The surviving Resistance faces the First Order once more in the final chapter of the Skywalker saga.
Doesn’t it feel like just yesterday that the first teaser trailer for The Force Awakens came out? A lot can change in just over 5 years, and that couldn’t be more true for the Star Wars universe. The new trilogy promised new characters and to finish what George Lucas started all those years ago, the proper send-off for the Skywalker family. The new trilogy has been all about family, finding out where you came from and who you truly are. This wasn’t just a Skywalker story, it was just a small piece in something much greater. Ever since this new trilogy was announced, it has divided fans like no other fandom, and to no surprise here, this conclusion will be something discussed for many years to come. Rise of Skywalker ultimately fails to deliver a proper send-off and is without a doubt the biggest disappointment for a Star Wars movie ever.
This is it, don’t get scared now. The final curtain call for the Skywalker family. Everything has been building for this moment. So many questions, so few answers us fans have gotten. There’s always hope in the Star Wars universe, no matter the stakes, no matter how tall of a task, hope is what propels these characters forward, no matter how difficult the circumstances may be. After the events of The Last Jedi and the death of Luke, the Resistance is looking towards a new savior, a new hero, Rey. Is she able to muster up the strength necessary to lead them to victory or will her enemy/friend Kylo Ren stand in her way?
This is an early review, so spoiler-free. Seeing how this is the grand conclusion to one of the most beloved stories in the history of cinema, it kind of felt rushed? Lacklustre, almost sloppy at times. When they decided to bring back Star Wars, it’s shocking that they didn’t have a better overall concrete story put in place. There is plenty of action, space battles, a Mad Max Fury Road inspired desert case. But at the end of the day, it just wasn’t enough to save the messy story, and it just felt like one long quest to find the missing piece of the puzzle. The best part about Star Wars is the lightsaber, one of the coolest weapons ever created. Simply put, there’s just not enough in this final instalment. It what separates Star Wars from every other franchise and not having one last epic dual was disappointing.
Everyone is back for one last journey and the team unlike in The Last Jedi, is together for the majority of the film. Rey and Finn and Poe all play off each other so well, and it just felt right for Finn and Rey to be together because they really are the heart and soul of the new trilogy. They started this thing, it’s only fitting they try to end it together. There are a ton of surprises awaiting any fan, and seeing old but familiar faces is always a shot of nostalgia morphine.
At the end of the day, this felt more like The Force Awakens than The Last Jedi, obviously with JJ Abrams being back behind the camera that makes sense. Disney should have never had a different director come into the scene. Not because The Last Jedi isn’t a fantastic movie, but because of how different these two men and their styles clash at times. That is the biggest flaw in this whole thing. At times this just feels like a Force Awakens sequel rather than the conclusion to everything that came before it. One thing is certain, this didn’t feel like the proper ending for something that had been cooking for 40 years.
Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker = 45/100
