Redemption of a franchise!
Directed by: J.J. Abrams
Written by: J.J. Abrams, Chris Terrio
Cast: Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Carrie Fisher, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac
Swift shot: Redemption! All the people that complained about Disney ruining Star Wars may now take a seat to the rear of the Falcon. You can spend the rest of your days finding some other franchise to tear apart, as Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker managed to entertain and connect us all with the force even though the loss of their intended heir destroyed any hope of giving us the rise of Leia.
Originally, our beloved princess was the Skywalker who would rise. So, Abrams and company had to scramble to give us another hope. I call this final film a commendable solution to the problems that Rian Johnson’s epic trolling presented.
And yes, I liked The Last Jedi, but I did feel it was almost a parody of what Abrams wanted from The Force Awakens.
[Swift aside: Perhaps Abrams gave Rian directions that he was not to reveal Rey’s origin in the second movie. So, Rian had to figure out a way to keep the fans happy without giving them what they really wanted. So Rian decided to just give them the exact opposite of what they were expecting, which is why I liked it despite its many cringe-worthy scenes.]
With The Rise of Skywalker, fans get pretty much everything they are expecting . . . and more.
It isn’t easy to make movies. It is harder to make good movies. It is a momentous feat to make a good Star Wars movie. You have to make a movie that will endure social media criticism and manage to hold up to decades of experts that tell you how everything should have happened.
I ignore these people, because they lose out on the fun parts of life. They just can’t appreciate that we are lucky to even have more Star Wars.
Now we have a Star Wars theme park and several new rides and a new freaking star cruise line that would have never been possible without the mouse buying our beloved Star Wars. Hate it if you want, but I choose love – because that is how we beat you trolls down.
All anyone wants to know is, “Was it good?” Yes, it was damned good! I wanted to see it again right after the credits. In fact, it made me want to re-watch the entire nonology with a fresh perspective. Even though I just did that for nine episodes for Faking Star Wars Radio as the glorious gift to the galaxy, Teeb Ront’r.
Now that Kylo Ren is the Supreme Leader, he has one agenda, to find an ancient Sith temple that will help him turn Rey to the dark side and together they will rule the galaxy as Reylo . . . or maybe Kyrey? That is really the entire plot of The Rise of Skywalker. It’s simple and keeps the action interesting as you can easily follow the plot without any mention of Senate motions or intergalactic trade disputes.
It’s bad guy meets good girl, bad guy wants to turn good girl bad, and vice versa. These two forces of light and darkness are going to have it out and determine the fate of the galaxy, will it be a dyadic union of darkness or light? Or will something else happen that no one can predict?
As Kylo Ren races to his goal, Rey is training to be a real Jedi under her master, Leia. But she can’t complete her training as she is unable to focus as Ren continually invades her thoughts and eventually her space as their connection allows them the ability to basically force hop (for lack of a better word) in limited spurts. I mean, it’s Star Wars, just go with it, ya nerds!
Once the Resistance finds out that the ancient rumored gargantuan apocalyptic planet Exegol exists, and that an ancient enemy appears to have returned, there is a new mission, to destroy Exegol and bring balance to the galaxy. Problem is, the resistance is basically just a small group of pirates, smugglers, spice runners, and other assorted ruffians. They are seemingly alone.
The movie jumps around a bit as we follow Rey on her journey to find a missing wayfinder, basically a Sith holocube. What she finds instead has some people annoyed, but these are the same people who had no problem with Dr. Henry Jones, Jr. using a medallion to align the sun’s rays onto an ancient model of a forgotten city to find a secret entrance. I am just saying, if you come for this movie, better bring a Sith dagger . . . or two! I am sure to find many instances in your favorite movies that also have convenient plot devices.
Rey and crew all discover a clue that leads them to a peaceful planet that has been ravaged by the First Order who go door to door and violently “recruit” children to join the order. It is a reminder to them about why, and to whom, they are resisting.
This is similar to the horror that actually happens in Africa with warlords who force children to fight for them or they will kill their family. It kind of makes you have some second thoughts about rooting whenever a Stormtrooper gets blasted. Don’t forget, there are some ex-Stormtroopers working with the Resistance now.
We meet a few new characters, and some of the more annoying characters are relegated to basically background actors, which delighted me. There were some friends of Abrams that were clearly in the movie just to have a small part in Star Wars. I can’t blame them, can you?
And of course there was an ancient character that makes an appearance . . . the Emperor. I won’t reveal his role in this story, but it’s nice that they handled him in a way that wasn’t too ridiculously out there like with Abrams’ other works, like Lost or Fringe, for example. Palpatine’s role fits perfectly, and many questions left dangling from The Last Jedi are put to rest.
In the end, as I said before, you get what you expect with The Rise of Skywalker. The movie is the perfect gift to fans that have waited four decades for a conclusion to the Skywalker saga.
Look, I know it’s a shame we didn’t get the New Jedi Order stories from the Star Wars Legends novels. So, we lost out on Mara Jade and other beloved characters from that saga. But Abrams and the people at Disney wanted to give us something fresh and interesting that managed to not ruin our love of the characters. I think they made a beautiful trilogy that will endure the harsh critics looking for attention, because they didn’t get enough nipple time on the Thala-siren teat.
And remember, the force will be with you, always.
