For much of my life, I saw Return of the Jedi as the end of Star Wars, at least outside of the EU. When I saw The Force Awakens in 2015, I was excited to see Star Wars return to theaters for the first time since the prequels, but The Last Jedi diminished that enthusiasm, and this film ultimately extinguished it.
The film is about the conclusion of the war between the Resistance and the First Order, a war that involves the return of an old enemy, as well as some old friends. Without spoiling too much, some plot threads from the previous film are taken to their logical conclusion, while others are abruptly dropped or retconned away(for example, Rey's parents aren't actually "nobody"). Somewhat similarly, while many significant characters die in this film, it shies away from killing off others, which can be disappointing. Other characters, particularly Finn and Rose, are highly underutilized. The directorship going from J.J. Abrams to Rian Johnson and back definitely shows in the dissonance between The Last Jedi and the two adjacent installments.
This isn't to say that the film doesn't have its strong points. The action sequences are as exciting as always. It's nice to see the film do something with Leia being a Jedi, apart from her highly controversial use of the Force in the previous film. While Rey had been accused of being a Mary Sue in previous installments, here, her feats of heroism come off as earned, rather than given to her. It's also nice to see many familiar faces and locales one last time; say what you will about the ending, but it does feel like a Grand Finale to the saga.
While there were many things I enjoyed about this film, as I mentioned above, after I left the theater, my mind kept going back to the things I didn't like, and the parts that I thought didn't make sense. In the end, Rise of Skywalker has its merits as a film, but they will likely be overshadowed by its flaws, cementing its status as a disappointing end to an iconic film saga.
Disappointing (Mostly spoiler-free)
For much of my life, I saw Return of the Jedi as the end of Star Wars, at least outside of the EU. When I saw The Force Awakens in 2015, I was excited to see Star Wars return to theaters for the first time since the prequels, but The Last Jedi diminished that enthusiasm, and this film ultimately extinguished it.
The film is about the conclusion of the war between the Resistance and the First Order, a war that involves the return of an old enemy, as well as some old friends. Without spoiling too much, some plot threads from the previous film are taken to their logical conclusion, while others are abruptly dropped or retconned away(for example, Rey's parents aren't actually "nobody"). Somewhat similarly, while many significant characters die in this film, it shies away from killing off others, which can be disappointing. Other characters, particularly Finn and Rose, are highly underutilized. The directorship going from J.J. Abrams to Rian Johnson and back definitely shows in the dissonance between The Last Jedi and the two adjacent installments.
This isn't to say that the film doesn't have its strong points. The action sequences are as exciting as always. It's nice to see the film do something with Leia being a Jedi, apart from her highly controversial use of the Force in the previous film. While Rey had been accused of being a Mary Sue in previous installments, here, her feats of heroism come off as earned, rather than given to her. It's also nice to see many familiar faces and locales one last time; say what you will about the ending, but it does feel like a Grand Finale to the saga.
While there were many things I enjoyed about this film, as I mentioned above, after I left the theater, my mind kept going back to the things I didn't like, and the parts that I thought didn't make sense. In the end, Rise of Skywalker has its merits as a film, but they will likely be overshadowed by its flaws, cementing its status as a disappointing end to an iconic film saga.