Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Getting thoughts out on the page as fast as I can:

• I love Rey.  I think she’s my favorite Star Wars character, and it’s not even close.  So much of it has to do with Daisy Ridley’s performance. She imbues Rey with so much humanity and emotion, I can’t even.
• Was that a WEDGE ANTILLES cameo???  Woots!
• On the other hand, Lando was unnecessary but fine.
• I blame JJ Abrams for everything that’s wrong with this movie, and there’s plenty wrong.
• The action scenes are poorly filmed.  Kylo and Rey’s lightsaber duel on Endor lacked any kind of visceral excitement.  (Though I did really think that Kylo was going to lop off her hand.)
• There are so many plot holes and things that don’t make sense.
• The McGuffins are just plain stupid.  You’re telling me the Emperor had a dagger made with the coordinates of the compass engraved on the blade, forged in the shape of the skyline of the destroyed Death Star which will only work if the holder is standing in just the right place, which points to the throne room which is still pretty much impossible to get to?  And none of it matters because Rey just used the one from Kylo Ren’s ship after two hours of movie.
• CG young Leia and Luke.  Blech.
• Poe and Finn should have just kissed already.
• Kylo and Rey really shouldn’t have.  So unnecessary. There was so much between the two of them, the actors really sold that, but none of it ever felt romantic.  
• The plot was nonsensical.  Where did the Emperor get all of the resources to build that fleet?  Where did his followers come from? When did he have a son, and how did the son turn out to be so normal?
• Lightspeed jumping is pretty cool. 
• The main trio are fun together.
• Any poignancy in Threepio’s mindwipe was destroyed w/ his reboot.  Abrams made the same mistake resurrecting Kirk 5 minutes later in Star Trek 2.
• Disliked/hated all of Abrams’ retcons of Last Jedi, including Rey’s parentage, happy Luke ghost, and shunting Rose to the side.  
• The arrival of every ship in the galaxy at the end of the final battle was eyerollingly bad.  As were the horse charge, the Emperor’s lightning storm, and Hux’s random betrayal and throwaway death.
• Moments that could have been powerful if Abrams’ hadn’t botched the execution: Han and Kylo, Leia connecting w/ Kylo, Leia’s death, and Kylo’s death.
• All that said, I loved the final scene.  It was completely obvious, but still worked in every way for me.  You don’t choose your family and your past, but you can still decide who you want to be, carry on for those who inspired you.  Ridley owns every moment of it, and the final shot of her looking at the binary suns with John Williams’ majestic score one last time salvaged (but didn’t save) an extremely problematic movie.  

Regret watching?  No

Would buy on DVD? No?

Would watch again?  Yes?

Rating: Fine (It’s still Star Wars.  It’s really hard for Star Wars to truly suck.)