A/V Episode VIII - THE LAST JEDI - Official Movie Discussion Thread

They didn't fire him; the reshoots pushed back the schedule and Desplat was already contracted for another film, so he had to pull out.

Giacchino's also an Oscar-winner, by the way.

 

To be fair, Rogue One's score is the only one that grew on me. Loved Imperial Suite and Krennic's theme, along with the references to the Episode IV score. Ironically Williams' TFA and TLJ scores are the ones that were completely forgettable.

 

I can sort of understand that TLJ may be less rewatchable than TFA. TFA hit the Star Wars joybuzzer button a lot and TLJ - while the joybuzzer is hit and often- does a lot of left turns, almost every time. And in TLJ Our Heroes are making objectively bad decisions throughout (that on first watch, you have no problem with thinking it's Standard Independent Action Hero stuff). ESB is more of a run of really bad luck (but I still sez Luke done goofed going to Bespin) but nobody is making the wrong choice, unlike which happens in TLJ. Which is a theme of TLJ, legitimately built into it, so it's not just dopey screenwriting. People done goofed, from Legend Luke Skywalker on down.

But, after all the mess, Luke Skywalker saves the Gat-Damn day with some jaw dropping Force powers and it's freakin gold. Like if you shut the movie off when Kylo says "No quarter, no prisoners" yeah, that's a bummer of a movie. But then we got, y'know, this



And it's amazing. Good guys win, yay!

 

TFA is great to rewatch up until the conclusion of the Maz's castle sequence. Until then, it's a lot of fun for me, as jaded as I am. But after Maz's, the entire thing just starts to drag. I don't know what it is, but all the energy that I love in the first half just fades away.

 

I get that feeling from the minute Han's freighter pulls the Falcon in. Until then it's built up a nice pace, and its two heroes have a whole galaxy of possibilities... and all the decisions the film makes from then until, I guess, the arrival of the Resistance feel like the blandest possible choices.

 

No.

 

So, anyone else see the deleted scene from this movie on the Star Wars show?

Personally, I thought that was a much better ending for Phasma than the film version.

 

Haven't seen the clip yet but going to check it out eventually

there are some officially released clips out now, it's like there's a blu-ray release coming or something. I guess with the home video release they can lean more heavily into spoiler clips like this, which was great they kept it out of the marketing for the theatrical release but definitely be plastered all over the home release



That two handed move Rey does which leads to the saber toss to Ben is seriously one of the coolest bits of saber business in the entire Star Wars series. also that one shot when Kylo is just working over that Praetorian Guard in the lower edge of the frame like his lightsaber is caught or something, gah!! What the heck is happening there? Dude certainly didn't get up after that one.

 

I never noticed that the guard blocks the lightsaber with his guantlets - looks like what happens is the dude blocks the lightsaber so Kylo stabs him in the back with the lance, and then he's just...really getting in there with the lance, and he stabs in the front again?

 

hahah probably, the fact that it's sort of down out of frame adds a bit of ick factor. Basically, Kylo is murdering the bejesus outta him.

 

Anyone see the Phasma-Finn deleted scene? It makes their whole interaction waaay better. More dramatic and sensible. And better aligned with who we learn Phasma is in the novel.

Sent from my Moto X-Wing

 

Yeah, saw it today, and why was that not in the movie?! Oh wait, that's because it was a stupid movie, and they probably didn't want to let Finn do something cool. That was so much cooler than the actual movie scene. I barely remember the actual movie version- Rose distracted Phasma for a second and then Finn knocked her off the ledge? Something like that?

Not to mention referencing Phasma's novel characterization, and giving the actress something to do (you can see the way her eye darts around nervously.

I've also heard that they're keeping Snoke's backstory mysterious "in case" they do a "prequel or whatever"? Not sure if I'd be interested in a prequel or if they're just being lazy (like the story of how Maz got the old Skywalker lightsaber), probably lazy.

 

Uh, okay?

 

That scene was filmed for the movie. Why on earth do you think they'd get to the editing room and go "oops, better cut this out, can't have Finn doing something cool!"

Andy Serkis off-handedly mentioned they could explore Snoke's backstory in prequels because it hasn't been brought up in the films; not that it was always the plan to make prequels and they were holding off for that reason.

 

Because they went with the movie version instead of this? Oh well, the DVD will probably explain why it was deleted, and not like this scene would have improved the movie that much, but this scene just felt more... detailed, with Finn taunting Phasma about her lowering Starkiller's shields and then her turning on her own troops to cover it up. And in a way it feels like a funny inversion of the end of the FN-2199 fight, with Finn doing the shooting.

I just wish Finn hadn't been relegated to comic relief so much, and this version just looks so much better than the actual scene.

Mostly I just wish there was more planning and deeper backstory, but guess that's expecting too much from Star Wars (sequel or original).

 

Probably because the acting and dialogue in that scene wasn't quite up to snuff, and the snap-cut to her blaster didn't quite work.

I love the scene in concept. The execution, however, made me quite content it wasn't in the final film. Besides, now JJ can bring her back if he wants to, so she can have her reckoning with the rest of the First Order.

 

The alternate Phasma scene acknowledges TFA was a thing that happened, which is probably why Rian took it out.

 

I think the deleted scene is pretty bad and I’m glad it was cut. The acting wasn’t good. They stop for a chat in the middle of all this destruction and chaos? There’s absolutely no way the stormtroopers would question Phasma over the words of a known traitor. Phasma shooting the troopers looked silly. And Phasma getting blasted a hundred feet into the air was ridiculous.

Good riddance, I say. The film version was better.

 

The theatrical version acknowledges that TFA was a thing just as much as the cut version does.

 

Pacing. It was cut because they didn't want to slow down the action.

 

Yeah. And that whole sequence, from the throne room through to the Supremacy getting Holdo'd is pretty rough, pacing-wise. Look at how long the movie forces Holdo to sit there in shock at the transports being destroyed, in order to run through the entire Snoke confrontation, death, Praetorian fight, and Rey/Kylo confrontation. We only cut back to her after all of that and she's still just sitting there dumbfounded. Adding extra Phasma stuff just overstuffs it even further.

 

I've been wondering, why doesn't Kylo use the Force against the guards in that fight? Couldn't he freeze a few of them with a gesture like he did in TFA?

 

Bringing Phasma back from the dead was a terrible mistake in the first place.

 

Once Holdo makes her sacrifice I think pacing becomes less of an issue, and I think this version of the scene is really good and actually gives her a bit more character. I wish they'd preserved it.

Honestly I hope she's back for IX

 

Yah I thought the deleted / alternate scene had some great Phasma character stuff (the darting eyes, taking out the other troopers) but I agree it's a pacing thing, mostly the pace of the action scene itself. Also everything is going all explodey as all get out and they have a bit of chat? When Holdo blows everything up, it keeps going until they all escape, that would have slowed it down when we've already hit the climax of the sequence, the Holdo's Leap.

So the reshoot just cuts it down to it's essentials "you always were scum" "Rebel scum" and I actually like the line deliveries in the theatrical cut even better, more cool delivery of Finn in pure action hero mode. "Hey!" *THWACK!!* Hero angle shots and everything.

There's great stuff in that alternate take (I quite like Phasma getting her hand cut off and getting blown back about 100 feet into the air) but, like the man says, Faster! More intense!

Possible, but we've only seen Kylo used Force freeze against single opponents (and a blaster bolt!) in a controlled environment where he had the upper hand. There's quite a few of them there attacking all at once. Who knows how much concentration that Kylo needs to pull that off.