I'm sad to say that this time, I get the criticisms. Sure, it brings back the thrilling Star Wars film style that I loved in TFA, and has the same strengths in characters and comedy...but the film does not commit to the plot decisions from The Last Jedi and has fundamental plot points that feel either hard to swallow or wrongly "safe" as a result. It screams that the trilogy is not a collaborative effort, but the result of a director returning and trying to put back together a plot that can't exist now. There is an astonishing lack of self-awareness, then, that a scene shows Kylo Ren having his mask repaired, with the result showing ugly cracks across its surface. This film is that mask- a refusal to move forward into new territory, but no longer able to wear the old image well.
The characters, again, are okay. They interact well, and Rey continues the harrowing flirtation with the Dark Side. I do think the film backs out on the chance for her Dark actions to have real consequence, thus nullifying some drama, and her ultimate decision comes too soon in the story. I loved the uncertainty, that I couldn't be sure of her morality, and wish her choice had been saved for the climax.
Kylo Ren is weaker, since he is not given the chance to operate on his own like we were promised in the last film. His relationship with Rey is suitably antagonistic given their parting before, but the film doesn't really earn back their tenderness. Ren was scary in TFA, and tragic in TLJ. Here, I didn't think he had enough weight to elicit much emotion from me at all, and his fate was not what I expected from a trilogy that built itself on new turns.
Poe and Finn are a little reduced, which is a shame. Finn was originally an equal player to Rey, but he's gotten less and less time.
Leia is sent off as best they could. It's unfortunate they couldn't fully complete the parallel stories of two generations of heroes.
I was skeptical about Palpatine, and I still am. It feels like the story is putting itself back under the shadow of the original trilogy and rejecting TLJ's setup for something really new, and he brings two horrendous plot points with him that fit the problems of "not established" and "walks back the plot of TLJ." You'll know them when you see them, but they're sloppy and damage the emotional weight of Rey's journey and Ren's history. The Emperor's return just feels unimaginative. Could they really not have carried the conflict solely with the substance of Ren and Rey's fractured relationship and Rey's terrifying pull to the Dark Side? I think they could have. I was intrigued by the Snoke confrontation because it was ROTJ done early and so the climax of this film would have to be completely original...but it's not.
Also, there are no big couples by the end, which feels weird. Finn and Poe are given new love interests seemingly to combat fan perception of them being into each other, but nobody enters a relationship, with Finn/Rose dropped. I never saw Finn/Poe as a thing, and can't say I miss Finn/Rose, but Finn/Rey, which I did see, never happens either. It's an odd choice.
In the end, this film feels like Star Wars to me, but really doesn't hold up under scrutiny. It has great moments and ones that make me understand the "remove it from canon" mentality, and ultimately exposes that the sequel trilogy isn't creatively unified.
The sequel trilogy finally tested me.
I'm sad to say that this time, I get the criticisms. Sure, it brings back the thrilling Star Wars film style that I loved in TFA, and has the same strengths in characters and comedy...but the film does not commit to the plot decisions from The Last Jedi and has fundamental plot points that feel either hard to swallow or wrongly "safe" as a result. It screams that the trilogy is not a collaborative effort, but the result of a director returning and trying to put back together a plot that can't exist now. There is an astonishing lack of self-awareness, then, that a scene shows Kylo Ren having his mask repaired, with the result showing ugly cracks across its surface. This film is that mask- a refusal to move forward into new territory, but no longer able to wear the old image well.
The characters, again, are okay. They interact well, and Rey continues the harrowing flirtation with the Dark Side. I do think the film backs out on the chance for her Dark actions to have real consequence, thus nullifying some drama, and her ultimate decision comes too soon in the story. I loved the uncertainty, that I couldn't be sure of her morality, and wish her choice had been saved for the climax.
Kylo Ren is weaker, since he is not given the chance to operate on his own like we were promised in the last film. His relationship with Rey is suitably antagonistic given their parting before, but the film doesn't really earn back their tenderness. Ren was scary in TFA, and tragic in TLJ. Here, I didn't think he had enough weight to elicit much emotion from me at all, and his fate was not what I expected from a trilogy that built itself on new turns.
Poe and Finn are a little reduced, which is a shame. Finn was originally an equal player to Rey, but he's gotten less and less time.
Leia is sent off as best they could. It's unfortunate they couldn't fully complete the parallel stories of two generations of heroes.
I was skeptical about Palpatine, and I still am. It feels like the story is putting itself back under the shadow of the original trilogy and rejecting TLJ's setup for something really new, and he brings two horrendous plot points with him that fit the problems of "not established" and "walks back the plot of TLJ." You'll know them when you see them, but they're sloppy and damage the emotional weight of Rey's journey and Ren's history. The Emperor's return just feels unimaginative. Could they really not have carried the conflict solely with the substance of Ren and Rey's fractured relationship and Rey's terrifying pull to the Dark Side? I think they could have. I was intrigued by the Snoke confrontation because it was ROTJ done early and so the climax of this film would have to be completely original...but it's not.
Also, there are no big couples by the end, which feels weird. Finn and Poe are given new love interests seemingly to combat fan perception of them being into each other, but nobody enters a relationship, with Finn/Rose dropped. I never saw Finn/Poe as a thing, and can't say I miss Finn/Rose, but Finn/Rey, which I did see, never happens either. It's an odd choice.
In the end, this film feels like Star Wars to me, but really doesn't hold up under scrutiny. It has great moments and ones that make me understand the "remove it from canon" mentality, and ultimately exposes that the sequel trilogy isn't creatively unified.