These songs from the Star Wars: The Last Jedi soundtrack are likely going to stay with fans long after they’ve left the theater.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi, oddly enough, seemed to have a stronger score than The Force Awakens — and The Last Jedi picks up on some of the themes introduced in The Force Awakens, because it’s John Williams composing, and that’s just how the man works.
But, thanks to Entertainment Weekly tipping us off, we now know that you can listen to the entire soundtrack for The Last Jedi.
So, without further ado, let’s round up some of our favorite songs and break them down.
“The Cave”
Played when Rey goes into the cave Luke originally warns her away from, the one that calls to her and is particularly dark, this track builds up the eerie quality of her experience down there, where she asks to see her parents and only sees herself reflected an almost infinite number of times. Although nothing really attacks her down there, Williams’ score keeps you on edge the entire time, even when it goes down to just a few instruments, with the strings coming in after.
“Ahch-To Island”
As of right now, this is actually my favorite piece from this movie, not counting the main theme of the entire saga — and it’s one of the earliest compositions we hear in the film. Why? Because about two minutes in, there’s a soft rendition of the Force theme, which dies off before building into the theme of the Resistance, then into this soaring, fantastic take on “Rey’s Theme” that accompanies some stunning shots of the island. It had me bouncing in my seat. “Ahch-To Island” is a little mysterious, a little familiar, but ultimately spellbinding.
“Canto Bight”
“Canto Bight” sounds almost exactly how I would expect it to, and that is absolutely a compliment. You can pinpoint almost exactly when Finn and Rose walk into the casino in the city because of the sudden shift in instruments, some of which remind us of chips or coins falling, while others call ’20s and ’30s jazz (with a distinctly space-y feel) to mind. The separate parts are so aurally distinct, yet still united in creating this city of excess.
“Fun with Finn and Rose”
We hear a little motif here that comes up usually when we see Rose, followed with the theme of the Resistance, and while we’re pretty sure that Finn is not having fun at this point in time, the audience certainly is.
(There’s also a brief excerpt from “Han Solo and the Princess,” so … you know, that was about when I lost it for the first time at my screening, even if it leads right back into more from the Resistance.)
“Peace and Purpose”
Rian Johnson did a callback to the iconic shot of Luke Skywalker and the binary suns of Tatooine from A New Hope, and Williams provides a beautiful rendition of that same theme at the start of this track. In fact, what I call the theme of the Force above is also well-known as “Binary Sunset,” because that’s when we first hear it … like, ever, in the franchise.
“Main Title and Escape”
Like we weren’t going to put it on here. What do you take us for?
Okay, to provide some analysis, there’s a lot of driving or undertones when we get into the “Escape” portion, since the Resistance is just trying to get away from the First Order.
Next: The Last Jedi and the evolution of Rey
What are your favorite pieces from The Last Jedi‘s soundtrack so far?