jgeoffstoneking

It seems as with most things these days, politics is affecting reviews.

I like to watch stuff objectively and not try to impose politics on the review. And any issues with the production of the movie or the production company (I am completely aware of the issues with Cinestate. But I don't believe that means this movie should be shunned and buried.)

The acting is pretty good. The production is very well made.

What bothered me most were the convoluted plot points to keep the police away from the school during the shooting/siege. (not really spoilers, these happen in like the first 10-15 minutes of the movie) A field fire? A shed fire? Are those really going to get all the police and emergency response teams in the county to respond to those? And block roads because on lookers want to see what's going on?

I've lived in rural places before. A field fire isn't going to get that many people to block roads to watch it. And we know early on one of the student's mothers called the police. But they couldn't tear themselves away from a field fire or a shed fire to respond to a school shooting.

Weak plot points like this really ruin movies like this for me. If the kid had planted bombs at the court house or other important buildings in town, then we may have had a more believable plot point. But I am fairly confident they'd just let the shed burn to the ground if student lives were at risk, and a single engine fire response could have taken care of the field fire.

Still, a pretty decent movie. But certainly not the strongest from Cinestate. And certainly not going to put Daily Wire on the streaming map, but it's a decent first step for them, I suppose.

1 out of 5 stars.

Thumbs down.

Stream it.

Letter grade D.

It is a hot mess. It maybe the worst sequel I've seen since Kick Ass 2.

So many plot holes. And the more you think about the movie, the more plot holes you realize. Some big enough to fly a Star Destroyer through.

There was a good idea there. JJ Abrams made a fantastic thrill ride. The movie picks you up out of your seat the moment it starts and is relentless in its pacing. It's fast, frenetic, and epic in tone. Maybe they thought those elements would distract from the overall mess. They don't. After you catch your breath, you think about all the stops along the way and question what you've been through like a bad road trip.

If they could have figured out that's how they were going to end the trilogy (other than making it up as they went along) then they might have been able to make better movies before then that fit into how it ended up. When you see this, there was no need for the Starkiller Base in TFA. And the whole plot of The Last Jedi was just as pointless as the slow moving chase.

I hate to say it, but The Rise of Skywalker just doesn't work. And the more I think about how things went down in act three, the more confused and upset I am. A horrible end to a bad trilogy.

Episode 7 of the Mandalorian had far more of an emotional impact on me than this movie. There was a character arc in there that meant more to me than any of the new characters in the newquels.