While Star Wars: The Last Jedi proved to be a critical darling, it’s fair to say that the film has been dividing audiences and fans. Some are calling it one of the finest Star Wars movies to date, while others are slamming the film and director Rian Johnson’s story choices (there’s even been a few “Disney and Rian Johnson raped my childhood” allegations thrown around on social media).
Well, in an interview with Business Insider, Johnson was asked how he felt about the reaction to the film, responding that:
“Having been a Star Wars fan my whole life, and having spent most of my life on the other side of the curb and in that fandom, it softens the blow a little bit.
“I’m aware through my own experience that, first of all, the fans are so passionate, they care so deeply — sometimes they care very violently at me on Twitter. But it’s because they care about these things, and it hurts when you’re expecting something specific and you don’t get it from something that you love. It always hurts, so I don’t take it personally if a fan reacts negatively and lashes out onme on Twitter. That’s fine. It’s my job to be there for that. Like you said, every fan has a list of stuff they want a Star Wars movie to be and they don’t want a Star Wars movie to be. You’re going to find very few fans out there whose lists line up.
“I also know the same way the original movies were personal for Lucas. Lucas never made a Star Wars movie by sitting down and thinking, ‘What do the fans want to see?’ And I knew if I wrote wondering what the fans would want, as tempting as that is, it wouldn’t work, because people would still be shouting at me, ‘Fuck you, you ruined Star Wars,’ and I would make a bad movie. And ultimately, that’s the one thing nobody wants.
“And let me just add that 80-90% of the reaction I’ve gotten from Twitter has been really lovely. There’s been a lot of joy and love from fans. When I talk about the negative stuff, that’s not the full picture of the fans at all.”
SEE ALSO: Star Wars: The Last Jedi deleted scenes detailed by Rian Johnson
Johnson does make a very valid point that it would be impossible to satisfy every Star Wars fan with a movie, but nevertheless it seems at this point that The Last Jedi is going to go down as the most divisive movie in the Star Wars saga to date.
In Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the Skywalker saga continues as the heroes of The Force Awakens join the galactic legends in an epic adventure that unlocks age-old mysteries of the Force and shocking revelations of the past.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi sees returning cast members Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Carrie Fisher (Leia Organa), Adam Driver (Kylo Ren), Daisy Ridley (Rey), John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron), Lupita Nyong’o (Maz Kanata), Domhnall Gleeson (General Hux), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Gwendoline Christie (Captain Phasma), Billie Lourd (Lieutenant Connix), Andy Serkis (Supreme Leader Snoke), Peter Mayhew and Joonas Suotamo (Chewbacca), Tim Rose (Admiral Ackbar), Mike Quinn (Nien Nunb) and Warwick Davis joined by new additions Jimmy Vee (Pan) as R2-D2, Kelly Marie Tran (Ladies Like Us) as Rose, Benicio Del Toro (Guardians of the Galaxy) as DJ and Laura Dern (Jurassic Park) as Vice Admiral Holdo.
Gameoverbaby says
I suggest if Rian hadn’t done what he did to Luke then the fan reaction may not be quite as bad.
heylook says
Luke AND Leia! And Chewie was a throwaway. The story didn’t pick up on plot points from the previous film, there’s still really no reason for Finn to exist. The “action” was a bore, w/a few bright spots, and virtually nothing meant anything. Empire Strikes Back is almost an entire movie of exposition, and yet it still works. This was almost an entire movie of what happens in between plot and character and exposition — filler. Like the first 3/4 of Episode 1 and the entirety of Ep. 2.
Tom says
“Yes, 90% of feedback has been positive, that’s why I felt compelled to make a statement about people not liking it. “
DavidK says
Funny… when I talk to family and friends who have seen the movie their reaction is overwhelmingly negative. Not surprised at the negative user reviews at all…
IMO far more accurate the the bought and paid for critic reviews !!!
Tom says
Exactly my point mate.
He (and quite a few in the ‘nerd’ media) are making out the negatives are just crying fanboys. Even this article references people saying ‘..raped my childhood’ (a common trope for overreacting).
However the reality is a lot of people just didn’t like the movie. Check out RedLetterMedias review for some unbiased professional feedback from people who don’t have a horse in this race.
Gary@FlickeringMyth says
I wasn’t implying that the criticism is an overreaction with the “raped my childhood” comment, but more that some people just really, really hate it on the same kind of level as the Prequels.
I wasn’t much of a fan of the movie myself. Definitely disappointed by it, and very disappointed by some of the story choices.
Tom says
Right, maybe that came across harsher than I meant it. I didn’t mean it was a deliberate undermining more that it seems to be the default position to think that if one didn’t love it then you absolutely despised it. It’s the Internet, everything is absolutes.
As I said, many (including yourself) just didn’t like a movie. It’s that simple. There’s no ‘side’.
Mister Who says
My brother and his family ask me what my thoughts on The Last Jedi are, and i said something like, it was ok, but i didn’t like how they ruined Luke Skywalker and i thought Princess Leia died but instead it was “SPOILER” Luke Skywalker who did
Harris Frankou says
It’s garbage total modern sjw pandering garbage with a weak story and zero respect for cannon
Kyle Hoschar says
i enjoyed the last one but was a bit disappointed that it was mostly the same story as the original film repackaged
my only requirement,hope, or expectation of this new film was that it not be beat for beat the same as Empire…..other than that i had no expectations or requirements going in.
This movie is great for what is doesnt do…..it never does what you expect…for the entirety of the movie it is subverting expectations….at every turn it builds you up towards an event and an expectation only to go the other way at the last moment….and i love that about it.
the only way they were going to build something new is to deconstruct what was already there….and thats largely what this movie is doing….deconstructing the narrative of the original trilogy to build its own.
I understand for rabid fans of the original trilogy its probably a little uncomfortable to have your expectations unfulfilled and everything you hold so dear about the originals deconstructed
but lets not sacrifice a good story for the sake of whats comfortable.
if you are a casual Star wars fan you will love this movie
if you are a hardcore Star Wars fan you are probably a dick head,
MikeDK says
Couldn’t agree more.
I am a 44 year old die hard fan (I’ve got two pairs of the Star Wars edition Vans, I’ve got framed ‘A New Hope’ Ralph McQuarrie production drawings on the wall in the hallway). Watched the OT 100 times, despise everything about the prequels, and thought FA and RO was fine. The nostalgia element gave me a rush, but I am not seeing them again.
The Last Jedi, I will watch again. Probably a couple of times. It was the best Star Wars film sine ROTJ.
I wanted so badly to see Luke kick some ass, and I will forever see this movie as a missed opportunity in that regard. But, you know what? I liked what I got anyway. I thought it was a great film. Beautiful, emotional, suprising. And it got rid of Snoke, a character I couldn’t care less about. The whole concept of this ‘poor man’s Palpatine’ always seemed utterly redundant to me. Another bad choice by Abrams.
No, The Last Jedi wasn’t what I wanted, but it surprised me. And how often do movies do that in this day and age?
Ando Anima says
I think you’re oversimplifying it regarding the “surprises”. It’s true that movies don’t often surprise, but the thing about Last Jedi is that they just remade old scenes from previous Star Wars movies and then gave them a new twist. That is basically fan fiction. That’s not a surprise, that’s lazy writing. And the story was not emotional. None of the relationships in the story grew or changed. Luke and Rey never got closer or further apart. Same with Ray and Finn. It was 99% plot and 1% character arc.
Leisher . says
It’s a beautifully shot film. The problem is that it’s a terribly written film.
For all the defenders who are trying to say it’s good, the one thing you’re not doing is taking the full “Skywalker saga” into account. This film completely negates all 7 prior films, and sets up the 9th to contain only Chewbacca from films 1-6.
This didn’t just “move forward” from the past films, it took a steaming dump on them.
The Skywalker saga is going to finish with no Skywalkers…
You cannot justify this type of writing. It’s lazy and terrible. It’s also very bad for business. None of my three kids want to go see it again. I certainly have lost interest in taking them to the Star Wars experience in Orlando since Disney through Rian Johnson have told me that everything I grew up with doesn’t matter.
That’s really the biggest sin. Rian Johnson has told every fan of the original trilogy and the prequels that what they grew up loving, and what linked them to Star Wars is completely meaningless.
Ban, Fox's sin of Greed says
Finishing without Skywalkers is not what makes this so terribly written. That is just an occurrence that will annoy rather than like some of the objectively terrible writing flaws here.