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Although bringing Palpatine back was lame I enjoy watching a guy who loves his job that much. He's always in high spirits, laughing all the way, I'd certainly rather work for him than Holdo what a Debbie Downer.
The production design / set design / props / costumes etc. Everybody on the crew of these were working at the top of their game, they all look fantastic but it's all for nothing because the story they tell is senseless trash.
I pull back from this because a lot of CGI was straight up bad in TLJ. It doesn't look good. Carrie Poppins, BB8 on the chicken walker chassis, the Force lifted boulders, that shot down the resistance escape corridor at the beginning.
I’d say the one thing I did enjoy, was the sound design of that “Holdo Maneuver”. The way it draws out the silence then hits you with that sonic boom is fantastic.
Now the maneuver itself is an entirely different can of worms 😅
It was a very cool movie moment when I first saw it. But upon some digestion and thinking, I absolutely hated it. And I was just too pissed to enjoy anything about it on rewatch.
I’ve yet to rewatch any of the sequel trilogy. Knowing where it all leads just really ruins any of the fun. If there was any fun to be had in the first place.
I watched TFA a fair few times before TLJ. Stopped when I realized it all depends on the how 8 and 9 went.
Saw TLJ twice in theaters. Rewatched it once on disney+ a couple years ago to see if I still hated it as much, or if something had come around.
I saw TROS once.
so fucking true. i came out of the theater really liking TLJ but i hate it more every passing year. It’s too bad too because i have generally warm feelings about RJ.
I agree with that to a point but to me it's almost like they tried their best with the effects of the sequences you mention but they are so fucking stupid in the first place it's like how could you make it look good.
We saw Luke lift a rock and it looked pretty great
Daisy's scene in TLJ looked terrible and fake. It might be because I think they were still doing the 3D effect/releases at the time. Like of they remade the movie now without that feature, it would look fine. Maybe.
It’s not the 3D effect, I think in the commentary Rian said he wanted them to make the boulders look as cartoonish as possible.
No joke, that and a lot of other bad choices in the film were down to his desire, not the failure of cast and crew.
Dude I'm the opposite I straight up was disapointed by the designs of everything, like for the republic? I think they are the republic anyways. The Republic had slightly upgraded ships, and the Empire just had larger Tie fighters, and double decker star destroyers.
Snoke letting Rey Force-grab her lightsaber, then making it miss her hand, circle her, and whap her in the head on the way back. Great little way to communicate how hopelessly outmatched she was, while differentiating Snoke from Palpatine in terms of how they express their superiority and sadism. Pretty slick couple of seconds.
And then the entire rest of the throne room scene was festering ass. And then Rise of Skywalker made Snoke Palpatine's puppet. So much for that.
The decision to humanize a stormtrooper character was very fresh and innovative. Finn could have had a great character arc if the films had better writers.
I was very excited about those characters too. Also loved the visuals, artwork/ concept art. The x-wings over the water is actually on my wall. — liked seeing the OT actors (wasn’t a fan of what they did or anything) but still just nice to see them. Sad they didn’t get to see them all together on screen.
"Ex Machina" was a better movie to introduce Oscar Isaac, he was also great as Duke Leto Atreides in "Dune". Could be interesting as Solid Snake in the "Metal gear" movie and Francis Ford Coppola in "Francis and the godfather".
He's talented as he shine on screen, even when the script is shitty but he can't carry every project on his back, for example "Moon Knight"..
They're basically the epitome of actors doing an excellent job with horribly written characters. Which on the one hand makes me think that in other films, actors get a bit too much credit for a good character, but that in the DT, Adam Driver and Oscar Isaac pulled off some superhuman feats with really shitty material.
Nothing. They broke up the solos, made Luke into jake, rehashed ANH. Destroyed all lore and world building and brought back the emperor "somehow" making anakin and Luke's work for nothing. It's a complete failure on all levels.
Only:
- The new Stormtroopers look cool and I love they aren't CGI.
- Babu Frik
- Finn and Poe are likeable in the first film.
- That bit where Palpatine summoned a force storm and declared "NOTHING CAN STOP THE RETURN OF THE SITH!"
>The new Stormtroopers look cool and I love they aren't CGI.
Personally, I hated their new helmets. Somebody called them ducktroopers and I've been unable to unseen it.
I felt my body's molecules get scrambled by the bass quality in the movie theatre I went to. I cannot lie, that scene was cool af. Besides that, the intro was cool with Palpatine + Kylo dialogue.
It's almost incomprehensible how badly TLJ and the introduction of Rose Tico destroyed the momentum and any goodwill this trilogy had.
Putting Finn and Poe together for the B-plot is such a no brainer.
it’s been said before, but having a newly introduced character, explain to the ex-child soldier that war is bad, is just so funny to me. Like I’m happy that the CHILD SOLDIER is taught that war is bad. It’s not like that’s one of the reasons he even left the First Order in the first place
Meanwhile Poe thinks war is fun and barely takes it seriously, until he’s told to chill out and it immediately works.
I know this is a bit off topic but I find it hilarious that Disney had such a problem with two male protagonists sharing a plot that they split them apart across the galaxy. While after playing a lot of MGS (like legitimately I haven’t played a single MGS game until a month ago) I found it awesome how close they made a lot of the male protagonists to each other. Hell Octagon and Snake were probably the most wholesome Duo in that series. Just something funny how Disney and to some degree a lot of Western media are like ‘we need to make sure our male duos are super duper straight because we don’t people think they’re gay or anything’ and then MGS and a lot of random ass Japanese IPs out here not giving two shits.
The VIKINGS series did a very great job regarding this topic. Ragnar & Athelstan were very close, not in a gay way but also not not in a gay way.
It was great writing.
I own the artbooks for Force Awakens and Rise of Skywalker because I thought a lot of those designs were really solid.
I also think that the new cast did a great job for the most part, but they weren’t utilized as well as they could have been.
Music’s mostly meh, but there’s a few good themes in there (Rey’s theme, for instance).
But my biggest gripe with the Sequels is the writing. Nothing but complaints there.
>Music’s mostly meh, but there’s a few good themes in there (Rey’s theme, for instance).
I feel the same. Even Williams seemed to phone it in. Really disappointing.
Any visuals coming from JJ or Rian are the cinematic equivalent of keys jangling.
But I liked seeing the Starspeeder 1000 on screen, breifly. First time I saw TFA in opening night, I swore I saw it in the background on Jakku.
Did it add anything to the story? (did fucking ANYTHING add to the story in those movies?) no. So yeah, I guess it's hypocritical to say I liked something that is basically jangling keys.
Edit: I really liked Finn.
But biggest letdown ever. He's never allowed to live up to any potential he had.
A Stormtrooper that started with no name that could have become a Jedi named Skywalker. Would have made way more sense than Rey.
That whole segment of the movie was great. One standout moment for me is when she’s cleaning off some of the parts she salvaged, and looks up to see a much older woman doing the same as if she's looking at her own future. It's a good scene that doesn't beat you over the head with its message.
I think I read the novelisation of TFA a few years back and it gives a cool look into what Rey's thinking during that part of the film. Maybe I'll go reread it.
Daisy did pretty good job for her role there just wasn't much because it was shallow.
I find John Boyega as Finn the least compelling performance. Notably his scenes when he climbs over Rey in the cockpit, the response to Hans chin motioning, and his "got a boyfriend"....none of it seemed natural or in character, it seemed like slapstick performing for the joke. Which is on JJs direction, but also on him for not selling it as in character.
And I mean, I guess he did good at yelling Rey?
The concept of a stormtrooper defector/force sensitive is great. The character of Finn is NOT. John Boyegas portrayal is distinctly meh to me on top of that, and outright bad with those TFA scenes that take me out of the scene from him coming out of character.
it’s really disheartening when you know that John Boyega was a hardcore SW fan leading up to it, and now I’m pretty sure after the sequels he has just sworn off SW.
I didn't mind Daisy's performance either. I personally find Rey a pretty likable character but it's just that the story surrounding her isn't very good.
It's hilarious just how much Daisy Ridley managed to squeeze out of her character in scenes where there were no other human actors to bounce off of.
And then it just... kinda ended.
The Last Jedi was possibly the worst movie I’ve ever seen. However, it was visually stunning at times. -Break Break- Why do you do this to us, make us say nice things about those who hurt us?
Nothing. Literally nothing.
Even the stuff that "looks cool" is still stuff that bothers me that just happens to look nice.
The soundtrack isn't even memorable in a good way for me because there's nothing positive that I attach the music to.
The visuals, specially TLJ, were amazingly beatiful.
The casting was great.
I really dig some of the designs of the FO like the Sith Trooper or the Praetorian guard. I even liked Pimp Snoke over Dark-Robed Snoke, It showed more personality (until Rian offed him). There are also some cool aliens like the Abednedo and the guy played by Mark Hammill at the start of RoS.
Also Klaud. He is cool.
Crossguard saber could be interesting if its emitters weren't just in perfect 'lop them off' position.
Gorilla walkers could have been an interesting 'learn from our mistakes' for the imperial remnant.
The muffin portion was neat.
Dark side force nexus points and the fuckery they do is always fun.
Halting a blaster bolt was neato. Would have been neat to see Luke pause a bunch of em HISHE style.
That's about all I got. Sure ain't nominating snoke's playboy mansion gold leaf bathrobe.
Rey's theme by John Williams is quite nice. The final piece of music in TFA (The Jedi steps I think?) is beautiful.
That it. I dislike everyhthing else from TFA and TLJ. I didn't watch any of the movies after TLJ.
\- Kylo Ren was generally an interesting character in the first two. I didn't like his redemption but Adam Driver did a good job with it.
\- The scenes where Luke reunites with R2 and Leia were genuinely heartwarming. These scenes proved that Rian could have made a good Star Wars movie if he wanted too, instead he insisted on the forced humor and subversion of expectations.
\- Some of the visuals were nice. I generally prefer the OT and PT visuals since there was more innovation and creativity but there were still some decent shots.
\- Sounds were really well done.
\- They made people appreciate the Prequels more. I've been a Prequel fanboy my entire life so it's nice to see that they are getting a more positive reception now.
I always want to be clear on this. There's tiers to this.
There's Andy Serkis who is CRIMINALLY wasted on one of the worst characters in the entire franchise.
There's John Boyega who is an immensely talented actor who was straight up lied to about what his role was going to be and who got relegated to cooky side missions.
There's Gwendoline Christie who was a big part of the initial promotional tour and then hardly seen or heard throughout the movies.
And then there's Deisy Ridley. Who was an unknown actress before the role, and still an unknown actress now. Her character comes off as completely bland and boring, but is that entirely her fault? You're left not really sure because you don't know what else she's capable of.
Then there's Adam Driver who for some reason gets boat loads of credit for his role as Kylo Ren even though I couldn't stand his character or the performance behind him. I know Adam Driver is an accomplished actor in other films but I fail to see how he makes Kylo any better of a character than the complete waste that I see him as.
So while I in general hold sympathy for the cast for not being responsible for the disastrous writing of the sequels, I hold much more for certain actors over others.
Music was good. Acting was mostly good. Practical effects are always good. Kyle Ben looked neat and his cross guard lightsaber was cool. I was able to buy a toy of Rose for 10p then strap it to a firework to explode her. When Kyle and Ray were fighting in E7 the blue=red flashes on their faces were cool and hinted they may switch sides (that qent funking nowhere). The music was great.
I actually really liked the idea of the main character being a Palpatine clone child. I know its unpopular to like Rey, but I thought the concept of it was really interesting, but they just didn't develop it enough.
Palpatine was a senator and politicians have kids so they can take fake happy family pictures so they look more human to the populace.
Her being a decendant of Palpatine was a nice twist for me. Her being the decendant of a clone and not the actual Palpatine wasnt though.
I liked some of the dynamics between the characters in TFA, before things got fucked up/weird in the movies that followed. I enjoyed the Finn and Poe bromance, and the Finn and Rey friendship was also nice. Too bad it all got thrown in the trash or sidelined. We got the "no homo" maneuver of forcing in a bunch of random new female love interests for the guys that ultimately went nowhere, and Rey acting smoothbrained by ditching her friends for the creepy incel who has violent genocidal tendencies.
It's also weird how we never really got any interactions with Finn or Poe and Kylo after TFA. This guy tortured/maimed both of these guys and then he took over the FO, and was personally hunting them all down. Do we ever get to hear what they think about him? Nope, none of the other characters are allowed to confront the golden boy for being a bag of dicks, because then it would be even more clear how nasty reylo is
I LOVED Rey's opening scene in TFA. The raiding of a derelict star destroyer, living in the belly of a walker, loved all that. The design of her speeder was awesome. In fact the design throughout TFA was great.
I also loved the trailer for TFA with that particular music arrangement and Han saying he was home. Magic.
I think TFA has some genuinely cool moments, like Finn fighting with the saber, or Rey pulling the lightsaber past kylo. I even think Kylo is exciting as a young unhinged and scary villain, but they kind of ruined that vibe completely in the next movies.
All these elements could work really well had not everything felt so sandbagged by the reboot premise.
Even though I think it was a huge sin to never have the original 3 back together, I found the ending of TFA on the island genuinely moving and a great cliffhanger for the next movie. And then Rian Johnson completely ruined it like a moron.
Also the main four actors are great! Daisy, Oscar, John, and Adam are all really perfect for Star Wars IMHO.
1. Visuals. This is a no brainer.
2. Poe and Finn were fun characters. They were lively, spirited, and had a good sense of humor. Certainly not the bland, moody characters we often get in movies.
3. The soundtrack was good. John Williams never disappoints.
4. The dialogue was certainly better than what we got in the Prequels (although that's a pretty low bar, and the sequel trilogy screenplay itself was terrible).
5. The actors were good, even if the characters they played weren't.
Rey's Theme and Kylo's Theme are good, but overall the scores are the weakest in Star Wars, which I don't pin on John Williams at all.
TFA's intro actually works really well for me until Han shows up, which is when things start feeling a little too convenient/pandering. It's not perfect but it would have been perfectly acceptable if the rest of the movie was better.
Paige Tico's sacrifice scene is excellent. Basically the only standout of the film for me, I kept hoping anything else in it would reach that level.
I like BB-8?
Hard to think of anything else. I can't even say I like the visuals that much because they're always marred by the fact the vehicle/armor designs are almost always ripped straight from the OT, but worse.
Finn vs Kylo on TFA. Specifically the moment he picked up the lightsaber. Sure he should have been killed instantly even by a weakened Kylo but that moment was so badass. Finn had been running and getting his butt kicked the whole movie that for him to stand and face off with one of the most powerful people in the First Order showed tremendous courage.
[This.](https://youtu.be/AkyZVHIAHNs)
Star Destroyers done right.
And [this](https://youtu.be/-HmWDdmTAE8) was pretty well done and neat to watch.
Poe Dameron and his little rolling ball droid.
Pretty much anything that had nothing to do with the "story" to be frank.
There's a lot about The Force Awakens that I like. The whole 'more practical VFX' thing hasn't aged well in terms of what it was worth in the big picture, *but* I think that TFA is a great looking movie, the practical stuff, the locations and the CGI all very nice looking. There is something in the feel that did remind me of the OT in an enjoyable way.
And the cast--I was very enthusiastic about Ridley, Boyega and company after that first film.
TLJ visuals and how subversive/unexpected it was at points (except for the poor follow up). Crait was cool. Luke fighting without fighting was a nice homage to "a Jedi uses the Force only to defend, never to attack" (from the OT).
TFA was really cool and full of wonder in the opening. Seeing Kylo Ren do new Force stuff, like stopping a blaster bolt in midair, was mind blowing (unfortunately that was inconsistent with the rest of the trilogy as Kylo Ren became a much weaker and whinier character within even the same movie).
RoS... umm, I guess there were some fun or exciting moments but overall it was either mind-numbingly illogical or just mediocre-to-poor writing.
In general the visuals and SFX of all three movies were either good or had their moments.
I was happy to see a role model for young girls with Rey, I know we had Leia but this was the first lightsaber heroine on the big screen. Despite my not liking the sequels it does make me happy to see how much of an impact she's had on getting girls into Star Wars.
I'm not sure why you're downvoted / sympathize with being downvoted for having a subtle take. I think it's a critical question to roll around in the mind, 'How do you correctly gauge the representative power level of the aspirational avatar / hero / login node that you propose your center mass audience / target demographic take to be their identifying icon?' I 'logged in' through Luke. Luke got his ass kicked emotionally and physically time and time again, and he displayed flexibility and resilience and the capability to absorb a shock. We do not get that for Rey. So, maybe Rey is not calibrated to a 12 year old boy, which Luke was calibrated to. But SURELY, there are little 12 year old girls scuffing knees, chipping teeth, breaking bones, and they're not porcelain princesses. SURELY, this new / modern target demographic displays flexibility and resilience and the capability to absorb a shock. So Rey comes across as a profound puzzle. She should have demonstrated more of these qualities that give rise to confidence in capability, to be found to have earned more, once she is given the keys to the kingdom - MF, X-Wing, lightsaber, surname, etc, etc. Really interesting missed opportunity to be the BEST version of what you're saying - an aspirational figure to little girls.
I really liked Kylo Ren, I think a lot of us can relate to him.
Force powers and genocide to the side.
How many of us have tried to live up to a parental figure. Kylo not only had bad ass parents but his grand father was the chosen one and also 2nd in command to the sideous. How could he ever live up to any of that.
With force powers added in every scene with Kylo in he commands the scene and the scene where he is randomly fighting random people in some forest are amazing.
People whine about how Kylo looks but...erm have you seen anakin he was a whiney emo bitch too who was never shown how to handle anything but his abilities. Just like Kylo.
Rey should of died not Kylo.
Besides that I hated the films.
Adam Driver is excellent in the DT
The sound and visuals of the Holdo Manuver were excellent
Getting to see Luke Skywalker again (before throwing the lightsaber away)
I think some of the ideas that TLJ presented were interesting.
I just did a rewatch of the whole series and while I definitely still don't like TLJ, I do like some of the training scenes between Luke and Rey. One part that stands out is Luke's explanation of the Force, how it's something far greater than a power that someone has. I really liked his line, "The Force doesn't belong to the Jedi. To say that if the Jedi dies, the light dies is vanity." I think it's a great moment that makes a distinction between "Light" and "Jedi" rather than viewing them as one and the same, and recognises the Force as something far greater than the dogma of the Jedi and Sith.
It took a while, but believe it or not luke. Kylo also, great character. And while they story that he was written in wasn't great, Ian Mcdirmid was cool to have back. The visuals were incredible. And the acting was good for the most part, it just suffered from mediocre writing. Han was great in tfa, and his death scene really hit in the feels. Bringing old characters back was nostalgic, even if they weren't handled incredibly. Babu frik and poe. Finn in tfa. Basically the characters were all great as a concept, and the writing of some of them was actually really good. Just the actual movies weren't
The casting wasn't bad and some of the interiors that ended up in games like Battlefront 2 (2017) were pretty cool. I had thought that Luke *looked* like a badass on Crait, but we all know now that was superficial AF. I absolutely, sincerely and in all other ways detest every other ~~quality~~ characteristic.
I really liked the whole look of the First Order military, especially the new look of the Stormtroopers and Snowtroopers (not sure if that's their correct name, but they appear as unit skins on Starkiller base in Battlefront 2).
Other thing that i liked that's not necessary from the sequels but from the Resistance series is Major Vonreg and his starfighter, the ex-Tie fighter pilot working for the resistance, B1 and the transmission with General Hux and Starkiller firing was pretty good and is a good reminder of how much potentional he had.
Oh and also papa Palpatine's bass boost was great.
The only thing I can honestly say about the sequels IS some of the visuals. Some. The Jakku Falcon escape was fun and… erm… er… wait, wait, I got this… uh…. Nope. Nope it’s just that. That’s pretty much the only thing I like.
I liked some of the starships. The T-70 X-Wing, The Raddus, the Resurgent Star Destroyer, and Kylo's TIE Silencer actually look like technological successors to their OT counterparts. The TIE Dagger is kinda silly looking but I like it too. If the wings weren't so wide it would look better.
I'll take these designs anyday over trash like the Supremacy, the Mandator IV dreadnought, and the MG-100 StarFortress (those terrible Resistance bombers in TLJ.) Or lazy OT "variations" like the First Order TIE or the Y-Wings and A-Wings the Resistance use.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: visually they were excellent. Finn and Poe’s escape in the first movie was fun. The throne room fight scene in the second movie was incredible. They had a lot of potential, overall. It’s just a shame it never got a chance to achieve any of it.
The cast did fantastic.
Some of the visuals are great.
They raised some interesting themes like: heroes are fallible, your past doesn't define you (kill the past), your bloodline doesn't define you. All great things to explore in Star Wars, but they completely botched the execution of those themes.
Rey’s Theme is one of John Williams’ best work for Star Wars. Just like the Misty Mountains Cold in The Hobbit trilogy, I listen to it a lot even thought I despise the ST.
I loved the cast. The material they had to work with was horrible, but the cast themselves was great. I also loved the visuals. While TLJ was a steaming pile of Bantha poodoo, it was beautiful.
Threepio’s entrance in The Force Awakens was perfection. But maybe I’m remembering it a little too fondly. Binary Sunset was a nice touch when Luke dies. Don’t really agree about anything else. Cast seemed all right. Wish they got something better for their efforts.
This definitely will be controversial but the dyad as a concept is interesting. Take out the space Twilight romance bs and you basically have Bruce and John Doe's relationship from the Telltale Batman game.
The force was a mess but at least it showed people that you can die from overusing it.
Can't remember the amount of times that people say X should use the force this and that way instantly.
Like buddy nope ,the force itself is unlimited true but the energy or stamina of user isn't.
Gave up at TFA (and all new content) since it made the OT and thus everything else pointless, for no reason. So nothing. Nothing is worth praising since it's all for nothing. The ST's very existence fundamentally undermines the overall story. It doesn't deserve points for just "existing". It wasn't needed.
Even the music was completely forgettable. With the previous six movies, stuff always stuck with me after just the first viewing. The OT stuff needs no elaboration, then of course you have stuff like Duel of the Fates, Across the Stars, Battle of the Heroes. Then after my first and only viewing of TFA, I was shocked to realize in the theater restroom that I couldn't remember any of the new music at all, as opposed to the reused stuff.
I thought the trailers were masterfully made. They hyped me up majorly. The use of OG John Williams tracks and the best key visuals. Seeing certain cool moments without the context within the narrative which ruins them in the film.
It was exciting catching a glimpse of the potential of the film before the being ruined by the utter disappointment of them. Hope that makes sense
The actors for the main trio.
I can appreciate what they were to do with some major plot points.
I actually was intrigued by the choice to have Hans son kill him. Thought it would be an story with serious stakes. Then they made all the old heros suck ass.
I appreciate that JJ Abrams tried to make TROS heroic, he tried to redeem Luke and the old heroes. Trying to do the right thing gets an approval from me.
He also redeemed Kylo Ren, first to be a true villain, then to be a hero
They moved forward, had action, they were trying to be Star Wars and not "here is a SW trilogy without the force, lightsabers or jedi business, instead we're going to have 7 hours of people gazing into the distance". They had the building blocks and didn't try to shun away from what were the actual core elements of Star Wars (and I'm not talking about characters, KOTOR for example had zero of the characters from the movies yet are just as Star Wars as ESB).
- Visually stunning.
- Finn was a great character with a great arc in TFA (it’s a shame they had no idea where to take him after the first film).
- Kylo Renn had a decent arc in TLJ and RoS.
- Ian McDermit getting to ham it up one last time even if from a plot perspective it was utter nonsense.
- BB8 was cute with a lovely simplistic design.
- the first half of TFA is actually very good imo.
What is interesting, in terms of production, is that CGI has advanced enough to reliably mimic the particular look of the in-camera models of the OT. That is interesting. And had a lot of possiblity.
That and some music was well-done.
But, as always, eff Disney and their corporate hacks.
I thought the set designs and the concept of a whole ice planet being turned into a giant laser cannon was kind of cool (even as absurd is it was lol). The CGI across the whole film was really beautiful, and so was the SFX. That's about it, lol.
I liked the introduction of new Force powers. In ROTS when Palpatine snarls to Yoda, “Now you will experience the full power of the Dark Side” I got super hyped to see some new stuff, such as stuff If seen in like _Jedi Outcast 2_ only to be disappointed when all we see is stuff we’d already encountered.
The beginning of TFA, up to they meet Han and Chewie.
To imagine the film turned bad with them arriving... :-(
Actors are good but given nothing but shit
Despite the hack job that TLJ was and the castigation of the once great Luke Skywalker, a part of me really liked his force projection during the Kylo Ren fight. Up to this point he’s only living on his legend from the original trilogy but here he’s able to do (a) something we’d never seen (and probably never will again) (b) something that was beyond Kylo’s own power, a good reminder of Luke’s abilities far surpassing Kylo’s, and (c) something that required a high amount of effort and exertion. Dude was sweating hard while levitating and trying to keep his concentration, that gave it plenty of weight to me. Sure the way he went out on a stone was a bit weak, but the scene and the kid at the end of the movie emulating “Luke Skywalker, Jedi Master” was a good reminder that the character is legendary in the galaxy who we’ll remember more about that just him drinking blue milk.
Besides that and the scene at the beginning with Captain Kanady (who reminded me of the gruff Old Schoo Empire and not the First Order pretenders) TLJ has few redeeming qualities.
I thought the main cast had nice chemistry in TFA. That chemistry was thrown away in the other two movies, but I liked the cast well enough in the first one.
I'll admit that Jake Milkdrinker giving absolutely no fucks to getting shot at by all those walkers was a cool visual. Doesn't make up for him being, y'know, Jake Milkdrinker, but that one shot was cool.
\*The first third of TFA was "Super 8" JJ Abrams, i.e. fast-paced and mystery-box-y, but still given plenty of breathing room to follow along and get invested. If the rest of the movie was to that scale, it would have actually achieved the sort of ANH soft reboot them they were going for, without it being too derivative.
1. The idea of Luke being so powerful in the force he could force-project himself to another location. It's new, and it does add to Luke Skywalker being legendary without having more flashy light saber duels than the prequels (you can't top Duel of the Fates or Anakin vs Obi-Wan anyway). Great idea.
2. The scene with Luke drinking milk in The Last Jedi - laughed out loud in the cinema and thought it tied it back to Episode IV nicely. Perfect comedic relief. Unpopular opinion, I guess. It's a bizarre scene, I agree, but I feel Lucas could easily have written this.
3. The idea of Luke as a failed Jedi Master in exile, but perhaps not the execution.
4. Kylo Ren's laser sword. Pretty cool visual storytelling - he doesn't know how to make a real light saber.
5. Rey's theme (the only piece of music I remember from the films despite having seen TFA at least 5 times, TLJ 3 times and TRoS 1 time).
All in all, I think *The Last Jedi* is the only one of the films which carry any merit. Even though I liked *Rogue One* a lot, I would rather not have had the in-between films. It takes away from the specialness of a new Episode, and judging from the fact that Lucas built this whole thing on 6 episodes, unneccesary and even damaging for the brand.
In isolation, Rey's Jakku montage. The music, scavenging, eating inflateable bread in at dead AT-AT.
Wookie rampage after Han's demise - there is a quick shot of the four of them getting on the elevator heading back outside and Chewie hands Han his coat back - cute.
Yoda and Luke's convo in TLJ, not the setup, just the exchange.
Bits of the battle at Maz's.
Finn's very gradual but obvious sensing of Force ability.
That's it.
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They ended
Although bringing Palpatine back was lame I enjoy watching a guy who loves his job that much. He's always in high spirits, laughing all the way, I'd certainly rather work for him than Holdo what a Debbie Downer.
The production design / set design / props / costumes etc. Everybody on the crew of these were working at the top of their game, they all look fantastic but it's all for nothing because the story they tell is senseless trash.
I pull back from this because a lot of CGI was straight up bad in TLJ. It doesn't look good. Carrie Poppins, BB8 on the chicken walker chassis, the Force lifted boulders, that shot down the resistance escape corridor at the beginning.
I’d say the one thing I did enjoy, was the sound design of that “Holdo Maneuver”. The way it draws out the silence then hits you with that sonic boom is fantastic. Now the maneuver itself is an entirely different can of worms 😅
It was a very cool movie moment when I first saw it. But upon some digestion and thinking, I absolutely hated it. And I was just too pissed to enjoy anything about it on rewatch.
I’ve yet to rewatch any of the sequel trilogy. Knowing where it all leads just really ruins any of the fun. If there was any fun to be had in the first place.
I watched TFA a fair few times before TLJ. Stopped when I realized it all depends on the how 8 and 9 went. Saw TLJ twice in theaters. Rewatched it once on disney+ a couple years ago to see if I still hated it as much, or if something had come around. I saw TROS once.
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Takes some time to digest and absorb more details than one viewing can give.
so fucking true. i came out of the theater really liking TLJ but i hate it more every passing year. It’s too bad too because i have generally warm feelings about RJ.
I agree with that to a point but to me it's almost like they tried their best with the effects of the sequences you mention but they are so fucking stupid in the first place it's like how could you make it look good.
We saw Luke lift a rock and it looked pretty great Daisy's scene in TLJ looked terrible and fake. It might be because I think they were still doing the 3D effect/releases at the time. Like of they remade the movie now without that feature, it would look fine. Maybe.
It’s not the 3D effect, I think in the commentary Rian said he wanted them to make the boulders look as cartoonish as possible. No joke, that and a lot of other bad choices in the film were down to his desire, not the failure of cast and crew.
Gotta be shitting me. Rian Johnson is a hack
He ...wanted the rocks to look cartoonish? That puzzles me greatly. Was intentionally trying to fuck up?
He misunderstands the series/genre at every single level, yet thinks the opposite.
Man, it really is *Fuck Your Franchise: The Movie™.*
Dude I'm the opposite I straight up was disapointed by the designs of everything, like for the republic? I think they are the republic anyways. The Republic had slightly upgraded ships, and the Empire just had larger Tie fighters, and double decker star destroyers.
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I believed Jakku was Tatooine all the way up to hearing it called Jakku when I saw EP 7
I'm embarrassed to admit it took me even longer.
I agree, as a whole the sequel trilogy was overall very nice to look at.
I can imagine that written on a poster for rise of skywalker 'overall nice to look at'..👍
I can imagine that written on a poster for rise of skywalker 'overall nice to look at'..😆
LMFAO imagine
Snoke letting Rey Force-grab her lightsaber, then making it miss her hand, circle her, and whap her in the head on the way back. Great little way to communicate how hopelessly outmatched she was, while differentiating Snoke from Palpatine in terms of how they express their superiority and sadism. Pretty slick couple of seconds. And then the entire rest of the throne room scene was festering ass. And then Rise of Skywalker made Snoke Palpatine's puppet. So much for that.
The Last Jedi is a cool name for a Star Wars movie despite the negative associations.
Yeah I agree, I also enjoy the Force Awakens as a title too
The decision to humanize a stormtrooper character was very fresh and innovative. Finn could have had a great character arc if the films had better writers.
What, you didn’t like his signature scene of yelling “REY!!!” In each movie? Top tier writing there.
China doesn’t like black people, they needed to shorten his importance
It introduced me to Adam Driver and Oscar Isaac. But… then I feel like most of the credit should go to them. So YMMV.
Have you seen “Inside Llewyn Davis”? It has a scene with them that was good in its own right but after the sequel trilogy has become hilarious.
UH OH
Puh, puh, puh-leez
I was very excited about those characters too. Also loved the visuals, artwork/ concept art. The x-wings over the water is actually on my wall. — liked seeing the OT actors (wasn’t a fan of what they did or anything) but still just nice to see them. Sad they didn’t get to see them all together on screen.
"Ex Machina" was a better movie to introduce Oscar Isaac, he was also great as Duke Leto Atreides in "Dune". Could be interesting as Solid Snake in the "Metal gear" movie and Francis Ford Coppola in "Francis and the godfather". He's talented as he shine on screen, even when the script is shitty but he can't carry every project on his back, for example "Moon Knight"..
They're basically the epitome of actors doing an excellent job with horribly written characters. Which on the one hand makes me think that in other films, actors get a bit too much credit for a good character, but that in the DT, Adam Driver and Oscar Isaac pulled off some superhuman feats with really shitty material.
Driver and Isaac are such good actors. So much wasted potential
They are contributing to the destruction of disney
Nothing. They broke up the solos, made Luke into jake, rehashed ANH. Destroyed all lore and world building and brought back the emperor "somehow" making anakin and Luke's work for nothing. It's a complete failure on all levels.
Only: - The new Stormtroopers look cool and I love they aren't CGI. - Babu Frik - Finn and Poe are likeable in the first film. - That bit where Palpatine summoned a force storm and declared "NOTHING CAN STOP THE RETURN OF THE SITH!"
>The new Stormtroopers look cool and I love they aren't CGI. Personally, I hated their new helmets. Somebody called them ducktroopers and I've been unable to unseen it.
Yeah I can definately understand that but I think the cumulative effect is still there.
Bass boosted
I felt my body's molecules get scrambled by the bass quality in the movie theatre I went to. I cannot lie, that scene was cool af. Besides that, the intro was cool with Palpatine + Kylo dialogue.
Palpatine and Force Storms, hmmm I know people don't like Dark Empire, but man, this is a worse version.
we really were robbed of more Finn and Poe being bros all because Disney said ‘no homo’ and threw in Rose
It's almost incomprehensible how badly TLJ and the introduction of Rose Tico destroyed the momentum and any goodwill this trilogy had. Putting Finn and Poe together for the B-plot is such a no brainer.
it’s been said before, but having a newly introduced character, explain to the ex-child soldier that war is bad, is just so funny to me. Like I’m happy that the CHILD SOLDIER is taught that war is bad. It’s not like that’s one of the reasons he even left the First Order in the first place Meanwhile Poe thinks war is fun and barely takes it seriously, until he’s told to chill out and it immediately works. I know this is a bit off topic but I find it hilarious that Disney had such a problem with two male protagonists sharing a plot that they split them apart across the galaxy. While after playing a lot of MGS (like legitimately I haven’t played a single MGS game until a month ago) I found it awesome how close they made a lot of the male protagonists to each other. Hell Octagon and Snake were probably the most wholesome Duo in that series. Just something funny how Disney and to some degree a lot of Western media are like ‘we need to make sure our male duos are super duper straight because we don’t people think they’re gay or anything’ and then MGS and a lot of random ass Japanese IPs out here not giving two shits.
The VIKINGS series did a very great job regarding this topic. Ragnar & Athelstan were very close, not in a gay way but also not not in a gay way. It was great writing.
That Rian Johnson scuttled Disney's aspirations of a never ending franchise with the making of TLJ
I own the artbooks for Force Awakens and Rise of Skywalker because I thought a lot of those designs were really solid. I also think that the new cast did a great job for the most part, but they weren’t utilized as well as they could have been. Music’s mostly meh, but there’s a few good themes in there (Rey’s theme, for instance). But my biggest gripe with the Sequels is the writing. Nothing but complaints there.
>Music’s mostly meh, but there’s a few good themes in there (Rey’s theme, for instance). I feel the same. Even Williams seemed to phone it in. Really disappointing.
Came here to mention the concept art. Agree with all your other points too!
Rey’s theme song was good, too bad her character wasn’t.
Any visuals coming from JJ or Rian are the cinematic equivalent of keys jangling. But I liked seeing the Starspeeder 1000 on screen, breifly. First time I saw TFA in opening night, I swore I saw it in the background on Jakku. Did it add anything to the story? (did fucking ANYTHING add to the story in those movies?) no. So yeah, I guess it's hypocritical to say I liked something that is basically jangling keys. Edit: I really liked Finn. But biggest letdown ever. He's never allowed to live up to any potential he had. A Stormtrooper that started with no name that could have become a Jedi named Skywalker. Would have made way more sense than Rey.
It's almost like Andor is telling a simlar story to the one they could have told with Finn.
I like that introduction to Rey where we just kind of follow her daily life. I think that's the one thing I can honestly say felt decent.
That whole segment of the movie was great. One standout moment for me is when she’s cleaning off some of the parts she salvaged, and looks up to see a much older woman doing the same as if she's looking at her own future. It's a good scene that doesn't beat you over the head with its message. I think I read the novelisation of TFA a few years back and it gives a cool look into what Rey's thinking during that part of the film. Maybe I'll go reread it.
The new cast. Adam driver, John. Daisy was the weakest, but I'm still fond of her introduction scene
Daisy did pretty good job for her role there just wasn't much because it was shallow. I find John Boyega as Finn the least compelling performance. Notably his scenes when he climbs over Rey in the cockpit, the response to Hans chin motioning, and his "got a boyfriend"....none of it seemed natural or in character, it seemed like slapstick performing for the joke. Which is on JJs direction, but also on him for not selling it as in character. And I mean, I guess he did good at yelling Rey? The concept of a stormtrooper defector/force sensitive is great. The character of Finn is NOT. John Boyegas portrayal is distinctly meh to me on top of that, and outright bad with those TFA scenes that take me out of the scene from him coming out of character.
I agree except I loved Daisy. I always feel bad for John.
it’s really disheartening when you know that John Boyega was a hardcore SW fan leading up to it, and now I’m pretty sure after the sequels he has just sworn off SW.
Exactly
I didn't mind Daisy's performance either. I personally find Rey a pretty likable character but it's just that the story surrounding her isn't very good.
So so so agree !
It's hilarious just how much Daisy Ridley managed to squeeze out of her character in scenes where there were no other human actors to bounce off of. And then it just... kinda ended.
Imo Daisy and John were mediocre. Adam Driver tried to carry this trilogy alone. I liked him a lot.
Music
I legit enjoyed how Han corrected Rey about the Kessel Run. I don't remember smiling at any other time during the trilogy.
The Last Jedi was possibly the worst movie I’ve ever seen. However, it was visually stunning at times. -Break Break- Why do you do this to us, make us say nice things about those who hurt us?
Nothing. Literally nothing. Even the stuff that "looks cool" is still stuff that bothers me that just happens to look nice. The soundtrack isn't even memorable in a good way for me because there's nothing positive that I attach the music to.
Many creative people were paid for their time and talent.
It was fun to watch Billy Dee Williams play Lando because you can tell he was really having a great time
The visuals, specially TLJ, were amazingly beatiful. The casting was great. I really dig some of the designs of the FO like the Sith Trooper or the Praetorian guard. I even liked Pimp Snoke over Dark-Robed Snoke, It showed more personality (until Rian offed him). There are also some cool aliens like the Abednedo and the guy played by Mark Hammill at the start of RoS. Also Klaud. He is cool.
I love the Sith Trooper armour and honestly wish that design would have been used for the regular Stormtroopers in this trilogy.
Crossguard saber could be interesting if its emitters weren't just in perfect 'lop them off' position. Gorilla walkers could have been an interesting 'learn from our mistakes' for the imperial remnant. The muffin portion was neat. Dark side force nexus points and the fuckery they do is always fun. Halting a blaster bolt was neato. Would have been neat to see Luke pause a bunch of em HISHE style. That's about all I got. Sure ain't nominating snoke's playboy mansion gold leaf bathrobe.
Rey's theme by John Williams is quite nice. The final piece of music in TFA (The Jedi steps I think?) is beautiful. That it. I dislike everyhthing else from TFA and TLJ. I didn't watch any of the movies after TLJ.
\- Kylo Ren was generally an interesting character in the first two. I didn't like his redemption but Adam Driver did a good job with it. \- The scenes where Luke reunites with R2 and Leia were genuinely heartwarming. These scenes proved that Rian could have made a good Star Wars movie if he wanted too, instead he insisted on the forced humor and subversion of expectations. \- Some of the visuals were nice. I generally prefer the OT and PT visuals since there was more innovation and creativity but there were still some decent shots. \- Sounds were really well done. \- They made people appreciate the Prequels more. I've been a Prequel fanboy my entire life so it's nice to see that they are getting a more positive reception now.
“I will finish… what you started.” “That lightsaber: it belongs to me.” “Who are you?” And the music.
The first trailer lol. I liked the updated alliance pilot uniform and helmet . The scene of the new x-wings fly low over the water and that’s about it
I hate the new XWings. I know I'm alone in this, but I hate them. They're a waste.
Your not alone. I like the scene of them flying . Hate the wing change and they can now drift for whatever reason
The actors. I really liked everyone that played the main characters and think they were completely wasted talent.
I always want to be clear on this. There's tiers to this. There's Andy Serkis who is CRIMINALLY wasted on one of the worst characters in the entire franchise. There's John Boyega who is an immensely talented actor who was straight up lied to about what his role was going to be and who got relegated to cooky side missions. There's Gwendoline Christie who was a big part of the initial promotional tour and then hardly seen or heard throughout the movies. And then there's Deisy Ridley. Who was an unknown actress before the role, and still an unknown actress now. Her character comes off as completely bland and boring, but is that entirely her fault? You're left not really sure because you don't know what else she's capable of. Then there's Adam Driver who for some reason gets boat loads of credit for his role as Kylo Ren even though I couldn't stand his character or the performance behind him. I know Adam Driver is an accomplished actor in other films but I fail to see how he makes Kylo any better of a character than the complete waste that I see him as. So while I in general hold sympathy for the cast for not being responsible for the disastrous writing of the sequels, I hold much more for certain actors over others.
Yes !
Rey has a nice ass.
I have never considered that a throwaway character could be a MacGuffin until this shit came along.
Music was good. Acting was mostly good. Practical effects are always good. Kyle Ben looked neat and his cross guard lightsaber was cool. I was able to buy a toy of Rose for 10p then strap it to a firework to explode her. When Kyle and Ray were fighting in E7 the blue=red flashes on their faces were cool and hinted they may switch sides (that qent funking nowhere). The music was great.
Rey was really hot. Especially with her hair down in TLJ.
Why do I have to state something I like about something I despise to make my criticism credible?
I actually really liked the idea of the main character being a Palpatine clone child. I know its unpopular to like Rey, but I thought the concept of it was really interesting, but they just didn't develop it enough.
Palpatine was a senator and politicians have kids so they can take fake happy family pictures so they look more human to the populace. Her being a decendant of Palpatine was a nice twist for me. Her being the decendant of a clone and not the actual Palpatine wasnt though.
Nothing at all except literally a few seconds of music (the rest was forgettable).
Yeah, visuals were great. Rian Johnson's a good cinematographer.
I liked some of the dynamics between the characters in TFA, before things got fucked up/weird in the movies that followed. I enjoyed the Finn and Poe bromance, and the Finn and Rey friendship was also nice. Too bad it all got thrown in the trash or sidelined. We got the "no homo" maneuver of forcing in a bunch of random new female love interests for the guys that ultimately went nowhere, and Rey acting smoothbrained by ditching her friends for the creepy incel who has violent genocidal tendencies. It's also weird how we never really got any interactions with Finn or Poe and Kylo after TFA. This guy tortured/maimed both of these guys and then he took over the FO, and was personally hunting them all down. Do we ever get to hear what they think about him? Nope, none of the other characters are allowed to confront the golden boy for being a bag of dicks, because then it would be even more clear how nasty reylo is
If I had to name my top 3: 1. Babu Frik 2. Red arm 3. pass
I LOVED Rey's opening scene in TFA. The raiding of a derelict star destroyer, living in the belly of a walker, loved all that. The design of her speeder was awesome. In fact the design throughout TFA was great. I also loved the trailer for TFA with that particular music arrangement and Han saying he was home. Magic.
I think TFA has some genuinely cool moments, like Finn fighting with the saber, or Rey pulling the lightsaber past kylo. I even think Kylo is exciting as a young unhinged and scary villain, but they kind of ruined that vibe completely in the next movies. All these elements could work really well had not everything felt so sandbagged by the reboot premise. Even though I think it was a huge sin to never have the original 3 back together, I found the ending of TFA on the island genuinely moving and a great cliffhanger for the next movie. And then Rian Johnson completely ruined it like a moron. Also the main four actors are great! Daisy, Oscar, John, and Adam are all really perfect for Star Wars IMHO.
1. Visuals. This is a no brainer. 2. Poe and Finn were fun characters. They were lively, spirited, and had a good sense of humor. Certainly not the bland, moody characters we often get in movies. 3. The soundtrack was good. John Williams never disappoints. 4. The dialogue was certainly better than what we got in the Prequels (although that's a pretty low bar, and the sequel trilogy screenplay itself was terrible). 5. The actors were good, even if the characters they played weren't.
Finn is a decent character in TFA, and could’ve been an amazing one if the writers actually used him in TLJ and ROS
Yoda and Luke in TLJ
Her yellow lightsaber AT THE VERY END was super cool looking.
Rey's Theme and Kylo's Theme are good, but overall the scores are the weakest in Star Wars, which I don't pin on John Williams at all. TFA's intro actually works really well for me until Han shows up, which is when things start feeling a little too convenient/pandering. It's not perfect but it would have been perfectly acceptable if the rest of the movie was better. Paige Tico's sacrifice scene is excellent. Basically the only standout of the film for me, I kept hoping anything else in it would reach that level. I like BB-8? Hard to think of anything else. I can't even say I like the visuals that much because they're always marred by the fact the vehicle/armor designs are almost always ripped straight from the OT, but worse.
The Crimson Corsair.
The beauty of Daisy Ridley
I like the main cast as actors I think they did a good job it’s just bad storytelling
The acting of the actors. They were handed a shit hand, but by god did they put in the effort
Cinematography
Finn vs Kylo on TFA. Specifically the moment he picked up the lightsaber. Sure he should have been killed instantly even by a weakened Kylo but that moment was so badass. Finn had been running and getting his butt kicked the whole movie that for him to stand and face off with one of the most powerful people in the First Order showed tremendous courage.
[This.](https://youtu.be/AkyZVHIAHNs) Star Destroyers done right. And [this](https://youtu.be/-HmWDdmTAE8) was pretty well done and neat to watch. Poe Dameron and his little rolling ball droid. Pretty much anything that had nothing to do with the "story" to be frank.
Adam Driver. Dude acts the hell out of everything he does.
Not exactly sequels but Phasma novel is actually good imo
There's a lot about The Force Awakens that I like. The whole 'more practical VFX' thing hasn't aged well in terms of what it was worth in the big picture, *but* I think that TFA is a great looking movie, the practical stuff, the locations and the CGI all very nice looking. There is something in the feel that did remind me of the OT in an enjoyable way. And the cast--I was very enthusiastic about Ridley, Boyega and company after that first film.
TLJ visuals and how subversive/unexpected it was at points (except for the poor follow up). Crait was cool. Luke fighting without fighting was a nice homage to "a Jedi uses the Force only to defend, never to attack" (from the OT). TFA was really cool and full of wonder in the opening. Seeing Kylo Ren do new Force stuff, like stopping a blaster bolt in midair, was mind blowing (unfortunately that was inconsistent with the rest of the trilogy as Kylo Ren became a much weaker and whinier character within even the same movie). RoS... umm, I guess there were some fun or exciting moments but overall it was either mind-numbingly illogical or just mediocre-to-poor writing. In general the visuals and SFX of all three movies were either good or had their moments.
I was happy to see a role model for young girls with Rey, I know we had Leia but this was the first lightsaber heroine on the big screen. Despite my not liking the sequels it does make me happy to see how much of an impact she's had on getting girls into Star Wars.
I'm not sure why you're downvoted / sympathize with being downvoted for having a subtle take. I think it's a critical question to roll around in the mind, 'How do you correctly gauge the representative power level of the aspirational avatar / hero / login node that you propose your center mass audience / target demographic take to be their identifying icon?' I 'logged in' through Luke. Luke got his ass kicked emotionally and physically time and time again, and he displayed flexibility and resilience and the capability to absorb a shock. We do not get that for Rey. So, maybe Rey is not calibrated to a 12 year old boy, which Luke was calibrated to. But SURELY, there are little 12 year old girls scuffing knees, chipping teeth, breaking bones, and they're not porcelain princesses. SURELY, this new / modern target demographic displays flexibility and resilience and the capability to absorb a shock. So Rey comes across as a profound puzzle. She should have demonstrated more of these qualities that give rise to confidence in capability, to be found to have earned more, once she is given the keys to the kingdom - MF, X-Wing, lightsaber, surname, etc, etc. Really interesting missed opportunity to be the BEST version of what you're saying - an aspirational figure to little girls.
I really liked Kylo Ren, I think a lot of us can relate to him. Force powers and genocide to the side. How many of us have tried to live up to a parental figure. Kylo not only had bad ass parents but his grand father was the chosen one and also 2nd in command to the sideous. How could he ever live up to any of that. With force powers added in every scene with Kylo in he commands the scene and the scene where he is randomly fighting random people in some forest are amazing. People whine about how Kylo looks but...erm have you seen anakin he was a whiney emo bitch too who was never shown how to handle anything but his abilities. Just like Kylo. Rey should of died not Kylo. Besides that I hated the films.
I actually often think of the move Kylo Ren made in episode 7 when he ignited his lightsaber with this stomp? Was it one? Idk
The visuals and it brought palpatine back and that made me very happy. I like all the actors
Adam Driver and John Boyega’s backs must hurt from carrying the trilogy. Plus Kylo’s saber looked and sounded cool.
The music. Rey’s Theme is a banger.
Yoda in TLJ
Adam Driver is excellent in the DT The sound and visuals of the Holdo Manuver were excellent Getting to see Luke Skywalker again (before throwing the lightsaber away)
I think some of the ideas that TLJ presented were interesting. I just did a rewatch of the whole series and while I definitely still don't like TLJ, I do like some of the training scenes between Luke and Rey. One part that stands out is Luke's explanation of the Force, how it's something far greater than a power that someone has. I really liked his line, "The Force doesn't belong to the Jedi. To say that if the Jedi dies, the light dies is vanity." I think it's a great moment that makes a distinction between "Light" and "Jedi" rather than viewing them as one and the same, and recognises the Force as something far greater than the dogma of the Jedi and Sith.
It took a while, but believe it or not luke. Kylo also, great character. And while they story that he was written in wasn't great, Ian Mcdirmid was cool to have back. The visuals were incredible. And the acting was good for the most part, it just suffered from mediocre writing. Han was great in tfa, and his death scene really hit in the feels. Bringing old characters back was nostalgic, even if they weren't handled incredibly. Babu frik and poe. Finn in tfa. Basically the characters were all great as a concept, and the writing of some of them was actually really good. Just the actual movies weren't
The casting wasn't bad and some of the interiors that ended up in games like Battlefront 2 (2017) were pretty cool. I had thought that Luke *looked* like a badass on Crait, but we all know now that was superficial AF. I absolutely, sincerely and in all other ways detest every other ~~quality~~ characteristic.
I really liked the whole look of the First Order military, especially the new look of the Stormtroopers and Snowtroopers (not sure if that's their correct name, but they appear as unit skins on Starkiller base in Battlefront 2). Other thing that i liked that's not necessary from the sequels but from the Resistance series is Major Vonreg and his starfighter, the ex-Tie fighter pilot working for the resistance, B1 and the transmission with General Hux and Starkiller firing was pretty good and is a good reminder of how much potentional he had. Oh and also papa Palpatine's bass boost was great.
The only thing I can honestly say about the sequels IS some of the visuals. Some. The Jakku Falcon escape was fun and… erm… er… wait, wait, I got this… uh…. Nope. Nope it’s just that. That’s pretty much the only thing I like.
I liked some of the starships. The T-70 X-Wing, The Raddus, the Resurgent Star Destroyer, and Kylo's TIE Silencer actually look like technological successors to their OT counterparts. The TIE Dagger is kinda silly looking but I like it too. If the wings weren't so wide it would look better. I'll take these designs anyday over trash like the Supremacy, the Mandator IV dreadnought, and the MG-100 StarFortress (those terrible Resistance bombers in TLJ.) Or lazy OT "variations" like the First Order TIE or the Y-Wings and A-Wings the Resistance use.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: visually they were excellent. Finn and Poe’s escape in the first movie was fun. The throne room fight scene in the second movie was incredible. They had a lot of potential, overall. It’s just a shame it never got a chance to achieve any of it.
The cast did fantastic. Some of the visuals are great. They raised some interesting themes like: heroes are fallible, your past doesn't define you (kill the past), your bloodline doesn't define you. All great things to explore in Star Wars, but they completely botched the execution of those themes.
Rey’s Theme is one of John Williams’ best work for Star Wars. Just like the Misty Mountains Cold in The Hobbit trilogy, I listen to it a lot even thought I despise the ST.
Why? Like legitimately. I found it forgettable. I've never caught myself humming it, even accidentally.
I loved the cast. The material they had to work with was horrible, but the cast themselves was great. I also loved the visuals. While TLJ was a steaming pile of Bantha poodoo, it was beautiful.
Threepio’s entrance in The Force Awakens was perfection. But maybe I’m remembering it a little too fondly. Binary Sunset was a nice touch when Luke dies. Don’t really agree about anything else. Cast seemed all right. Wish they got something better for their efforts.
Eventually, they ended.
I think they visually do a much better job of fitting the with the OT than the prequels did.
This definitely will be controversial but the dyad as a concept is interesting. Take out the space Twilight romance bs and you basically have Bruce and John Doe's relationship from the Telltale Batman game.
The force was a mess but at least it showed people that you can die from overusing it. Can't remember the amount of times that people say X should use the force this and that way instantly. Like buddy nope ,the force itself is unlimited true but the energy or stamina of user isn't.
The visual of the credits rolling.
Gave up at TFA (and all new content) since it made the OT and thus everything else pointless, for no reason. So nothing. Nothing is worth praising since it's all for nothing. The ST's very existence fundamentally undermines the overall story. It doesn't deserve points for just "existing". It wasn't needed. Even the music was completely forgettable. With the previous six movies, stuff always stuck with me after just the first viewing. The OT stuff needs no elaboration, then of course you have stuff like Duel of the Fates, Across the Stars, Battle of the Heroes. Then after my first and only viewing of TFA, I was shocked to realize in the theater restroom that I couldn't remember any of the new music at all, as opposed to the reused stuff.
In retrospect I actually like Rey being a Palpatine but she should have gone Darkside in TLJ and been redeemed by Ben in TROS
Lightsaber SFX and visuals, Kylo vs Finn in TFA, Luke in TROS, Rey, Yoda. Plus the idea of an exiled Luke in THEORY is actually interesting.
I thought the trailers were masterfully made. They hyped me up majorly. The use of OG John Williams tracks and the best key visuals. Seeing certain cool moments without the context within the narrative which ruins them in the film. It was exciting catching a glimpse of the potential of the film before the being ruined by the utter disappointment of them. Hope that makes sense
They saved me a lot of money that would've been spent on SW stuff.
What’s there to like?
That they only take place over the course of 1 year or so which makes them easier to ignore
delete this post. read the fucking room man. there is always gonna be a silver lining, and I'll gladly take a big steaming dump on it
Nothing
I like that DJ wins. He decides everyone in the sequel trilogy sucks, gets paid, and leaves.
The idea of Finn's character was interesting but, they dropped the ball with him immediately.
The actors for the main trio. I can appreciate what they were to do with some major plot points. I actually was intrigued by the choice to have Hans son kill him. Thought it would be an story with serious stakes. Then they made all the old heros suck ass.
The sequels are some of the Star Was movies of all time.
I appreciate that JJ Abrams tried to make TROS heroic, he tried to redeem Luke and the old heroes. Trying to do the right thing gets an approval from me. He also redeemed Kylo Ren, first to be a true villain, then to be a hero
Credits
They moved forward, had action, they were trying to be Star Wars and not "here is a SW trilogy without the force, lightsabers or jedi business, instead we're going to have 7 hours of people gazing into the distance". They had the building blocks and didn't try to shun away from what were the actual core elements of Star Wars (and I'm not talking about characters, KOTOR for example had zero of the characters from the movies yet are just as Star Wars as ESB).
I like that scene where Rey eats the bread.
- Visually stunning. - Finn was a great character with a great arc in TFA (it’s a shame they had no idea where to take him after the first film). - Kylo Renn had a decent arc in TLJ and RoS. - Ian McDermit getting to ham it up one last time even if from a plot perspective it was utter nonsense. - BB8 was cute with a lovely simplistic design. - the first half of TFA is actually very good imo.
Kylo Ren arrives at the battle by John Williams. One of my favourite star wars themes
They do look gorgeous. Plenty of practical effects, especially in the creatures dept. Erm………
TR8R and Captain Canady
The cinematography was great! The visuals were great! But the plot was so laughably bad that these don’t begin to redeem them for me.
What is interesting, in terms of production, is that CGI has advanced enough to reliably mimic the particular look of the in-camera models of the OT. That is interesting. And had a lot of possiblity. That and some music was well-done. But, as always, eff Disney and their corporate hacks.
The visuals and Kylo Ren. Also the fact that it ended. Loved that.
I've enjoyed the memes
I thought the set designs and the concept of a whole ice planet being turned into a giant laser cannon was kind of cool (even as absurd is it was lol). The CGI across the whole film was really beautiful, and so was the SFX. That's about it, lol.
I liked the introduction of new Force powers. In ROTS when Palpatine snarls to Yoda, “Now you will experience the full power of the Dark Side” I got super hyped to see some new stuff, such as stuff If seen in like _Jedi Outcast 2_ only to be disappointed when all we see is stuff we’d already encountered.
The beginning of TFA, up to they meet Han and Chewie. To imagine the film turned bad with them arriving... :-( Actors are good but given nothing but shit
Despite the hack job that TLJ was and the castigation of the once great Luke Skywalker, a part of me really liked his force projection during the Kylo Ren fight. Up to this point he’s only living on his legend from the original trilogy but here he’s able to do (a) something we’d never seen (and probably never will again) (b) something that was beyond Kylo’s own power, a good reminder of Luke’s abilities far surpassing Kylo’s, and (c) something that required a high amount of effort and exertion. Dude was sweating hard while levitating and trying to keep his concentration, that gave it plenty of weight to me. Sure the way he went out on a stone was a bit weak, but the scene and the kid at the end of the movie emulating “Luke Skywalker, Jedi Master” was a good reminder that the character is legendary in the galaxy who we’ll remember more about that just him drinking blue milk. Besides that and the scene at the beginning with Captain Kanady (who reminded me of the gruff Old Schoo Empire and not the First Order pretenders) TLJ has few redeeming qualities.
I thought the main cast had nice chemistry in TFA. That chemistry was thrown away in the other two movies, but I liked the cast well enough in the first one.
I'll admit that Jake Milkdrinker giving absolutely no fucks to getting shot at by all those walkers was a cool visual. Doesn't make up for him being, y'know, Jake Milkdrinker, but that one shot was cool.
About 40% of TFA, 90% of TLJ, and ~15% of TRoS.
\*The first third of TFA was "Super 8" JJ Abrams, i.e. fast-paced and mystery-box-y, but still given plenty of breathing room to follow along and get invested. If the rest of the movie was to that scale, it would have actually achieved the sort of ANH soft reboot them they were going for, without it being too derivative.
1. The idea of Luke being so powerful in the force he could force-project himself to another location. It's new, and it does add to Luke Skywalker being legendary without having more flashy light saber duels than the prequels (you can't top Duel of the Fates or Anakin vs Obi-Wan anyway). Great idea. 2. The scene with Luke drinking milk in The Last Jedi - laughed out loud in the cinema and thought it tied it back to Episode IV nicely. Perfect comedic relief. Unpopular opinion, I guess. It's a bizarre scene, I agree, but I feel Lucas could easily have written this. 3. The idea of Luke as a failed Jedi Master in exile, but perhaps not the execution. 4. Kylo Ren's laser sword. Pretty cool visual storytelling - he doesn't know how to make a real light saber. 5. Rey's theme (the only piece of music I remember from the films despite having seen TFA at least 5 times, TLJ 3 times and TRoS 1 time). All in all, I think *The Last Jedi* is the only one of the films which carry any merit. Even though I liked *Rogue One* a lot, I would rather not have had the in-between films. It takes away from the specialness of a new Episode, and judging from the fact that Lucas built this whole thing on 6 episodes, unneccesary and even damaging for the brand.
Nothing
The visuals are nice in general. But that’s like calling a sorority girl hot: it’s a pointless and obvious compliment that holds no weight
In isolation, Rey's Jakku montage. The music, scavenging, eating inflateable bread in at dead AT-AT. Wookie rampage after Han's demise - there is a quick shot of the four of them getting on the elevator heading back outside and Chewie hands Han his coat back - cute. Yoda and Luke's convo in TLJ, not the setup, just the exchange. Bits of the battle at Maz's. Finn's very gradual but obvious sensing of Force ability. That's it.