Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker… One Last Journey to a Galaxy Far Far Away (Movie Review)
Guys… this is it! The last stop! The final installment! The ending to one of the most, if not the most, prolific franchises on this earth! I know I’m being a bit dramatic, but like I said guys… this is it! Since the debut of Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) many had speculated where the new sequel trilogy would go? Although upon viewing Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) many figured that the new trilogy would follow suit of the first trilogy, given that the film had “A New Hope” vibes going for it. Many believed that the second installment in the trilogy would be reminiscent of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980), which it was, but not in the way everyone expected. Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) was subversive and polarizing which put the new trilogy in an odd position. Despite this conundrum everyone wanted to know what was going to happen knowing that JJ Abrams was going to take back the helm. Well now that we have the scrolling text out of the way let’s take off!
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) is an action/adventure/fantasy directed by, the man who started off the new trilogy, J.J. Abrams. The film is also written by Abrams and few others like Chris Terrio, writer of Argo (2012) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), and, lastly, Derek Connolly and Colin Trevorrow, the writers of Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) and Jurassic World (2015). The film stars Carrie Fisher (archive footage), Mark Hamill, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Anthony Daniels, Naomi Ackie, Domhnall Gleeson, Richard E. Grant, Lupita Nyong’o, Keri Russell, Joonas Suotamo, Kelly Marie Tran and the dreaded Emperor Palpatine himself, played by Ian McDiarmid! Big cast! Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) is produced by J.J. Abrams, Kathleen Kennedy, and Michelle Rejwan. This is a huge film and an even larger part of a story dating back to 1977 with the first film Star Wars: A New Hope (1977). So the question on everyone’s mind is does it stack up? Is it the perfect ending to such an epic tale from a galaxy far far away? Stay tuned!
I was first introduced to Star Wars back when I was a much younger Corey. I enjoyed the first trilogy, but didn’t remember a whole lot. I was a preteen when the episodes I-III came out and was excited to see some Star Wars again like many others. They came out… and they were okay. Since the lack of enthusiasm around the film side of Lucas’s reprisal of the franchise there have been tons of additions to the lore of Star Wars whether it be through video games, books, or even animated television shows. As we all know in 2015 Star Wars came back with J.J. Abrams’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). Everyone was so glad to welcome Star Wars back to the big screen! I do admit even I was happy to see Star Wars come back.. I was never a mega fan, but loved Star Wars nonetheless. While I gave a pass on Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), as many others did, I have to admit that Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) was not one of myfavorites, granted except for a few parts… the anime scene… you know the one. So when it came to the final installment, the last in the new trilogy, I was just hoping it would be better than Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) and a suitable ending to such a beloved franchise. Luckily my prayers were answered! Albeit from a few parts, I really enjoyed Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)!
Let’s talk about it!
So we start off with, a now, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren (Driver) carving his way through the galaxy in search of the villainous Emperor Palpatine (McDiarmid). Upon Ren’s discovery Emperor Palpatine orders the death of the Jedi named Rey (Ridley). Meanwhile Rey and her compatriots, Po (Isaac), Finn (Boyega), C-3PO (Daniels), Bb-8 and a few others are tasked with finding the Emperor from the old wars and to vanquish him and his fleet of destroyers before the galaxy becomes shrouded in darkness… forever. Abrams returning to the director’s chair was a palette cleanser for me as opposed to Johnson’s directorial style. I do enjoy a twist and turn here and there, but not just thrown all over the place for fun. Though things can get a bit predictable in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) I was still drawn into the film with everything happening on screen. The characters felt stronger to me and I enjoyed the interactions they got to share while together on screen. The visuals are always as good as always, along with a few stylized shots for real cinematic bliss! The ending is very satisfying in my opinion. Could it have been better maybe a little, but I’m just glad it wasn’t terrible. This one is a win for me!
All in all this is a great ending to a trilogy that and eve overall story that could have been overblown and dull. There are a few detail in the film that get glossed over and may feel like they come out of nowhere, but I don’t feel like they detract too much from what we are seeing on screen. Overall this is a theater going experience. They landed on their feet with this one! Go get your tickets, folks!
