Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker deconstruction
The new movie is out, all rejoice! This is not really a review per se, more of just some impressions I got watching it. Stuff to like, stuff to scratch your head for. All around an entertaining chapter that fits with the films that came before it.
Obviously, spoilers ahead!
All right, let's get the weird stuff out of the way. I loved seeing this movie, but there were some things that struck me the wrong way. Maybe it was because it was different than I figured the arc was going? And maybe multiple viewings would change my mind? Anyway here goes:
1. Rey is a Palpatine? To be honest this feels forced (pun unintended but I'll keep it anyway). Yes, it makes narratively make sense to revisit Palpatine as a villain. He's the underlying threat of the previous trilogies, maneuvering the Jedi and the Separatists in 1 through 3 and the big bad with Vader on his leash in 4 through 6. But in 7 and 8 we've had not even a hint of him, and without build up this seems rushed to lob him in as the villain in episode 9. And then to add to that that Rey is the granddaughter of Palpatine really comes out of left field. Again, zero hints that Palpatine even had family in the previous movies. If anything, his presence is officious and detached. His only true fleshed-out relationships are with his apprentices, in which he tightly maintains dominance at all times. And we don't really learn anything about Rey's parents, it seems like it would be important to get a tiny bit more backstory. And the "proof" she's a Palpatine, that she has lots of power and suddenly lightning hands? Meh. I always saw that as an ability that could have been used by any Sith, or even a fallen Jedi. But what really bothers me is that as much as people try to shove aside Last Jedi, it had some strong things to show about Rey's character and I think this film kind of weakens it. The Last Jedi's stance is that who you are doesn't come from where you come from (i.e. a Skywalker or Solo) but from the choices you make. Sure, lots of other stories have said the same thing, but in Last Jedi you really feel how desperately Rey needs to know who she is and how close that despair of finding out she's a nobody comes to driving her down a dark path. Finding out she's descended of somebody, even an evil somebody, takes away some of the strength she gained in accepting that she was no one.
2. Reylo. If you're familiar with the word, it's a "ship" name, referring to fans' speculation over a romantic relationship between Rey and Kylo Ren. And we kind of see that come together briefly in this film. Which is OK, there's certainly a lot of fodder for this in the previous movies, so it does make sense that it should continue here. I think this one'll sit better with me in future viewings, it's just that it was reminding me that this dynamic was going in a different direction than maybe I would have gone. But what the heck, it certainly is less problematic than the "Luke and Leia are twins" reveal in Return of the Jedi. No near-incest for this trilogy!
3. I've got something to tell you! The hanging thread, the moment they're all sinking into the sands and Finn says he needs to tell Rey something. And then doesn't. It's even brought up later, a couple times, but apparently it wasn't important enough or relevant enough to this film to fill in the blank. My initial reading was to go for the obvious movie trope the "oh shit we're going to die, I need to declare my love somehow", but an interview with J.J. Abrams debunks that. Abrams says it was meant to be left ambiguous, but that his interpretation was that Finn was going to say that he's also Force-sensitive. Which we get hints at in this movie, vague "I know what to do" moments that also feel a bit out of the blue. Again the lack of build up. Even if this is explored in later films, this feels less like a purposeful cliffhanger and more like a "whaaaat?"
Embrace the silly side. Does it make sense to lead a cavalry charge across the surface of Star destroyer in low orbit? Or launch Stormtroopers with jet packs from space motorcycles? Does light-skipping even make sense? I don't know, and I don't really care because it wasn't taking itself too seriously and it was fun to watch. Ever Star Wars movie has those moments (yes, even the prequels), and I'm glad they keep it up. Just a reminder hard-core scifi nerds, this is space fantasy, space opera, wizards and knights in space weirdness.
Other awesome bits? Just a few anyway...
Wayfinder holocron. At last! A holocron-esque item featured as a Maguffin in a Star Wars film. Usually they're reserved for animated series, comics, and Extended universe obscurity.
The Knights of Ren. They didn't amount to a whole of screen time, but I'm glad they finally make a non-flashback appearance.
Lando cameo. Because we need the man who pulls off capes.
Cute D-O "Conehead" robot. When in doubt make a smaller, cuter robot.
Zorii Bliss' costume. I want to make this costume. I love the purple and gold, and that helmet is awesome.
Fight on the ruined Death Star. Love the visual of the hollowed out corpse of the Death Star. Love the Dark Rey confrontation. And of course an excellent, dramatic lightsaber battle.
Leia's lightsaber. I don't why it didn't strike me before, but I'm glad they showed us a bit of how Leia must have trained as a Jedi and even built her own lightsaber. Compared to other characters in the original trilogy, she's cast as the diplomat and strategist, but she's just as much as a warrior as the others and I'm glad they folded that in here.
Creepy Sith chanters. We don't see many Sith in the Star Wars films, they're the shadowy threat ready to show you how anyone can go to the Dark Side. I might get some flak on this, but I like that the ancient Sith a represented there, faceless, hollow, raspy voices whispering the back of your mind. In short, they were creepy and menacing as they should be.
We are the Jedi. Definitely made me smile to think of the spirits of all those Jedi with Rey in that final battle. Had fun picking out the voices.
Rey's yellow lightsaber. You have no idea how much I wanted a yellow lightsaber to become canon in something other than an animated spinoff series. And it makes sense for Rey's character and for the Star Wars series as a whole. Sure the lightsaber colors were originally created as an art and effects decision (originally they were going to be white), but over time they've developed into touchstones for the characters who made them. Blue is associated more with action-oriented paladin types (Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker), green for wise diplomats and mystics (Qui-Gon Jinn, Yoda), red for evil-doing Sith (Darth Maul, Vader, Sidious). Purple exists in the movies as an outlier only wielded by Mace Windu, though it's enough of a foothold to assume that it is a rare crystal for Jedi and that may be because Windu is known for tempering strong emotion into combat (usually frowned upon in the Jedi Order). Yellow had existed in canon as a ceremonial blade seen in Jedi gatekeepers and guards (a la Star Wars Rebels), but in the Extended Universe it is commonly used by a class of Jedi known as Sentinels. In short, they are a discipline of Jedi who offer balance between martial blue and passive green, while incorporating the skills of the galaxy's civilians. Considering that Rey is a new generation of Jedi and already a non-traditional sort, yellow seems like a fitting blade color for her. Also props to making it a saber hilt that embraces her scavenger origins.
Anyway, that's just some impressions of the new movie. High time to go see it again...
Obviously, spoilers ahead!
All right, let's get the weird stuff out of the way. I loved seeing this movie, but there were some things that struck me the wrong way. Maybe it was because it was different than I figured the arc was going? And maybe multiple viewings would change my mind? Anyway here goes:
1. Rey is a Palpatine? To be honest this feels forced (pun unintended but I'll keep it anyway). Yes, it makes narratively make sense to revisit Palpatine as a villain. He's the underlying threat of the previous trilogies, maneuvering the Jedi and the Separatists in 1 through 3 and the big bad with Vader on his leash in 4 through 6. But in 7 and 8 we've had not even a hint of him, and without build up this seems rushed to lob him in as the villain in episode 9. And then to add to that that Rey is the granddaughter of Palpatine really comes out of left field. Again, zero hints that Palpatine even had family in the previous movies. If anything, his presence is officious and detached. His only true fleshed-out relationships are with his apprentices, in which he tightly maintains dominance at all times. And we don't really learn anything about Rey's parents, it seems like it would be important to get a tiny bit more backstory. And the "proof" she's a Palpatine, that she has lots of power and suddenly lightning hands? Meh. I always saw that as an ability that could have been used by any Sith, or even a fallen Jedi. But what really bothers me is that as much as people try to shove aside Last Jedi, it had some strong things to show about Rey's character and I think this film kind of weakens it. The Last Jedi's stance is that who you are doesn't come from where you come from (i.e. a Skywalker or Solo) but from the choices you make. Sure, lots of other stories have said the same thing, but in Last Jedi you really feel how desperately Rey needs to know who she is and how close that despair of finding out she's a nobody comes to driving her down a dark path. Finding out she's descended of somebody, even an evil somebody, takes away some of the strength she gained in accepting that she was no one.
2. Reylo. If you're familiar with the word, it's a "ship" name, referring to fans' speculation over a romantic relationship between Rey and Kylo Ren. And we kind of see that come together briefly in this film. Which is OK, there's certainly a lot of fodder for this in the previous movies, so it does make sense that it should continue here. I think this one'll sit better with me in future viewings, it's just that it was reminding me that this dynamic was going in a different direction than maybe I would have gone. But what the heck, it certainly is less problematic than the "Luke and Leia are twins" reveal in Return of the Jedi. No near-incest for this trilogy!
3. I've got something to tell you! The hanging thread, the moment they're all sinking into the sands and Finn says he needs to tell Rey something. And then doesn't. It's even brought up later, a couple times, but apparently it wasn't important enough or relevant enough to this film to fill in the blank. My initial reading was to go for the obvious movie trope the "oh shit we're going to die, I need to declare my love somehow", but an interview with J.J. Abrams debunks that. Abrams says it was meant to be left ambiguous, but that his interpretation was that Finn was going to say that he's also Force-sensitive. Which we get hints at in this movie, vague "I know what to do" moments that also feel a bit out of the blue. Again the lack of build up. Even if this is explored in later films, this feels less like a purposeful cliffhanger and more like a "whaaaat?"
But it's easy to tear something down for its imperfections without looking at the all things it did right. I was excited the whole time, entertained the whole time, which means for its fault the story was still doing its job. So what were the parts I really appreciated?
Characters. One thing I really appreciate about this new trilogy is that it makes the planets and characters feel real again. George Lucas can talk all he wants about he was going for 1930s camp in the prequel trilogy and that that was why the characters were stiff, but the "style" of the script and character interactions didn't quite feel like real people. Part of the magic of the original trilogy was that our heroes were immediately likeable rebels and scoundrels, made possible by great banter and chemistry. All three of the new trilogy films get back to that feel.
World immersion. Also keeping in the choices of episode 7 and 8, we actually feel like we're in real places for the majority of the time. The prequels relied heavily on CGI, but these newer movies I think do a much better job of balancing the novelty of impossible planets with a grounded sense that these are real places with real people. In short, a better ratio of CGI to physical locations and practical effects. The names are hard to remember, but the jungles of Ajan Kloss, the colorful desert of Pasaana, the seedy underbelly of Kijimi, are all still much more concrete than Mustafar and Utapau from Revenge of the Sith. I think the only place in this movie that feels a little too detached from reality is the Sith throne room, but I think that actually works in its favor. The characters who enter there cross into the unknown, a place of the undead and sorcery, so it should feel cold and alien.
Action. I like the Falcon chase scene in the beginning, but I really love the speeder chase scene. Frenetic, shot like you're right there in the thick of it. It's thrilling and juggles the right amount of danger, humor, and drama. Even the less energetic scenes get that counterpoint, for example watching what we think is the troop carrier with Chewbacca on it nosediving. And plenty of lightsaber battles!
Embrace the silly side. Does it make sense to lead a cavalry charge across the surface of Star destroyer in low orbit? Or launch Stormtroopers with jet packs from space motorcycles? Does light-skipping even make sense? I don't know, and I don't really care because it wasn't taking itself too seriously and it was fun to watch. Ever Star Wars movie has those moments (yes, even the prequels), and I'm glad they keep it up. Just a reminder hard-core scifi nerds, this is space fantasy, space opera, wizards and knights in space weirdness.
Paying homage to the original trilogy. The Force Awakens is a love letter to the original movie, The Last Jedi echoes the crushing defeats and crises of Empire Strikes Back, and the Rise of Skywalker is a fond farewell like Return of the Jedi. Not that the franchise is over now (at least it better not be), but it allows the trilogy of trilogies some closure and gives some space for both spinoffs and new stories. Luke, Leia, and Han all make appearances, in ways that reincorporate better than you'd expect. After seeing the CGI weirdness of faux Leia in Rogue One, I was worried there would be a problem saying goodbye to Carrie Fisher in this movie but I think they pulled it off pretty well.
Other awesome bits? Just a few anyway...
Wayfinder holocron. At last! A holocron-esque item featured as a Maguffin in a Star Wars film. Usually they're reserved for animated series, comics, and Extended universe obscurity.
The Knights of Ren. They didn't amount to a whole of screen time, but I'm glad they finally make a non-flashback appearance.
Lando cameo. Because we need the man who pulls off capes.
Cute D-O "Conehead" robot. When in doubt make a smaller, cuter robot.
Zorii Bliss' costume. I want to make this costume. I love the purple and gold, and that helmet is awesome.
Fight on the ruined Death Star. Love the visual of the hollowed out corpse of the Death Star. Love the Dark Rey confrontation. And of course an excellent, dramatic lightsaber battle.
Leia's lightsaber. I don't why it didn't strike me before, but I'm glad they showed us a bit of how Leia must have trained as a Jedi and even built her own lightsaber. Compared to other characters in the original trilogy, she's cast as the diplomat and strategist, but she's just as much as a warrior as the others and I'm glad they folded that in here.
Creepy Sith chanters. We don't see many Sith in the Star Wars films, they're the shadowy threat ready to show you how anyone can go to the Dark Side. I might get some flak on this, but I like that the ancient Sith a represented there, faceless, hollow, raspy voices whispering the back of your mind. In short, they were creepy and menacing as they should be.
We are the Jedi. Definitely made me smile to think of the spirits of all those Jedi with Rey in that final battle. Had fun picking out the voices.
Rey's yellow lightsaber. You have no idea how much I wanted a yellow lightsaber to become canon in something other than an animated spinoff series. And it makes sense for Rey's character and for the Star Wars series as a whole. Sure the lightsaber colors were originally created as an art and effects decision (originally they were going to be white), but over time they've developed into touchstones for the characters who made them. Blue is associated more with action-oriented paladin types (Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker), green for wise diplomats and mystics (Qui-Gon Jinn, Yoda), red for evil-doing Sith (Darth Maul, Vader, Sidious). Purple exists in the movies as an outlier only wielded by Mace Windu, though it's enough of a foothold to assume that it is a rare crystal for Jedi and that may be because Windu is known for tempering strong emotion into combat (usually frowned upon in the Jedi Order). Yellow had existed in canon as a ceremonial blade seen in Jedi gatekeepers and guards (a la Star Wars Rebels), but in the Extended Universe it is commonly used by a class of Jedi known as Sentinels. In short, they are a discipline of Jedi who offer balance between martial blue and passive green, while incorporating the skills of the galaxy's civilians. Considering that Rey is a new generation of Jedi and already a non-traditional sort, yellow seems like a fitting blade color for her. Also props to making it a saber hilt that embraces her scavenger origins.
Anyway, that's just some impressions of the new movie. High time to go see it again...
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