[Hammock Parties]

http://fandom.wikia.com/articles/las...urce=star_wars

The Last Jedi takes full advantage of its sequel status and delivers a follow-up to The Force Awakens that expands upon that film’s characters and stories in exciting and frankly shocking ways.

Writer/director Rian Johnson deserves immense praise for taking big, bold moves with the narrative that feel subversive without being disingenuous to the story that’s come before. It’s a masterful balancing act in giving the audience what they want — a rousing adventure with compelling and fun characters — while simultaneously giving the audience what they need: a story that doesn’t adhere to predictability in order to please the widest possible audience.

But even then, Johnson delivers the crowd-pleasing action, endearing humor, and epic scope fans want out of Star Wars. Freed from the more reverent and fetishistic tendencies of J.J. Abrams, Johnson’s filmmaking style feels more like a natural evolution of the original trilogy than The Force Awakens. He still nails the grandiose moments like Abrams does, but he reserves being showy for moments that count.

And boy, are there moments that count in The Last Jedi. There are striking story beats that, while they do echo The Empire Strikes Back and even Return of the Jedi, manage to twist those familiar bits into twists that had me reeling backward into my seat.

The Last Jedi goes places that feel like the end of a saga rather than a middle entry. That actually helps make everything feel momentous and impacting. Instead of pulling punches for later entries, Johnson’s script holds nothing back and it pays off in enormous ways.