Star Wars: The Last Jedi (Rian Johnson, December 15, 2017) Movie • Page 354

Gave this another viewing last night (my 7th according to Letterboxd). Yeah, this gets better every time. A (nearly) perfect Star Wars movie.

 

do I even want to click on that

 

I say this as a huge fan of RLM, but the criticism in the Plinkett reviews has been getting lazier, at least when it comes to Star Wars. Granted I’ve only watched about 10 minutes of Plinkett’s TLJ review so far so maybe he brings up valid points later. So far it’s just been “blah blah Rian Johnson thinks he’s so clever blah blah.” Makes me sad because the Plinkett prequel reviews were vital in my film education

 

Loved the Plinkett review. He brings up some actual points, isn't just railing on the film and tries to seriously critique it through the tone of the character like all the other movies. I also really like TLJ, definitely more than Mike does.

Still, that's a great video.

 

A quarter of the way through that video, I realized the criticisms were all too stupid, and I respect myself too much, to keep watching.

Sometimes RLM does good stuff. But, that felt almost "Everything Wrong With..."-level trash criticism.

 

I got about to the same spot, but stopped due to not being able to watch video at that point. I’ll watch the rest later.

The one criticism I kinda agreed with at that point was pointing out that it was stupid of the First Order to use the dreadnaught to destroy the base when it had only 2 targets. One, the fleet that potentially has all the resistance in it and their means of escape , and two, the base that could be totally empty or full, but is stuck if you destroy the fleet.

 

I don't know about that... This has drawn out criticisms of particular things. I feel like most of the arguments are strong and well supported. Everything Wrong would be like, "You're running for your life, why would you take the time to put on a shoe?" There is a lot more of a base to everything they are saying than just nitpicking. I feel like the back half of the video is strong.

 

All Plinekett reviews always mix really well in depth criticisms with cheesy jokes and randomness.

 

I prefer RLM when they do “Re:View” and “Wheel of the Worst.” Their constant harping on “Star Wars” is exhausting now.

 

I love the Re:Views. I've never noticed a lot of the nuance in most of the films they talk about. It makes me really appreciate the films a lot more.

 

Finished the whole video and it didn't get much better. A couple valid logical points were brought up regarding logic but I'm able to dismiss them pretty easily because the movie works so well on an emotional level for me. But mostly it just felt like it was bagging on Rian Johnson and talking about how it wasn't trying to be Empire while comparing it to Empire.

Still love RLM though, seeing Mike, Jay, and Rich in a room just riffing with each other is one of my favorite things ever.

 

My favorite Re:veiw has got to be Freddy Got Fingered. Made me view it in a different light lol

 

I usually enjoy the Plinkett reviews and I thought a lot of the TFA one was valid (except for a couple of points), but I think this one misses the mark. A lot of these criticisms feel like a stretch just to find something new to say or don't feel very well thought out.

I could go through a whole list, but the main one I want to highlight is this idea that Rey should have joined Kylo at the end. I keep hearing that this would somehow make sense and also make a more interesting story going forward.

First, it actually wouldn't make any sense given what we've seen from Rey's character. She's deadset on saving the Resistance. Being disappointed by Luke doesn't stop that motivation, she goes to Kylo because she thinks he'll turn and help the resistance and then that feeling is momentarily re-enforced, immediately after the fight scene she goes back to wanting to save them. So just because Kylo tells her she's nothing she's supposed to suddenly be like, "yea, I'll abandon this goal I've been trying so hard to accomplish"? No. I get that she is searching for belonging in this film, but that would make no sense.

Second, I really don't see the more interesting story that is supposed to arise from them teaming up (this review also tries to say that Kylo also wanted to abandon the FO in his speech to Rey, he doesn't though. He mentions Snoke, the rebels, the jedi, the sith, but not the FO. Also the two of them off by themselves with no Resistance or FO would be so damn boring. You can accomplish the "grey jedi" idea in more interesting ways). I can see a few possibilities of how it would play out, but I don't them differing too much from where episode XI is likely to go.

 

Emotionally this film was all over the place and it’s ultimately why I didn’t enjoy it very much. The comparison with then end of Empire really brought that to light in my opinion.

 

Also, the criticism of the throne room fight scene choreography comes off pretty bias and nitpicky. Good luck finding an action movie fight scene where the main characters are outnumbered and the antagonists aren't coming at them in turns.

And the whole, "why are these guards fighting them after the Supreme Leader is dead? Wouldn't they just go home?" argument is insanely stupid. That's like saying if the vice president killed the president (this example works better when the presidential situation isn't, well this shit storm) in front of the secret service, that the secret service would be like, "oh damn, well I guess we're out of a job now. Time to go home!"

 

90% of nitpicks in general annoy the shit out of me.

I know I'm guilty of doing it myself sometimes, but for the most part, it's just people trying to find something to complain about.

 

I kind of agree with that comparison, but at the same time the whole point at the end with Luke was that things were bad, but their hope had been reignited. The characters shouldn't look completely defeated if there is still hope alive in them.

 

I’m fine with them ending on a glimmer of hope, I just don’t think it was done effectively.

 

I watched one of RLM’s videos and realized... nope not for me

 

I was thinking about this video when I was watching the RLM video as well. Particularly the whole, "why didn't the FO blow up the Resistance ship instead of the base?" argument.

 

I really hate how some people critique films based on the logic of characters' decisions, tbh. People aren't that fundamentally logical. Nothing about the opening sequence felt outside of actual decisions I could see made in a war setting.

Maybe it gets better, but the quality of that first stretch didn't make me eager to watch another 40min of that, lol.

 

Regardless of if you disagree with what Mike/the guys think about Star Wars, you owe it to yourself to check out Best of the Worst. Probably one of the best internet shows ever created

 

I generally enjoy RLM, but Patrick Willems is objectively better and more nuanced at talking about movies.

 

My biggest complaint about the movie, which I love, is Rey’s “WOOO I LIKE THIS!”. 10 minutes ago she’s sobbing, a broken person. It just doesn’t work.