Movie theaters were open for like five minutes this year and it doesn’t look like their reopening anytime soon. Most all big movie releases this year were either delayed or went directly to streaming so it’s been a crap year for new movies. There were a handful that snuck out before the pandemic hit, but all the blockbusters haven’t seen the light of day yet. In fact, this past Christmas day, Wonder Woman 1984 was released on HBO Max, for no additional cost. This is the first giant movie to do this and Warner Media is continuing this strategy into 2021. All in all, 2020 was a crap year for movies, hopefully next year is better.
Now that Disney owns the Star Wars franchise we will be treated to a new movie every year for the foreseeable future. In 2015, a new trilogy taking place after the original trilogy, started with The Force Awakens. With so many Star Wars fans having a salty taste in their mouth after the prequel trilogy from the early 00s, everyone was eager for a fresh start. Episode XIII brings us The Last Jedi.
Luke, Rey, and Kylo
The Last Jedi picks up right where we left off in The Force Awakens with Rey and Luke on some random island planet. That’s about all The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi have in common. A new director brings new storytelling and style to the same characters. Rian Johnson lends his talents from directing Looper to Star Wars. The changes he makes are for the better, and hopefully this trend continues. The next episode will be directed by J.J. Abrams again who brought Episode VII to life. We will see how he brings everything together.
Due to the high profile-ness of this movie, I’m not going to go on and on and on about it. If you want to read more, just Google the movie and you can spend the rest of your life reading about rumors, spoilers, theories, and opinions.
However, I will give you my opinion about The Last Jedi, in short.
The Last Jedi was much better than The Force Awakens because we didn’t have to deal with backstories or introduction of characters. This is one of the few times a sequel excels and gets right to the action. We already know and love Rey, Finn, and Poe, so now we get to see them do what they do best, fighting the New Order.
Episode XIII is a great continuation of the story set by The Force Awakens. There are a few points where it could have been better, but that’s not worth mentioning. I’m definitely looking forward to the finale in Episode IX coming in 2019.
Who should see this movie? Star Wars, sci-fi, and Rian Johnson fans.
Who shouldn’t see this movie? Haters of Star Wars and people who aren’t into fake futuristic space tales.
Score
8.5 / 10 – The latest episode of the Star Wars proves that similar stories can be retold in new and better ways.
First, I’d like to preface this review by stating that I have not kept up with all the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). I’ve seen a few, but I’m by no means qualified to discuss how Thor: Ragnarok ties into the other films.
Thor loses his mane of hair
Now if you’re like me, this movie is a fun trip through the unknown. Characters come into the light that may have been in previous films as well as other lesser-known characters only the hardcore fans will appreciate. Die-hard MCU fans may see Thor: Ragnarok as breaking away from the winning formula. It’s light-hearted and possibly inaccurate script make it easy to criticize.
The music, story, and overall feel gave me an 80s/90s vibe which turns out to be a good thing in Thor: Ragnarok. Furthermore there’s not a single slow period or mind-numbing action overload like in many MCU movies of late. Great pace, interesting characters, and villain animosity keep you involved start to finish. Thor: Ragnarok got me interested it Super Hero movies again.
Not sure if this will be the end of the Thor films, but Ragnarok in Norse Mythology roughly means the final battle of the gods.
Who should see this movie? Fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, fans of the Marvel character Thor, viewers who enjoyed Guardians of the Galaxy.
Who shouldn’t see this movie? Fans of Norse mythology looking for a true to myth Thor movie, people who hate fantasy/magic/unbeliveable movies, and viewers who dislike somewhat cheesy comedy in action films.
Score
7.5 / 10 – Much better than I expected. I hope Marvel continues this trend.
