Movie Report Card: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Date: 12/20/19
Title: Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker
Director: J.J. Abrams
Starring: Daisy Ridley, Oscar Isaac, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Naomi Ackie, Anthony Daniels, Carrie Fisher

GRADES

ACTING: 85
DIRECTING: 75
SCREENPLAY: 65
EDITING: 85
CINEMATOGRAPHY: 95
SOUNDTRACK: 100

FINAL: 84/B

COMMENTS

I have to wonder if J.J. Abrams, asked himself once the final cut of The Rise of Skywalker was completed, "How did I get here?" I lived through the Special Edition era of Star Wars. I lived through the prequel era of Star Wars. The Disney era of Star Wars, has been a weird one. Set aside the standalone films for a moment. I know people really like The Last Jedi. I am not one of them. The more I watch that film, the more I hate it. I think J.J., hated it from the beginning. The Rise of Skywalker feels like a desperate attempt to course correct into the story that J.J., wanted to tell from the start. Throw in the tragic, untimely, death of Carrie Fisher, and all bets were off. The story here is rocky. Things are rushed during the first half, especially the dynamic between Rey and Leia. It's obvious this entire trilogy had a different trajectory in mind; or no trajectory at all, if you want to be really cynical about it. However, I can see the seeds of what J.J. really wanted to do. And then there is everything else that happens. There are enormous leaps that are attempted, and you're either going to buy them, or not. Despite some of the rocky story, I found myself really enjoying this. Somehow, the film still finds a way to be immensely entertaining. I even really like Rey, whom I haven't been a big fan of as a character. Things are done to Kylo Ren, that I didn't think I would ever buy either, but still somehow worked for me. The entire cast is solid here. The film still works as a whole. How you gravitate towards it, will depend on how you feel about the other two I think. If you liked the direction of The Last Jedi, you will probably hate this. And if you're willing to forgive some of the leaps, you will probably like this. Setting all of that aside, I do like some of the crazy insanity that's going on in the third act of this film. And I still think overall, it's a satisfying end to this trilogy. I had a lot of fun with it. The flick's clumsiness is glaring though, and that's a shame. We've come a long way since the nostalgia bait of The Force Awakens. I never thought we would end up here. Oh, and John Williams is the real hero here.