‘Star
Wars: The Last Jedi,’ the middle installment of the new Disney Star Wars
trilogy and Episode VIII of the Star Wars saga started by George Lucas 40 years
ago, is the best movie of the popular and beloved space opera franchise since ‘The
Empire Strikes Back’ according to the critics who raved about it, giving it a
“certified fresh” rating of 93 percent on the aggregate review website Rotten
Tomatoes. Audiences are divided and
decidedly less enthused, as its current audience score closer to 50 percent
would suggest. Why the disconnect? Inquiring minds want to know: The Great Star Wars Divide.
By
any measure, TLJ seems to have checked off most—if not all—of the boxes one
would expect in a Star Wars movie. It is
packed with thrilling action in space and on the surface, filled with
individual acts of derring-do and noble sacrifice, spiced with a good dose of
humor and topped off with the good-versus-evil melodrama that had become its
trademark. While there isn’t anything in
TLJ that truly can be called surprising (such as—spoilers ahead!--Kylo Ren’s
manipulation of Rey for his own ends, his betrayal of Snoke, or the twist in Luke’s
final “appearance” on Crait) and the story is somewhat reminiscent of TESB, TLJ
still managed to be a rollicking, entertaining and crowd-pleasing adventure yarn,
porg or no porg (just don't eat them).
Alas,
when an event movie from as popular a pop culture phenomenon as Star Wars comes
along, it is inevitable that there will be a high degree of anticipation and
expectations from diehard and casual fans alike. And if the movie falls short of said
expectations, well, then the movie had failed to the individuals concerned. It can be a subjective and highly personal
experience. With this in mind, I’ll jump
off the fence and side with the critics on this one.
Grade: A
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