Star Wars: The Last Jedi - 9 Moments Everybody Misunderstands

1. The Final Shot

The Last Jedi almost gets into Return of the King territory with how many potential endings it has, but after Luke's death and Rey & Co flying off from Crait, it settles on Canto Bight, and one of the kids we'd seen earlier in the movie. He uses the Force to grab a broom, giving him the moniker Broom Boy, before staring out into the night sky and watching a spaceship zoom past.

Complaints and interpretations here run the full gamut: the child shouldn't have Force powers, it's pure sequel bait, or setting up Rian Johnson's own trilogy, and that it's not a strong enough shot to end a Star Wars movie on, when you could instead finish on a main character like Luke, Rey, or Kylo Ren.

The Force is explored a lot in this movie, but what we don't get into the minutiae of is who can tap into it. Some are more Force sensitive than others, and honestly it's better left vague than getting into midi-chlorian count. But it makes sense that Temiri Blagg would at least try to Force summon the broom, since he's regaling stories of the great Jedi Luke Skywalker, and it's a great touch to have this child tap into it, regardless of what he goes on to become. Indeed, it's hard to imagine him having a big role in Episode IX, if even appearing at all, while Johnson's trilogy will be something new entirely.

The purpose is instead to tie together the whole movie from a thematic point. It's a representation of how Luke, Rey, Rose, and the rest of the Resistance have ignited that spark of hope in the galaxy's next generation. Blagg in this moment is like Luke staring out at the twin sunset, or Rey waiting on Ahch-To, and, of course, he's also an analogue for the fans who grew up on Star Wars and wanted to be a Jedi Knight. Honestly, it's hard to think of a better shot to end on.

Share your own thoughts on The Last Jedi and all of these moments down in the comments.