"The Force Awakens" (with SPOILERS)

Princes William and Harry as stormtroopers. Maybe.
Princes play Star Wars stormtroopers

My initial reaction: Wow, John Boyega is short.

 

First review I've seen for Last Jedi:
'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' review - CNN

I'm hoping to catch it over Christmas.

 

Interesting. Will Leith gave it a GLOWING review on Paste Mag.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

 

Tickets for Saturday so I’m avoiding spoilers. But the general feeling is this is the best Star Wars flick since Empire.

High praise. And shows why Rian Johnson has been handed the keys to a new trilogy.

Very excited.

 

The review KJIM shared was the first negative one I've seen.

I've heard criticisms of one of the subplots, but overall, I've read good things about the movie as a whole. And with that, I should probably stop reading this thread until I see it Sunday afternoon.

 

I haven't read any of them, but CNN headline appears to be the only negative review I've seen. One headline suggested "Rian Johnson may have made the best Star Wars film yet."

 

Days before the highly-anticipated release of Star Wars: Episode 8 – The Last Jedi, an interesting new leak has emerged, seemingly revealing what happens in the film.
Right off the bat, fans are advised to take it with a pinch of salt, as the website is a bit of a hit-and-miss when it comes to its Star Wars leaks. If it is anything to go by, The Last Jedi will indeed be a departure from what Star Wars fans are used to.
The leakster basically outlined everything that happens in Star Wars: Episode 8, so there is quite a lot to unpack, but here are the most important bits.
The insider reveals that Supreme Leader Snoke is disappointed with Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and threatens him that his true identity — the fact that he is the son of Leia (Carrie Fisher) — will now be known to every First Order member as a punishment.
More importantly, the ancient Sith also orders him to make things right by dispatching his own mother, which he fails to carry out. In fact, it is implied in the Star Wars: Episode 8 leak that he reached out to Leia through the Force to give her a warning and the chance to get to safety, which she manages to do.
However, in Star Wars: Episode 8, Kylo Ren tricks Snoke into thinking that he killed Leia and told him that he will now go about the plan to get Rey (Daisy Ridley), which will be much easier than anticipated.
This is because over at Ahch-To, Luke (Mark Hamill) immediately tells Rey to go away. While at some point in Star Wars: Episode 8 – The Last Jedi, he ultimately decides to give it a try after he is impressed by her lightsaber skills, he ends up backing out.
In the Jedi master’s first attempt to train Rey in Star Wars: Episode 8, he tells her to meditate but ends up having a vision that enrages her enough she cracks the ground.
The next scene in The Last Jedi between the two shows Rey in the Force tree, and Luke telling her about the Journal of the Whills and the fundamentals of the Force. She once again asks him to help her, but he simply tells her that the Jedi must come to an end, as seen in the first Star Wars: Episode 8 teaser.
Adam Driver as Kylo Ren in 'Star Wars: Episode 8 - The Last Jedi' A still of Kylo Ren from ‘Star Wars: Episode 8.’ [Image by Disney/Lucasfilm]
Anger consumes Rey, and she ends up confronting Luke. At this point in Star Wars: Episode 8, Kylo Ren arrives on the planet and immediately goes after her. Luke easily takes out the Knights of Ren.
After saving the girl from being knocked onto the water, Kylo tells her that Snoke has the answers she seeks, convincing her to allow him to take him to the supreme leader.
When they get there, Snoke tortures her instead and sucks the Force out of her. He instructs Kylo Ren to deal the death blow, but he cannot bring himself to do it, which pushed Snoke to mock him and tell him that he is just a “pawn” to his plan.
Kylo Ren realizes that his father Han Solo (Harrison Ford), who he killed in Star Wars: Episode 7 – The Force Awakens, was right all along: his master is only using him and will discard him when he is done with him.
He fights back and ends up killing Snoke’s guards, but he cannot get through the Sith. Luke arrives but goes straight for his nephew. When he realizes who the true enemy is, he tells Kylo Ren to bring Rey to the Millennium Falcon to keep her safe while he holds off Snoke. What happens between them is not revealed in Star Wars: Episode 8.
The crew — Kylo Ren, Rey, R2-D2, and Chewbacca, who is fighting the urge to attack the killer of his best bud — flies off to planet Crait to join the Resistance in the battle.
During all of the chaos, Leia is badly injured while Vice Admiral Holdo (Laura Dern), an old friend of hers who is responsible for saving the Resistance from being completely annihilated by the First Order in the first act of Star Wars: Episode 8 – The Last Jedi, dies.
Speaking of death, the Star Wars: Episode 8 leak claims that Finn (John Boyega) ends up killing Captain Phasma (Gwendoline Christie) after the latter tries to kill Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) when their cover was blown during an undercover mission.
John Boyega and Gwendoline Christie in 'Star Wars: Episode 8 - The Last Jedi' Finn and Captain Phasma’s showdown in ‘Star Wars: Episode 8.’ [Image by Disney/Lucasfilm]
It was Finn and Rose who broke DJ (Benicio Del Toro) out of prison to get his help, but when things went south, DJ saves only himself by offering his help to the First Order.
Toward the end of Star Wars: Episode 8, Rey joins the Resistance in the final battle, but there seems to be something off about her. While she proceeds to assist Finn, Rose, and Poe (Oscar Isaac), Snoke arrives and reveals that her mother was killed by none other than Luke and calls the Jedi “hypocrites.”
This revelation is his final move to get Rey to work with him, as it is revealed that he has been trying to get inside her mind since she defeated Kylo Ren in Star Wars: Episode 7.
This is why Star Wars: Episode 8, based on the leak, ends with Snoke — proving himself as an expert manipulator and a master of telepathy — convinces Rey to allow him to help her unlock her true potential. Kylo Ren is left with the Resistance and brings his mother, still alive but in a coma, to a ship along with the others.
While all this sounds thrilling for some, it is to be noted that none of it has been confirmed yet. Fans who are interested to know more can get the complete details from Star Wars watcher and YouTuber Bastion of Kuul.
Star Wars: Episode 8 – The Last Jedi hits the cinemas December 15. ‘Star Wars: Episode 8’ Full Synopsis Leaked: Major Deaths, DJ’s Role, Rey’s Mom, Snoke’s Secret Plan, & More

 

That sounds better than the actual movie. Extremely little of it it in the movie. If anyone else is like me and wants to know what to expect going in, the plot's been rundown and confirmed by numerous people on reddit.

 

Rotten Tomatoes has 93 percent critic fresh but only 58 percent audience fresh. That's a pretty damn bad audience score. Wow.

 

It's surprising, because Star Wars fans are typically known for their calm, measured takes on things.

 

Audience score is 88 percent fresh for "The Force Awakens" and 94 percent for "Return of the Jedi." It is between 57 and 65 percent for the three prequels.

 

And a less flippant response - I was at a 10:40 showing last night, and people were pretty psyched to be there, before and after the showing. The usual somewhat annoying applause at the opening credits, certain moments, etc. On the way out, I heard some nitpicking about some elements. My suspicion would be that this movie will appeal more to casual fans and non-obsessives, because (light spoiler) they still don't really get into the nitty gritty of how certain things work.