The Last Jedi. Will the noise around it ever die down in Star Wars fandom? It’s certainly a lightning rod for fan discussion and debate. It was beloved by many critics, with such luminaries as Mark Kermode naming it his movie of the week.
It still holds an 84 rating from the professionals on Metacritic, and 91% on Rotten Tomatoes.
I revisited it recently, hoping to find some hidden depths I had previously missed. With the “your momma” opening gag, comically useless bombers, lack of coherent character growth, and complete failure to deal with most of the events of The Force Awakens in any meaningful way, I was completely out by the time a beloved character gives himself a stroke with the Force.
So I was unable to find whatever it is that the critics seemingly loved. It remains the highest-grossing movie of 2017 with a $1.33 billion haul, so it’s got that going for it.
The director has been something of a target for fan frustration, and while out promoting the third Knives Out film at the Newport Beach Film Festival, Johnson was asked if the reactions have pushed him away from Star Wars. As reported by SW Culture Live via Twitter/X:
“No, not at all. In fact, it’s the reason that I wanted to. My overall experience with putting the movie out, and what you’re talking about with fan feedback. I mean, first of all, I’m a lifelong Star Wars fan. So I know the deal. I know that Star Wars fans are passionate about this stuff. We love the stuff we love, we hate the stuff we hate, and we fight about it. And that’s been happening since the original trilogy.
The reality is Star Wars has always been something that has meant different things to different people, and I think that’s part of the fun and the passion of it as fans, is arguing about it respectfully. Its been the most positive experience I’ve ever had with anything I’ve made, in terms of interacting with people who’ve seen it. I came out at the other end of it loving Star Wars fandom more than I did even going into it.”
His own Star Wars trilogy remains as elusive as ever.
