Monday, December 18, 2017

FTM 420 - STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI

On this very special bonus episode, Patrick is joined by Adam Riske, Heather Wixson and Robyn Buckley to have a spoiler-filled about the latest installment in the Star Wars franchise.



Download this episode here. (40.3 MB)

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58 comments:

  1. The podcast is not in my app yet, on my iphone. I guess i’ll listen to it on my way back from work


    *** mild spoiler ahead ***



    I’ll say this, the only part i didn’t like is the very last shot with the kid. It felt more like a ‘make a wish foundation’ ad that should be at the beginning with all the other ads and trailers

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    1. I listened to a bit of the podcast and got to the part where you talk about the kid.

      The message i got from it is this: this is a Disney movie aimed at kids.

      I get what others are saying, and they’re probably right, the future, the force is everywhere, etc... But at the time, this is what i got from it

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    2. No matter how it is interpreted, it still makes no sense because Luke had created a whole school with new students, after ROTJ. Why would there be any reason to think that they're won't be more born after the collapse of that class?

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  2. ***SPOILERS***

    I loved the kid at the end for all the reasons Patrick listed. I would recommend everyone see this movie twice (I’m sure everyone will but still) - the second time I saw it, all my quibbles just vanished because everything works in the context of the story and the themes. This might be my favourite Star Wars movie after the first one, and is definitely my favourite movie of the year.

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  3. So I guess I'll have to see it again, because I didn't really like it too much. But all your positive energy is giving me a boost, so I'll have to give it another shot. *spoilers* here, but I thought the tone was a bit messy; we'd have a scene with Poe desperately trying to keep the rebellion alive, then cut to Chewie getting annoyed with Porgs. I also thought the structure didn't work. Everything in Snoke's throne room and with Finn on the ship felt like an ending. But it wasn't. All our heroes pretty much take a back seat at the end. I also didn't care for just about anything on the casino planet. I know Johnson was looking for an additional location to spice things up, but I found most of it non-compelling.

    Not to be a Debbie Downer tho,so here's what I liked. EVERYTHING with Ren and Rey. All of it. Ten is an especially interesting villain. I'm also glad that Johnson dispensed with all the terrible mystery boxes from TFA. Rey's parents don't have to be someone, so I'm glad they're no one. And Snoke isn't interesting, so go ahead and bisect him. Basically all that extra fat from TFA got chopped off and tossed in the garbage. Excellent.

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  4. Loved the conversation guys. The only real point I'd care to make is that I thought Daisy Ridley's performance was amazing. I'll agree that she seems muted early on as the whole film kinda does, but when it kicks in, so does she. I love Brody's Kylo Ren, but I feel the acting sometimes. With Rey, she just seems to exist. The ambiguity that this movie brings to The Force seems like it was hard to deal with for Ridley and Hamill and I think she actually pulls it off a little better.
    Also: the use of silence during Dern's heroic act was so intense and crazy effective. One of many pretty bold choices that I really liked. Thanks for the podcast all.

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    1. About the Laura Dern sacrifice. 2 things. First, it’s great and i want to punch the guy who kept exclaiming WOW for the whole 10 seconds of silence of that scene. So annoying.

      Second, i kinda wish Leia would do the sacrifice. Much more powerful i think. Not that Laura Dern wasn’t good, but i almost didn’t for her sacrifice since i didn’t know much of her character. With Leia, you have all her background, she spent her life fighing evil, so the sacrifice would almost be a full circle because she was doing it to save the rebellion

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  5. ***SPOILERS***

    I saw the movie only one day ago, after listening to you podcast and reading some reviews I think I have to rewatch it, cause I came away mostly disliking it but now I’m hyped by all your positive feelings :-)

    So what I didn’t like was:
    - The Finn storyline was unnecessary to the main plot, also the leg of communication (why didn’t vice admiral pink hair explain her plan) that started it seemed odd. The relationship between Finn and Rose didn’t work for me, and having almost no scenes with Finn and Rey, who had great chemistry in TFA seemed like a loss to the movie. I liked the scenes on the casino-planet, however adding the Codebreaker seemed pointless especially in a movie which was already 150 min long.
    - The Rey – Kylo – Snoke plot headed to an amazing finale, however Rey wanting to save Kylo felt forced, since they did not have a strong relationship beforehand, also Kylo killing Snoke felt underexplained, I think they just had to get Snoke out of the movie since they had no interesting plot or history for him
    - Some smaller stuff that didn’t work for me like the Yoda scene, Leia using the force to fly back into the ship, the conflict between Poe and the vice admiral, chewie as a comic relief, captain Phasma
    - Luke as a character felt off to me, however that might also be due to dubbing, as I didn’t see the movie in English
    - Everything in the movie getting constantly explained to the audience by a character
    - A lot of small plot-holes and movie-tropes that usually wouldn’t border on their own but that cumulated to what felt like lazy screenwriting to me

    What I liked:
    - Opening and ending battle and the red room fight, also the look of the movie in general and the way they use color
    - Almost all of the actor’s performances
    - Set design and production value were obviously amazing
    - Rey’s parents, also being kind of meta considering the two years of speculation concerning her origin
    - I also feel that the movie is potentially a great set up for episode 9 and what follows, so we will have to reevaluate it in two years

    Anyway I really enjoyed the podcast, this is the first time I’m commenting on the site, so thanks a lot for all the great content you created during the last years, I think I was almost as exited for your opinions on the movie than for the movie itself.

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  6. Looking forward to the Ghost Dice podcast. Hopefully that will get posted in a few months...

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  7. I haven't seen this movie yet but yesterday I bumped my knee really hard and it still hurts and that's why I think this movie is terrible.

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  8. My opinion is that The Last Jedi is pretty damn awesome, Adam. Just like you.

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  9. Anybody noticed the cameo from Justin Theroux?

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  10. I too, think I will have to give it another watch because I left the theater feeling a bit disappointed. My main issue, I think, was the length. I just thought it was a bit boring, which I haven't felt that way about a star wars movie since Episode 1. For a two and half hour movie, there was hardly any plot. Most of the time was spent waiting around, trying to escape situations.

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  11. Loved the podcast, loved the movie. Would I have loved it as much if Luke had gone full Jedi badass and single-handedly wiped out all of the First Order in the desert? Or if, as was my favourite theory, Rey was the reincarnation of Anakin? Or if the heroes' against-all-odds plans had all worked? Perhaps - probably on the same level as I loved The Force Awakens which so loyally scratched my Star Wars itch. But there's a complexity to how I love The Last Jedi - it's taken some time to fully develop - I had to accept that it had a bit of "tough love" for me. The Force Awakens was the pretty face that said all the right things but then got boring after a couple months of tepid missionary sex. The Last Jedi called me a dork and then strapped on a dildo and bent m...okay maybe this analogy is getting off track. It challenged me - it didn't take the easy way - I have to admire that more than playing it safe.

    But enough about me - George Lucas had to HATE this fucking movie, right? Like to his core in a "I can't believe I gave my baby to these animals and look what they've done to her?!" kind of way? I can't imagine how boring and safe his vision of the future of Star Wars must have been, but surely it was NOTHING like this? It must have made him physically ill to watch it.

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    1. according to reports, George Lucas loved it. is it true, was he lying? who knows

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    2. I read he said it was "beautifully made" which strikes me as a way of complimenting a fellow director without offering a substantive take on the film itself.


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    3. No, don't stop. What happened with the dildo?

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  12. I think this movie got graded on a huge curve. A lot of the criticisms of Blade Runner 2049 seem to get a pass in the Last Jedi. I left pretty frustrated with the movie. I'm just kind of disappointed that this is the Luke Skywalker story we get: he's mopey, boils down Jedi training into three easy lessons, provides a distraction, and then bye. It's strange storytelling too, why even provide mysteries if the answers are anticlimactic and not important? It made me feel like I was watching the second season of Lost: we started this thing but have no solid plan yet.

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    1. How was it graded on a huge curve? A lot of people like it and a lot of people hate it. Aren't they just being honest in their response?

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    2. The mysteries people wanted a big reveal on (who is snoke, reys parents, phasma) were built up by fans on the internet, not by The Force Awakens. TFA doesn't make a big deal about any of those things.

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  13. People, long time fans or like me just fans of movies and not specifically Star Wars, have every right to hate this movie because it was bad. Long and exhaustive and bad. Long and bad and very, very silly. Not because it tried new stuff, which can be argued, but because it was those aforementioned things. Just because it "tried new things" doesn't make it good or exempt from being criticized. I dunno. Force Awakens felt "newer" to me.

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    1. It is a shame that the glut of whiny fanboys, overreacting to minor problems they had, are killing any actual criticism of the film. But it is what it is, Twitter has once again ruined something else.

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    2. If it didn't speak to you, that's understandable, but I feel like it's a long shot from being "bad". I agree, it shouldn't be exempt from criticism, and Fthismovie certainly didn't treat it this way during the podcast.

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    3. No the podcast was great, in fact they voiced most of the criticisms I had, i guess I was just more put off by them. I just don't agree with some of Twitter's sentiment that if you didn't like the movie, it's because it was Rian Johnson's genius and we just couldn't understand it.

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    4. Naw...ignore Twitter..either you loved it, hated it, or something in between. Like anything.
      That's unfortunate that you didn't like it so much. Hopefully, it;ll grow in your estimation next viewing. If not, hey, there are loads of other great movies! It's a wonderful time we live in!

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    5. Thanks Adam! (That was me, mistakenly posting while logged into my son's google account)

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  14. I liked this movie, but issues with it. On a second viewing, I absolutely loved it and so many of my problems fell away. This mostly happened because I noticed things that made me realize my problems were nonsense. It's such a fantastic film.

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  15. On a more serious note, I loved the movie, and am very happy for the early podcast! Thanks a ton! I went to bed inundated with rubbish love/hate, and woke to find an unexpected level headed discussion.

    We weren't supposed to have any more Star Wars at all. When Return of the Jedi came out, my dad took me to see a double header of Empire and Return, and he wanted to leave after Empire, but stayed because I wanted so much. And that was supposed to be it! Many years later we have super wicked star wars action again, and all everyone can do is nitpick the fuck out of it.....goddamnit....

    I mean, I understand we need to look at films critically, but it seems like.....You know what I mean.

    Anyways, loved the movie, and loved the podcast! Hopefully Robyn is on again!

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    1. That should be "an expected level headed discussion.

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    2. "and all everyone can do is nitpick the fuck out of it"

      OR MAYBE we're just making valid criticisms that you guys happen to disagree with. (Or weren't as important/off-putting for you.) That's a more level-headed way to look at it, perhaps?!...

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    3. You're completely right ilmilandivanbasten. I think I was just reacting to how vehemently some voices have opposed the mere existence of this movie. (Not anyone here, by any means).

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  16. What do people think Rey told Chewbacca to tell Finn? I'm hoping it's "I love you" so Finn and Rose don't end up together.

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    1. I will go down with this ship. And I won't put my hands up and surrender.

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    2. Very well. I'll see myself out, Phasma-style.

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    3. He looks a lot like a young Denzel Washington. :)

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    4. IMHO, Finn is still basically a child, emotionally speaking. Or should be, given that he was evidently so massively brainwashed since birth that he never even privately gave him a name until Poe showed up. Boyega is obviously a charismatic dude, but Finn's character is pretty much a total blank with noble intentions. Rey may not be particularly worldly, but she's not the emotional equivalent of a space North Korean teenage refugee, either. I don't think Finn ought to be ready for an adult relationship for some time, until he really finds himself, and maybe even develops a few hobbies.

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    5. It's an interesting take. I think it's obvious though that Finn is into her. He asks her if she has a boyfriend when they're on the Falcon in Force Awakens and she's the main thing on his mind when they're separated in Force Awakens and Last Jedi (e.g. first thing he asks about when he regains consciousness, wants to go in an escape pod to find her with the beacon etc.). I think you do that kind of effort when you're crushing on someone more than they're just buds.

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    6. Oh, for sure he has the hots for her, as does Kylo (and who wouldn't?). But kids can have the hots for other kids or (in Rey's case) relatively young adults without being old, mature, or psychologically developed enough for actual relationships.

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  17. People talk about the humor a lot, and while I didn't like most of the jokes, why haven't I seen a single person talk about the iron joke? I thought that moment was hilarious. Reminded me a lot of Major Thot in Raiders of the Lost Ark whipping out the torture device turned coat hanger. Maybe I only like clothing related sight gags in movies.

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    1. Plus it was a reference to Hardware Wars!

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    2. oh man, you just blew my mind. i never thought about that.

      at the time i thought, what a weird design for a Star Wars ship. when the shot cut to show the whole thing, i was like 'oh, you!' :o)

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  18. Rian Johnson is a smart man


    http://birthmoviesdeath.com/2017/12/19/yes-rian-johnson-knows-that-people-are-mad-online-about-star-wars

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  19. Instead of having Benicio basically doing the Collector channeling Tom Waits, they should'a just asked Tom, who is usually happy to do these kinds of roles.

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  20. Now there’s a petition to remove the movie from the Star Wars cannon. I haven’t read it, so i don’t know what they’re asking for exactly, but it exist

    I hate the internet sometimes

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  21. The comic timing of Robyn’s “No” referring to watching Bright was my favorite part of this all around fantastic discussion. Thanks for being so thoughtful as always.

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  22. Just got done listening, I'm in the car, had to post. WHAT A BREATH OF FRESH AIR THIS PODCAST WAS!! I walked out of the theater more interested in Star Wars than ever before. I enjoyed the he'll out of it and I can't wait to see it again. My coworkers and friends are all on the hate train, some calling it worse than 1 and 2! They've been kinda driving me crazy and it just feels good to not feel alone, haha.

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  23. It's been about a week since anything has been posted here, so I'm not sure if this will get a response, but I've only just seen it so I'm going to ask anyway (sorry if this is brought up in the episode, haven't finished the whole thing yet): Does anyone else think that this is the "smallest" of the official Star Wars films? By smallest, it just felt to me like it took place over the smallest amount of time, the scenes seemed smaller, and it felt like less happened in it than in others. I don't mean this as a criticism, just an observation.

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