I do have to say that this was very well shot.
As a preface to this part, I’m not going to comment about the ending of this movie from the perspective of Poe and the X-Wings. It is essentially an exact copy of A New Hope, except that they have to destroy the Starkiller before it drains the nearby sun instead of letting it orbit around Yavin. TIE Fighters engage, they do trench runs, and Poe wins. Yay?
A Father And A Son.
I know that Harrison Ford wanted Han to die and I liked it, but the motives needed work.
I liked the idea that Han actually took what Leia said to heart and tried to bring his son home. Unfortunately, this is soon overwhelmed by the silly plot point about how Kylo/Ben is COMPLETELY TORN between the Light and the Dark Sides of the Force. Now, I may just be an idiot trying to be a writer on the Internet, but let’s recap his actions in the movie to see where his alignment lies.
- He is implicated in the slaughter of the New Jedi Order.
- He ordered the massacre of a village.
- He tortured Poe and attempted to do the same thing to Rey.
- He was an active participant in the mass murder of millions upon millions of people.
- He flies into temper tantrums whenever something doesn’t quite go his way.
You could almost see the target on Han’s stomach.
Now, you may say the same thing about Anakin Skywalker, but this storyline is a little bit different. Anakin turned to the Dark Side out of love and a crippling need to prevent the loss of his loved ones, which became a self-fulfilling prophecy in the case of his wife. Putting aside the genocide of the Sand People and how stupid that was, one possible motivation for why Anakin turned back was because he was reminded of failing her through his son and the Emperor’s lies. He got played for a fool.
By contrast, we don’t know why Kylo fell, even though that is a critical piece of information. Did Han and Luke fail him? Did Snoke stick his claws in the boy and brainwash him? Why did he feel the need to worship his grandfather? Didn’t Luke tell him about what happened in the end on the Second Death Star? I mean, it’s not like Anakin Skywalker is still alive, right?
No! That’s not true! That’s impossible!
Kylo Ren And Rey – A Legacy Of Stupidity.
At least the fighting isn’t so obviously choreographed, but why wouldn’t that be a thing?
With Han as dead as a doornail, Chewie screams in rage and shoots Kylo in the stomach.
I’m gonna stop you right there, movie. How in the hell would he be able to get away with that?! Did you not just give Kylo the power to freeze a blaster bolt in mid-air? Anyway, moving on.
Chewie goes on a rampage and detonates the explosives that the crew have set around the oscillator. This allows Poe to fly in and destroy it while Rey and team make their escape. Unfortunately, Rey and Finn are cut off from the Falcon by Kylo and a duel ensues between Finn and the dark Jedi. I can accept that Finn is somewhat adept at using melee weapons, which results in getting a surprise hit in before Kylo beats the everloving hell out of him and slices his back open.
And then… Rey force pulls the lightsaber to herself and ignites it. Okay, she is a staff fighter and knows how to defend herself, but how could Rey possibly win against a man that is eleven years older than her and trained by the most powerful Force users alive to the point where he can freeze people?
Because plot, that’s how.
To make matters worse, Rey doesn’t merely hold him back. She beats him down and slashes him in the face. The only reason why she doesn’t kill him is that the collapsing planet forms a chasm between them, which is what allows them both to escape. It also will severely damage any fear or tension that we feel about him in the following two movies. If Rey beat him with no formal training and general idiocy, why can’t we expect that next time when he has more training from Voldemort?
So anyway, the heroes (minus Han) all escape on the Falcon. After dropping Finn off for medical care and saying their goodbyes, Rey and Chewie meet Luke… and he doesn’t say a single word.
Coming up: I conclude this series with some things that I would have done.
To Be Continued in Part 8.
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