Star Wars - Episode IX: Der Aufstieg Skywalkers

You should probably disregard any review that gives this a 1/10 or a 10/10. It is not a terrible movie, nor is it legendary. For the average movie-goer I suspect it will fall somewhere between 6/10-8/10. Highly enjoyable in terms of visuals and plot twists, but not enough to stick around with you for years to come like the original trilogy.

It has been quite some time since I got excited about this franchise; I guess the TV shows maybe are doing more at the minute, but for the films there is little to get excited about within them, and probably far too many of them being made for all the 'proper' fan to make it a date. Rise of Skywalker had been largely panned by viewers and critics, but I decided it was a good Friday night sort of film - one that doesn't take too much effort to watch. I was correct because this film really doesn't have much of a plot to care about, and seems to have been patched together without a lot of thought to the whole.

Technically it is very impressive - although of course it is because hundreds of millions of pounds were spent to make it sound and look good; and it mostly does. If you want lightsabers and space battles then you get it here. However if you put aside the technical feat, it is very much hollow. I struggled to care about anyone in the film; the dialogue was often clunky, and there was almost nothing natural or organic in there. The writing doesn't help itself by doing things that seem fan-service at best, and cynical at worst. For example the constant references back to other films by having scenes that echo scenes in the original films break things up. Meanwhile moments or aspects are included that don't seem to mean much in the moment and feel like they have been included in the hope of linking to yet another spinoff opportunity. With all this, the cast are mostly stuck with just going with it the best they can but nobody really stands out as an actor.

In the end, it is a fairly bland product; full of noise and spectacle but nothing of any real grit, interest, or substance.

Saw 'The Rise of Skywalker' just before Christmas with my sister, but it took me a while to gather my thoughts on it. Being not sure what rating to give it or how to express my opinion on the film. Will admit that when seeing it in the cinema, to me it was enjoyable but had a lot of faults. Since watching 'The Rise of Skywalker' then though, the more it has been thought about the more it has gone down in my estimations. My reservations felt back then still remain the same, as well as what struck me was good, while thinking of more since.

My opinions on the previous 'Stars Wars' films were much more definite, being a fan of the original trilogy and while the prequel trilogy had a lot of flaws to me they weren't that bad. Also thought 'The Force Awakens' and 'The Last Jedi' were better than expected (am aware that possible blasphemy has been committed here), but 'The Last Jedi' certainly had a lot wrong with it. 'Solo' was good fun on its own terms too. Absolutely judging it from an open mind, 'The Rise of Skywalker' left me very conflicted however and ended the trilogy on a whimper rather than a bang, it's not deserving of a 1/10 but it is not near deserving in my opinions of the 10/10s mostly given to counter the negativity in classic critic bashing style. Of the franchise, this was the one in all honesty that left me the most disappointed.

Will start with the good things with 'The Rise of Skywalker'. It is gorgeously shot and designed and the special effects are often a marvel. John Williams delivers yet another rousing score that has its own character but cleverly includes the well-known iconic themes from the previous films.

There are some great performances here, Daisy Ridley carries the film outstandingly, having become more confident with each film, and Adam Driver is menacing and conflicted. Carrie Fisher again brings nostalgic poignancy to Leia, while John Boyega and Oscar Isaac are charismatic and do their best with what they were given (which was quite weak in my view) and how great it was to see Ian McDiarmid again as Palpatine, again his material was not great but he does a good job with it. Chewbacca is as adorable and funny as ever and C-3PO provided a few amusing moments. Babu Frik was a nice new addition and there were a couple of touching and nostalgic moments. Some of the action is thrilling, namely the extended blaster battle and Rey and Kylo's force-based clash.

For all those good things, 'The Rise of Skywalker' has a lot of major flaws. With so little time to breathe in the story, the film feels far too rushed which made it very difficult to digest the more convoluted parts of the story. There is also too much going on so the film feels very cramped by the final act, and also too many characters. Some are fun but too many of them are underused or even pointless and tacked on, such as Lando and Rose Tico. Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford only seemed to be there for nostalgia purposes and are merely walk-ons.

Although the action has its moments, too much of it doesn't rouse like it should do and is in a way forgettable. The big reveal that has been much discussed here made absolutely no sense (the atmosphere felt at that part in the packed auditorium in the cinema was like a uniform "what the heck?") and really convoluted the storytelling later on, leading to a conclusion that felt rather too anti-climactic and made a waste of the characters involved in it. A long way from a bang. Morever, the dialogue is as bad and even downright laughable than the worst of the prequel trilogy's with far too much exposition and unrealistic conveniences.

Overall, have seen far worse but a big disappointment. If some people liked it, good for you. It just didn't work for me and many others, for reasons that are valid, and it is inexplicable as to why people have an inability to accept that, and not just for this film but for almost every film here. 5/10

Star Wars: Episode IX is, at times, a decent thrill ride, and it provides us with some satisfying moments, but it fails to tell a compelling story. It feels empty. It rushes through a corporate checklist of must-have moments at a chaotic pace. It manages to thrill with epic space battles, but it lacks a soul. There's no creative vision here, no story to tell. The pressure that comes with making a Star Wars movie seems to have shackled the creators, preventing them from doing anything interesting with the film. It's a shame. The Star Wars universe is one of the greatest fictional universes ever created. It should provide fertile ground for many new and interesting stories. If I were Disney I would take a serious look at the creative process for these films. They could probably learn a thing or two from Marvel Studios.

I can't call this movie good. I yawned my way through the first half and when it finally started telling a story in the second half, I hated the story they told. I shouldn't be surprised from what they did in the previous movies though.

I just wish they respected the history of the movies and didn't try so hard to outdo everything that came before.