A Must Watch, for Star Wars Fans (Episode IX, The Rise of Skywalker - Spoiler Review)

The Rise of Skywalker felt like two movies squeezed into one. Like they've already finished the movie but had to put another one in and rushed some scenes to make it not run too long. I've always liked to think that the new trilogy was an opportunity for Disney to do a gradual transition from the old LucasFilm Star Wars to the new Disney continuity. Heck, even the Legends timeline was dropped. I was going to embrace the new canon with open arms. Even started to read the new books. But this feels like they realized they did some things wrong (like Coke with the New Coke many years back) and tried to correct it all in one movie. Personally, I think they could have worked with four movies. Call it a quadrology or whatever.

As a result, the first part of the movie felt rushed, like it's made for viewers with short attention span. There's one part where Rey gave her lightsaber to Leia for safekeeping just for Leia to give it back moments later. What's the point? I thought maybe I'll just stick to novel adaptations or comics moving forward. More my pace. Most of the plots felt convenient too. Like, suddenly there's two lightsabers. Oh and the stuff we saw in the trailers. Those are it. Those are the scenes. End. It's amazing to realize how brief impressions in trailers can generate buzz but ended up just passing scenes in a movie.

Nevertheless, the movie stays true to the spirit of the original Star Wars. A party of contrasting characters - a Jedi with a light-saber, two others with blasters - one of whom is force-sensitive, the other a pilot; a Wookie, an astromech and a protocol droid. It comes complete with the works: the Jedi always getting carried away by the Force, a ruthless villain with a mastermind pulling the strings in the background, a blaster-fight on a Star Destroyer and a final light-saber battle happening concurrently with a dogfight in space.

I like that they acknowledged Snap Wexley and gave him some dialogues. If you are unfamiliar with Snap, he is one of the characters from the Aftermath trilogy of novels. Son of Norra Wexley, one of the Rebels that piloted a Y-bomber during the Battle of Endor in Episode VI, although they decided to crash him during the finale. No dust in the eyes there. Just another one biting the dust.

However, there was one eye-watering moment for me. It was not the memory wiping of C-3PO, nor the death of General Leia Organa, but it was the moment Chewbacca broke down and cried when he heard of Leia's passing. What was going through my mind at that moment was, is Chewie the last man standing from the original party? Han went in The Force Awakens, Luke in The Last Jedi and then C-3PO and Leia in this one. Or maybe, I was holding it all in after Threepio and Leia and simply burst when Chewie broke down. R2 was still around though, but I can't remember if Chewie has an emotional bond with the droid. It is worth to mention that in the Legends timeline, Chewie was the first one to die (if I remember correctly). 

If you are a Star Wars fan, there are numerous precious moments in the movie, depending on who or what you fancy. There is even a tribute to an Avengers Endgame moment at the end. But for me, my moment is the part when the Resistance star-fighters lift off from their base. As someone who played the X-Wing computer game long ago, the sight of the A, B, X and Y Wings brings back fond memories.

I think The Rise of Skywalker is a must watch for Star Wars fans. I went out of the cinema with a big smile on my face.