Star Wars - The Last Jedi

We were in Italy when Star Wars The Last Jedi was released. So one of the first things that we did when we got back to Singapore was to watch the movie. My eldest son watched it with his schoolmates, and then watched it a second time with the rest of us. A good movie is definitely worth a second watching. I wouldn't say that I am a die-hard Star Wars fan - to give you a sense, if the LOTR trilogy is rated 10 Wows, then Star Wars would be 8 Wows for me. At the start of the movie, I had a moment of confusion where I had to remind myself that this wasn't one of the prequels but a sequel.

Like any successful movie franchise, the movie has the key elements. First, no matter how bad things are, good will always triumph over evil. For those who have yet to watch it, it is not even a spoiler to say that Resistance overcame the Dark side is it? Despite living in a rather cynical world, the feel good factor is essential in a box-office hit. What would be the point of watching a dozen of Star Wars movies if it eventually ends with Kylo Ren running the universe? Second, good people die in the process. They give up their own lives for a greater cause. In every episode of Star Wars you are waiting to see which hero doesn't come out alive. Yoda would have quipped "Trademark to this franchise it is". 

Thirdly, the English accent makes for a good villian, which is why Andy Serkis' Supreme Leader Snoke was way more sinister than Darth Sidious. He slices his apprentice and captor with his words before he telephatically strangles them. Finally it goes without saying - fantastic props and special effects laid over dramatic natural landscape such as Skellig Michael. Now, admittedly there are some exceptions to this fourth element - in Die Hard, Bruce Willis was stuck in a office building, an airport, and then in Manhattan (I stopped watching after #3). Okay, I am giving away too much about my taste in movies. 

The kids were talking about the movie throughout the dim sum lunch. I give it 9 Wows!