Star Wars: Episode VIII  – The Last Jedi (Review)

It’s time for the Jedi to end.

Rey develops her newly discovered abilities with the guidance of Luke Skywalker, who is unsettled by the strength of her powers. Meanwhile, the Resistance prepares for battle with the First Order.

“I only know one truth: It’s time for the Jedi to end.” says Luke Skywalker dramatically at the end of this teaser trailer, leaving us perplexed. What does Luke mean? Many have speculated that this needs to happen in order to achieve a true balance.

Edit March 2018

The Last Jedi was one of the most anticipated movies of 2017. The Force Awakens had left us literally at the edge of a cliff and Rogue One had satisfied our android-loving space-adventuring hearts for a while. Nevertheless, we had a lot of time to speculate about what would happen in the next episode of this mythical story. Everyone had their own theories and expectations. So, naturally, a lot of people were disappointed, especially the hardcore fans, that’s to say, the people who grew up with the original trilogy.

Even though I saw Star Wars (IV-VI) when I was very little, my first experience of Star Wars as a cultural phenomenon came with the prequel trilogy. I was a kid when The Phantom Menace was released, and I have to say that I loved it. I was fascinated with Darth Maul’s dual lightsaber. I was excited about the pod racing. I even though Jar Jar was funny. I didn’t know anything about film-making.

I’m not saying that I’m an expert now. I’d be fortunate to have Lucas’ creativity. I can’t even finish a script nor write a proper movie review. Nonetheless, after watching thousands of movies, I think I have a better perspective of what constitutes a good movie. The Force Awakens was a fun movie. Was it a good movie? Well, yes, I guess so. I mean, why else did I see it five times in theaters? Was it a remake of Episode IV? Yeah, maybe, but at the end of the day, it managed to successfully introduce new and interesting main characters into this universe, surround them in a cloud of mystery, and make us wonder about them. J.J. Abrams is very good at this. Building thing up.

Then came Rian Johnson and burned everything down. Which is not a bad thing at all…