If you like nostalgia, fan service, and epic action at a breakneck pace then “Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker” is a film for you. (Spoilers to follow)
Plot Summary
The opening crawl reveals the return of Emperor Sheev Palpatine and the movie jumps right into Kylo Ren’s search the find the presumed-dead Sith lord and confront him. When the Emperor is finally unveiled, he reveals an armada of planet-killing ships he intends to unleash on the galaxy with Ren’s help. The rest of the movie follows Kylo and Rey on parallel paths, each hoping to turn the other and confront the Emperor together -- Rey imploring Kylo to abandon the dark side and become Ben Solo once again while Kylo implores Rey to give in to her recently revealed dark side heritage.
The twists and turns along the way are many and rapidly revealed and have generally been received with rather mixed results...
What You’re Going to Like
Thematic Consistency - This movie continues the central, unifying theme of the new trilogy centering around each of the main characters (Poe, Finn, Rey, and Kylo Ren) shedding their previous identities to become something greater. The struggle to escape their former identities is strongly developed and reiterated through both the dialogue and the situations the characters face throughout the film. That led to a great deal of quality...
Character Development - The movie rightfully focuses on completing the spiritual journeys of Rey and Kylo, but also delves into Poe’s background and allows for each character to wrestle with and try to overcome painful parts of their past; all of this buoyed by the magnetic on-screen chemistry between Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver. Personally, Kylo’s redemption was the high point of the movie -- a brilliantly executed turn that brought the Skywalker family arc full circle and made great use of his previous history with his father.
Fan Service - There’s enough nostalgia and easter eggs in this movie to fill a Star Destroyer. The film canonizes a handful of popular “Legends” plot lines and fan theories (leading some to say it was written & directed by Reddit), and offers a bevy of subtle references Star Wars “die hards” will truly appreciate (like Chewbacca finally getting his medal from Princess Leia).
(Very) Special Effects - The CGI and puppetry displays the usual mastery fans have come to expect from these films. The climax of the movie has especially striking visuals of the Sith fleet, the planet Exegol, and Palpatine’s use of force lightning to attack the Resistance fleet.
Action Paction - The movie has the usual vertigo-inducing space fights as well as great chase scenes involving the Millenium Falcon, and an EPIC duel between Kylo and Rey. Their fight on the fallen Death Star trench ranks among the most emotional duels in the entire saga.
Return of the LOL - The movie makes good use of secondary characters for comic relief and manages to insert timely laughs without the humor feeling forced. It’s not Marvel-level funny, but the light moments definitely improve on the heavier tones of the previous installments.
Luke’s “Redemption” - Luke’s appearance to Rey as a force ghost settles one of the biggest complaints from “The Last Jedi” -- his dark, curmudgeonly demeanor. Luke’s appearance here sheds the brooding pessimism of Episode 8 for the endearing mentor role many fans hoped to see in the new trilogy.
“Mary Poppins” Leia is Explained -- Leia’s unprecedented use of the Force in “The Last Jedi” upset many fans because there was no context for her abilities. We finally learn that Leia underwent Jedi training with Luke and passed her knowledge along in training Rey. It begs the question -- why not give viewers a passing mention of that training in “The Last Jedi??”
What People are Split On
The Return of Palpatine - Palpatine’s return makes sense as part of the greater Skywalker narrative -- he’s been the main villain through three generations of Skywalkers, always attempting to manipulate the family to achieve and maintain his own power. However, his return makes Snoke’s character completely inconsequential and takes some steam out of the dramatic ending to his final battle with Luke at the end of “Return of the Jedi.” As much as people love the character, resurrecting Palpatine seems like a rather safe & comfortable choice to conclude the saga.
Rey’s Bloodline - Just about every Reddit user and YouTuber in the world hypothesized that Rey was either a Skywalker or a Palpatine. Depending on your preference you either loved the reveal of her as a descendant of the dark side or you found it deeply disappointing.
(More) New Force Abilities - Luke force projection at the end of “The Last Jedi” led to one of the most dramatic turns in the movie, but the ability was never explained or further explored. Similarly, Force healing and matter transportation were introduced and used very prominently and consistently throughout the film. The use of both powers became ESSENTIAL to the plot, so depending on how you feel about previously unknown force abilities you either loved or hated these plot devices.
Fan Service - The film contained the usual easter eggs and inside jokes intended to please hardcore fans, but the number of “safe” choices (ex: Palpatine’s return, Rey and Finn surviving certain death, Kylo’s return to the light, Rey & Kylo’s romance, retconning Snoke’s role and Rey’s lineage) seemed to be aimed at stemming the backlash from the bold choices Rian Johnson made in “The Last Jedi.” Those who loved the twists of “The Last Jedi” may view these choices as boring at best and disappointing at worst.
What You Might Not Like
The Pace - The movie feels like four hours of content crammed into a 142-minute run time -- like you’re on the Kessel Run with Han Solo. Very few scenes are allowed to sink in, and the audience isn’t allowed much time to process rapidly revealed information germaine to the plot.
The Knights of Ren - They show up with cool-looking outfits, pose, and do basically nothing for most of the film. Their final battle against Kylo Ren ends up rather anti-climatic because they are never built up to do anything more than stand in the background during the first two films. Even a brief display of their abilities would’ve gone a long way towards bringing more drama to their final battle.
New Film, Same Tropes - This movie hits all of the major Star Wars tropes -- the importance of family lineage, planet-killing lasers, an offer for the protagonist to turn to the dark side, a space battle against hopeless odds, and a hero’s sacrifice. It’s not bad, but if you were hoping for something new and different the movie never strays too far from the Star Wars formula.
Too Many McGuffins - A significant portion of the movie follows our main protagonists on multiple journeys that turn out to be completely unfruitful. While it adds intrigue and a sense of adventure, it also contributes to the film feeling frenetic and overstuffed at times. Too many plot threads, too little time to develop them all.
Palpatine’s Demise - Palpatine’s death as a result of deflected force lightning made sense from a plot standpoint (it’s how he becomes disfigured in “Revenge of the Sith”), but somehow felt lacking in dramatic tone. It simply didn’t carry the same gravity as the iconic fall to his death at the hands of Darth Vader in “Return of the Jedi.”
Kylo’s Kiss - The connection between Kylo and Rey was never framed as romantic, so their kiss in the movie’s waning moments came seemingly out of nowhere. It’s a twist that felt forced and inconsistent with everything else the audience had seen from the interactions between the two characters.
The Conclusion
The universal sentiment seems to be that “Rise of Skywalker” is fun, entertaining, and enjoyable to watch. The film is at it's best when it focuses on Rey and Kylo and both Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver deliver really strong performances that connect the audience with those characters.
The movie is certainly flawed with it’s pacing, lack of background details, and abundant fan service, but Star Wars fans overwhelmingly approve, as evidenced by the wide gap between the fan and critic score on Rotten Tomatoes.
"Rise of Skywalker" is a “Star Wars” movie through and through and does a good (not great) job of tying together the 42-year old saga with a satisfying emotional conclusion.
May the Force be with you.
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