George Lucas may not be the man in charge of the Star Wars universe anymore but he's still the man responsible for creating the most popular film franchise ever. So what does he think of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. The godfather of the galaxy far, far away has seen the new film, and according to his representative, after the screening, he told director Rian Johnson it was "beautifully made."
It's a lovely sentiment, and one that we'd guess most people would agree with. Even critics who haven't fallen in love with Star Wars: The Last Jedi's story would likely agree that the film is technically sound and visually stunning. At the same time, one has to notice that calling The Last Jedi "beautifully made," according to The Hollywood Reporter, is a compliment that only goes so far, it specifically leaves out a lot of aspects of the film. It harkens back to what George Lucas said about Star Wars: The Force Awakens, saying it was a movie that the fans would love. He specifically did not say that he did.
It's been five years since Disney purchased Lucasfilm in one of the biggest deals in the history of the entertainment business. At that time, it was announced there would be a new trilogy and that George Lucas' original plan for that trilogy would be used as the basis of the films. At some point, Disney apparently decided they didn't actually like Lucas' idea and they ended up going their own way. When Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released, Lucas gave an extensive interview in which it became clear the relationship with Disney had gone a bit sour, he likened his relationship with Star Wars to that of a divorce.
It's clear that the new Star Wars trilogy films are not the movies George Lucas would have made, and as such, he doesn't view them the same way as the rest of us.We can't really blame him. Watching somebody else make movies with your characters has to be a difficult thing to watch. New characters are being inserted into his world and old characters may be evolving in ways very different from what Lucas would have done with them. He's the only one who really knows how his version of the new trilogy would have gone, so he's the only one who has to deal with that burden.
The rest of us get to enjoy Star Wars: The Last Jedi strictly for what it is, and if the reviews are any indication, we will. The vast majority of reviews are glowing. It certainly looks like Lucasfilm may have another massive hit on their hands. Star Wars: The Last Jedi arrives in theaters on Friday.
