![]() ![]() In fact, Palpatine is alive and well, and he has been manipulating the characters in secret for the past two films, a narrative cheat which is almost as irritating as it was in Spectre when it turned out that Blofeld has been responsible for everything that happened to Daniel Craig’s James Bond. Speaking of which, Abrams brings back Billy Dee Williams, as roguishly charming as ever as the roguish Lando Calrissian, and he brings back Ian McDiarmid’s Palpatine, the evil Emperor who was killed by Darth Vader – or so it seemed – at the end of Return of the Jedi. Much like 2020’s other blockbuster grand finale, Avengers: Endgame, this one isn’t about engaging with casual viewers, it’s about inviting devotees to whoop at every catchphrase every reprise of one of John Williams’ classic melodies every reappearance of a much-loved character. The Rise of Skywalker, however, marks The Return of JJ Abrams, who directed The Force Awakens, and Abrams is dead set on giving the fans everything they want and expect. It attempted something new and challenging – and fans have been complaining about it on the internet ever since. ![]() It’s an encore as awkwardly unnecessary as when you bid a tearful farewell to a friend, and then you bump into them and have to say goodbye all over again.Īnother factor is that the previous episode, Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi, wittily subverted and commented on the story so far. All The Rise of Skywalker does is wrap up everything a second time, answering the same questions and revisiting the same themes. The trouble with that is that The Return of the Jedi was a perfectly satisfying conclusion to the Star Wars saga, wrapping up everything that needed to be wrapped up. Just as the first two episodes in the third Star Wars trilogy were retreads of the first two episodes of the original trilogy from the 1970s and 80s, this final episode is a retread of 1983’s The Return of The Jedi. But you would be forgiven for being tired of the whole palaver well before it finishes. It’s actually a fast-moving, action-packed, swashbuckling swords 'n' sorcery space opera with typically high standards of production design and visual effects, and a pleasing blend of gloom and humour. “Will this agony never end,” bleats C-3PO in Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, and you can see where he is coming from. Warning: contains spoilers about the Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. ![]()
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