“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” is finally upon us — the final chapter in a nine-film saga that has spanned more than 40 years.
DRAMA IN A GALAXY FAR, FAR AWAY
DRAMA IN A GALAXY FAR, FAR AWAY
There has been considerable debate surrounding the direction of the “Star Wars” universe in recent months.
First off, Disney CEO Bob Iger’s recent memoir “The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons I Learned From 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company” chronicled “Star Wars” creator George Lucas’s disappointment when the Mouse (after they bought Lucasfilm in 2012) scrapped his story treatments in favor of the current sequel trilogy.
Secondly, an upcoming SW trilogy (reported to debut in 2022) by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss (the pair behind HBO’s “Game of Thrones”) crumbled when it was announced in October that the two filmmakers had walked away from the deal.
Stir in tepid fan reaction to 2017’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” (which I personally loved) — along with a disappointing box office haul for 2018’s “Solo: A Star Wars Story” — and you have enough offscreen drama to fill a star cruiser.
But there have been some bright spots. The Disney+ series “The Mandalorian” (Lucasfilm’s first foray into live action TV series) has been well received, and a number of the other planned series sound intriguing.
ABRAMS IS BACK
J.J. Abrams is back at the helm for the final chapter of the sequel trilogy.
Each chapter of the sequel trilogy had been set to have a different director. Abrams helmed the first, Rian Johnson the second, and Colin Trevorrow (the man behind “Jurassic World”) was set to guide the third and final part.
I recall a “60 Minutes” interview of Abrams in 2015 (right before the release of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”) where he and his wife Katie McGrath expressed disinterest in further rebooting and refreshing other filmmakers’ franchises. Prior to being hired for the “Star Wars” gig, Abrams had just completed a two-film stint rebooting the “Star Trek” franchise for Paramount.
So it sounded like he was done with “Star Wars.”
But nothing is ever really gone in the “Star Wars” universe, and Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy lured Abrams back into the fold when pre-production for “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” hit a snag.
I’m happy Abrams is back. I’m a big fan of his work (Bridget can attest to my love of his espionage series “Alias”), and I consider 2009’s “Star Trek” to be among my favorite films of the past decade.
PALPATINE RETURNS...
The events in “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” are set one year after the Battle of Crait in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi.”
The first half hour of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” features a considerable amount of exposition.
Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) procures a Sith Wayfinder (a tracking device used to find evil force wielders). He makes his way to the planet Exegol using the device as a guide, and discovers a disfigured Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) — a character who apparently didn’t die at the end of “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.”
People who've read various fan theories the past four years have likely seen the theory that Rey (Daisy Ridley) is Palpatine’s child — or somehow related to the gnarled purveyor of darkness. More on that later…
We learn that Palpatine has been pulling the strings with individuals like Supreme Leader Snoke to perpetrate the rise of the First Order.
“Pulling the strings” might not be a strong enough phrase — we see vats on Exegol with creatures who look like Snoke marinating in them.
Palpatine states, “I have been every voice…” (suggesting every evil voice Kylo has heard has ultimately been Palpatine acting as puppet master).
Palpatine also has a secret fleet of Star Destroyers. And if that’s not enough, Palpatine wants Kylo Ren to kill Rey.
CORRECTING SINS OF THE PAST
Looking at this logistically, if Kylo Ren’s discovery of Palpatine had taken place at the end of “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” it might have allowed “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” to be able to breathe a little bit more in the film’s first hour.
It also might have changed perceptions about Rian Johnson’s screenplay for Episode VIII.
Some have suggested that Abrams (with the help of screenwriter Chris Terrio) is essentially undoing what Johnson did in “The Last Jedi.” I’m not quite so sure I see it that way.
I get the sense there was considerable pressure within the corridors of Disney/Lucasfilm to create the proper payoff for fans. As a result, it almost feels like they could have spread the events in Episode IX over two films (something Warner Bros. did with the “The Deathly Hallows” in the “Harry Potter” franchise).
Anyhow, Rey is training to be a Jedi under the tutelage of Princess Leia (employing unused footage of Carrie Fisher from “The Force Awakens” and “The Last Jedi”).
“Star Wars” geeks will recall in Timothy Zahn’s “Heir to the Empire” book trilogy in the 1990s (which isn’t canon) when Leia was attempting hone her Force skills with Luke (she also had a lightsaber in those novels, if I recall correctly).
OUR HEROES GET DOWN TO BUSINESS
As Rey trains, Poe (Oscar Isaac), Finn (John Boyega), and Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo) are on a mission to obtain info from a First Order spy relating to Kylo Ren’s discovery.
We learn during this scene (which is included in the “Extras” section of “The Mandalorian” page on Disney+) that droids like R2-D2 and BB-8 have to be “hard-wired” to receive information. Apparently wireless networking cards don’t yet exist in a galaxy far, far away.
We learn during this scene (which is included in the “Extras” section of “The Mandalorian” page on Disney+) that droids like R2-D2 and BB-8 have to be “hard-wired” to receive information. Apparently wireless networking cards don’t yet exist in a galaxy far, far away.
Our heroes learn Palpatine is back. Rey searches for clues in the ancient Jedi texts she rescued from Ahch-To (and stowed aboard the Millennium Falcon at the end of “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”).
That revelation leads Rey, Finn, Poe, Chewy, BB-8, and C-3PO to a desert planet called Passana.
There are some interesting stunt pieces that encompass the search for a Wayfinder that leads to an ancient dagger etched with Sith text (I half expected Indiana Jones to show up).
A highlight moment on the planet is the appearance of Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams). It’s good to have the character back, and I wouldn’t mind seeing him headline a Disney+ series in the future.
I will say J.J. Abrams did an excellent job keeping the narrative moving. The previous film had moments that dragged. This movie kept a steady pace.
Rey has a confrontation in the desert with Kylo Ren, Chewbacca is captured (along with the dagger), and the Millennium Falcon is taken by the First Order.
C-3PO has the ability to translate the mystery text on the dagger, but the droid’s programming forbids such a translation. So Poe suggests they head to a planet called Kijimi to get the translation extracted from the droid’s memory banks.
In some respects, this move is similar to the plot device used in “The Last Jedi” where Finn and Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) go to Canto Bight to find a codebreaker who can hack a First Order ship.
On Kijimi, “Star Wars” composer John Williams has a cameo as a character named Oma Tres (a bartender). It was nice to see the 87-year-old music guru make an appearance in a “Star Wars” film.
Williams’s score is solid in “The Rise of Skywalker” and includes a number of nods to previous anthems in the series.
We meet Zorii Bliss (Keri Russell) on Kijimi — a friend of Poe’s who knew him during his spice running days.
By the way, in this movie get a cute new droid named D-O — who has a head I suggested (when the first trailer for the movie was released) looked like Mickey Mouse's gloved hand:
By the way, in this movie get a cute new droid named D-O — who has a head I suggested (when the first trailer for the movie was released) looked like Mickey Mouse's gloved hand:
Have I mentioned that there is a lot of stuff going on in this movie? Keep in mind, the entirety of the story in “The Rise of Skywalker” takes place in a mere 16 hours.
Rey uses her Jedi senses to discover that Chewbacca is still alive. Our band of heroes eventually translates the info in C-3PO’s head and travels to a nearby Star Destroyer to rescue Chewie (using a round medallion provided by Zorii Bliss that grants a user access to First Order ships).
REY IS MORE THAN SHE SEEMS
We have more “Force conversations” (introduced in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”) between Rey and Kylo in “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.”
During one of these conversations on the Star Destroyer, Rey learns from Ren that she is Palpatine’s granddaughter — contradicting Ren’s proclamations in the last movie that she is a nobody.
Rey's father was apparently Palpatine’s son.
You have to wonder when exactly Palpatine found time to father a child in the midst of his quest to take over the galaxy. This was something not alluded to in any of the other “Star Wars” films.
As you can imagine, this revelation leads to an eventual showdown with Palpatine.
Along the way, we get some interesting sequences involving the remains of the second Death Star on Kef Bir (as our heroes search for a Wayfinder to discern the location of Palpatine). We meet a woman named Jannah (Naomi Ackie) there.
Rey gets into a lightsaber battle with Kylo on the carcass of the Death Star. During the duel, she fatally stabs him in the gut, but then uses the Force to heal him.
She takes his ship and heads to Ahch-To to exile herself on the island where she trained with Luke Skywalker — due to her distress about her lineage.
Kylo — stranded on Kef Bir after his battle with Rey — has a vision involving his father Han Solo (Harrison Ford). It was kind of nice to see Han make an appearance.
THE FINAL BATTLE
Rey eventually leaves Ahch-To (at the urging of Luke Skywalker’s “Force Ghost"), heads to Exegol, and transmits her location to the Resistance.
A squadron (led by Poe Dameron) arrives to do battle with the First Order assembled there. Lando (back in the pilot seat of the Millennium Falcon, which was awesome…) leads a ragtag group of reinforcement ships to help in the fight against the armada of Star Destroyers.
There is a neat cameo by pilot Wedge Antilles (Denis Lawson) during this sequence.
As I mentioned earlier, everything in the movie builds to the showdown between Rey and Palpatine on Exegol. Kylo Ren — on a path of redemption — helps her out during the showdown.
There are numerous nods to the throne room sequence in “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi” during the final showdown. There are also a number of similarities to the scenes in Snoke’s throne room in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi.”
KYLO REN’S REDEMPTION
Kylo Ren in “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” might have been the best we’ve seen the character. I’d hoped “The Rise of Skywalker” would be about his journey, and we would see the character redeemed during the film.
We do to a certain extent. Kylo Ren (born Ben Solo) ultimately dies at the end of the film. He exchanges his life for Rey’s (returning the favor from when she’d saved his life earlier in the film).
While his death scene worked in the context of the story’s narrative, it would have been interesting to see him survive and return to normalcy as Ben Solo.
(We also get the “Reylo” moment some fans have been wanting when the two shared a kiss after the final showdown with Palpatine).
WE CONTINUE TO LEARN NEW THINGS ABOUT THE FORCE
The concept of the Force has typically been “vaguely defined” throughout the first eight chapters in the Skywalker Saga. Anytime something new is introduced, it can be jarring.
Remember how fans where thrown for a loop when they learned in “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace” that an individual’s ability to wield the Force had to do with the presence of Midichlorians in someone’s blood?
In similar fashion, the sequel trilogy has introduced a number of heretofore unknown “Force abilities” to the “Star Wars” universe. Some fans are accepting of those newly discovered abilities; others are not.
I feel like the filmmakers sometimes “invent” a new way for the Force to work merely as a method of “deus ex machina” — using it as a tool to write themselves out of a corner, or as a convenient way to create an unexpected plot twist.
Therein lies one of the root causes of the rather divisive views on the “Disneyfied” world of “Star Wars” we find ourselves with today.
KEEPING THINGS SIMPLE IN THE “STAR WARS” UNIVERSE
“Star Wars” typically works best when it keeps things simple and vague. That is a structure that has worked to great effect in the Disney+ series “The Mandalorian.”
The “Star Wars” saga isn’t “Harry Potter,” “The Lord of the Rings,” or the “Marvel Cinematic Universe.”
The reason Marvel can seamlessly integrate fantasy and science fiction in the MCU is because that franchise has only been around a decade. It helps that the MCU isn’t guided by a “trilogy” structure — and is instead free to braid plot lines between an endless stream of movies.
(I understand there are decades of Marvel comics, but most movie-goers haven’t read them.)
A ROADMAP FOR FUTURE MOVIES
Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige cultivated a terrific roadmap for the Marvel movies. Feige has been tapped develop a new “Star Wars” film. Word on the street is that filmmakers won’t be trapped in the future by the “three-act structure.”
I think it was a daunting task to try and create three additional parts to George Lucas’s “Star Wars” saga, and make those films relevant for a 21st century movie-going public.
I do believe this sequel trilogy would have benefitted from a detailed roadmap.
UNANSWERED QUESTIONS IN “THE RISE OF SKYWALKER”
For example, it has never been explained why Luke’s blue lightsaber (originally his father’s lightsaber — given to him by Obi-Wan Kenobi in “Star Wars: A New Hope”) was in Maz Kanata’s basement in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
Moreover, that lightsaber fell away into space at the end of “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back” — when Luke’s hand was cut off by Darth Vader in Cloud City.
Luke built a green lightsaber to replace the blue one (that he used in “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi”).
I just want to know why the lost lightsaber showed up again.
There were also a couple instances in “The Rise of Skywalker” where Finn told Rey he needed to tell her something (that seemed pretty important). Yet we never found out what that *something* was...
LEARNING FROM THIS TRILOGY
I think Disney/Lucasfilm has to look at this trilogy as a learning experience. J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson both contributed some interesting plot lines, beautiful action sequences, and heady fantasy elements to the “Star Wars” saga in Episodes VII, VIII, and IX.
All three of the films in this trilogy were produced on a tight timetable. The previous trilogies (under the guidance of George Lucas) had a three-year gap between releases (instead of two years).
FINAL THOUGHTS
Looking at things from a fan perspective, sometimes you just have to let go of your preconceived notions, and focus on the simple pleasures “Star Wars” provides.
We live in a world that is constantly pointing out problems with things that should bring us joy. It is an epidemic in fandom that has a stifling impact on pop culture these days.
I had a good time watching “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.” Sure, it had its flaws, but it was a surprisingly buoyant and fast-paced journey. I had fun with it, and laughed and cheered throughout.
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