3 Ways 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Divided The World's Most Passionate Fanbase

Three years ago from today, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” was released to theaters. The anniversary of Rian Johnson’s film had many discussing the flick’s divisive impact, sending both Johnson and his movie up Twitter’s trending list.

Here are some of the elements that got talked about the most.

Canto Bight

Finn and Rose’s subplot on a casino planet has attracted a lot of flak over the years. Many saw it as an unnecessary digression, crowding a film that could have used one less plot thread.

The CGI reminded some of Star Wars’ infamous prequels. Others asked why Finn, a child soldier, needed to learn about the harm war does to children.

It’s been speculated that the film’s structure and characters could have been improved if Poe instead accompanied Finn, tying his arc about learning the consequences of conflict to an exploration of Finn’s oft-overlooked backstory.

Rose Tico

Kelly Marie Tran’s character had a lot of fans excited, especially those looking forward to an actress of Asian descent taking center stage in one of the year’s biggest blockbusters. The response took an ugly turn, however, when people angry at the new trilogy’s diverse cast began attacking her.

Even those most skeptical of her somewhat-rushed romance with Finn probably wouldn’t argue it was bad enough to warrant death threats. Her situation only deteriorated when Disney opted to sideline her character in the next movie after she received so much hate she left social media.

The many people who enjoyed her performance, however, are undoubtedly looking forward to her role in the upcoming “Raya And The Last Dragon.”

Vice Admiral Holdo and Hyperspace ramming

The cinematography of the Last Jedi is one point that just about nobody contests: compilations of the movie’s best shots were a common sight on the anniversary threads. Almost always included was another one of the movie’s most divisive moments: voice-admiral Holdo’s use of the newly-introduced maneuver of hyperspace ramming.

While a feast for the eyes, fans more concerned with the setting of Star Wars quickly began asking questions like, “Wait, could they have been doing that the whole time?” and “Why did they build two moon-sized battle stations to destroy planets when they could just strap a cheaper hyperdrive to a big asteroid?”

The plot hole received a small hand-wave in the sequel with a character calling it “one in a million,” but picky fans likely aren’t content with that explanation or Holdo’s complete neglect if not outright encouragement of a fairly obvious mutiny-in-progress.

Still, most of the messages posted on the movie’s anniversary were supportive celebrations of a flawed but ambitious movie that tried to take Star Wars to new levels of thematic depth and cinematic artistry.