Saw it yesterday morning. Mixed thoughts. To me, the inconsistent tone of serious\silly made it feel as though they had the contents of two films forced together. At two and a half hours, a few more minutes of story for each and they could have easily come up with separate movies. The Finn\Rose\Casino story could be one film, a lighter film. The Luke\Rey\Ben story could be another, a more serious film.
What I liked:
I liked and wanted to see more Luke\Rey. I dug that they didn’t get along. He’s not the mythological hero everyone made him out to be (fans or in-universe). He’s a realistic hero instead. His messages and guidance to her were exactly the kind of cerebral depth for which I was hoping. I particularly liked when he told her that the Jedi don’t have rights & powers over the force - “that’s vanity”. Awesome depth and brutal honesty on his part. He’s warning her that just because she’s gifted and honest, she’s wrong to think that gives her an advantage. She can very easily fail, he’s experienced a lifetime of it.
LOVED seeing Hamill again and I think he’s by far the best part of the film. Lots of good stuff and he steals the scenes. His appearance on Crait near the end - worth the price of admission. In fact, to me the entire Crait portion of the film is exactly the kind of universe expansion I like. That felt far, far, away. His brush-off gesture after the insane firing barrage is a bit of our old ”great kid, don’t get cocky” hero. Speaking of which, some people have been criticizing his not being who he was expected to be (Kenobi II). To me, that’s what makes him interesting. I’m not at all who I was 40 years ago and I don’t expect Luke to be either. I would have been disappointed with Kenobi II.
I liked that Carrie had a big role in the film and I thought she did a great job. It was bittersweet for sure. Along those lines, there is a shot of her on Crait where she’s looking out over the vast nothingness, collar pulled up, that for me has as much weight as Luke looking out at the twin suns 40 years ago. She’s been driven into hiding on a remote planet with very nearly nothing left of the Resistance. You see the mental exhaustion on her face.
It’s a fantastic shot of her that also captures the journey some of us have also been on in real life for those 40 years. The fact that we lost her only a few months later really drives home the point; the journey takes its toll. I knew I would be moved seeing her again and knowing she’s gone. I didn’t expect them to give me a long shot that so perfectly captured it.
What I didn’t like:
The humor and silliness, almost all of which was the Finn\Rose\Casino portion. They’re fine actors, both and I have no problem with a lot of their scenes. I thought Rose’s best scene was her first with Finn; You’re the famous Resistance fighter, Finn. It’s an honor to actually meet you…oh, you’re stealing an escape shuttle to desert us? – zap!.. I’ll drag you down the hallway half-paralyzed, you traitor. The character of Rose could have easily worked being used in a more serious role. Perhaps we’ll get that in IX. I can see myself becoming a fan of Ms Tran in the right role.
The entire Canto Bight portion of the film seemed weirdly out of place. Their reason for going there was a huge stretch, the ship waiting for them to get back, the look of the place, the silliness of the characters, the drunken gambler putting coins in BB-8, their escape on Falkor and the Luckdragons, , etc., etc. – it all played like a Lucas-written prequel.
Some of that out of place comedy extended into other scenes in the Finn\Rose arc. When all hell is breaking loose later, Rose rides up on an AT-ST yelling “need a ride?” In a real battle she’d be screaming her lungs out for him to get in and laying down some return fire, not tossing out a silly\cool line. Her handling of the situation on Crait to stop him committing suicide is much more how I would like to see her character. BB-8 shooting slot machine tokens was total Lucas. They’re turning him into a flying R2 cartoon.
Also very Lucas-like was the scene with Finn walking down the hallway in a bacta suit, with it squirting everywhere. That is slapstick humor right out of a Will & Grace episode. https://media.giphy.com/media/26n79ollK7ocn2eCQ/giphy.gif Funny on Will & Grace, weirdly out of place in this film, or so I thought. The fact that it happens so early in the film was unfortunate (for me) because I saw what we may have been in for tone-wise. Sadly, I was correct.
There were other bits of comedic moments I found weirdly placed but the only one that come to mind at the moment is the milking scene. It seems almost as though it was put in for shock value or weird value. Those animals, as well as the caretakers would have been more interesting if they were just background characters. The rock falling down the hill and taking out the cart the two caretakers were pushing was, to me, tension-ruining and stupid. That all looked very 1980s Jim Henson Labyrinth.
What you may be surprised I liked:
Yoda. I thought the entire scene with Yoda was perfect. He worked in-story and the puppet work and cinematography was awesome. He looked the way I remembered him decades ago, he was serious, and – thankfully – much the same way Rogue One restored the mystery of the Force, this film restored the way in which Yoda speaks. Lucas went bananas with Yoda speaking every line backwards. Thank you Rian for correcting that and restoring the gravitas and dignity of Yoda as a character.
Porgs. I was fully prepared to dislike them. Instead, I found them to be an interesting nuisance. I live rurally so I know first-hand how some wild animals behave when given a chance. Birds, raccoons, frogs, possums, chickens, foxes, deer, etc. – they have no qualms what so ever about making themselves at home on my property, on my porch, sometimes in my garage, and even inside my house a few times. I usually welcome it because they were there first. Plus I’m a big animal lover. For that reason, I got a chuckle out of how many Porgs ended up inside the Falcon. Leave the door open long enough and animals will investigate and inhabit if it suits them. I found the Porgs to be spot-on with how a native species sometimes behaves.
Chewie. As has been the case for 40 years, Chewie has long been a favorite of mine. I’ve never had any issues with how he’s portrayed and this film is no different. Huge fan. Had my Chewie socks out and ready to wear the day before I went. Next purchase; the Chewie\Porg socks. https://www.stance.com/chewie-pal/M545D17CHW.html?dwvar_M545D17CHW_size=GREY&dwvar_M545D17CHW_color=GREY
What doesn’t move me one way or another:
Kylo. Somewhat interesting in a scene or two, but much like Vader when I was a kid, I just don’t find him interesting as a character. That is not a reflection on Driver. Much better this time around, but still not interesting.
Poe. Great performance by Oscar (both films), but under-used to the point of just being a hot-shot fly boy who yells “let’s get these guys” a lot. That said, I thought his communication goof on Hux was funny. An interesting way to get the character to show disrespect and buy time simultaneously. That scene of humor worked for me.
Rey. No, that’s not a typo. 😃 Loved her in the first half of Force Awakens and the first half of this film. However, now she’s just a sort of perfect character\Jedi with no depth. I’m very happy she’s Rey random, but that’s about it at this point. As with Rose and her silliness, maybe IX will fix Rey and her awesomeness.
Final thoughts:
I won’t go see this again in the theaters but I’ll buy a digital copy on iTunes next year and watch the Luke parts from time to time. My personal Star Wars canon will always be Star Wars77 and Rogue One. That said, I’m still very happy the franchise is in capable hands even though The Saga portion doesn’t speak to me.
I like that they cleaned house of Snoke and Phasma and did so quickly and without drama. They were just noise in an already very crowded story (both films).
I hope the next film picks up about 10 years down the road when the characters have some reason for us to care. I don’t mean that in a disrespectful or mean way, but in an honest way. Right now they’re all sort of one-dimensional. Addendums if I think of any.