clones did not get nearly as much **** as it deserved at the time of the release.

Finally there wasn’t a cottage industry built yet in posting your full fanboy rage online for the amusement of others. Guys like AVGN, and Nostalgia Critic sort of started that trend that people to this day still try to emulate. They just don’t understand you need some substance behind all the rage and yelling.

Did you copy and paste this from a previous post?

I sense something. A post I haven't read since...

 

[Emperoreddy]

Newsgroups were one of the main go-to outlets for nerds to get hyped and unleash their anger back then. They were the "message boards" of the 90s, but they were unfiltered and unmoderated, sort of like Reddit, and you know how bad Reddit can get. Then, as Emperoreddy said, there were chat rooms (like on AOL) and IRC. Unless you were into reading newsgroups (and only the real nerds were) and unless you were actually in the specific chat rooms and IRC channels when others were complaining, you could've very easily missed all of the vitriol when TPM was released. It wasn't like today, where it's a lot harder to escape it, since it's so much easier for content to be shared.

Oh the old Usenet newsgroups

 

[ArGarBarGar]

With all the faults of the prequels the story felt like Star Wars, TLJ's story feels like a college students project

What makes the prequels more Star Wars than TLJ?

This take has always been so peculiar to me.

 

[Do Make Say Think]

I also thought he was right that salt planet battle most likely should never have happened as the movie climaxed with the lightspeed move. Plus leaving Rey and Kylo on that cliffhanger, and leaving Luke to his grumpiness until the next movie made sense too.

On paper, I think I agree. However I would have been livid if the movie ended like that.

If they wanted the movie to end like that, which again would be fine, the movie would have to be completely overhauled from start to finish.

At which point I wonder if it's fair to claim: "this movie should have ended here rather than 30 minutes later".

I will give you that it definitely would have set up Episode IX better. TLJ toys with the idea of a reboot of sorts but in the end doesn't go through with it and sets up IX as "expected good guys vs expected bad guys fighting for control of the galaxy" which certainly is a bit of a let down.

I must be in the absolute minority but I loved Luke showing up how he did. Pulls the ultimate defensive move (Jedi uses the Force for defense and knowledge, never for attack!) and saves everyone. I found that to be a very satisfying conclusion to his arc in the movie.

I don't think he needed to die though but whatever, it's not a big deal to me.

What makes the prequels more Star Wars than TLJ?

This take has always been so peculiar to me.

Less women in prominent roles telling men to pipe down and think.

The Prequels did build on the little lore we had in the Original Trilogy and was far more ambitious with it's plot and characters than the Sequel Trilogy so far. I will give them that.