'The Last Jedi' Is The Best 'Star Wars' Movie And Here Is Why
The Star Wars sequel trilogy, which officially concluded in 2019, garnered a lot of mixed reactions from Star Wars fans. The middle chapter of the sequel trilogy, The Last Jedi, directed by Rian Johnson, suffered a particularly severe backlash when it was first released. Much of the controversy among fans seemed to be focused on disappointment with how Luke is portrayed in the film as opposed to the last time he is remembered from Return of the Jedi and his further development in Legends content set after the events of that film. However, The Last Jedi was not without its ardent defenders as well, many of whom consider it to be one of the best Star Wars movies ever, or at least the best one of the sequel trilogy. A case can be made for why The Last Jedi is actually the best Star Wars movie, and I intend to make that case here.
1. Luke Skywalker
During the previous movie, The Force Awakens, Luke was almost completely absent, despite his absence driving the conflict between the Resistance and the First Order throughout much of the film. Rey, along with her new friends, Chewbacca and R2-D2, are able to locate him at the end of the film. Rey approaches him to give his lightsaber back to him, but the film ends before Luke even utters a single word. The Last Jedi, however, belongs to Luke and his struggle with his failure to properly train his nephew, Ben Solo (now Kylo Ren), and to restore the Jedi Order. Through his (reluctant) training of Rey, as well as a surprise visit from Yoda later in the film, Luke is forced to confront his failure, and finds renewed peace and purpose in the Force. He ultimately chooses to sacrifice himself in the most Jedi way possible in order to save the Resistance from its destruction at the hands of the First Order.
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2. Character Development
All of the major new characters introduced in The Force Awakens, including Rey, Kylo, Finn, and Poe, experience significant character development in the film. Rey develops and refines her awakening Force abilities, while also seeking answers about her own past and identity. She also establishes a connection with Kylo Ren, who is suffering his own identity crisis and confusion about his path forward. Despite having killed Han in The Force Awakens to help further his progress toward the dark side of the Force, he finds that it has not brought him any peace, nor has it earned him any respect from his master, Supreme Leader Snoke, who still questions his commitment and mocks his failure to defeat Rey in their last encounter. Through his connection with Rey, he sees a new path forward. When Rey goes to him later in the film, he decides to free himself of Snoke, although, much to Rey's disappointment, he ultimately refuses to reject the dark side and continues with the destruction of the Resistance.
Finn, through his relationship with Resistance Tech Rose Tico, goes from being somebody just wanting to desert the Resistance and get as far away from the conflict as possible, to being fully committed to the fight against the First Order. Rose also saves Finn later in the film, trying to teach him that it is better to save what you love instead of fighting what you hate. Poe, under Leia's tutelage, goes from being a hotshot fighter pilot who takes unnecessary risks at the start of the film to learning what it really means to be a leader.
3. Amazing Visuals
The visual effects used in the film are among some of the most amazing ones used in any Star Wars movie to date. The Last Jedi starts off with a visually amazing space battle between First Order Star Destroyers, Poe, and newly introduced Resistance Bombers that ends in the spectacular destruction of a First Order Dreadnought. Luke's storyline is largely set on a beautiful island on the planet Ach-To (which was filmed on real island off the coast of Ireland), which is where he went into exile after the destruction of his Jedi academy. Rey, seeking the identity of her parents, travels into a dark side cave on Ach-To, where she sees several reflected copies of herself. Finn and Rose travel to the planet, Canto Bight, to seek a codebreaker to help the Resistance escape. We get to see its posh Casino populated by an array of new alien species. Finally, during the final act of the film, we are introduced to the planet Crait, with its unique white and red salt-covered landscape and crystalline caves, as well as its indigenous crystalline fox creatures.
4. The Most Epic Lightsaber Duels
After Kylo kills Snoke, he and Rey are confronted by Snoke's Praetorian Guards, who rush in to avenge their slain master. Rey and Kylo are forced to fight back to back in order to defeat them in what is perhaps the most epic duel of the entire sequel trilogy, if not the entire saga, not only because of the dazzling visuals and choreography, but also the unexpected and inspired teaming of Rey and Kylo. Also, later on in the film, Kylo engages in a duel with Luke Skywalker on Crait, although it is the tension verbal sparring between him and Luke that matters more than the actual clashing of lightsabers, as Kylo can't touch him.
5. Well-Written Dialogue & Acting
The Last Jedi boasts some of of the best dialogue written for a Star Wars movie with several quotable lines, as well as incredibly strong performances by all actors and actresses, particularly Mark Hamill (Luke), Daisy Ridley (Rey), and Adam Driver (Kylo Ren). Newcomer Kelly Marie Tran also turns in a great performance as Rose Tico, who can best be described as the heart of the Resistance in this film. John Williams even created a beautiful and inspiring new motif around her character as well, which I really liked. The new motif can be heard on the soundtrack most prominently on tracks such as "Fun With Rose and Finn" and "The Rebellion is Reborn."
6. Similarities to The Empire Strikes Back & Return of the Jedi
The Last Jedi shares a lot of similarities to The Empire Strikes Back, regularly considered by fans to be one of the best (if not the best) movie in the saga. There is also at least one major similarity to Return of the Jedi. As the middle of the sequel trilogy, The Last Jedi was expected (rightly) that it would have to be the bridge connecting The Force Awakens and Episode IX. In The Last Jedi, the Resistance spends most of the movie being ruthlessly hunted down and destroyed ship by ship by the First Order, leaving the Resistance on life support by the end of the film. Both films feature a Force-sensitive hero seeking out an exiled Jedi to be trained, with Rey taking the place of Luke and Luke taking the place of Yoda in The Last Jedi. Yoda makes a surprise appearance in The Last Jedi, linking the two movies even more.
There is betrayal involved as Rose and Finn are sold out to the First Order by a low-life thief and codebreaker named "DJ," although, unlike with Lando in The Empire Strikes Back, there is no similar change of heart for DJ. After they are caught breaking into the Supremacy, DJ not only takes his "seven pieces of silver" and leaves Rose and Finn to be executed by the First Order, but he also discloses sensitive information to Hux that allows the First Order to wipe out several of the escaping Resistance transports.
Both movies have the heroes abruptly quit their training to rush headlong into a confrontation with the villains. In The Last Jedi, Rey goes to Kylo Ren because she thinks that she can get him to help save the Resistance, after she comes to the painful realization that that Luke won't. Both Rey and Luke learn some painful lessons as a result of their respective actions, although Rey, unlike Luke, is taunted and tortured by Snoke for a while. The final battle on Crait is highly reminiscent of the opening battle on Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back, complete with First Order walkers and a vain Resistance effort using ski speeders to stop them from breaching their base.
Although The Last Jedi shares more things in common with The Empire Strikes Back, it also shares a major similarity to Return of the Jedi. In The Last Jedi, Rey is brought before Kylo's master, Snoke in his throne room aboard his massive dreadnought, where he interrogates her as to whereabouts of Luke, taunting and torturing her with his own use of the Force. He ultimately commands Kylo to kill Rey. However, Kylo instead chooses to save Rey and kill Snoke, albeit with different motives than Vader in Return of the Jedi.