The full-length Star Wars: The Last Jedi trailer has arrived and whether you’ve decided to watch it or not, there’s no denying, everyone’s talking about it. If you have watched it and you’re dying to pick apart every little thing you saw, you’re in the right place because we’re about to do a deep drive into the footage. If you don’t want to have anything spoiled (or even potentially spoiled!) you need to run away now and never come back. If you’re looking for some coverage of the trailer which won’t ruin it for you, here are the best spoiler-free reactions we could find. Still here? Ok, let’s talk about what we saw…
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Where is Kylo Ren and the First Order?
The first shot of the trailer sees Kylo Ren on a ship looking out across a busy hanger bay (0.02). This obviously isn’t Starkiller Base which was destroyed in The Force Awakens so is it simply the First Order ship he escaped on? Either way, it looks like it’s all hands on deck as the First Order prepares for war with multiple droids and machines being assembled in front of him. The ship seems to appear in a couple of shots in the trailer - when Finn is undercover (0.55) (more on that later) - but where are they heading? Perhaps to the red-streaked mountain base we see later on? It’s a possibility but I guess it could be an entirely different ship all together. One First Order ship must look like another after all.
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What's so important about that red mountain base?
Throughout the trailer we see shots of a mountain base infused with red (kyber?) crystals and at first glance it appears to be a First Order stronghold, begging the question, is this where Kylo Ren made his lightsaber? If you watch closely though, I think it’s more likely that this is where the Resistance forces set up camp after they have to evacuate Resistance HQ on D'Qar (which is rumoured to happen in the first few minutes of the movie).
When we first see the First Order AT-AT Walkers (did you notice the armour they have on their legs now to protect against being pulled over?) and ships facing off against a mountainside (0.09) they’re kicking up red dust, suggesting they’re at the red mountain. However, these Walkers are facing the mountain… they don’t have their backs to it. Then we see Kylo Ren and his forces walking into what looks like a mine which is streaked with red stone (0.14), and if you’re wondering why I think they’re walking in, instead of out, look at their shadows…
At another point in the trailer, we see the Millennium Falcon being pursued by TIE Fighters through a maze of red crystals (1.31) which suggests this is well into, or near the end of, the movie as the MF is currently on Ahch-To with Rey and Luke. And then there’s a brief shot of General Organa watching some base doors close from the inside (1.50) and while it’s hard to tell if this is at the red mountain, there are a few things which lead me to believe it is.
Just before, we see some Icewolves run inside the red mountain base with the doors closing (1.49) - we can see the red streaks in the mountain side behind them - and while it could be just misdirection that we then immediately watch Leia standing inside a base with the doors closing, the presence of the Icewolves leads me to believe that the base is located somewhere cold. So what? Well, the uniforms worn by the First Order forces following Kylo Ren into the mountain at the beginning of the trailer also led me to believe the red mountain is somewhere cold - you only get a brief look but they look pretty bundled up, similar to the Snowtrooper uniforms we’ve seen before - and we know the First Order forces are attacking/trying to take the red mountain so it fits that it’s a Resistance base.
Also, the Icewolf in the Star Wars universe is native to… *drum roll* the planet Spintir. Want to know what we know about Spintir? Not much: “Spintir was a planet in the Spadja sector of the Outer Rim that was home to a Jedi temple known as the Dawn Temple, and an unusually high number or mammals. Spintir was a wealthy trade world.” But the fact that it was home to a Jedi temple would again seem to imply that it’s a Resistance stronghold, as well as why the First Order would want control of it - all those kyber crystals! It may even be the place Kylo Ren made his lightsaber before he went rogue and joined Snoke.
Why is Luke so scared?
As you’ve no doubt heard a million times since the first Star Wars: The Last Jedi teaser dropped, Luke thinks it’s time for the Jedi to end and the new trailer might reveal why. It’s clear that Rey’s got skills with the Force and the lightsaber, but her abilities may in fact be the reason that Luke refuses to train her as a Jedi. There’s a moment where she splits the rock they’re standing on and Luke’s face says it all (0.50). He’s afraid, she has a massive amount of power. And if that wasn’t enough of a hint for you he actually says, “I’ve seen this raw strength only once before. It didn’t scare me enough then. It does now.” (0.54)
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We just presumed that Luke already didn’t want to train anymore Jedis when Rey finds him on Ahch-To and that she would need to persuade him into training her, but it now looks like he begins her training, but then stops because he’s afraid of her power. It’s obvious that he’s remembering what happened to Kylo Ren (AKA, Ben Solo) and he sees a similarity in Rey - could this hint at a deeper (perhaps family) connection between Kylo Ren and Rey? This leads us onto another interesting point…
Who is Snoke REALLY talking to?
This trailer is really clever. The way it’s shot makes for an action-packed, thrill-inducing teaser which whets your appetite for the movie to come, BUT it also keeps things pretty vague. You might think you know what it’s trying to tell you, but actually, the order with which scenes are used and the way voice overs are included can actually be really misleading. For example, at first watch, you probably think Snoke is talking to Kylo Ren when he says: “When I found you, I saw raw, untamed power. And beyond that, something truly special,” (starts at 0.05). This fits with what Luke says later about Rey’s “raw” power making us believe in a connection between the pair, but we never see Snoke say this so it could come at any point in the movie and be directed at anyone.
Again, when Rey says: “Something inside me has always been there. Then I was awake.... and I need help,” (starts at 0.34) you believe she’s talking to Luke because we’re watching scenes of her on Ahch-To with him, but we never actually see her say this… it’s just a voice over. The moment we do actually witness Rey say something, it’s to Kylo Ren and she says: “I need someone to show me my place in all this” (2.05), but couldn’t this just be the second half of what she was saying earlier? Couldn’t she have gone to find Kylo once Luke refuses to train her and ask him for help?
This takes us back to Snoke. As with Rey, there’s only one point in the trailer where we see him actually speak and it’s when he says “destiny” (2.00). It’s the end of a sentence which we began hearing earlier in the trailer and as a whole it reads: “Fulfil your destiny”. We don’t see who he’s saying this to but you could be forgiven for thinking it’s Kylo Ren, especially as he talking about him completing his training and fulfilling his destiny in The Force Awakens, but immediately after we see an image of Rey bent back in pain being tortured by Snoke (we can see his yellow robe in the background). If we make the educated assumption that Snoke is talking to Rey, couldn’t this also mean that he was speaking to her when we heard his voice over from earlier on in the trailer? Just as Luke’s mention of Rey’s “raw” power seems to fit with what Snoke said earlier, Snoke’s reference could equally mirror what Luke says… it works both ways.
So what about Kylo Ren? Well, he’s not left out either. In fact, he gets a good chucky voiceover which seems to imply he’s struggling with the guilt over killing his father (something director Rian Johnson has already revealed will be the case). He says: “Let the past die. Kill it, if you have too. That’s the only way to become who you were meant to be,” (starts at 1.09) while we watch images of him destroying his helmet. Later on we also see him hesitate over whether to attack a ship he knows his mother, General Organa, is on and while what he says resonates with himself, I think it’s unlikely he’d talk out loud to himself for such a long period of time. I think it’s more likely he’s speaking to Rey, but the point is that we don’t really know. Almost everything said in this trailer could apply to various people and it’s only the way it’s presented that makes us feel like we have a clue. Clever.
Why does Rey go to Kylo Ren?
We know from the trailer that Luke refuses to train Rey and that she ultimately goes to Kylo Ren for help (or at least we think we do), but why would she leave Ahch-To? Even if Luke was being stubborn and refusing to change his mind, I think it’s unlikely she would give up without a fight and leave perhaps the only known Jedi master who isn’t evil. Unless she was made too… fair warning, I’m heading into major speculation mode.
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We see Rey walking toward a crumbling monument surrounded by mist in the trailer (0.41) and although she’s dressed in her travel clothes, we know it’s not from when she arrived on Ahch-To. I think it’s likely that this is the Jedi Temple Luke was looking for when he went missing and Rey goes off to explore it hoping for answers. We see nothing related to this scene until later in the trailer when Rey dives into some water and comes out to see Luke standing in front of her (1.52). Now, it’s pure speculation but I think based on the environment we can safely say it’s part of the same sequence and that Rey dived into the water to explore the Jedi Temple - perhaps it’s partly submerged? When she comes back up, Luke is not happy. What am I basing this on? An earlier shot which sees him say: “This is not going to go the way you think,” (1.48) which, again, appears to be in the same environment. When he says this though, he’s lying down… in fact, it looks like he’s been knocked down so I’m speculating he confronted Rey after she entered the Temple and a tussle ensued which is probably what sparks her departure from Ahch-To.
Why is Finn dressed in a First Order uniform?
It looks like Finn is back where he started in the trailer - among the First Order - but don’t worry, he’s not switched sides, he’s undercover. Our first look at Finn comes well into the trailer when he’s facing down Captain Phasma amongst the fiery wreckage of what I presume is a First Order ship/base (1.42). But rather than focusing on the impressive imagery, check out what Finn’s wearing… that’s a First Order uniform. We see it again as he’s walking in front of some Stormtroopers (1.55) and while it looks like he’s been captured, the only reason he’d be wearing a First Order uniform is if he was trying to infiltrate a First Order base. This fits with what director Rian Johnson has already revealed about Finn’s storyline - that he, Rose, and potentially Poe have their own mission to help bring down the First Order in The Last Jedi - and this shot shared by John Boyega.
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