This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
Maria Launder’s review published on Letterboxd:
This review may contain spoilers.
Thoroughly engaging, but deeply flawed.
For me, the best part of the film was the Rey/Ben arc. Every scene where they are together is compelling and beautifully shot (the hands touching, Snoke's chambers, the Falcon's door closing, etc.). I'm always on pins and needles watching them, never sure whether they are destined to be enemies or allies or...lovers? (Anyone?). Kylo Ren is such an interesting character. His unpredictability makes for some great twists and turns, while his warring emotions adds intrigue and feeling. Like Rey, I see the good in him and I ultimately want to see him redeemed.
Mark Hamill's performance as the embittered, jaded Luke Skywalker is also a highlight. His criticisms of the Hubristic Jedi were refreshingly self-aware. Combined with Poe Dameron's failures and Kylo Ren's rejection of both the Jedi and the Sith, the film offers up a cutting commentary on the nature of good and evil, and perhaps the futility of classifying people in such stark terms. Our heroes have been de-caped, our villains de-masked, and our expectations thoroughly upended.
The realization that the Canto Bight weapons manufacturers are supplying both the Rebels and the First order ties in beautifully with these themes, implicitly criticizing both for the sad state of things. In war, there are no winners, as they say. "It's all a machine, partner. Live free, don't join."
I can't say much else good came from the Canto Bight sequence. It feels like a lazy attempt to illustrate to us the First Order's evilness, which was already established in the Force Awakens by their merciless disregard for civilian life. My main complaint, really, is that it's a hammy little romp that can't possibly be the best way to support the narrative. It doesn't help that Rose and Finn's relationship isn't nearly as well-developed or entertaining as Rey and Finn's friendship was in the first movie, so it ultimately feels like filler.
Unfortunately, I don't think the film fully explores the themes I mentioned. It asks the questions, but never offers the answers. Phasma and Hux and Snoke are all one-dimensional baddies, and that scene where we see Phasma's face feels like a missed opportunity to humanize her in Finn's eyes. Then at the end, it seems that we are going to jump right back into the war, redrawing those blurred lines without ever discovering an alternative path to peace. But only Episode IX will tell.
Now, structurally and tonally, the Last Jedi is a mess. There's way too many B stories going on - Rose&Finn/Poe&Holdo/Rey&Luke/Rey&Ben/ Snoke&Ben. And then there was the surreal (read: weird) Leia-floats-through-space scene that felt cheesy and out-of-place, and the equally odd, cerebral Rey-in-the-mirror scene.
So yeah, the Canto Bight storyline is shoddy and there are some structural and tonal hiccups, but I'm invested in the characters and the outcome of the story, and that's good film-making. The characters and themes are engaging, the cinematography is as beautiful as one would hope to expect from such a high budget, the action is exciting, and the humor solid.