The surviving Resistance faces the First Order once again as the journey of Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron continues. With the power and knowledge of generations behind them, the final battle begins.
WHAT I LIKED: Rian Johnson’s ‘The Last Jedi,’ was all about Rey and Luke learning from the Jedi’s past mistakes and rejecting absolutes. But, in the end, it still descended into a classic battle between the First Order and the Resistance after Kylo Ren refused Rey’s offer of a peaceful new alliance.
JJ Abrams’ ‘The Rise of Skywalker,’ is often seen as a retread of all of that, but it actually picks up exactly where things left off. Kylo still wants to rule the galaxy with Rey, and she still wants to impart her newfound perspective by partnering with him to bring about a new kind of balance and peace. That lingering “will they wont they,” question is the very heart of the story here, and when Kylo mercifully relents to Rey’s wish at the end, it results in the perfect thematic conclusion to the trilogy. The black and white days of the Sith and the Jedi are over as Rey, the one remaining Jedi, carries forward both the light and the dark – orange lightsaber and all.
The big difference between this film and its predecessor isn’t the themes, then, but the fact that Abrams isn’t afraid to indulge in the emotional sincerity of his story.
Rey’s position in particular feels like a real struggle here, and that’s not only because it’s never undermined by ridiculous jokes, but also because Daisy Ridley is given room to emote the weight of her responsibilities. The fate of the resistance lies on her shoulders. None of her friends understand that she’s trying to carry forward Luke’s legacy by partnering with Kylo. And all the while Kylo Ren is in her head saying her birth-given fate is to rule the galaxy alongside him as a Sith.
It's a brilliantly acted, conflicted central journey which also has the added benefit of making the moments Rey shares with her resistance colleagues and mentors, and indeed any human moments she manages to reach with Kylo, feel like a genuine solace.
That means this film succeeds not only in the theme department, but in the character one too, and the result is largely an emotionally satisfying conclusion to the saga.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE: That said, there are a lot of annoying tangents within the plot which surely will have even the least cynical members of the audience rolling their eyes. For one, Palpatine’s return feels rushed, perfunctory, and arguably completely unnecessary. Then there’s the fact that the plotting revolves around various silly macguffins which have Rey and her friends criss-crossing from one corner of the galaxy to the other. Plus, there are a good number of cameos and reveals which feel completely unearned and even laughable.
VERDICT: It may be flawed, but ‘The Rise of Skywalker,’ isn’t the retread that many make it out to be. In fact, as far as I’m concerned, it’s a thematically satisfying and emotionally resonant conclusion to the saga.
