SerpApi.Org
George Lucas has recently commented on the nature of filmmaking, only improving Star Wars: The Last Jedi. As far as Star Wars movie rankings go, it would seem to be the common consensus that The Last Jedi ranks as one of the weakest entries. After all, the movie caused a huge divide in the Star Wars fanbase after it was released in 2017, with many considering it an affront to what Lucas built, while others deemed it a bold new direction for the franchise.
Almost a decade after the film's release, the arguments, heated discussions, and differences of opinion surrounding The Last Jedi persist, even as a new batch of upcoming Star Wars movies takes the galaxy into a new era. Naturally, one of the points of interest in this debate is whether Lucas himself enjoyed the movie. Thus far, the only known comment Lucas has made about Star Wars: The Last Jedi in particular is that it is "beautifully made," though this does not indicate his thoughts or opinions on the story that proved to be so divisive.
Recently, however, George Lucas sat down with A Rabbit's Foot, and while he did not talk specifically about the eighth Star Wars movie, some comments may indicate that he liked it, making it look even better than I already think it is. Lucas began talking about what characters or stories people do not like, stating that, as a filmmaker, he wants to understand why. He goes on to say that modern studios go the opposite way and begin to "let the audience actually make the movie."
Lucas then doubled down on this: "That isn't how you make a movie. You make a movie by finding someone that knows how to make movies, that has a story to tell, and is passionate about it." In many ways, this passage from Lucas perfectly describes Rian Johnson and Star Wars: The Last Jedi. If Johnson did anything, he dug deeper into Star Wars' characters and dissected them in ways that subverted expectations.
Johnson has even gone on record many times to explain that he thinks movies should challenge audiences rather than placate them. Lucas has always been a filmmaker who has done the same. Be it the divisive nature of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi back in the 1980s or the controversial prequel trilogy in the 2000s, Lucas has always made stories he wants to make how he wants to make them. As is evident with Rian Johnson's filmography, he is very much the same.
Even the biggest critics of Star Wars: The Last Jedi cannot deny how passionate Rian Johnson is about both the franchise and the overall art of filmmaking. More than any other Disney-era Star Wars movie, The Last Jedi best aligns with Lucas' comments about challenging audiences, as opposed to letting audiences make the movie. If this doesn't indicate that Lucas respects and likes Star Wars: The Last Jedi, I don't know what does; in typifying Lucas' view of filmmaking, The Last Jedi only gets better.
Will The Debate Over The Last Jedi Ever End?
Regardless of these comments, or any others for that matter, on Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the debate about the movie will likely rage on. Even a decade after its release, the film is still causing division among Star Wars fans, but will that ever end? Admittedly, this debate has gone on longer than most in modern filmmaking, but it is likely to settle, one way or the other, in time. A common trend within Star Wars tends to be that the most recent entries are hotly debated, while any from before that are praised.
The prequel trilogy is a good example of this. When the prequels were released, they were subject to mass criticism, so much so that Lucas sold the company that he created to Disney. Now, though, the debate over the sequels has led to a period of revisionism for the prequels, which are now regarded as great Star Wars movies. The point is, the debate around Star Wars: The Last Jedi will likely settle soon, and, with a new Star Wars trilogy on the way, that point in time could be sooner rather than later.
