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Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
Since legendary filmmaker George Lucas changed movie history with a little space opera called
Star Wars (1977), generations of fans have been obsessed with the imaginative sci-fi universe he created. Slated to tell the story of the Skywalker clan over the course of nine movies, it’s been written in the stars that the epic saga would eventually close this chapter forever. Expected to stick the franchise’s landing with the latest trilogy
The Force Awakens (2015) and
The Last Jedi (2017), its final film
The Rise of Skywalker is not the finale many of us were looking for.
In 2015, the Star Wars legacy was reignited with director and writer JJ Abrams’s
The Force Awakens. A ragtag group of heroes fighting against the Empire 2.0 hit too close to home with
A New Hope, but offered a chance to connect with a younger generation of characters and explore new plots. Namely, why did Luke Skywalker disappear? How did Ben Solo’s relationship with his uncle turn him to the dark side of the Force? Who was Rey from nowhere? The film was filled with endless possibilities that unraveled in the divisive follow-up
The Last Jedi. Trying to answer as many questions as possible while also subverting expectations, director and writer Rian Johnson planted fresh ideas about failure in the Star Wars mythos. It gave us the chance to imagine Star Wars if it didn’t act like a formulaic blockbuster Star Wars film. Given full reigns to reinsert his own character development and plot, Abrams returned to throw everything at the wall and give fans the climatic finale they wanted. But it’s also one that we never imagined and might not have realistically needed.
After The Resistance led by General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) escapes The First Order, Rey (Daisy Ridley) is tasked with completing her Jedi training to take down Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). When the prince of darkness makes an unexpected reunion with the invincible Sith Lord Emperor Palpatine, both Rey and Kylo's connection to The Force will drive them to confront their biggest fears and darkest secrets.
This review contains spoilers from the film - read at your own risk.