Star Wars will always create divisiveness among its fans, but for all my problems with the story, characters and direction of the trilogy, I found myself satisfied with the conclusion of the films, and especially, the Rey/Kylo Ren relationship. The Rise of Skywalker may not be perfect and live up to the impossible standards we set, but if you can, in the words of Yoda 'let go your feelings', you may find some enjoyment from this final installment.
“Lucasfilm and director J.J. Abrams join forces once again to take viewers on an epic journey to a galaxy far, far away with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the riveting conclusion of the seminal Skywalker saga, where new legends will be born and the final battle for freedom is yet to come.”
Star Wars fans are hard to please. Not impossible, as The Mandalorian is a prime example of, but almost, especially if it has to do with messing with the films we all grew up loving. Our lack of trust most likely stems from George Lucas’ meddling, adding things where they weren’t needed, and changing them where they were definitely not welcomed. Feel as you might about J.J. Abrams after The Force Awakens, but I for one was thrilled to see anyone back in the director’s chair besides Rian Johnson. Trying to put all my personal feelings and biases aside, I went back and watched the entire film series before diving back into this film, just to see if it changed my perspective from when I saw it in theaters. The short answer: yes, it did.
Well, where to begin?
Even with The Force Awakens, I remember my issues with the film not even being that it was too similar to what we’ve already seen, or some sense of betrayal that some fans felt. Mine was all based on the characters, what I feel were legitimate criticisms at the time. This saga was going to take us on a journey of not just the protagonist, but explore each character with the same care and consideration that would normally be reserved for the main character. At the time it was a bit hard to fathom all these characters coalescing in their perspective story arcs, especially the fact that Kylo Ren, the supposed new Darth Vader who we are supposed to fear, was fairly easily beaten by Rey who basically just picked up a light saber for the first time. I didn’t see it at the time, but it was a story arc for Ren which culminates in his decisions in the final film, something I was able to appreciate much more now the saga is completed. My point being, if this care is going to be taken over the span of three films, then why, oh why would Disney let someone come in and change course the way they did on The Last Jedi? The Rise of Skywalker does its best to steer the course back on track, but definitely spends way too much time trying to correct the mistakes of the previous film, pulling focus from some of the other characters that may have made a bigger impact on the story had they got their moment.
For The Rise of Skywalker, these character deficiencies that have been carrier over from the course of the previous film have a large impact on the story.
Rey is undoubtedly the focus of the films and the most developed character in the new trilogy, despite the fact she was side-railed a bit. It’s an easy fix with a quick line of dialogue undoing the direction Rian Johnson went, making Rey’s lineage meaningless. I respect what he was trying to do, show that you don’t need a powerful background to stand up to tyranny, but in the scope of the Star Wars saga it’s not the right decision, especially when they already have Finn playing that role. I enjoyed what they did in this film with her, especially her relationship with Kylo Ren which over the span of the three films I thought culminated into something beautiful.
What I said about Rey being the most developed character in the new trilogy, scratch that, thinking about the journey of Kylo Ren and his struggle with Ben Solo inside of him is just as focused on, if not more so than Rey’s journey. My issues with this character in the first film are easily dismissed as his story arc changes and makes the character of Kylo Ren one that I really found myself enjoying by the end of the saga. From starting off as a spoiled brat with a temper tantrum, the horrific act he commits the first film, then the obstacles he overcomes in dealing with that just won me over in the end, making him probably my favorite character in the trilogy, which is strange because at the beginning he was my least. If The Rise of Skywalker does anything right, it’s the conclusion of Kylo Ren’s journey.
Finn, despite being one of the ‘main’ characters, is the biggest mess of all, and never really found his stride in any of the films. There was a lot of potential with this character, and I especially liked John Boyega from Attack the Block. The whole ‘anyone can rise up’ theme is indeed prevalent in this new trilogy, showing that a lowly Stormtrooper can become a large part of the resistance and not a mindless automaton. However, none of the films really gave Finn a focus. Was he in love with Rey? Rose? This new fellow ex-Stormtrooper Jannah? He’s literally all over the place in every film, condemned with dialogue that mainly consists of yelling people’s names.
Some of the minor characters in the trilogy that ended up gutted due to lack of consistency being: General Hux. Poor Domhnall Gleeson, given the chance to become a pretty cool First Order villain, sentenced to the comic relief by Rian Johnson, then a head scratching turn in The Rise of Skywalker. A real missed opportunity here. There was a lot of criticism for Rose being benched for the last film, and honestly, I didn’t mind this. I absolutely loathed her and Finn’s storyline on the gambling planet of the last film, and kind of hate her for saving Finn’s life, as I think he should have died in The Last Jedi, to give his character some kind of meaning in the trilogy. Now, I even hesitated to think this, but there are just too many droids in The Rise of Skywalker. Despite everyone’s love of most Star Wars created droids in every story, we already had BB-8, R2-D2, and C-3PO, and now you’re going to introduce another? D-O was an interesting plot point, but to have an army of droids running along behind you in the story is just distracting, especially the forced C-3PO comedy which admittedly isn’t half as bad as the Battle Droid conveyor belt in Attack of the Clones.
The story may not be exactly what everyone was hoping for, but it does hold a lot of heart. You can tell which sequences they had to create around what footage they had left of Carrie Fisher, but what they do with it and the ending they craft for her character is extremely heartwarming and does justice to her memory. One of my favorite moments comes from another surprise appearance by one of the original cast, you know the one I’m talking about, and brings a tear to my eye every time I watch it. The dialogue especially in that sequence is incredibly well written, calling back to one of the more famous lines from Empire Strikes Back.
Although I think there are a lot of things that could have been done differently in this new trilogy, re-watching the entire saga really did make me more accepting of some of the things I didn’t like. The Rise of Skywalker may not fix everything of the trilogy and give people the sense of closure they wanted, but it does give us a beautiful film filled with more of this universe that we all grew up loving, and I’ll take that over nothing any day.
Video
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is presented in 2160p 4k Ultra High Definition Widescreen 2.39:1 with HDR. I honestly think this could be the most visually stunning film in the entire saga, and seeing this in 4k is a definite must. There are some breathtaking sequences, like the Moon of Endor battle sequence against the towering waves. There also might not be another better example of the rich, vibrant colors that High Dynamic Range can offer than this film, as there are so many different locations: the desert, ocean, lush forest, etc. Everything about this film looks perfect.
Audio
The audio is presented in Dolby Atmos, another stunning feature of the film. Balance is done incredibly well between the surrounds and center channel, and you’ll be sure to get a workout on those surrounds and atmos speakers, as Stormtroopers and ships fly overhead, blaster fire, lightsaber effects, all sound like you’re immersed in the action. You can’t forget about the brilliant score by John Williams, which wouldn’t be a Star Wars film without him. I don’t know if he can ever top Duel of the Fates, but nevertheless the track is indeed impressive.
Special Features
There are a ton of extras located on the Blu-Ray disc, hours of material to dive into.
- The Skywalker Legacy Documentary
- Pasaana Pursuit: Creating the Speeder Chase
- Aliens in the Desert
- D-O: Key to the Past
- Warwick & Son
- Cast of Creatures
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker had a hard time recovering from the direction of the previous film. Although there are so many similarities to the conclusion of the original trilogy, the biggest thing to come from this film is the conclusion of two of the main characters, Rey and Kylo Ren, and in that aspect I think it was a success. I wish some things were different, as I’m sure many others do, but the beauty of the characters that are well done, and the visually stunning sequences of the film win out overall for me. We’ll see where the franchise continues from this point, but I for one am excited to see the possibilities.
