There are many new twists in this new offering. I did enjoy Ryan Johnson's rendition of the Star Wars universe. He didn't disappoint. It was clever, intriguing and most importantly it was entertaining. Many may not realize it but Ryan seems to have effectively steered the Star Wars franchise to a new hope that will sustain it at the box office.
Firstly, the most important point to note is Ryan's introduction of force ghosts capable of appearing and affecting the environment around them and the living, as we see with Yoda. This one wave of Ryan's wand was a stroke of genius. At the end of the day lets not forget that Star Wars is a business, and innovative ways of keeping the light burning have to be found. Force ghosts entail being able to do the impossible, that is, bring back important characters in the Star Wars sagas audiences want to see (without having to use a prequel) and have them act alongside living characters. This can be done by making force ghosts more relevant and even going as far as showing that the "ghost" realm is in fact a dimension just as intriguing and expansive as the world of the living. It could have cities, buildings Jedi councils, Siths. The franchise could also take advantage of the concept of possession and reincarnation from the ghost realm that reintroduces characters like Luke, Vader, Yoda and other key characters but now played by new actors. A good story is in the telling. How its told would get the required buy in from audiences.
Ryan introduces the duel that should have been in the Force Awakens, that is, between Luke and Kylo. There are many Gandalf moments that are lost in the new Star Wars movies where a master steps in to save the lives of novices in danger, up against a threat they cannot overcome. In The Force Awakens Luke would have saved Rey and Fin from Kylo with a result that required Luke to train Rey so that the battle between her and Kylo was fought in the Last Jedi. This would have built up the suspense. He would then have had to step in again to protect Kylo and Rey from Snoke. These kinds of interventions thrill audiences and it makes no sense not to build the action in this way.
Ryans character development for Poe was excellent. It was night and day between SW7 and SW8. In SW7 he was a zombie, not the dead kind but the perpetually happy kind which can be just as exasperating. We didn't need a voice saying he was the best pilot ever, the audience could see this for itself. It was nice to see that he was such an accomplished pilot that his overconfidence actually caused real life problems caused by taking risks and disregarding orders. What the franchise should look at is a personal nemesis for Poe, such as a daredevil pilot in the Empire. This other pilot and Poe get to hear about each other, face off in dog fights, will defy safety or orders for a shot to take the other down and develop dangerous rivalry that can develop into a side story.
Ryan also gets rid of Snoke which seemed necessary. However, this means that there is now no arch nemesis who sends chills down the audience's spine. JJ Abraham's had the right idea for developing a powerful nemesis, but the concept of Snoke just wasn't it. I look forward to seeing the bad ass force user who steps into Snokes shoes and forces Kylo to bend the knee as he has certainly not evolved to the level of a powerful and cunning supreme leader to be feared.
Look let's admit that Kylo plays as a dorky, social misfit with scary abilities really well. I can understand Rey seeing light in him and trying to save him and all to add to the drama, but the truth is he plays an evil dude with a dorky twist really, really well so why spoil a good thing? What's weird is that Rey may discover that even in the most noble Jedi there is always a lingering element of darkness that ebbs and flows. And even in the most evil force user gone to the dark side there remains still a glimmer of light that can never be completely put out because the reality is that when it comes to a person's soul nothing is ever purely black and white. Let him go full dark side. Give him asthma, give him back his dorky wanna-be-Vader helmet, unique helmet voice and allow him to go apocalyptic on everybody's ass coz that's when he's most exciting, interesting and worth cheering on. In fact him putting the helmet back on, donning those weird boots and resuming his wrathful nature would demonstrate no one, not even someone like Snoke is going to manipulate him, he is his own man, and if he chooses to worship, fashion himself around and be like Vader then that's what the heck he's gonna do and if you don't like it he'll tell you: eat my red lightsaber. Kylo needs to stand up tall and come into his own. As he evolves the secret is to make changes to his suite that increasingly make him more and more like Vader in style and eventually yes, even something similar to Vader's heavy breathing. Its what he wants, and his ability to move his life in the direction he has chosen shows character. Anakin could be saved. Maybe, just maybe, he's not Anakin.
When thinking of the character to play the arch villain in this particular arch of Star Wars I would envisage a young, beautiful dark haired maiden with rosy cheeks and bright eyes, nothing like what we have come to expect the Sith to look like. She would look as young as Rey and project a youthful personality that makes the audience wonder how someone so youthful could be so powerful, but she hides a deep secret. She is actually a very old force user who clinging to vanity strangely uses the force to make herself appear very young, youthful and deceptively beautiful (like the red queen in Game of Thrones). There are a handful who know how ancient she is, but she goes out of her way to keep this hidden. She is the very opposite of how Snoke looked, uses Kylo as bait to draw in Rey and gives him the order to personally seek out and unsuccessfully attempt to kill Finn positioning her into being Rey's ultimate nemesis. Casting an actress on par with Lena Heady who plays Cesei in Game of Thrones would be fitting for this role. This roe would need an actress who can portray a complex character: a young character who has great fortitude and yet is riddled with fragility, immense power tainted with self doubt able to project the regal qualities required for the role of Empress as well as the physical prowess to realistically portray fight scenes required of a force user. For Rey to prepare for and eventually go up against a daunting, amiable and yet sinister female Sith force user posing as a political envoy from some imperial planet sent to replace Snoke makes sense. The fact that Kylo stands between Rey and the new Empress also adds more dimension to this rivalry. Rey finds that though she is in love with Finn, she does have strong sibling feelings for Kylo, but they are misplaced because he has strayed too far into the deep end of the dark side. She wants to save him for the light she see's in him if not for herself, for Han and Leia, but the Empress keeps winding him around her ambitions and beauty. Her becoming Supreme leader makes for good story telling. It would be very entertaining to watch her both petrify and seduce Kylo until he falls almost completely under her terrifying charm, then eventually duel Rey in an epic Jedi Vs Sith battle.
Although I must say that I was very impressed with how Andy Serkis portrayed Snoke and was actually disappointed to see him so easily dispensed of by Kylo. It seems the faut pas continues in the sense that Kylo dispensing of Snoke, seems as whimsical as Rey spontaneously sprouting a mastery of Jedi powers and beating Kylo in battle. Let's hope this trend does not continue into the 3rd installment; there are many ways of demonstrating the heroic without falling prey to these faut pas. And yes, Ryan gets rid of Kylo's helmet. Although I must admit, if the audience was told that he wears it because he has asthma and needs it during the strain of battle to be able to breathe, this too may have sufficed.
The issue of who Rey's parents are was not answered. It is possible there is a good reason for this. In all likelihood Rey was meant to be revealed as Luke's daughter. However, it is clear that Ryan was developing a kind of strong romantic almost sensual attraction between Kylo and Rey. It would then be awkward to continue to pursue this story line if the characters and audience knew before hand they were first cousins. There probably wasn't time to develop a new lineage and determine the impact of this on the entire franchise, so the easiest option was to set a plot decoy for the audience and say her parents were nobodies. This may be what coerced Ryan into ditching the grand reveal of who Rey's parents were and instead leave that for episode 9 which would have more time to find an alternate parentage to Luke. However, it is also possible that Luke is her father, Kylo may have exploited their link to play a role in ensuring all she saw in the mirror was her own reflection. He noticed her attraction to him and cunningly was using it to pull her to his side. He knew had she seen Luke in the reflection and known he was her father there was no way he would have been able to seduce and win her over. In episode 9 she may discover this deception, it is likely to make her mourn for Luke and it would affect her profoundly. In the depth of her sorrow over his loss we may for the first time see Luke's force ghost or his physical avatar appear to console her after which Luke would reveal who her mother is and let her know he knew all along she was his daughter but felt she might truly be the one last chance to save Kylo and kept this from her. He would then reveal her mother is still living and encourage Rey to find her and this simply adds to the richness of the story.
It didn't feel like the audience got enough of Luke. Luke using the force to create an avatar that allowed him to appear on Crait was a stroke of genius on Ryan's part. It was awesome. The fact that the audience could not tell it was an avatar was magical; there was something different about him, he looked younger, his beard was brown instead of grey; he had to be there, he gave Leia that physical golden trinket. The stoic, chesty stance and air of strength we saw in Luke in Return of the Jedi was back - that moment of bewilderment where the audience didn't know what the heck was going on was one of the very best in the SW8. This was the Master Jedi in Luke the audience was waiting for. It was a breath of fresh air in that once again, this was a new Jedi ability audiences had not seen before and it coming from Luke was a treat. It was the same feeling when Leia used the Force to preserve her life while in space and drew herself back into the ship. Lets hope this creative and refreshing trend continues into SW9. Carrie Fisher as always was truly awesome, just lovely. My understanding of this scene was that knowing she was a Force user and Luke's sister, she had made some effort over the years to learn certain aspects of the Force that in that moment saved her life. It was a new angle and it was brilliant. At this juncture force ghosts have to come into play as force to recon with and hopefully we will see Luke again as one appearing again in physical reality in avatar form. There has been a growing tendency to portray Jedi as weak and easily killed. To see Luke perform a "hero time" moment and step out of the bunker to face Kylo's array of daunting imperial weaponry was a good reminder of why the Jedi are feared. Their presence can turn the tide in war. Their access to the Force can easily tilt the scales in favour of those whom they serve and the Jedi serve the order and their beliefs. The Jedi may mean well, but this does not always mean the causes or those they choose to support are worthy consequently leading to them being both loved and despised. This makes sense of why turning to Force users who do not follow the Jedi moral code increased the fortunes of the Sith who have turned to the dark side all this is simply good story telling.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is a fantastic movie, but let me tell you why some audiences will have difficulty enjoying or understanding it. In a review of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which you can read here, I pointed out that the magic that made the Force Awakens was the chemistry between Rey and Finn played by John Boyega and Daisy Ridley. I pointed out that for the next installment to be great the director and writers would need to get these two on the screen together as quickly as the movie got on its feet. But this never happened. Consequently, the movie felt quite flat, like something big was missing from beginning to end, creating a natural condition where other flaws become unnaturally magnified, in turn leading to a situation where audiences would subconsciously choose to either enjoy or passionately hate it. I would really like to know why Ryan took this tremendous gamble and lost. It simply just shouldn't have happened.
Finn spends most of his time with his new friend Rose. Towards the end she develops feelings for him and they kiss, something Rey failed to do. This was nice in that it adds an interesting new twist. When Finn is with Rose Rey is clearly seen watching them together and seems to wonder what's going on. A love triangle seems to be where this story is going which would make for a great story and for character development. Now anyone, for convenience, can take these romantic pairings in other directions such as Rey-Kylo, Rey-Poe or Rey-Chewbacca, but this can only happen if there isn't enough talent or insight to see that there is genuine, believable chemistry between Rey and Finn. Why keep tip toeing around this? It has nothing to do with anything other than the fact that they pull off something magical on the screen when they act together that can't be faked, made up or manufactured by trying for any somber reason to pair them with alternatives. To do so just seems stupid unless its to deliberately spice things up and create a little love jealousy before what inevitably needs to happen happens. It's such a waste not write a panoramic, fun, action filled, thriller of a roller-coaster ride and gut wrenching romance between these two. The movie seems to light up and begin when Rey and Finn share the screen for the first time in Last Jedi; if this chemistry were between any other two characters I would point in their direction but for now it isn't. When Rey and Finn meet they embrace each other in a great bear hug, but sadly and weirdly this moment is actually practically the end of the movie.....smh.
The second problem with the Last Jedi is the energy and tempo. Star Wars is an action movie and the treatment needs to be tight, with action sequences crashing into one another, feeding off one another. But there is too much of a pointless lull or listlessness especially when Rey spends time with Luke to be trained in the Jedi ways the philosophy, mystery and mysticism is missing, the energy, ethos and sense of purpose drops significantly. This was a lost opportunity to delve into Jedi lore and tie this in with great deal of strenuous activity or action that forms part of the training process. The action scenes seem disjointed. This is probably more to do with the editing than the material. In addition to this the fight scenes are too abrupt, half baked or brief. The fight choreography is feeble at best and the martial arts are stylistically weak in a movie where Jedi brawls need to be royally epic; these came across as an oversight. Ryan is a fantastic story teller, this is evident, his craft would move to incredible heights if it grew to include the intricacies of directing block buster action movies, something JJ Abrams seems to have added to his repertoire. It helps for directors to share ideas, techniques and methodology in order to improve the craft, its no coincidence that JJ Abrams has worked with the likes of John Woo. Its difficult to see your own mistakes and shortcomings when working in isolation with mandatory blinkers on. The isolation and secrecy that surrounds the development of a Star Wars movie seems to be hurting rather than helping to ensure that every aspect of the movie is tight. You can be a great action director but be weak at developing a great story, you can be a director who is fantastic at incorporating CGI but be weak at tying up how the score accentuates what's going on in a movie. Directors need to collaborate, inspire one another, be willing to learn from one another, call in friends or associates who have shown they can deliver a certain aspect or quality in a movie were you lack experience. Collaboration is very useful. Isolation and secrecy, even in plot development are no longer the way to go.
Its great to hear that Ryan will get his own Star Wars spin-off. He deserves it. He is very talented and this will give him the opportunity to showcase his prowess without the kind of constraints that make shooting a movie like Star Wars: The Last Jedi a difficult task.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi was worth the wait, and I look forward to seeing more from Ryan Johnson.
It seems JJ Abrams will be directing the third installment of Star Wars, looking forward to seeing the next one.
The Next Big Thing in Science Fiction movies
I have said it before, I will say it again and I will keep on saying it. Star Wars wowed audiences with George Lucas' masterful and realistic visuals of ships in space and fantastic new worlds that became Star Wars. The world was forever changed. That moment will never come twice but it has created what is without doubt one of the greatest Science Fiction movies of all time.
I still believe the next frontier that will have this effect is the advent of a Japanese anime like Dragonball (DBZ) to the big screen. The anime has entered the DBZ Super saga and returned to the original story telling and action sequences seen in the Vegeta, Frieza, Majin Buu, Cell, Brolly Sagas, that were some if its best work. The director that manages to capture the essence, the rage, the emotion, the confrontation, the lore, the science, to create the realism and deliver a real flesh and blood movie of an Anime like DBZ will spawn the next mega franchise equal in size, earnings and stature to Star Wars. Like the first introduction of Star Wars, this will be something audiences have never had a taste of before. To do this will require a unique level of mastery and insight, it is not for example so much about making live characters with the exact same physical features as anime characters such as the big eyes. Eyes are just a means of expression; and the big eyes in an anime are simply a way to exude a powerful emotion like innocence. To take this to a live movie would entail focusing the lens on the eyes of actors and encouraging them to use their eyes to communicate the subtle or obvious, big or small emotions and that become powerful because the eyes are used to convey them. Big eyes in an anime translates into accentuated and powerful "eye acting" so to speak rather than making the eyes of real actors bigger so that they resemble an anime character, which then may have to be construed as a mistake or misinterpretation of how to transfer this kind of quality in an anime to a live action movie. A director who can bring an anime like DBZ, One Punch Man and Naruto to life and make audiences as excited by what they see, hear and feel when they watch the anime is rare. To do this will require a director of amazing, incredible talent, nay it would require a director who will truly a living legend, a savant, a prodigy.
action sequences.
