If you want a short spoiler free review, watch the video. If you want a bit more detail and don't mind spoilers, read after the video!
The Rise of Skywalker is the final entry into what has been dubbed the Skywalker Saga. I'll warn you again... there will be spoilers, so if you haven't seen the movie yet watch the video above.
Here we go... A lot of "fans" are mad because this wasn't a male-centric trilogy. Some wanted this to be all about the redemption of Kylo Ren/Ben Solo and in the end it was, sort of. It was first and foremost an end to the old guard Luke, Leia, Han, Chewy, C3P0, R2-D2, and Lando. It was also the beginning of a new generation with Rey, Finn, BB-8, D-O, Poe, & Rose. It's an exciting time to be a fan, especially a female fan. Why? Being of the female persuasion, I am ecstatic that Rey was the heroine in the trilogy despite the misstep or two with "The Last Jedi." Which I liked, I'm not saying I didn't like it... I just left the theatre thinking it could have been better. I didn't feel that way with "The Rise of Skywalker." It felt open to more Jedi adventures and certainly that will occur if Disney reverses it's course with the novels being "Legends" rather than canon. But I'm going off track. The opening crawl was a little disappointing, but it did what they all have done and gave us a bit of exposition to fill in the gap from where we last saw our heroes. The opening sequence was fantastic and we learn that there is a spy in the First Order and Kylo has risen to Supreme Leader, which is why there is a spy... the spy (it's revealed later) doesn't want Kylo Ren in power, so he leaks info to the resistance in hopes of unseating him. It does backfire shortly after the spy reveals himself to Finn & Poe. And for those of you hoping that there's a romance between Finn & Poe, nope. There isn't. Although, through out the movie Finn keeps indicating that he wants to tell Rey something and it's obviously making him uncomfortable to talk about in front of others. J.J. Abrams has already confirmed that it is NOT that he loves her and it's clear later that the feeling wouldn't have been reciprocated if that had been the case. If you hadn't already guessed, Finn is Force-sensitive and that is what he wants to tell Rey. The way he used the lightsaber in "The Force Awakens" indicated as much and "The Rise of Skywalker" shows that his connection with the Force has grown. Could we see Finn training as a Jedi in the future? Kylo continues his attempts to lure Rey to the dark side. She reveals(not to Kylo) that she is afraid because she has seen herself on the throne ruling the First Order. Kylo also tells her, in a particularly strong communication while she is in his quarters trying to steal a Sith Wayfinder, that her parents were nobody because they chose to be that. He reveals to her that she is the granddaughter of Emperor Palpatine. It is something she suspected but didn't want to face. He pushes her after his Knights of Ren kidnap Chewy and she blasts Force lightning at the ship. She thinks she killed Chewy, but it's revealed later that he was on another transport. The thought that she killed Chewy drives her until they are reunited. Rey has a vision (and I'm sure we've all seen the trailer with the black cloaked Rey and the duel-bladed saber) of herself as a Sith. It terrifies her and she battles the vision. She realizes that she won't give in to the darkness inside because she doesn't want to live that way. In her encounter with Kylo he asks her again if they were to meet, if she would take his hand and join him. She tells him no, but she would've taken Ben's hand. Very interesting... They do meet again on the moon Kef Bir in the Endor system when Rey travels there to find the second Sith Wayfinder. Why is the Wayfinder important? It leads to Exegol, the last holdout of the Sith and where Emperor Palpatine is hiding. Don't be mad that he's back. If you've read the now non-canon books, Palpatine had numerous clones so it is perfectly plausible that he would have had one stashed with his followers, which by now there are many hidden away on Exegol. A simple act of kindness by Rey toward Kylo, after she kicks his ass, brings him around. He sheds the Kylo Ren persona but she doesn't get to see the product of her sacrifice until she's on Exegol. She does lead the resistance there to combat the Sith fleet build up. Rey confronts her grandfather and when she won't strike him down to take his place, he is resigned to kill her. Enter Ben Solo (yay!) and their connection in the Force. Rey passes him a lightsaber. Didn't I mention she has two? She was given Leia's after Rey returned to Ajan Kloss. I know what you're thinking... again, Leia, in the now non-canon books, trained as a Jedi with her brother and was quite good but never up the the same standard as Luke. Her skills in the Force are what made her an excellent diplomat for the New Republic. So, Rey passes Kylo Luke's lightsaber through their weird Force connection. He beats the crap out of his former Knights of Ren and makes his way up to Rey where their life force is drained away by Palpatine. Good stuff, because it looks like all is lost as the resistance, who were hanging their hopes on Chewy, Lando, and a message broadcasting from the Falcon to bring others to their aid, are in danger of losing everything. Reinforcements arrive but not before giving General Finn his moment. You see, Finn and some Stormtrooper deserters he found on Kef Bir storm the Sith command ship (which is in atmosphere and can't take off without a departure signal along with the rest of the fleet). They do so on creatures native to Kef Bir causing confusion on the bridge when General Pryde orders the speeders the resistance is using to be fired on. Finn pauses when he feels Rey "die" but she isn't as dead at Palpatine thinks. More on that in a moment... Finn and Jannah end up destroying the array that is broadcasting the launch signal but Finn knows they have to destroy the whole ship. Finn sends everyone back to the lander and Jannah refuses to go. She knows that it's a two person job. They do indeed destroy the ship, but Poe and the lander can't get to them in time. Enter the Falcon with Chewy and Lando! As well as reinforcements! Finn and Jannah get scooped up. Back to Rey... she makes her way to Ben and it appears to be too late. But... the caring and kind person she is, sacrifices herself to give Ben a chance. They kiss and she collapses, dead. Again, Finn feels this and in a moment of "OMG No!!!!" you can see the devastation on his face. However, Ben is having none of that and uses her trick (by the way... again, non-canon books have had Jedi using life-saving techniques like that on themselves. Usually, they go into a Force-induced healing trance.) to give her back her own life force. He recognized that she was too important to the future of the Jedi, more important than he is. He brings her back and fades away. Leia's body, which has been lying "in State" at the resistance camp, also vanishes. The resistance has won the day! Rey returns to where it all started, a planet on the outer rim with twin suns called Tatooine. There, she buries the lightsabers of her mentors. She had learned that Luke and Leia both knew that she was the granddaughter of Palpatine but she doesn't hold that against them. She's asked what her name is by a youngling and she said Rey. The child asks what her family name is and she hesitates, then answers Skywalker as the Force ghosts of Luke and Leia smile at her. So, I like what J.J. Abrams and Chris Terrio did with the story. I like that they gave Rey a choice to change her destiny. She could have remained a Palpatine, a name that still struck fear in hearts throughout the galaxy, but she chose to go with Skywalker, the name of her mentors on her path to becoming a Jedi. How they handled Carrie Fisher's sudden death was respectful as she was a major player in the original script for episode IX. How they handled her scenes was also very respectful. I will tell you, if you've grown up with Princess Leia as I have, there were almost as many tears when she died on screen as there were tears when Carrie Fisher passed. Was this the best movie of the Skywalker saga? No. Was it adequate for this fan and her daughter? Yes. We loved it. It wrapped things up while leaving an opening for a future with Rey, Jannah, Finn, Poe and the Droids. We could see Chewy again as the Falcon does now belong to Rey. Will we see more features? Who knows. With Disney+, we may see more TV shows for characters like they've done with Marvel. Go see the film. It is worth it!
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AuthorCollege graduate, Army vet, single mom, Husky mom, Movie lover, writer Archives
August 2022
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