Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi

As far as film franchises go, few are revered and beloved by its fans like Star Wars. The baffling thing about these fans however, is how they never seem to be satisfied.
Latest point of contention: "Episode VIII: The Last Jedi"
Reactions have varied from "Too different; BAD!" to "Beautiful BECAUSE it's so different!" Quite honestly though, as a movie being judged on its own merits, without taking into account previous installments, hours of TV shows, and endless pages of official fanfiction, erm, expanded universe, it is a great story about how different kinds of people are trying to move past tragedies and other past sins & failures...while set in space and also revolving around space wizards.

Stop me if you've heard this one:
A youngster with so much potential ends up before an old master who has become jaded and bitter at the world, begging to be trained by him so that purpose can be established. For a good chunk of the movie, this is the parallel of the bits of "Empire Strikes Back" with Luke training under a green Muppet who lives in a swamp that complains about aggravating birds, but not a complete copy/paste job. The now-crotchety Luke Skywalker is truly a treat to behold, incorporating elements of both of the masters he's had, Obi-Wan's relative calmness and Yoda's mischievousness for example. Mark Hamil, after acquiring over 30 years of acting experience, has really stepped up the performance, bringing us a Luke Skywalker to be remembered fondly for years. His interactions with his Force-wielding proteges, both Daisy Ridley's Rey and Adam Driver's Kylo Ren, are also pretty darn amazing, letting him showcase his acting chops.

While the young-protege-learning-from-old-master-on-another-planet bit is about the only real parallel to other famous 2nd installments in this franchise, an argument can be made for rebels on the run from the oppressive, constant threat of the bigger, badder, more well-equipped enemies. But while this happens, the audience is treated to what happens when hotshot mavericks get humbled by their superiors. Poe Dameron, given the shaft in character development last movie, receives character development in massive spades this time. His itching desire to fight to his last breath against the First Order is palpable as he's constantly held down (sometimes forcibly) by General Leia and another higher up that looks like she came from the Capitol in the "Hunger Games." Throughout the events of the movie though, he learns how to be a wiser leader, made very important in the last scenes where he finally values the often-distasteful-in-movies tactful retreat.

So this busy film has a 3rd story, which involves Finn, BB8 and his new female companion Rose, because his dynamic HAS to be with a lady who knows more about this galaxy than him. They travel to a different kind of hive of scum and villainy that has been in the audience's scope yet in the movies: war profiteers. These one percenters who have become ridiculously wealthy because of all the hardware that have been given to both sides of the conflict are who surround our former Stormtrooper and engineer gal. While they try and find someone who can help them break into the enemy ship and disrupt their diabolical machinations, they also cause a little havoc in this town of pampered fat cats, in a way, still fighting the power in a little way. They end up on that enemy starship and things go downhill further, which is great for the audience since it's always satisfying to see how people can get out of an impossible-seeming pickle.

All three stories converge on a planet made of rocks and salt as a showdown for the fate of the fortunate few Resistance fighters, and it is absolutely fantastic. The environment and color scheme are utilized to great cinematic effect, with red on white like blood on snow, culminating to a duel that almost echoes a Western shootout at sunset. As a side note, so much cinematography props must be given to several scenes in this movie. So many still shots and action shots range from wonderfully composed to breathtaking, and that is commendable for a movie franchise renowned for being groudbreaking.

At this point, with so many different ways the movies have gone, in what can be arguably good or bad directions, I feel like this film is moving forward in a bold direction, even going so far as to have the major metaphor constantly being thrown around by several characters be the simple phrase of "burying/killing the past." After easing the movie-going public back into what Star Wars is about with the "Force Awakens," primarily cleansing out the sour taste of the prequel trilogy, this installment brings forth thought-provoking material & commentary, a fair amount of humor, characters you can actually care about now, and of course, hot action that'll scratch that spaceship dogfight and swordplay itch very well. Overall, worth watching to see how the film breaks conventions and expectations.

For a creative overview from a fellow movie-reviewing friend that lists three pros and three cons, please go here. 

Sadly no singing Mark Hamill...but thankfully a madman from the Internet provided a full version.