The Force Will Always Be With Me: A Rise of Skywalker Review.

Well. This is it. Rise of Skywalker. The end of the saga.

I don’t envy the position JJ Abrams was in. Not only did he have to wrap up a storyline some 40 years in the making, he had to course correct from the Last Jedi. I wish he hadn’t. While I wish he hadn’t, I understand that Disney is here to make money, and Last Jedi was divisive so the likelyhood they’d follow up on what it laid down was slim.

But man, at least then we may have gotten something a little less predictable.

This is the part where I tell you I think Rise of Skywalker is fine. I had fun with it in parts. I like the characters and their chemistry, I LOVE the world and I’m even more or last satisfied with where everyone ends up. But how we got there was a two hour bumpy ride that spends more time looking back than moving forward.

Rise of Skywalker is messy. It’s over two hours and yet still we’re rushing, going full throttle to get everyone established and in place to kick off the adventure. Rey is training. Kylo is searching. [Redacted] is back. Rose is here(and deserves better). And It doesn’t really slow down from there. Rarely do we pause to let moments sink in before we fly off to another planet, for another item for the quest. Emotional beats sometimes feel cut short, revelations don’t have the same weight, because we are light skipping towards the end like Poe in the Falcon( that’s a reference for the folks who saw the movie).

But at the same time I had fun. I like these characters, and when they’re all together it certainly feels like Star Wars. It’s fun, bright and energetic. Daisy, John and Oscar have great chemistry together and have really made these characters their own. I wish the movie had taken more time with this core, cuz there’s a lot to work with on that angle. Carrie Fisher’s last performance as Leia was equally good, as good as can be expected given her untimely death. Adam Driver continues to be fantastic as Kylo Ren, who is the Anakin the people deserve and the humor was good. When the movie hits it hits, the saber fights are exciting and the space battles feel big. The score plays the familiar notes and you lean back and you feel it in your chest. It is a Star Wars movie, for better or worse. 

I think my biggest issue with Rise is that it’s predictable which, given how much I liked the subversive Last Jedi, was the greatest sin the movie could’ve committed. I was never surprised by Rise, it never took a turn I didn’t expect. And I wanted it too, I waited for it, but it stuck to its guns. Like I said, I don’t really fault JJ for that. It is what it is. Just not all of what I wanted.

The Rise of Skywalker is not a bad way to cap off this saga. It has the heart of a Star Wars, the emotion and themes of redemption and balance that the franchise has been come to be known for. It doesn’t hit every note it set out to, but ultimately it is not a bad close to the franchise I have loved for so long. As a long time fan, in the moment, I feel conflicted. With time to let it settle, I think I’ll come qroube more.

But this won’t be the end for Star Wars. Not even close. There will be other worlds to see, new ideas to exlore. Because after all…

Look at this dork and his hat.

The Force will be with us. Always.