Star Wars: The Last Jedi rejects The Force Awakens’ mysteries, and is better for it
When J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens hit theaters in 2015, it was no surprise that moviegoers came away with lots of questions. Abrams — known for series like Lost and Alias — is notoriously fond of mystery, which he calls “the catalyst for imagination.” In a 2007 TED Talk, he presented a box he bought as a kid, and still hadn’t opened decades later — because unopened, it represented “infinite possibility.” The Force Awakens suggested a similar infinite possibility, in a universe where 30 years had passed since the death of Darth Vader and the Emperor. The time jump opened up endless opportunities. And though the film returned to the same basic pattern as the first Star Wars, with new versions of the Empire, the Rebellion,...