![]() ![]() And I have to wonder what it is about us that makes him so afraid. As he puts it, “for American Jewish audiences… The Last Jedi can feel almost like a documentary, a sordid story about a small community eager to trade in the old and onerous traditions for the glittery and airy creed of universalist kumbaya that, like so much sound and fury, signifies nothing.”Īs a Reform Jew, I am deeply offended by Liebovitz’s disdain for those of us who practice a form of Judaism different from his own. Call it Reform Jediism.”Īnger is consistent with right-wing screeds against any form of liberal politics, but in this instance the target was Reform Judaism. That’s because the movie, while otherwise engaging and enjoyable, introduced a radical new take on the Jedi religion. Given the reactionary mentality of most disgruntled Star Wars fanatics, I was disturbed to read Liel Liebovitz’s December 18 piece in the Tablet magazine, called “ Reform Jediism.” Liebovitz explains his reaction to the film: “I felt a torrent of anger I haven’t known since gazing at the calamity that was Jar-Jar Binks. Consistent with this move toward greater diversity in casting, the film also emphasized the progressive theme of breaking with the past. The Last Jedi, directed by Rian Johnson, extended the new sensibility by highlighting female leadership, including the late Carrie Fisher as the leader of the resistance and Laura Dern as a self-sacrificing admiral of their decimated fleet, while introducing a significant new character played by Kelly Marie Tran, the child of Vietnamese immigrants. Even when the sentiments expressed were not overtly racist and sexist, those undercurrents were apparent, especially given that the plot of The Force Awakens was quite consistent with the original Star Wars film. In this new trilogy, the lead heroic role of Rey is given to a young woman, while another main character is played by a young African-American man. ![]() Abrams.Īlthough it was a huge commercial success and generally well received, many fans were unhappy with the shift to a more progressive outlook in The Force Awakens, and expressed dissatisfaction with the casting, which deviated from the previous films, which were all but monopolized by white males. The film franchise, originated by George Lucas, was sold to the Walt Disney Company in 2012, and revitalized in 2015 by the first installment in the new trilogy, The Force Awakens, directed by J.J. The Last Jedi is one of the best, if not the best, of the Star Wars cinematic series that first exploded onto theater screens in 1977. ![]()
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