Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

Star Wars : The Rise Of  Skywalker 

It’s better then Last Jedi! This is a satisfying conclusion to the Skywalker saga it’s definitely the darkest Star Wars film that’s ever been done as this film goes into a very different direction then I was expecting. This film very recently has been getting mixed reception as a lot think that the film underperforms for the finale of the story that we have all come to love and to an extent I agree. I don’t think the film is spectacular but it’s not as bad as people are saying. This is a film that services to their fans with lots of Easter eggs and callbacks to the other films it’s a great conclusion to the story but with at times a messy structured story that is saved by JJ Abrams solid direction and incredible direction that steered this film in the right direction by the second half of the film. 

Firstly, Let’s talk about a topic that definitely be coming up which is Carrie Fisher as one of the biggest and most well done strengths is their approach with Princess Leia as since Carrie’s passing we got to see her last shot scenes in the Last Jedi and in this film they took unused footage from the Force Awakens and melded it in a way to get it to connect with the Rise Of Skywalker and it seemed seamless as it felt so emotional watching her scenes after the passing as they do the princes right and respectful with how they put the character to rest in a way that hit me like an emotional boulder. Carrie gave a great final portrayal of the character that warmed my heart and brought me to tears and I give my thanks to how it was handled that’s a massive strength this film has. 

This film’s tone is very different and dark then any other Star Wars film ever told when I saw Empire and Revenge Of The Sith I thought those two were the darkest and most bleak films of the franchise but this film takes too spot not to say I don’t like the darker tone but it was definitely surprising and a lot of people may not like the shift in tone it takes as it selves into some very black hearted places that shocked me and made me go to tears. The films discusses Legacy, a self journey of emotional inner Strength and family it felt so well tackled as the film has so much going on in the film and theirs so much story and side plots that are going on all at once that at times it does feel as if their trying to take on more then their able to and at times the film gets bogged down by trying to showcase to much at once but their tackling in their overall message never got lost on me. The sheer emotional drive of family and togetherness was so well presented in a way that had me emotionally invested in the film and the finale of this story’s end. What was so great about the message of self discovery isn’t anything new it’s a message that has been woven since the very first film but to me I love their approach to that with Rey and she really has a fantastic character arc that comes to a great close and they never tried to be something it wasn’t it knew exactly what message to drive home and they did it in a great way. 

Now the last three   things  I’ll say for my positives is the fan service then the performances and the music . For the fan Service theirs a ton of it that will have you grinning and smiling ear to ear for sure but it never felt like it was just their to distract people from a plot hole it was well done in a way to bring the story full circle and end the story in a poetic and emotional note that hits you in the feels that never felt forced but so natural. Their are some old characters that make small appearances and little Easter eggs for fans to look out for and I can’t complain about how they service the fans with callbacks to the other films their was always a reason to have a callback or a moment of sheer nostalgia that was so well woven into the fabric of the story that made it so effective to what they were trying to say. 

Then you have the Performances, Daisy Ridley gives her best outing of Rey in this film! She’s given greatly effective outings of the character in the last two films that really showed fantastic emotional execution and here she pours her heart and soul into the final film of the saga with a scene stealing performance of raw emotion that will have you rooting for her and feeling for her character in moments of sadness too. So Daisy definitely stepped up the game with her work here when I thought she couldn’t go any higher character wise then what she did with Last Jedi but she does just that and shows great new sides to the character that gripped you. Then their is Carrie Fisher giving a emotional punch of a performance that knocked me out and she is another scene stealer that brings this charm and effectiveness to the character that makes you cherish Every line as she wraps her dialogue in such genuine feeling that made it feels so real and Carrie isn’t in the film much but when she was every time I got chills which isn’t easy to do Carrie was spectacular. And lastly Adam Driver gave his best portrayal of Kylo Ren with emotional pain and redemption and hits character depths he hadn’t explored previously that was brilliantly shown here Adam was truly mesmerizing. Everyone else was great as well all contributing greatly to the story with their fantastic energetic and committed performances. 

Then the Last big positive was the music done by the genius and masterful John Williams! Everyone can agree when I say the one constant of what always would be a strength for the Star Wars films has always been the composed music by John Williams even in the prequels through boring moments Williams music would be in the background blowing me away and he never does a half ass job he also commits to his craft and always shows up with beautiful music and here he once again presents another epic, emotional and sweeping score that truly was incredible as he brought in the serious and darker sounds through the brooding Over tone of the film

But when things got hopeful he would pick it up with angelic and soft melodies that gets you swept up in the scene and by the end the music brought me to tears he really captures every time the heart and soul of what Star Wars is and always will he and brings that powerful music effectiveness once again with another knockout of a compositional piece of music by the masterful John Williams. 

Now the negatives, This film’s story does feel quite messy at times as it takes a while for it to get into the groove of the story as the story lingers in many areas until it really finds its course that it embarks on. A lot of people have been saying that the story is all over the place and to a certain extent I agree I don’t believe the entire film was messy and made me not enjoy the film but I do think their are a lot of questions that could of been answered and in a more simpler way.  As the film like I mentioned before does try to take on more then it can swallow.  I say that as theirs so much going on story wise if they either made the film longer or trimmed some off the story would of seemed more clear and less head scratching.  As you the audience is trying to piece what’s going on at such a fast pace as the film takes very few breaks to slow down and keeps going. The film clocks in around 2h and 35 minutes in its length now this is a film that could of benefited greatly for being a three hour long film as then they could of slowed down on some parts that definitely felt rushed or not explained to its full capacity and really take its time as this is the finale this is the epic conclusion to the Star Wars saga and it deserves the epic ending it is capable of and I think the ending was still satisfying but their is definitely a bunch of plot holes and flaws within the first and second act that makes the film suffer a bit but it’s the final act that diminishes the flaws to an extent and really overtakes the film in its fantastic last act that is powerful and emotional that you will want to stand up and cheer but it dose not take take away from the glaring flaws but the third act definitely is a lifesaver to this film from becoming a total narrative mess. 

The second thing I had issues with was that the film has weak answer to some very big questions. As their are huge questions from the Force Awakens we never got answers too which we find the answers to in Rise Of Skywalker. I’m happy we got answers too and I’m not complaining on the answer we got. Though their are definite shocking and questionable answers we get in the film that does feel out of left field and incredibly confusing to be able to connect. As the script In a whole deserved a lot more work on it and if they did more adjusting to character moments and fleshing out the core story more it would of cleared up a lot of the questionable answers we got so it would of made more sense instead of it looking like weak writing to a certain extent. That’s the heart of the issues is the script it needed more answering and that’s rare for me to ask for. As most of the time I don’t like things explained to me and for me to figure out as I don’t like the film to spoon feed me the answers but here I think it would of benefited from that though. As in the other films the pacing and following along with the story has been very straightforward but here I don’t know why they leave some very big answers up for the audience to figure out which it shouldn’t of done. As sure we enjoy leaving things up to interpretation but this is the final outing of this franchise and it should of cleared things up and helped up follow along more. Instead of leaving it in the hands of the audience to follow along or not from a narrative stand point that’s not a fair judgment to do. 

Lastly, Now that I have discussed my positives and negatives with the film I can tell you at the end of the day I still think that Rise Of Skywalker is a damn good film that for sure missteps but it also succeeds in a ton of places. As it’s visually stunning and adrenaline filled with a great emotional punch that will have you in tears and for this film to conclude the story of the Skywalker tale I think despite the narrative story that could of benefited from being longer or split into two parts its a great way for the film to come to a close in a way that goes in a bold new direction that is bleak but also satisfying. That’s being said from a fan of the Star Wars franchise ever since I was 8 and as a fan and as a filmgoer I felt satisfied and I think it’s a film that will definitely have fans divided on the story. Rise Of Skywalker is a fantastic ending to this Legacy it rests itself upon and deserves to be seen on the biggest screen possible with the best sound quality I recommend everyone go check this film out. 

This film picks up after the events of Last Jedi and when the Rebel alliance finds out that the First Order is brewing something sinister to take the Resistance down in an all out war that will decide if the Jedi perishes forever or the First order comes out on top and they must do at all costs to keep the Jedi alive. 

Rated PG - 13 : for sci-fi violence and action

Daisy Ridley : Daisy delivers her finest outing as Rey now she gave a terrific Performance in the Force Awakens and then she brought the character to new heights in the Last Jedi and now she shattered and emotional distraught she gives a performance that blows both of her last portrayals right out of the water. Here we pick up with her moments after the Last Jedi and we see her in a more broken and confused state then ever before. As she has to decide what path she will choose as both sides are pulling her in both directions. Inside  she’s torn and her heart says the Jedi but some part of her is being seduced by the Dark side and that inner conflict she fights more then once. Daisy brings this real sadness and heartbreak to the character that she hasn’t explored before a bit in Last Jedi but that was more emotional concussion here she lays her heart out on the table as it gets hit apart like a jackhammer breaking her heart in half and the sheer authentic emotion she brings to her face and through her delivery of dialogue was incredible as you can feel the sadness and the confusion and all of it between as she can be so emotive through her eyes and her body language. She faces conflicts far greater then she could ever imagine this time around which makes for some conflicting emotional moments that really showcase her great talent as an actor. She brings such a vulnerability to her that she hasn’t shown in the previous films that speak such volumes and when she cries you can see she just wants to break down in tears but has to stay strong for everyone and I love that quality and she demands the screen in her great screen presence. She brings a new layer of the character to the surface and explores new places that we hadn’t seen and wowed me with her incredible portrayal of Rey as it’s such a different portrayal of the character that has been just absolutely battered by what has happened to her both psychically and mentally. Daisy Ridley brings another level of emotional strength to the character that I didn’t think she could do but she shattered my expectations and blew me away in what is her best outing as the character in a emotionally bruised but powerfully led performance. 

Carrie Fisher : Fisher delivers a emotional knockout as Princess Leia in her final outing. I know this is unused footage from the Force Awakens but how it was intertwined into the Rise Of Skywalker was so well done. Her scenes are very small and does not have that large of a part in the film which I did expect due to her unfortunate passing a few years ago. She has been missed since and for the team to find a way to bring her into this film was lovely. When I saw her onscreen in every moment of the film I couldn’t help but get so emotionally swept up in the scene and break down into tears.  As since her passing the scenes hit you so much harder not saying it wouldn’t of been effective before she passed it still would but since she has it brings another layer of emotion that your will not be prepared for. Their was this softness and gentleness she brought to the screen every time she spoke and the sheer raw emotion in her eyes was so genuine. She just soaked up every ounce of the character and gave her most emotional outing as the character that she’s ever done. She is a supporting role of the film that is a sheer scene stealer and takes your heart and warms it but also amazes it with her great final performance of the princess.  She was presenting such layers of great emotion and amazing charisma I wished she would of been able to see how much we miss her as seeing her in this film she was amazing to see onscreen. She really gave an emotional punch unlike any portrayal she’s done before of the character she had moments of dry humour and real emotional intensity that drew you into her performance she was captivating. Carrie Fisher was an emotional knockout 

JJ Abrams : JJ gave good direction that could of been better but an overall fantastic job. He brought the franchise into a great new style and arena of storytelling with Force Awakens. Most people enjoyed his direction myself included and some thought it was to similar to The first Star Wars film. Now after his work on this film a lot of people are let down with how JJ handled this film as he made some very bold choices that brings the Star Wars brand into some very different territory more different then what he did the first time around. Here he takes the overtone of the film and darkens it massively as the tone of the film is very serious and takes some very big twist and surprises and as the audience he kept you on your toes and never were able to predict how this story was going to conclude. You know what I like that though as i thought he did a great job at concluding this franchise that sure was different but it was satisfying as he has great epic ship battles, lightsaber battles and fantastic emotional moments that hit you right in the chest. I am not as upset as some others who think he ruined the last film I think you need to give him a chance this is one of the biggest franchise names in film history and the amount of pressure and expectation he had against him I think he delivered a fine ending that was perfectly done. He got also great performances from his cast and an outstanding finale to this saga that was so different and perfectly directed by JJ.