The Last Jedi Subverts Any and All Expectations

Rating: 9/10 (19 December 2017)

The Last Jedi has the least amount of time elapsed since the previous instalment (you could make a case for Rogue One into A New Hope, but I'm not really sure that counts). The resistance, after their victory against Starkiller base, are now fleeing their own base as The First Order arrive to bombard it. We also pick up on Ahch'to immediately, with Rey handing the lightsaber over to Luke. The story that follows, in broad strokes, is pretty much just the Resistence running away from the First Order as they keep hot on their heels. Meanwhile Rey learns about herself, Luke, the Jedi, and digs deeper into Kylo Ren's psyche on the hidden planet.
The biggest thing to keep in mind with The Last Jedi is it's aim, one of subversion. It subverts every expectation and Star Wars trope there is. This has rubbed many people up the wrong way, but for me it has rivitalised the franchise after the New Hope copy of Force Awakens. Where Force Awakens attempted to feel familiar and as a result mimic a lot of elements we've already seen in the saga a number of times before, Last Jedi throws them out the window and forges its own path. In this regard it's a very self-aware movie. Rian Johnson knows exactly what he was doing with it, and the hype surrounding the script - that he had written some crazy, new stuff for the franchise - does not go unfounded.
One of the biggest examples of this is the role of Poe and Finn. As they reach desperation and hopelessness, they go against orders to hatch their own against-the-odds plan. They seek the heroic path we've seen a number of times in these kinds of movies. But against all expectations they fail. They fail hard. It does not result in a big triumphant moment where the good guys win against all hope and the bad guys are left scratching their heads. I've seen criticism that it makes Finn's sub-plot entirely pointless, and yeah I can understand that point of view. We get dragged to a bizarre set of sequences set at a casino that ram a message of corporations and wealth down our throats, and we don't get a satisfactory payoff from it. But on the other hand it shows us that our protagonists are not flawless heroes who always win. They make mistakes. They're brash and impulsive.
The Last Jedi tries very hard to drift away from the black-and-white, good vs evil that has defined the saga for so long. It flirts with shades of grey instead. Luke is no longer a hopeful optimist who always does the right thing, but he hides away in shame of a mistake he made that cost lives. Rey is not the infallible hero she's been built up to be as she delves deep into the depths of darkside willingly, without resisting. Kylo Ren grows beyond just being the petulant Anakin-copy, himself seeking a new world order that is greater than anything that has come before, neither light nor dark.
An early theory I had during the movie pertained to a developing relationship between Kylo and Rey. They're connected across lightyears by the force and share conversations with one another where they open up and learn more about each other. So my theory was this; maybe Rey's importance in the saga has nothing to do with her parentage, her past, but instead is because of her future. Her destiny is to join Kylo and together they bring balance to the force with force-neutral children that are neither light or dark. Rey and Kylo themselves are neither extreme either, and so bringing balance to one another. As the film went on this theory started to deteriorate, so in a couple of years I'll probably look like a complete idiot (or you never know, I might look like a genius). And yet the fact I was so readily given this open interpretation for where the franchise might go has me excited. The subversions of The Last Jedi have effectively wiped the slate clean again, opening the way for Episode IX to go in any direction.
Of course I'm a visuals guy, always have been and always will be, so I have no doubt that a big part of my love for this movie stems from the fact that it is without doubt the best looking Star Wars movie to date. Everything from composition to colours to the quality of CGI and puppetry is grade A stuff. The third act on Crait is simply beautiful to watch, with icicle wolves running around, and red crystals beneath salt-flats that ploom up creating such a gorgeous contrast between white and a rich red. The big climax between Rey, Kylo, and Snoke is also a feast for the eyes, as the clean red and black interior of Snoke's throne room is soiled by flame and betrayal, and his red-clad guards burst into fervent action in one of the most enticing lightsaber battles the franchise has seen. Also love it or hate it, but Leia drifting back to the ship through the debris is fantastic just to watch.
But okay, I acknowledge that this film isn't flawless, and I can at least understand some of the criticisms levied it's way. For starters the pacing seems a little off. The big climax of the whole movie occurs at the end of the second act. The Rey/Kylo/Snoke, Finn/Rose/BB-8, and Poe/Leia/Holdo climaxes all occur at the same time, and once they've all been resolved that feels like when the movie should end. Instead the action drifts to a nearby planet where the remnants of the Resistance are holed up in a mine while the First Order continues their chase in giant, futuristic AT-ATs. On subsequent viewings this might all fly by a little better, but on first viewing it does start to drag a little as the third act kicks in.
Then there's the jokes and one-liners. Now, I didn't mind them for the most part. Star Wars has always had jokes and one-liners, and not all of them land. The Last Jedi however opens with a super clunky joke that doesn't feel natural or particularly funny at all. It turns General Hux into a joke who we can't take seriously for the entirety of the movie. I mean I get it, it's another subversion of the arrogant Imperial officer who makes grand pronouncements and threats without looking passed his nose, but it just completely cheapened the character for later on. That said I did enjoy the caretakers of Ahch'to and their disdain for Rey, the Porgs, and many of the lesser one-liners sprinkled all over.
Nonetheless I feel Last Jedi is one of the best Star Wars movies made. It's not without fault, and some things could've been done better, like Snoke, and Poe's disobedience, and I admit I'd have liked more continuity to have stayed intact from Force Awakens (not like Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi haphazardly retconned things from New Hope after all, right?), but the good far, far, far outweighs the bad in my opinion, and I can't wait to see it again. I give it a solid 9/10, up with Empire, Revenge, and Rogue One as the best Star Wars movies.