'STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER' (2019) REVIEW
Happy Star Wars Day and may the fourth be with you. On this commemorative day, I’ve decided to finally review the latest addition and the final chapter of the Skywalker Saga.
I’ve only watched the film once in cinemas during its opening weekend around Christmas so it has been a few months and I vaguely remember much of it… which says a lot. However, just recently, Cinema Sins posted a video on ‘Everything wrong with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’ and watching the first part of the film jogged my memory. The video does sum up most of what I thought of the film.
Before the film was released, there was a sudden change of directors and fans were curious to know whether the plot of ‘The Last Jedi’ (2017) (‘TLJ’ henceforth) would have an effect on the last film in the trilogy and the franchise. This isn’t the first time there has been a change of directors within Lucasfilm as directors, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, were fired from working on one of the Star Wars anthology films titled ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ (2018). After the backlash ‘TLJ’ got, fans were eager to see what J.J. Abrams (Dir.) would bring to the Star Wars universe. The change of directors from Colin Trevorrow (Dir. Jurassic World) to J.J. Abrams was due to the fact that Lucasfilm’s president, Kathleen Kennedy, did not approve Trevorrow’s script for the 9th instalment, which also rings a bell to when Kennedy fired Lord and Miller because of ‘creative differences.’ I was really excited to see what Trevorrow was going to do as I enjoyed his ‘Jurassic World’ (2015) film. But at the same time, I was glad they called Abrams back to the franchise even though there was a thought of “what if he does a remake of ‘The Return of the Jedi’ (1983)?” as many have noticed the similarities between the two films; George Lucas’ ‘A New Hope’ (1977) and Abram’s ‘The Force Awakens’ (2015) (TFA henceforth).
I’ve been a fan of the franchise and I’ve been watching all the films since the age of 3. I was always aware of the stories told after the events of the original trilogy; I’ve seen and read some of the books which involves Luke’s family with Mara-Jade and Leia’s family with Han. When Lucasfilm (and Disney) announced the start of a sequel trilogy, I thought, for a couple of years, that they would base it on the books or at least have the Skywalker family stay the same. But now the sequel trilogy has been dubbed as canon whereas the books are now considered as legends. How times have changed.
However, I can say that I did like the first two films in the sequel trilogy. Yes, there were some plot holes and some scenes that did not work well with the narrative but overall, the films were decent. Most of the time, I hated it when the directors were killing off characters for no good reason. Unfortunately, this was the same problem I found with ‘The Rise of Skywalker’. The most memorable part of ‘TFA’ was when we meet the original cast. It was nostalgic and good fan service. As for ‘TLJ’, the lightsaber duels were notable and I have to say, Kylo Ren is the true MVP of the whole trilogy.
As I was watching the film, I could tell that Abrams was trying to remove all the plot holes Rian Johnson (Dir. The Last Jedi) had created. It was like a roller-coaster throughout the film. Everyone is on a mission; Kylo Ren is looking for a ‘Sith way-finder’ in his short search for Darth Sidious and, Finn and Poe are delivering a message to the rebels about the whereabouts of Darth Sidious. During the first half of the film, we are questioning how the Emperor came back from the dead but in my opinion, I think that is still a question as even till now, I am confused to how he could have survived or when he was explaining ‘cloning’, it went through one ear and out the other. However, with the Emperor’s return, we also find a “shocking” revelation that is the grandfather and granddaughter relationship between Darth Sidious and Rey. Honestly, this was more than just a confirmation to a fan theory found on the internet, it seemed to be a cover up for Rian Johnson’s “you are nobody, you come from nothing” ideas for Rey’s character.
I was never intrigued by Rey’s character. I was, too, angered when Disney thought they could introduce a new character as an ‘all-powerful’ being. Yes, she has the force but wouldn’t it make sense to start her off as a vulnerable character who develops throughout the trilogy, to later become a strong Jedi rather than giving her a lightsaber and successfully defeating an experienced Sith in the first film. I understand that they were trying to show a strong female character but the narrative just did not make sense. I don’t agree with Rey being a ‘Mary Sue’ as there have been times where she did not win a duel but it does bother me that she somehow is able to do things immediately with the force without training or any knowledge of the force.
I wanted to see character development for Rey. A good example of a character development is Adam Driver’s portrayal of Kylo Ren. Behind the masked figure is a scared and vulnerable boy. I do think Daisy Ridley is a wonderful actor; she demonstrates a character to sympathise with. Her character longs for answers of her past and she questions her worth, her heritage and her future. However, her powers became the main focus which overshadows everything else that is great about Rey. On the contrary, Kylo Ren is a vulnerable antagonist, a contradicting stereotype of a villain. Much needed in a film as we’ve seen enough villains whose main goal is to ‘take over the world’. Kylo Ren’s aim is to rule the galaxy but he focuses on taking out the Jedi first and with a dark past, he differentiates from stereotypical villains as there is still good within him which creates conflict and also a sign of hope to bring him back to the light side. A well thought out back story to the character who has flaws unlike Rey; he shows different versions of himself to various characters. He is at war with Ben Solo (his past self) and Kylo Ren (the persona he believes he is). I have to give credit to how Rey fits in the story; she tries to persuade Kylo to come back to the light even after everything he has done.
From beginning till end, Kylo Ren’s character has been in development, when he finally decides to go back to his past self as Ben Solo. He defeats Darth Sidious with Rey and gives all his life source her (apparently force healing is a thing which isn't a bad thing, it just came out of nowhere).
There are many ups and downs in the film. At one point, everyone is looking for the Sith way-finder but that becomes pointless when Kylo Ren destroys it; this makes me question what was the thought process behind this plot. It made the first half of the film feel like a waste of time as everything was leading up to this scene and now, we’re back at square one (very similar to 'TLJ' plot with Finn and Rose). Apart from the pointless build up, the characters still amaze me; the dialogues between one another as they try to convince one another to pick a side (the light or the dark).
The ending of the film is still making me think a lot about the Skywalker Saga. Why didn’t Lucasfilm bring back all the Jedi from the prequel and sequel trilogies (as forced ghosts) during the final scene? It would have played a better and bigger fan service as well as an iconic ending to the Skywalker legacy. In the end, we got inserts of various voices of the Jedi calling out to Rey. At least I got to hear Hayden Christensen and Samuel L. Jackson once more.
I have said to many people that I did enjoy this film but was it necessary to kill off Ben Solo? He has finally gone back to the light and ended his lifelong pain and suffering, only to be killed because… he was a villain? Also, Rey is still alone. Yes, she has Finn and Poe, but Ben was supposed to be her other half. I’ve always thought the title (The Rise of Skywalker) referred to Ben (and I still do) but it looks like Disney wanted Rey to take that title when she introduces herself as Rey Skywalker. Was ‘acceptance’ not the whole point of the trilogy and confronting of your past? To declare a different surname clearly shows that she hasn’t truly accepted that she is a Palpatine. It shouldn’t bother her to be called Palpatine and not letting herself to feel bad or inferior because of the name.
I did not understand why in every episode, an original cast member dies and why Disney feels the need to kill off significant characters all the time. But it does get emotional when they do die as they are well beloved characters by many fans of many generations.
It is finally the end of the Skywalker Saga; however, Disney have confirmed mini-series on Disney+ as well as anthology films. One hopefully being about a young Ben Solo - I would love to see Finn Wolfhard portray him.
Again, I do enjoy all the Star Wars films even though I may not agree with every subplot but there is no denying that Star Wars is probably the most influential film to date due to its use of CGI and VFX. They truly have shaped the future of film.
IMDb rating: 6.7/10
My rating: 7/10
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Saved this review for Star Wars Day and it was a long one. I wanted to sum up the Skywalker Saga but at the same time not focus too much on the series as a whole but specifically how Rise of Skywalker ended the series.
Will be continuing with more film recommendations series:
👉 Classics (1971-95)
👉 Romance (2013-17)
Sabina 🦁
