Conflict and balance

Rating: 8/10 (19 December 2017)

It's about conflict and balance. That's what the whole of the Star Wars saga has been about. Luke and Snoke are at opposite ends of the Force spectrum and both meet their ends in this film. Dealing with internal conflict over which side to choose, Kylo kills his master after deciding to save the life of a person he clearly has connection with. Sounds similar to how Vader betrays the Emperor doesn't it? Luke exiles himself on a remote planet after seeing himself as having failed the Jedi order, which parallels Yoda's journey between episodes 3 and 4. Having turned his back on the Force, he continues with his struggle to find his position. Why retreat to an ancient Jedi island if you're through with the religion? He decides to burn the Jedi texts before changing his mind, even trying to rush in an rescue them once Yoda makes the decision for him. His words and actions contradict one another until he finally re-embraces the Force, provides a distraction for the beleaguered Resistance and finds redemption by sacrificing himself to save the day. Again, his arc mirrors that of both his father and his first master, Obi Wan.

In this film we see more than in TFA that Kylo and Rey are different sides of the same coin. Their hostility carries through from TFA until Rey senses good within Kylo during their Force chats and allows herself to be cuffed and taken into custody, just as Luke did in RotJ. The light within Kylo seems to win through as they work together to defeat Snoke's guards. They have the same goal - the end to the war - but chose different paths to get there, and, after realising this difference, are at odds again. It's worth noting that Kylo offers Rey the opportunity to rule alongside him, just as Vader did to Luke, and Anakin did to Padme.

I understand the grievances about the storyline and the character arcs but look at the message and themes of the film and how it ties into the saga as a whole. We often hear about balance in the Force but, for me, in TLJ, it's the first time we see signs of it. It's this symmetry which brings together the prequels and original trilogy, that really makes the film stand out.