Star Wars: The Last Jedi
The eighth movie in the core Star Wars series and ninth movie overall. The Last Jedi continues the story of Rey as she tries to discover who she really is and how she fits in this new world. Meanwhile, The First Order presses their assault on the rebellion who has lost a lot in the previous battles. How did this movie do? Here’s an opinionated review.
The Quick Look
Rating: 
(4.5 / 5)
The Good: Great story and daring evolution of characters.
The Bad: The second half is a bit slow.
The Ugly: Snoke is one ugly dude!
Recommendation: Wait? You haven’t seen this movie yet?!? Stop everything and go see it!
Synopsis
Picking up right where The Force Awakens left off, Rey approaches Luke Skywalker on the island home of the first Jedi temple; however, what she finds is not what she expects. Rey learns more about what happened to Luke through her encounters with him. Once Luke realizes how special Rey is he cautiously trains her as he notes that he has only encountered a power that strong once before and is now afraid of it. In his mind, he should be the last Jedi. Meanwhile, the rebellion wins another battle against the First Order, but at too great a cost, leaving them depleted and on the run.
The first order traps the rebellion and plays a cat and mouse game with them. Rey gathers enough information to determine that the best way to beat the First Order to turn Kylo Ren to the light. Finn and Poe Dameron continue to help the rebellion by doing what it takes. They both learn hard lessons throughout their journey to defeat the First Order. All the players converged on the battlefield in an epic fight that saw lines drawn and roles defined. Luke receives one more lesson from the force and provides a beacon of light for the rebellion and resistance overall.
Review
I have a simple belief when it comes to all things media, Tell a good story and I will be hooked! The Last Jedi tells an excellent story that continues to bridge the gap between the old characters and the new. Snoke is a great villain. He is twisted by the dark side, but never fully committing to the Sith. It is apparent that the old principles of the Sith are no more.
All characters have a moment to shine without overshadowing the conflict that sits within Rey and Ben Solo. Both are challenged in their way of thinking and are posed with figuring out if the path they are on is the right one. This movie captures the feel of the original trilogy by focusing more on war in the stars, rather than overindulging on the light saber battles. The conflict feels organic with shades of distrust in the rebellion being brought up again as displayed in Rogue One.
There is a lot of death and tragedy in this movie. Victories are hard fought and it is felt throughout the entire movie. I found myself on the edge of my seat a couple of times. Just when you think something is about to happen, the movie takes a turn. If you are a fan of film, you will enjoy this movie.
Shining moment
There are three:
- Rey’s encounter with Snoke.
- Luke’s character progression.
- Finn’s realization of the truth behind the war