Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Movie Review - Fan Satisfaction!

In Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Rey (Daisy Ridley) is training with General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) to be an accomplished Jedi while Kylo Ren/Ben Solo (Adam Driver) continues attacking innocent worlds and killing Rebels.

Leia comforts ReyCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Emperor Palpatine is alive and promises Kylo he will rule the galaxy if he can just find and kill “the girl” so the Jedi will be wiped out. Poe (Oscar Issac), Chewy (Joonas Suotamo) and Finn (John Boyega) are aboard the Falcon and rush to tell Leia that there is a Rebel spy inside the evit First Order.

Rey spots Kylo on the horizonCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

It is learned that Palpatine and his generals are building the ultimate Final Order attack fleet with planet killer guns on all ships. Step by step, the Rebels must find the location of the secret base and destroy the killer fleet but Will Kylo stop them and what is Rey’s true destiny?

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Trailer

He Has Returned

One year after the last film, Kylo Ren obtains a Star Wars style GPS device called a Sith Wayfinder that leads him to the planet Exegol where he finds the physically impaired Emperor Palpatine alive. Palpatine reveals that he created Snoke as a puppet to control the First Order and lure Kylo to the dark side. Now he is preparing a secret fleet of Star Destroyers with planet killing capability and tells Kylo to find Rey, who is continuing her Jedi training under General Leia Organa.

General Pryde prepares the Star DestroyersCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Meanwhile, Finn, Poe, and Chewbacca learn about Palpatine’s return from a Rebel spy inside the First Order. Rey re-joins the team and finds notes in Luke’s Jedi texts about a Sith dagger that will provide key info. So the friends plus BB-8 and C-3PO leave to search for this dagger. R2-D2 stays with Leia.

BB-8 and a new friendCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

So Has Lando

On Passanna, Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams) leads the heroes to the dagger’s last known location in the desert. Through her “visions” and the Force bond between Kylo and Rey, he learns where she is and travels to Passanna with his Knights of Ren. Rey and the others discover the remains of a Sith assassin, his ship, and a dagger inscribed with Sith text, which C-3PO's programming forbids him from interpreting.

Lando and Chewy fly the FalconCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Sensing that Kylo is nearby, Rey goes to confront him while the First Order captures the Falcon, Chewbacca, and the dagger; Rey, attempting to save Chewbacca while Force fighting with Kylo, accidentally destroys a First Order transport with her great power. The group escapes on the assassin's ship, presuming Chewbacca was killed in the explosion.

Kylo must make a tough decisionCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Shocking Revelation

Poe has an old girlfriend on Kijimi, Zorii Bliss (Keri Russell) who can help get the Sith text extracted from C-3PO’s memory. 3PO is willing to have his memory wiped if it saves the rebellion. This provides the location to a Wayfinder device on Endor leading to Palpatine's location. Rey senses Chewbacca is alive, and the group is off on a rescue mission.

Finn sees Chewy capturedCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

While Kylo searches for Rey, the pals infiltrate his Star Destroyer with the help of Zorii. Through the Force, Kylo tells Rey a shocking truth about her past and origin. Rey recovers the dagger and has visions of the assassin using it to kill her parents. General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson) discovers the group and reveals he’s the spy. He allows them to escape on the Falcon, but is executed for treason. Kijimi is destroyed as a show of force.

Zorii and Poe make plansCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Remains of the Death Star

On to Endor where Rey and friends find an escaped former Stormtrooper, Jannah (Naomi Ackie) who leads them to the remains of the second Death Star. Rey uses the dagger to locate the Wayfinder and, upon touching it, she sees herself as a Sith leader. Kylo finds the good guys, destroys the Wayfinder and he and Rey have a big lightsaber battle ending with Rey taking his ship.

Finn tries to protect Rey on the Death Star remnantCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Frightened by the vision and more, she exiles herself on Ahch-To where Luke lived so long but his spirit appears and convinces Rey to face Palpatine as he once faced Darth Vader. He provides her with Leia's lightsaber and his old X-wing. Rey leaves for Exegol, using the Wayfinder on Kylo's ship.

Kylo and Rey's extreme battleCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Outcome?

Will Rey defeat Palpatine and his plans for an ultimate Final Order? What side is Kylo Ren really on? Can enough Rebels be assembled to do any good against the fleet of killer Star Destroyers? Who is Rey really and what is her destiny? Who will live and who will perish? And how will a Skywalker “Rise”?

Rey faces the evil Sith EmperorCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Wrapping Up

The Rise of Skywalker is a term with many meanings as you will discover. We saw the film in 3D which is effective but, to me, always washes out a movie visually a bit. It was thrilling to see the familiar beginning crawl and those title Star Wars words appear yet again on screen.

The friends gather at a Rebel strongholdCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

If there is a theme to this saga wrap-up it is to “Never be afraid of who you are” as Rey and others must learn. There are lessons in teamwork and “family” that might warm your heart and a few emotional bombshells and reveals that match the power of a Star Destroyer’s planet killer weapons.

Stormtroopers give chaseCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

The pacing of the movie is crisp and quick with a few pauses for emotional more personal scenes skillfully woven throughout. Humor is still there as well and it is mostly achieved on the fly as our heroes are always on the search or on the run. The feel of the film is more like “A New Hope” with an updated “look” and that’s not bad.

Poe drives the gang to safetyCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

The plot isn’t all that original with the good guys off on yet another search and destroy mission but the fans in our audience cheered every time an old friend appeared or a little “Easter Egg” tribute to SW films caught their eye. The gang is indeed all here and that includes some past favorites you might not expect.

Ex Stormtrooper JannahCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

SPFX are pretty amazing with a favorite being a huge-waved ocean housing part of the destroyed Death Star providing visual thrills. The musical score makes heavy use of much-loved, familiar themes and that too is full-circle effective.

Rey and Kylo battle it outCourtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

Tears and cheers were experienced by old and new fans alike in our audience as the saga comes full circle in more ways than one. Some might think the basic plot is too simplistic but fans should be satisfied that most of the holes are filled, questions answered and character arcs completed.

Can our heroes stop the power of the Final Order?Courtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

As a long-time fan, I left feeling a mix of sadness at a big part of my film-going life ending but satisfied that, for the most part, the Force was indeed with this last installment of the saga. We award four stars.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Movie Rating: 

Courtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.

See Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in theaters now!

How Do You Feel?

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By: Lynn Barker