Industry critics say the force is strong in 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi'
We are a mere hours away until the public at-large can feast their eyes on Star Wars Episode VIII!
Press screenings are in the books, the embargo has lifted, and good news awaits series die-hards, casuals, and first-timers anxious to get a peek at first reactions to Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Based on initial critic reviews the outlook appears promising, not only for the eighth installment, but for LucasFilms and Rian Johnson, who are set to develop a new trilogy of films after the release of Star Wars: Episode IX.
Industry analysts are projecting Star Wars: The Last Jedi to yield north of $200 million in North America ($550 global), placing below The Force Awakens $248 million weekend open but above Rogue One’s $155 million open.
But really, enough with the numbers dude. It's time to scroll through our spoiler-free installment of 'what critics are saying.' While it's always a good reminder to keep your emotions in check whilst subjecting oneself to positive groupthink, it’s safe to say Star Wars: The Last Jedi will not disappoint.
What critics are saying - The Good
Peter Sciretta ⎮/Flim - The look of The Last Jedi is even more distinctly Rian Johnson than Force Awakens was J.J. Abrams. Every shot has a distinct purpose, and in that respect, this might be the best looking Star Wars film to date. The opening action sequence is edge-of-your-seat spectacular. The choreography and geography of the action, the distinct eye for presentation, the escalation of the screenplay, the precise editing, the build of the John Williams score – together, it all feels like a masterclass in filmmaking.The Force Awakens had so many cool-looking shots, but so much of what makes the action in The Last Jedi great is that every single shot is in service of the storytelling.
Matt Singer ⎮ Screencrush - The Force Awakens was undeniably more exciting, particularly in the early scenes that introduced Rey, Poe, and Finn in thrilling fashion. But it also seemed to hew a little too closely to the franchise formula. The Last Jedi checks off all the boxes you want from a Star Wars movie, including one of the coolest lightsaber fights in the series’ 40 years, but Johnson is also interested in exploring new territory, including a consideration of the shadings and nuances to the Light and Dark Sides of the Force.
Manohla Dargis ⎮ New York Times - Mr. Johnson has picked up the baton — notably the myth of a female Jedi — that was handed to Mr. Abrams when he signed on to revive the series with “The Force Awakens.” Mr. Johnson doesn’t have to make the important introductions; for the most part, the principals were in place, as was an overarching mythology that during some arid periods has seemed more sustained by fan faith than anything else. Even so, he has to convince you that these searching, burgeoning heroes and villains fit together emotionally, not simply on a Lucasfilm whiteboard, and that they have the requisite lightness and heaviness, the ineffable spirit and grandeur to reinvigorate a pop-cultural juggernaut. That he’s made a good movie in doing so isn’t icing; it’s the whole cake.
Michael Phillips ⎮ Chicago Tribune - Writer-director Rian Johnson, in his fourth feature and the first of what will be, for him, at least four “Star Wars” outings, has whipped up 152 minutes’ worth of pursuit, evasion, mayhem, team-building, explosions, nostalgia and, yes, wit (spoiler alert: actual wit)….Several questions are asked and either answered or artfully evaded by “The Last Jedi.” Rey’s family history; the extent and secret source of Luke’s profound disillusionment; these and other puzzlers are nicely spaced out by Johnson, in between aerial dogfights and visits to the next planet on the movie’s itinerary. Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune.
Richard Lawson ⎮ Vanity Fair - The Last Jedi is a pure success, accessing the molten core of its drama and grappling with it in nuanced ways. Johnson expands the psychology of Star Wars, bringing shading and moral ambivalence to this mythic tale of dark versus light. No Star Wars has ever made a better case for the Force than this film, which finally mends the damage done by the midi-chlorian humbug introduced in the disastrous prequel films. One could make the corny assessment that Johnson himself has tapped into this elemental magic, has learned how to tease out its true power, the ways it can manipulate and enrich the film without drowning it in pseudo-religious pretension. That’s no easy feat, and for achieving it, The Last Jedi will connect with many a die-hard and newbie alike, I suspect.
Alissa Wilkinson ⎮ Vox - There is catharsis aplenty, something the Star Wars movies are designed for, encouraging us to cheer when our favorite characters show up on screen and letting us thrill to the chases and the romance and the vistas and the explosions and the lightsaber battles. (This installment has one of the most purely perfect lightsaber battles the series has yielded thus far.) But as written and directed by Rian Johnson, The Last Jedi doesn’t just feel like a well-executed Star Wars movie — it feels like a well-executed movie, period, one that keeps its eye on the relationships between characters, and how they communicate with one another, in addition to the bigger picture.
What critics are saying - the mixed
Chris Nashawaty ⎮ EW -The Last Jedi is a triumph with flaws. But through those flaws, it leaves us with a message as old as time. Our heroes don’t live forever. Death is inevitable. But their battle, if passed down to the right hands, will continue along with their memories. Both in front of and behind the camera, Star Wars has been passed to the right hands. The Force will live on. In these troubled, angry, and divisive times, that message of resistance isn’t just the stuff of innocuous tentpole diversions, it’s the closest thing we have to A New Hope.
Kate Taylor ⎮ The Globe and Mail Inc. - Johnson's dialogue is flat and sounds stilted in the mouths of his younger actors, while their comic delivery can be so offhand that it dismisses the jokes. …Ridley, full of charming spunk playing a skeptical rebel recruit in The Force Awakens, is the biggest disappointment here. She is less engaging now that she is committed to the fight and plays most of the later action on a single note of earnest desperation; Johnson's script leaves her little else.
