Well, I had the chance to watch my own workprint in one sitting tonight. I am happy with it, overall.
I think I’ll need to ruminate (read: hem and haw) about potentially removing Snoke berating Hux at the end of the opening battle, as Mala proposed. Not sure yet. But it might help steer clear of laughing at Star Wars rather than with it.
One idea for sneaking in an honest “I have a bad feeling about this” would be to slip one in by 3PO (from offscreen) right before Leia tells him to wipe a nervous expression off his face, sourced from one of many times I’m sure Anthony Daniels has recorded the line in spinoff material. However, this would likely feel shoehorned in and undercut the existing nice joke.
Luke having a moment works well, and it isn’t overly abrupt to have a few short scenes. The scene with Poe and Finn works well, since we see Leia and Poe separately before they meet and have their argument. It is also nice after all to set up Finn’s standing at the front end of the movie given the cuts made (or even so). You guys were right. While not strictly necessary, I noticed the repeat of music with Luke’s moment and walking out of the tree.
The caretakers being gone feels right. As much as I like their deleted scene, it is better for Luke and Rey to have their falling out after it seems like Luke might actually come around and finally decide to train her, and opening himself back up to the Force which Leia senses. It wouldn’t make as much sense for him to do that unless he was just about to repent and accept his responsibility.
The second act is a bit long and can get a little “”“boring,”"" but only in the same sense as ESB. I feel the absence of the fathier sequence, but only in the same way AOTC’s droid factory sequence. Overall I think it’s a good deletion which helps keep the second act less bloated and topheavy, even if it has a bit less energy.
The removal of the iron gag also robs the second act of some of its steam (pun very much intended) and momentum in that moment, though I plan to leave it as it stands in the workprint. This version of the film isn’t paced any worse off than Empire, it’s just that it’s a 2010’s movie. It seems to lean in the opposite direction of TFA.
Moving the Yoda scene ala Darthrush is my favorite single alteration. Fits perfectly as a bridge between acts 2 and 3.
Finn and Rose’s story arc works fine in this version. The focus is not on them for as much of the movie and their side quest to Canto Bight doesn’t bog down the movie, and the focus is kept on its relation to the main Resistance story. What was cut from Canto Bight would just be one of those things you read about or see in the deleted scenes reel. “Wow, this scene really sheds light onto other moments in the movie but I totally understand and agree with the director cutting it out.”