Star Wars: The Last Jedi has divided the fan base with its controversial plot lines and bigass loopholes the size of the Death Star. Fans were angry with the complete departure from the established form of storytelling that the previous movies of the Star Wars franchise had so loyally followed. While one portion of the fans universally scorned the movie, rest of the fans actually liked this fresher take on the direction and pace that the previous movies did not possess. Rian Johnson’s Last Jedi has polarized its audiences at its peak. But this movie could have been universally acclaimed by both sections of the fans if he had had his way.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi had a shitload of deleted scenes that could have fixed the controversial loopholes and ended up saving the entire movie from any form of negative feedback. While most of the plot devices’ irregularities is credited to Rian Johnson, a big reason for the movie not making any sense in some glaring portions is because some of the scenes were deleted from the Director’s cut to make a reduced version for a theatrical release.
All Star Wars movies have a history of having a plethora of scenes cut from the original while making a theatrical version. Star Wars was pretty much saved in the editing sequences: The Death Star firing on Endor and Luke making his own Lightsaber are legendary scenes that did not face the axe.
After being acquired by Disney, The Last Jedi Trilogy also had a lot of crucial scenes cut from the movies: Maz actually possessed Force powers, the origin of the Rebellion was explored and the entire third act of Rogue One was cut and reshot to accommodate a final version. But The Last Jedi was the only movie under the Disney banner not to face as much cuts yet there are almost 30 minutes of deleted scenes that a Star Wars fan did not see in The Last Jedi.
The Force Awakens had 15 minutes of deleted scenes added to it during the DVD Release of the movie. The Last Jedi will have twice of that. While it would be interesting to know and count the number of scenes being added, the tip-offs can only take us so far. Let us take a look at some of the scenes that could help answer some of the most glaring plot irregularities that the fans complained about.
The Third Lesson:
Luke Skywalker agreed to teach Rey the ways of the Force and the Teachings of the Jedi in the form of three lessons. An earlier version of a marketing attempt for The Last Jedi included a picture of Rey running along the beaches of Ahch-To with Kylo and the Knights of Ren in pursuit. Unfortunately, it never happened in the movie.
The deleted scene involved a raging fire taking place in the Caretakers’ village on Ahch-To as Rey trained in the distance. Luke claims it is a band of raiders that keep attacking the Caretakers every now and then. When Rey rushes to help them, she finds it is only a bonfire. An infuriated Rey is then given her third lesson by Luke – The Galaxy does not need a Jedi, but a Hero. And anyone can be a hero.
Finn and Rose scenes:
The relationship equation between Finn and Rose was the most confusing and uncohesive of the lot. People did not want another subplot in a movie that was already crowded with too many of those. But they did. Finn and Rose could be a thing of the future. But the love triangle though completely redundant could have had more depth to it.
Deleted scenes show a scene where Rose gets jealous of Finn’s fascination with Rey. Another scene showed Finn making an allusion to the Father’s Kids with the Canto Bight slave children and a cameo from Tom Hardy.
Phasma betrayed the First Order:
Gwendoline Christie’s character could have been the next Jango Fett. But she was relegated to playing a glorified Hench Woman for the big guys. Phasma’s suit and weapon were awesome and Christie herself was a treat to watch. The Force Awakens did not give her enough time but The Last Jedi gave her a proper sendoff. The final scene for Phasma could have been way better.
When the Storm Troopers have Finn and Rose at Gunpoint, Finn makes a startling revelation. It was Phasma, not Finn that lowered the shields of Star Killer base and led to its destruction. The troopers would then turn their guns on her and Phasma would have most likely killed them all before engaging in a vibro weapon fight with Finn. Whether Finn was lying or was it the truth, we will know when the DVD release date arrives.
A lot of other scenes were also cut like Holdo’s pre-origin tales but these are the scenes that fans would most love to be added to the DVD/Blu-Ray version.
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