Entertainment

See why audiences have panned Star Wars: The Last Jedi after rave critic reviews

Online review aggregators show fans were not blown away by the last instalment.
Online review aggregators show fans were not blown away by the last instalment. Online review aggregators show fans were not blown away by the last instalment.

Star Wars fans have aired their disappointment over new film The Last Jedi, despite its rave reviews from the majority of critics.

Days after the film’s official cinema release, fans have pointed out a number of errors while criticising storylines that they feel do not live up to the popular franchise’s previous seven-episode legacy.

The majority of industry experts praised director Rian Johnson’s blockbuster, racking up a 93% rating on reviews aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes by Tuesday, but the audience score paled in comparison at 55%. Meanwhile, review database Metacritic awarded the film a score of 86 with almost entirely positive feedback from critics, while other users posted hundreds of negative comments.

The audience score is the lowest on the website for any film in the Star Wars saga.

The less than complimentary reviews from the most staunch fans of the sci-fi juggernaut came after The Last Jedi opened with a stellar weekend at the box office, generating more than £27.5 million and making it the UK’s third biggest weekend of all time, according to Disney.

While reports from experts have pointed to factors that may have affected the mark – from online trolls to the website’s own system for calculating statistics – here are some of the most common fan complaints about The Last Jedi.

1. After protagonist Rey (Daisy Ridley) rose to Jedi power in previous episode The Force Awakens (2015), fan theories about her parentage swiftly blossomed. But they were put to bed as Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren told her that her mother and father were junk traders, drinkers, and essentially nobodies as far as the Star Wars socio-political hierarchy goes.

2. Johnson takes viewers through a whirlwind of sub-plots that do not fully fit together until the end of the film, which some have found to make for a confusing watch. One source of contention was Finn (John Boyega’s) and Rose’s draw journey to the casino planet of Canto Bight, even though Kelly Marie Tran’s Star Wars debut in the latter role has been praised.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Photocall – London
Star Wars: The Last Jedi Photocall – London
Domhnall Gleeson (left to right), Gwendoline Christie, Benicio Del Toro, Laura Dern, Mark Hamill, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Kelly Marie Tran, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis and Rian Johnson of Star Wars: The Last Jedi (Ian West/PA)

3. Mark Hamill reprised his role as Star Wars veteran, Luke Skywalker, but his portrayal as a matured and reflective version of his younger self has proved divisive. Earlier this year he publicly told how he initially disagreed with Johnson’s plans for his character, sparking early scepticism among fans.

4. Johnson told Vanity Fair magazine that he had wanted to punctuate the dark themes of the story with humorous moments, but was himself apprehensive about how they would be received. Though he said he was relieved when the cinema audience laughed along with jokes surrounding Domhnall Gleeson’s General Hux, some have been less impressed.

5. Decades on from the death of infamous villain Darth Vader, Andy Serkis joined the hall of Star Wars baddies with his character, Snoke. His death at the hands of Kylo Ren allowed Adam Driver to stake his claim as the real evil power, but some were disappointed with his exit and felt that a stronger story could have been made of his character’s demise.