STAR WARS: EPISODE IX - THE RISE OF SKYWALKER Review

If one was to go back and watch the prequels ("...but why?!?" you cringe!) with as objective a perspective as possible, with the allowance of framing them in a new light given the events of the Star Wars universe that have unfolded since their release it's not hard to see that Emperor Palpatine has always played the role of puppet master, at first hedging both sides against one another before fully giving in to his true Sith tendencies and converting a young Anakin Skywalker to follow him on that path. And while J.J. Abrams initial film in this sequel trilogy, The Force Awakens, seemingly had no interest in resurrecting the long, thought-to-be dead Emperor there is sound reason (believe it or not!) in bringing this antagonist back to round out all three trilogies in a way that makes for a resounding stanza...just as George Lucas always intended. It's about rhyme; a recurring metrical unit where the past predicts the future and the future dictates the fate of our favorite characters. There is a great sense of scope and history in these films and while Disney has admittedly fumbled a massive opportunity with these sequels, Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker, seeks to try and rectify the lack of cohesion in this latest trilogy and bring everything together through that aforementioned scope and history in a fashion that is both meaningful to our new heroes while imparting the identity of those original heroes to inspire this new generation to continue to work towards the betterment of the galaxy. Yes, The Rise of Skywalker more or less crams two movies into one and yes, it is genuinely disappointing that this series wasn't better constructed from the beginning given how much this world means to so many people, but taken what we're given Abrams and co-writer Chris Terrio (Argo) are able to connect the dots in a satisfying enough way where the right questions are answered, some mysteries remain yet feel destined to be unraveled on Disney+ while other inquiries are made that no one seemed to be asking, but are quickly brought up and resolved just as swiftly that it's as if Abrams was taking out double coverage just in case. It's impossible to please everyone and as much as I hate to admit it as a long-time, but not die-hard fan of the franchise, the discourse around these films is often toxic and demeaning. It's okay to simply enjoy whatever brings a smile to your face and more often than not, as I sat experiencing The Rise of Skywalker for the first time, I had a smile on my face.

Final Trailer for STAR WARS: EPISODE IX - THE RISE OF SKYWALKER

It's hard to believe the monumental finale of the Skywalker saga is officially upon us, but maybe more surprising is the fact that-as a devoted Star Wars fan-I'm only cautiously optimistic about how good the film might turn out to be and only mildly intrigued by where the story will take us  after 2017's disappointing (for me) The Last Jedi. Needless to say, both excitement and expectations have been tempered for this last installment. If it's not obvious already, I was not a fan of Rian Johnson's middle chapter in what is seemingly the third and final trilogy in the main series of Star Wars films as it almost irreverently disregarded everything writer/director J.J. Abrams set-up in 2015's The Force Awakens. And while Abrams is back to complete this trilogy he began four years ago one cannot help but feel much of the air has already left the room despite the fact what we have seen so far seems to deliver what longtime fans of the franchise want and what I can only imagine is equally intriguing to those who enjoyed Johnson's take on the universe as I have to believe they are as equally intrigued as to where the story could go after where Johnson left it. While story, character, and plot details have been incredibly mum we do know the story does not pick up immediately after the events of TLJ and concerns the core group of new characters going on an adventure together. Here's to hoping lowered expectations lead to a greater reward. Abrams and Lucasfilm director Kathleen Kennedy have continued to discuss the importance of practical versus visual effects in this trilogy as a whole and while there is certainly no lack of special effects in this trailer one of the best things one can say about the aesthetic of this trailer is how grounded it actually feels. Legacy players like Anthony Daniels, Lando Calrissian himself Billy Dee Williams, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher will return for this final chapter as do new generation cast members including Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Lupita Nyong'o, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, and Billie Lourd while this film will also feature newcomers Naomi Ackie who we know plays a character named Jannah along with Keri Russell and Richard E. Grant. The film will also introduce us to BB-8's new friend, Dio. Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker opens on December 20th, 2019. Get your tickets now!

Teaser Trailer for STAR WARS: EPISODE IX - THE RISE OF SKYWALKER

It's hard to believe the monumental finale of the Skywalker saga only ranks in the middle of my ten most anticipated features this year, but after 2017's The Last Jedi both excitement and expectations have been severely tempered for this last installment. If it's not obvious already, I was not a fan of Rian Johnson's middle chapter in what is seemingly the third and final trilogy in the main series of Star Wars films as it almost irreverently disregarded everything writer/director J.J. Abrams set-up in 2015's The Force Awakens. And while Abrams is back to complete this trilogy he began four years ago one cannot help but feel much of the air has already left the room despite the fact we haven't seen a single shot or piece of footage from the upcoming film...until today. While story, character, and plot details have been incredibly mum what we did learn in today's Star Wars celebration panel is that the story does not pick up immediately after the events of TLJ and concerns the core group of new characters going on an adventure together.  Here's to hoping lowered expectations lead to greater reward. Director J.J. Abrams and Lucasfilm director Kathleen Kennedy also touched on topics such as the use of practical versus visual effects not just in this last film, but in this trilogy as a whole as well as touching on the fact that the final day of filming was emotional without going further into detail so as to seemingly avoid spoilers. Several cast members including Anthony Daniels, Lando Calrissian himself Billy Dee Williams, new generation cast members including Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, and newcomer Naomi Ackie who we now know plays a character named Jannah. The live and streaming crowds were also introduced to BB-8's new friend, Dio, a smaller droid that is distinctively cool. Adam Driver, Billie Lourd, Carrie Fisher, Lupita Nyong'o, Mark Hamill, Keri Russell, and Richard E. Grant also star. Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker opens on December 20th, 2019.

STAR WARS: EPISODE VIII - THE LAST JEDI Review

It doesn't end with a space battle. It does begin with one though. And it does still come down to stopping a big laser from destroying what is positioned as the final stronghold of the resistance. This is The Last Jedi simplified, of course, but the point is, patterns. Stanzas. Everything in Star Wars, since the days of George Lucas, has worked in this recurring metrical unit where the past predicts the future and the future dictates the fate of our favorite characters. There is a great sense of scope and history in these films and with Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson (Brick, The Brothers Bloom, and Looper) has utilized this rich history in a way that kind of upends those patterns. Those verses that were seemingly an inherent part of the Star Wars DNA. Typically, this would be something unexpected, but applauded as it would lead one to believe there are bold choices being made and new directions being taken and while this is true to a certain extent, what happens when you don't always like or agree with the choices being made or the direction being taken? With The Force Awakens J.J. Abrams created a revival for a new generation balancing the tasks of paying respects to the previous trilogy, setting-up new parts of the universe to be explored, and establishing a new generation of characters that fans could fall in love with. Key to this was Abrams backdrop of this great mythos and grandeur that only hinted at the darkness that had befallen the characters of the original trilogy since we'd last seen them. The Last Jedi would then seemingly follow through on the promise of this mythical status that had befallen Luke Skywalker and so there was much to be excited for going forward in the series. In fact, The Force Awakens put in place so much to build this aura of mystery and gravity that it was probably impossible for Johnson to deliver on all of them, but with the re-introduction of Mark Hamill's Skywalker here it is clear this is in fact, "not going to go the way we (or at least I) thought," as Johnson immediately dispels this sense of mysticism in favor of a joke. A moment of deadpan humor that put me in a hesitant state of mind from which I don't know that I ever recovered. I've now seen the movie twice and I felt the same way both times. To be clear, I'm more than up for a movie that is self-aware to the point of not taking itself too seriously, but this almost broad comical direction and unwillingness to divulge that rich history or take advantage of it in the way The Force Awakens so gracefully set it up is nothing short of disappointing and may in fact be the most depressing aspect of what The Last Jedi seemingly promised and failed to deliver.

New Trailer for STAR WARS: EPISODE VIII - THE LAST JEDI

In the two years since The Force Awakens debuted in theaters it has become one of those easy to watch movies you can put on at anytime and always count on getting hooked. Sure, the issues it had with aping A New Hope have become all the more glaring, but at the same time so has the incredibly strong work with all of the new characters that were introduced and by virtue of that-our desire to see those character's journeys continue has only increased. All of that to say we now finally have a new, extended look at director Rian Johnson's (Brick, The Brother's Bloom, Looper) follow-up to J.J. Abram's safe, but respectable introduction to this latter trilogy. Every other movie in town has pretty much cleared out sans DreamWorks Animation's Ferdinand which should make for fine counter-programming while a plethora of other major releases follow in the weeks afterward including the Jumaji sequel, the third Pitch Perfect movie, the Hugh Jackman/Zac Efron musical The Greatest Showman as well as a handful of other adult-centric films that I'm eager to see how everything shakes out at the holiday box office. That's not what we're here to talk about though, that would be The Last Jedi and what this new trailer tells us about what we can expect for Episode VIII. While Johnson warned fans per his Twitter that if they want to go into the movie as unknowing as possible to avoid the trailer, but even for someone who generally avoids later trailers and clips altogether it was next to impossible to not watch this new Star Wars trailer as we've seen no new footage or hint at story since the teaser dropped in April. The tease that Rey's hero might not be all she'd built him up to be seems to continue to take shape in this new trailer as Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill's Rey and Luke don't exactly share the master/padawan relationship I think most expected them to develop after the tease at the end of The Force Awakens. There will of course be much dissecting and speculating, but for now let us just bask in the glory of seeing new images of a new Star Wars movie that will hopefully answer some of those burning questions left by The Force Awakens as well as the full-on return of Hamill to the role of Luke Skywalker. The film also stars John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Laura Dern, Adam Driver, Carrie Fisher, Domhnall Gleeson, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Kelly Marie Tran, Gwendoline Christie, Warwick Davis, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, and Benicio Del Toro. Star Wars: The Last Jedi opens December 15th, 2017.

First Trailer for STAR WARS: EPISODE VIII - THE LAST JEDI

If all would have gone according to the original plan we would actually be seeing The Last Jedi open in theaters next month, but that of course wasn't to be and so here we are-two years removed from the, "Chewie, we're home," moment when the world got their first real glimpse at what this new Star Wars trilogy might offer and luckily everything went down well with The Force Awakens. All of that to say we now finally have our first look at director Rian Johnson's (Brick, The Brother's Bloom, Looper) follow-up to J.J. Abram's safe, but respectable introduction to this latter trilogy. Every other movie in town has pretty much cleared out and with the Star Wars celebration kicking off in Orlando this week we have already been blessed with a plethora of news around that galaxy far, far away, but this is undoubtedly what everyone was looking forward to the most. While watching the live The Last Jedi panel this morning featuring Johnson as well as President of Lucasfilm Kathleen Kennedy they teased a few new details about the eighth installment including a hint that Rey's hero might not be all she'd built him up to be. The likes of Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill talked as minimally about the story as possible, but we'll take what we can get. Besides some vague plot details there wasn't much to take away despite a few new stills from the film adding to the excitement. Other guest appearances included BB-8, John Boyega, and Kelly Marie Tran who plays a new character named Rose who is a maintenance worker in the resistance, but this was all for show more than it was tell as none of the panelists divulged much about the new film-until that first teaser/trailer was released. There will be much dissecting and speculating I imagine, but for now let us just bask in the glory of seeing the first images of a new Star Wars movie that will hopefully answer some of those burning questions left by The Force Awakens as well as the full-on return of Hamill to the role of Luke Skywalker giving long-time fans chills for days. The film also stars Adam Driver, Carrie Fisher, Domhnall Gleeson, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Gwendoline Christie, Warwick Davis , Kenny Baker, and Benicio Del Toro. Star Wars: The Last Jedi opens December 15th, 2017.