Tag Archives: Finn

Jan 14 2020

The Star Wars Sequel Trilogy: An Honest Assessment

With the release of Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy and the entire nine-film Skywalker Saga has come to an end. The film has had its share of controversy, scorn and praise from all parties. Despite what trolls hoped for, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is an actual hit film. Now as to its quality, that is another story. Personally, I truly enjoyed the film but am honest enough to admit the latest Star Wars film is riddled with plot holes and faults. Still it did enough to entertain me and others and provided closure to the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy. Looking at the three films in this trilogy it is fair to opine that on the whole, the trilogy was badly flawed and can be considered to be the weakest of the three Star Wars trilogies. And that is due to many reasons, especially one: it is clear that Lucasfilm and its owners Disney did not have a clear plan for the sequel trilogy and it hobbled the films overall.

Inconsistent Characters

Looking at the past three films (standalone films aside), it was difficult to tell what was the main story. The only consistent arc that flowed logically was Rey and Kylo Ren’s personal journeys in their understanding of the Force. Not surprisingly, this storyline is what received the most praise. Everything else, not so much.

future jedi finn

Look at Finn’s story in the films. He had a brilliant setup, the world of Star Wars told from the POV of a normal Stormtrooper, and how he comes to believe in a greater cause than his lot in life. As well as his story was set up in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, it stagnated in the followup, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, where he became a bumbling comic relief shuffled off to a pointless side quest. Then in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, his story arc had a radical course correction as we are tantalized with him developing Force sensitivity, which hinted at his potential future as a Jedi.

Even more jarring was figuring out who was the main bad guy in these films. Kylo Ren’s story was fine and flowed smoothly as he struggled with his conflicting emotions. But he was set up to be the main villain according to The Last Jedi. In that film, he killed the supposed main boss, Supreme Leader Snoke, and took his title. Meanwhile, Snoke was dispatched too early and the filmmakers were left scrambling to find another villain for the final film. This is why director J.J. Abrams and others hastily resurrected the long-dead Emperor Palpatine. As great as it was to see him cackling and oozing evil on the screen again, his reappearance into Star Wars lore was sloppily handled. If he had been hinted at in earlier films, his revival would have made more sense and not come off as a desperate plot ploy.

Then there are the other supporting characters who were treated as disposable plot beats. Take poor Rose Tico, first introduced as an annoying and self-righteous wannabe crusader in The Last Jedi, which led to toxic online backlash from misogynistic and racist trolls attacking the actress. In The Rise of Skywalker, her role was noticeably reduced to that of a glorified extra and any hints of a romance with Finn alluded to in the previous film were gone.

Aside from Rose, the most contentious character introduced in The Last Jedi was Admiral Holdo played by a badly miscast Laura Dern. This supposedly brilliant military leader did not exude any kind of gravitas as a leader, which infuriated many viewers and emboldened Internet trolls. But hey, at least she had a cool death scene where she used her ship to take out the ginormous uber star destroyer.

Then there was Hux, the First Order leader who instead of inspiring dread and fear like Grand Moff Tarkin became an ineffective joke in The Last Jedi. His character was so mangled that he was mercifully killed off in The Rise of Skywalker after he nonsensically was revealed to be a spy working against the First Order.

Contrasting Visions

The fault for the way they and other characters turned out has to be with the scripts, which reeked of being written on the fly. Another important reason for the disjointed feel of the sequel trilogy was the contrasting visions of the directors of the films, J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson.

abrams johnson

Although both men are talented directors who brought good ideas to Star Wars, their viewpoint clashed wildly. With The Force Awakens, Abrams was clearly doing an homage to the original films, especially Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.

A valid criticism of The Force Awakens was that it was too similar to A New Hope: both films opened on a desert planet where good guys and bad guys sought a droid that held vital information. The heroes run into an older mentor type who gets killed and the films end with a space battle to blow up a superweapon planet. Be that as it may, The Force Awakens was a fun film that served as a soft reboot and reintroduction to the world of Star Wars for a new generation. It also set up many plot threads that Abrams left for future directors to follow up.

The problem was that the next director, Johnson, obviously was not interested in doing that. Instead he had a mindset of doing a deconstruction of Star Wars. Luke Skywalker, set up as a long-lost would-be savior in The Force Awakens, turned out to be a bitter old man without any hope. His final moments disappointed fans who were itching for him to decimate the First Order.

rey the last jedi

Rey, who was to be the next generation of Jedi, had a mysterious past and was seeking to learn about her parents. Was she related to anyone in the Original Trilogy? Why was she so powerful with the Force? Johnson obviously did not care with the casual dismissive announcement that she came from a family of nobodies. Something that had to be retconned later.

Supreme Leader Snoke was introduced as a trilogy’s final threat was unexpectedly killed by Ren. Meanwhile, Ren was hinted at in the film of having a redemptive arc but instead turned his back on Rey and embraced the dark side of the Force.  Both films are clear evidence that there wasn’t a coherent vision with the trilogy.

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Dec 18 2017

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Is A Polarizing, Mixed Bag In The Star Wars Saga

This review for Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi is coming later than usual because I wanted to think about the film I saw on opening weekend before plunging ahead with words about its merits…and faults.

The first part of this review will be spoiler free and talk about the latest Star Wars film in general terms. The second half will discuss in more details my impressions, which will go into spoiler territory.

Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi continues the saga of the universal struggle between good and evil in a distant galaxy. It takes place shortly after the last film where fledgling Jedi, Rey (Daisy Ridley), finds the long-lost Jedi Master, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) on a distant planet called Ahch-To. She wants to be trained and enlist Skywalker’s help in the struggle against the First Order, the despotic government that rose from the ashes of the Galactic Empire.

Meanwhile the ragtag group she belongs to, the Resistance, is in dire straits and on the run from the First Order. Its leader, Snoke (Andy Serkis), and his apprentice Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), are determined to wipe out the pesky Resistance once and for all and destroy Skywalker, who is the film’s titular character. This largely sums up the plot of Star Wars: The Last Jedi without giving anything away.

The eighth film in the main Star Wars trilogies is a mixed bag. There are so many powerful moments and unpredictable developments. These will resonate not only with fans, but with the overall saga. Admittedly, this film borrows elements from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, but only superficially. Certain expected narrative beats never occur and the film left me guessing as to what would happen next. The unpredictable nature of the latest Star Wars film will leave viewers unsure about the fate of characters, which creates genuine tension. We genuinely wonder if certain characters will survive by the end of the film. The film also takes time to examine the Force, the mystical energy wielded by the Jedi and the bad guys. Unlike those stupid midichlorians, the Force in this film rightfully returns to its metaphysical roots as the film explores its nuances. For the eighth film in a franchise to be this unpredictable and out of the box is a testament to the skills of writer and director Rian Johnson.

Unfortunately, there are too many flaws in logic and gaping plot holes that cannot be waved away with a Jedi mind trick. As skilled as he is, Johnson failed to think through the plot. Too often, we keep asking “why did so and so do that? Why don’t they just do this and be done?” This is a problem Johnson displayed with his acclaimed (and overrated IMO) film Looper, where cool concepts were undone by flaws in narrative logic. Honestly, this makes me wonder about the quality of the new trilogy he will oversee.

Just as crippling is the film’s pace. It starts with a blast, but meanders in the middle and feels uneven, though the final 45 minutes are terrifically nail biting. Certain characters fly off on meaningless quests in scenes that could have used another pass in the editing room. Other characters are given well-rounded and satisfying arcs that allow them to grow and change. Others should have not appeared at all.

No matter where one stands with it, Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi is a very polarizing film. It is unlike previous Star Wars films, which will disappoint many fans. On the other hand, story and character wise, Star Wars: The Last Jedi strikes bold new directions that anyone would have to admit bring new and much-needed wrinkles to the Star Wars saga.

Alright, this is the final warning for anyone who has not seen Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi and does not want to be spoiled.

 

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Dec 18 2015

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Revives The Star Wars Saga

episode 7 poster

After a decade-long sabbatical the Star Wars saga returns to theaters with Star Wars: The Force Awakens or more accurately Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens. Fans will rejoice as if they are seeing an old friend who was away for too long. The film is a direct continuation of the original Star Wars films being that it takes place years after Return of the Jedi. While it is a sequel to the original trilogy and pays tribute to those classics, Star Wars: The Force Awakens marks a new path for new fans as it introduces new players to the universe that George Lucas created nearly forty years ago.

Alright, many of you reading this are asking the nagging question: How does it compare to the other films? More importantly, is it any good?

On the whole, yes, this is a fun film that is worthy of the Star Wars title. But there is something lacking in the film. Perhaps it needs George Lucas’ direct touch. His influence is felt in the film, but it doesn’t feel like a George Lucas Star Wars film. There isn’t any way it could top the first two Star Wars films, but it’s a better made film than Return of the Jedi. As to the prequels, it’s better than the first couple of prequels, but Episode III was a better made film. The reason probably has to be that it doesn’t gel quite as smoothly with the other films. Being that it lacks Lucas’ input it feels apart from the traditional Star Wars film, but it does try its best. Thanks for that is due to director J.J. Abrams.

As a major Star Wars fan, J.J. Abrams pays proper homage to the original films and sets the saga’s course in a new trajectory with eye-popping special effects, detailed sets and thrilling sequences. It should be mentioned that although the film uses practical effects, there are times in the second half that its usage of CG sets is quite obvious, which is distracting.

old han and chewy

What truly helps the film are the new characters and the actors playing them. They are intriguing, well acted, full of fire and it’s easy to see that the actors are thrilled to be playing in the Star Wars universe. Even actors who returned to their old roles shine in the film, particularly Harrison Ford as the iconic space pirate Han Solo. Unlike Return of the Jedi where he seemed bored, here Ford plays Han as if he’s glad to put on an old pair of comfortable shoes. Han still has spunk and verve and he is one of the greatest highlights.

rey and finnAs for the new characters, Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega) and Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) pop out and instantly become worthy Star Wars characters. Clearly, Abrams outdid Lucas when it came to casting when comparing this film to the prequels (Ewan McGregor aside). The only weak character was regrettably the villain Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). The actor does what he can with the role, but as a bad guy Kylo just can’t compare to Darth Vader or even many of the prequel villains. He lacks the gravitas, the poise, and even the power. Instead he’s too emotional, it’s as if young Anakin Skywalker has been outfitted with a Vader knockoff suit and told to let loose.

Kylo Ren

As mentioned earlier, it is difficult to pinpoint why this film, despite its merits, feels off. It probably has to do with its pacing and story. Characters come and go without explanation, sometimes they’re missed, sometimes not, which is a problem. There are times when Abrams is in too much of a hurry with the characters and just wants them to go from point A to point B without any nuance or proper buildup. Worst of all, the bare bones of the story strongly echo the very first Star Wars film. Some may call it an homage, but others will rightfully call it for what it is: lack of originality.

Spoilers: The film centers around the pursuit rey and bb8of a droid called BB-8. At the start of the film, Luke Skywalker has been missing for many years and the Republic and its Resistance force along with the First Order (the remnants of the old Empire) want to locate the last Jedi for opposing reasons. On the planet Jakku, BB-8 is given a map by his owner Poe, an ace X-wing pilot, before he’s captured by Kylo Ren. The map happens to details how to locate Luke. Rey, a lonely scavenger on Jakku, finds the droid and feels compelled to return BB-8 to its owner. The Resistance pilot is able to escape thanks to Finn, a stormtrooper who develops a heart and turns against the First Order. Finn is separated from Poe, but eventually meets Rey and the droid. With the droid a hot commodity, the three escape the planet on an old junk ship the Millennium Falcon with the aim of returning the droid to the Resistance. Pursuing them are Kylo Ren and the First Order, who have constructed a massive planet-killing weapon out of a planet. Along the way, the trio encounter ship’s previous owner, Han Solo and his first mate Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), and at this point Rey and Finn become more embroiled in the galactic conflict as they play pivotal roles in it.

xwing fight

There are many questions the film leaves unanswered by the time the lights come back. However, the fact that the film builds up enough interest about the makeup of this universe is a good sign. Hopefully, the next episodes will satisfactorily answer the questions.

Thankfully, as the first of a trilogy, Star Wars: The Force Awakens isn’t an embarrassment like Episode I even though stalwart fans of the original films will have their complaints. Nevertheless, it’s great that Star Wars is back and this film offers enough thrills and joy for old and new fans.

José Soto