I've been an enthusiastic apologist for this new trilogy, but The Rise of Skywalker kind of broke my heart.
I saw The Force Awakens on opening night, and I enjoyed it immensely. I wasn't wowed by all of the safe choices that it was making, but I viewed it as a competent, entertaining return for the franchise. I still view it that way, really. Its themes may often feel like shallow retreads, but I still enjoy the story that it tells and the way that it tells it.
The Last Jedi was...different. I walked out of it feeling so confused. I found certain scenes (Yoda and Luke, the entire Throne Room sequence) to be truly compelling. But the themes sometimes felt muddled, the plotholes were annoying, and I had no idea what to make of the Broomboy ending. I liked it more than I didn't, but I found myself uneasy. I didn't watch it again for about eight months. Then, I saw it on Netflix late one Saturday night and decided to give it another shot. And somehow, it just sort of clicked. The scenes that I had loved in the theater were even better the second time around. And all of the problems that I originally had either 1) weren't problems on second thought, or 2) were insignificant compared to the things that I loved. Where once the film felt to me like it was ignoring everything that The Force Awakens had set up, I now saw it as a natural (if often jarring) evolution of that story. Maybe it was Stockholm Syndrome, or maybe I was just in a better mood on that second watch. Either way, I loved The Last Jedi. Suddenly, whenever I tried to explain to someone what this new trilogy was about, I would cite the themes and plot elements of the The Last Jedi over those of The Force Awakens. I was so excited to see the trilogy grow into a story about learning from the past (not killing it, as the villain of the story suggested) and using those lessons to chart a new path forward. The Last Jedi is a messy movie, and it made a number of mistakes in terms of setting up the final installment. Nevertheless, I still believe that it freed up the new trilogy to move forward and away from the Original Trilogy's skeleton.
And then The Rise of Skywalker happened. We jumped right back into the shallow retreads of The Force Awakens. Only this time, J.J. Abrams's production feels much less like a well-oiled machine and more like a frenzied attempt to make the audience more comfortable. To be sure, there were a handful of scenes that I thought were quite good (the "I know" sequence is just about perfect), but I walked out of the theater feeling empty.
I'm still interested in future Star Wars projects. I only hope that the powers that be see fit to put more effort into planning out a cohesive narrative next time.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2020-02-22 04:20 am (UTC)I saw The Force Awakens on opening night, and I enjoyed it immensely. I wasn't wowed by all of the safe choices that it was making, but I viewed it as a competent, entertaining return for the franchise. I still view it that way, really. Its themes may often feel like shallow retreads, but I still enjoy the story that it tells and the way that it tells it.
The Last Jedi was...different. I walked out of it feeling so confused. I found certain scenes (Yoda and Luke, the entire Throne Room sequence) to be truly compelling. But the themes sometimes felt muddled, the plotholes were annoying, and I had no idea what to make of the Broomboy ending. I liked it more than I didn't, but I found myself uneasy. I didn't watch it again for about eight months. Then, I saw it on Netflix late one Saturday night and decided to give it another shot. And somehow, it just sort of clicked. The scenes that I had loved in the theater were even better the second time around. And all of the problems that I originally had either 1) weren't problems on second thought, or 2) were insignificant compared to the things that I loved. Where once the film felt to me like it was ignoring everything that The Force Awakens had set up, I now saw it as a natural (if often jarring) evolution of that story. Maybe it was Stockholm Syndrome, or maybe I was just in a better mood on that second watch. Either way, I loved The Last Jedi. Suddenly, whenever I tried to explain to someone what this new trilogy was about, I would cite the themes and plot elements of the The Last Jedi over those of The Force Awakens. I was so excited to see the trilogy grow into a story about learning from the past (not killing it, as the villain of the story suggested) and using those lessons to chart a new path forward. The Last Jedi is a messy movie, and it made a number of mistakes in terms of setting up the final installment. Nevertheless, I still believe that it freed up the new trilogy to move forward and away from the Original Trilogy's skeleton.
And then The Rise of Skywalker happened. We jumped right back into the shallow retreads of The Force Awakens. Only this time, J.J. Abrams's production feels much less like a well-oiled machine and more like a frenzied attempt to make the audience more comfortable. To be sure, there were a handful of scenes that I thought were quite good (the "I know" sequence is just about perfect), but I walked out of the theater feeling empty.
I'm still interested in future Star Wars projects. I only hope that the powers that be see fit to put more effort into planning out a cohesive narrative next time.