Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (titled on-screen as Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi) is a 2017 American epic space opera film written and directed by Rian Johnson and produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Ram Bergman. It stars Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern and Benicio del Toro. It’s a sequel to Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), and is the 13th film in the Star Wars franchise, as well as the 8th film in the franchise’s Skywalker Saga, and the second film in the Saga’s Sequel Trilogy. It grossed $1.334 billion over a budget of between $200 and 317 million, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2017 and the 18th-highest-grossing film of all time. The following are 10 of the Metacritic critical reviews for the film.

100/100

Christopher Machell Dec 15, 2017

Rian Johnson’s film is the real deal, a bold, risky venture unafraid to tell its own story, freed from the weight of nostalgia and formula. Read full review

100/100

The Guardian Jordan Hoffman Dec 14, 2017

While there are some solid nuggets of deep-cut easter eggs for hardcore fans, what is so extraordinary about The Last Jedi is that this is the first post-Lucas Star Wars film that feels free to dance to its own beat. Read full review

100/100

Ty Burr Dec 12, 2017

It’s not a perfect movie, but it may be a great one. Read full review

100/100

Sam Adams Dec 12, 2017

Like many before it, The Last Jedi has already been hailed as the best Star Wars movie since The Empire Strikes Back, and while that’s true, it’s too faint a compliment. It’s a film of genuine beauty, one where you come away as eager to talk about the set design and the choreography as you do the fate of the galaxy or what might happen next. Read full review

100/100

Steve Persall Dec 12, 2017

Star Wars: The Last Jedi launches the franchise to another level of action and humor thanks to incoming writer-director Rian Johnson, whose imagination seems boundless as George Lucas’ 40 years ago. Read full review

100/100

Jamie Graham Dec 12, 2017

An excellent middle chapter bursting with wit, wisdom, emotion, shocks, old-fashioned derring-do, state-of-the-art tech, and stonking set-pieces. Read full review

100/100

Justin Chang Dec 12, 2017

Easily its most exciting iteration in decades — the first flat-out terrific “Star Wars” movie since 1980’s “The Empire Strikes Back.” It seizes upon Lucas’ original dream of finding a pop vessel for his obsessions — Akira Kurosawa epics, John Ford westerns, science-fiction serials — and fulfills it with a verve and imagination all its own. Read full review

100/100

Sara Stewart Dec 12, 2017

Sure, it’s just a space Western, but “Star Wars” is one of the our most popular modern mythologies. Johnson respects that. He’s infused the storyline with new energy and artistry, and I can’t wait to see it again. Read full review

100/100

RogerEbert.com Matt Zoller Seitz Dec 12, 2017

Writer/director Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi is a sprawling, incident- and character-packed extravaganza that picks up at the end of “Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens” and guides the series into unfamiliar territory. It’s everything a fan could want from a “Star Wars” film and then some. Read full review

100/100

Joshua Rothkopf Dec 12, 2017

A triumph of comic irreverence and dramatic purpose, Episode VIII dazzles like the sci-fi saga hasn’t in decades. Read full review