Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker [Spoilers]

[Ian]

THIS THREAD WILL BE THE SPOILERY ONE
I'd say if you're just wanting to ask on here if it's a load of shit or not do that in the Film thread.

https://cdn.flickeringmyth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/star-wars-the-rise-of-skywalker-2-600x379.png

Is out on Thursday. Who's planning to see it in the cinema?

I'm working 2 - 11pm shifts this week so I've decided I may as well join my brother-in-law for the midnight showing he's going to when I finish tomorrow.

I didn't hate The Last Jedi as much as a lot of other people seemed to (especially as time went on) but I don't have that ingrained nostalgia for the original three so there's not much for them to "ruin" for me.

I think the thing I'm actually most interested in is how conclusive an ending to the nine episodes it proves to be and therefore what future films are gonna look like.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I'll go to the cinema to watch it but after a month or so to let the crowds die down a bit.

[Ian]

Tried to update the thread title from the main forum page to warn folk that this thread will be the spoilertastic one but it didn't work, not sure if I'm being a doof? Does it have to be a mod does it or anything?

[Disco]

These seem to be going down the Marvel route of churning out regular yet quite average films so I'll probably wait.

[Ian]

I've got the advantage of our Vue being one of the ones that does low ticket prices all the time.

[Browning]

I’m going on Sunday night. I really liked the last Jedi but haven’t watched it since the cinema.

[Shindig]

I don't think I even got massively into Star Wars as a kid. Now that there's 12 of them, I can't see the point. Artistically, I mean.

[phonics]

It'll be as instantaneously forgettable as all the others have been. In one ear, out the other nonsense.

[Giggles]

I don't think I even got massively into Star Wars as a kid. Now that there's 12 of them, I can't see the point. Artistically, I mean.

12? I thought it was 9 now.

[Shindig]

It can be argued it's 12. Solo, Rogue One and The Clone Wars. Aye, that's a stretch.

[Giggles]

Forgot about those. Yeah I’d go 12 too, though I haven’t seen Solo and Clone Wars yet.

[Mazuuurk]

I'm not gonna bother with the cinema so not seeing this until it's on Netflix or whatever eventually, prolly closer to next summer I guess. By then it'll be spoiled to shit anyway.

[Alex]

I feel like there's a distinct lack of hype around this one compared to the previous two "main" instalments. It feels a bit like it's just crept up out of nowhere. That might just be my own lack of enthusiasm muddying my take on it though. I was really disappointed in the last one.

[niko_cee]

Rogue One is the only decent modern effort.

If this is packed full of the girl, Finn (Boyega) and that intolerable Vader light twat, as I guess it has to be, then things don't bode well. Not that any of the originals were really all that good either.

[Mazuuurk]

I saw both of the "new new" ones so far but I'm finding it really hard to actually remember what happened in both of them.

The only thing I remember is getting a bit pissed they would kind of ruin Lukes legacy and do all of this getting the oldies back in the game only to kill them off.

Also, it's a bit stupid that everyone just randomly knows how to use the force in the new films whereas one of the few things that has been quite consistent before is that before you can do shit you need some training (at least a weekend getaway in the Jungle or whatever)

[Alex]

Rogue One might be the best Star Wars film outside the original trilogy. It was really good. The five minutes Vader was in it alone made it worth the price of admission.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

I've liked the other two main films but they're not a patch on Rogue One.

I've yet to see the Solo film, might watch it this week.

[Ian]

Rogue One is the only decent modern effort.

If this is packed full of the girl, Finn (Boyega) and that intolerable Vader light twat, as I guess it has to be, then things don't bode well. Not that any of the originals were really all that good either.

This is kinda the key thing. I've got my own nostalgia hooks but I didn't see any of the originals properly until my mid teens. And I like them, yeah, and I can see how as a kid you could go mad for them but it doesn't bother me whether the new ones are changing stuff or whatever.

If anything I've got more connection to the games. I'd be way more annoyed if they brought HK-47 to the big screen and then fucked him up. Which they would.

I don't mind the new ones. And Driver grew on my in Last Jedi.


Also, it's a bit stupid that everyone just randomly knows how to use the force in the new films whereas one of the few things that has been quite consistent before is that before you can do shit you need some training (at least a weekend getaway in the Jungle or whatever)

I thought it really undermined Ren when a newbie and a non-Forcie* were able to not get insta-killed by him at the end of The Force Awakens when he was getting his lasersword on with them.

* Assuming Finn isn't confirmed as another secret Jedi.

[niko_cee]

That whole bit was just awful, and, as pointed out, somewhat undermines the whole concept of the force that has built up through the rest of the saga.

Oh what's this? A laser sword thing? Happy days, I'll just school Darth Vader II here on the fly . . .

Even Neo went through more before his pay-off.

[Ian]

Even if they wanted Rey to be some sort of force savant at least have Finn take a bit of a shoeing.

In fact, in that whole fight does Ren even really use any of his Force powers? You know, the same ones he used to deceive a Sith Lord in TLJ?

[phonics]

I feel like there's a distinct lack of hype around this one compared to the previous two "main" instalments. It feels a bit like it's just crept up out of nowhere.

It's almost like releasing 5 movies in 4 years takes a toll on people.

[phonics]

Does anyone remember the last film where there was a 20 minute sequences where they ran around on space llamas through a casino?

The main issue with this modern lot, much like the Abrams Star Treks. There's absolutely nothing to these films below the surface. Even if a lot of the old Star Wars stuff was guff over-read by nerds, there was something there. Abrams Sci-Fi is anti-Sci-Fi.

[Mazuuurk]

It was also new back then. Noone had ever really done anything like it*.



*Flash Gordon doesn't really count, even though I'll admit watching that a whole bunch of times as a kid mainly cause I thought the lead actress was hot :blush:

[Bernanke]

This is getting slaughtered in reviews. :lol: Apparently it has all the hallmarks of Disney pushing the safest way possible of tying things up as to not piss anybody off, which results in something pretty but incredibly bland.

[Ian]

54% on Rotten Tomatoes. :drool:

[niko_cee]

I hope this one has an even bigger deathstar.

At least 1 parsec in diameter.

[Ian]

I'm loving the angry fanboys putting online reviews of this before seeing it.

The 3 star one with a guy reserving the right to edit it once he's actually seen it is good.

[Bernanke]

These Vanity Fair quotes. :drool:


It’s a turgid rush toward a conclusion I don’t think anyone wanted, not the people upset about whatever they’re upset about with The Last Jedi (I feel like it has something to do with Luke being depressed, and with women having any real agency in this story) nor any of the more chill franchise devotees who just want to see something engaging.


conflicted emo prince Kylo Ren (Adam Driver, entirely checked-out)


There’s a passion lacking in the movie’s big scenes (and, really, in the little ones too), as if Abrams was woken up in the middle of the night and told to rush down to the studio to put out a fire started by some intern named Rian.


There doesn’t seem to be any real organic idea animating Rise of Skywalker; instead it feels cobbled together from notes stuffed in the suggestion boxes of Reddit and Twitter. Which is awfully cynical. (The way this film handles the unfairly maligned Last Jedi character played by Kelly Marie Tran—which is to say, by completely sidelining her for this last outing—feels like a bad concession to bad people.)

[Browning]

People hating a star wars movie? I’m shocked.

[Ian]

The last one was good with critics and audiences shat all over it. Will be interested to see if audiences like this more than the critics currently do.

[Ian]

This is.... meh? Like, I wasn't at any point actively bored and it had some decent jokes and fights and things but nor did I feel it had particularly engaged me either.

It feels like they want to rush the Palpatine reveal out the door because we already know from the trailers so that's covered in the opening crawl and then within about ten minutes. The Rey / Ren stuff is dealt with in about the tamest way possible. It does the Return of the Jedi trick where it goes "YAY HAPPY ENDING!" and you have to think wait, "Is it?" There's an imperial mole who we learned about, their identity is revealed and then they're dead within what feels like about fifteen minutes.

Just trying to do so much stuff that none of it is given the time to mean anything.

Still, it sounds like they've timed it well by bringing it out alongside Cats which is getting even more of a critical maiming.

EDIT: Also almost every decision Rey makes is fucking idiotic.

And I think they try to sell three separate "Is he/she dead?????" moments and they're, quite predictably, not in any of those instances.

I think this is going to be one of those where I think less of it the more I think about it. If you catch my drift.

[Pleb]

I'd give it 5 out of 10.

[Ian]

Every time I think about this or read about it I think or am reminded of another stupid thing about it.

The latest are Palpatine's existence meaning Vader's final actions were for nothing but there being nobody present to make this count for anything.

The other is Palpatine dying the exact same way as Windu fucked him up in Revenge of the Sith.

[Giggles]

I read through the plot on Wikipedia and didn’t see any reference to how Palpatine didn’t die back in Jedi. Do they address it at all?

[Ian]

I don't believe so.

Basically when he's talking to Ren it's just this scene but less good:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNgxyL5zEAk

Also all the mystery around Snoke and the backstory was "he was grown in a jar."

[Giggles]

:D Christ.

[Ian]

I will say that as much as what they do with the Emperor ir mostly rubbish McDiarmid still nails it.

[Shindig]

I want a Star Wars film where the war ends and you get the aftermath. An aftermath that leads to a Star Wars erm ... II. Imagine them rolling deep on life after the Empire, a Jedi ineptitude to govern and some good ol' fashioned ethnic cleansing and scapegoating?

Real human stories instead of magic power people.

[phonics]

Just make The Raid and set it in Cloud City. I’ll take my cheque now.

[five time]

And I think they try to sell three separate "Is he/she dead?????" moments and they're, quite predictably, not in any of those instances.

This was probably my biggest gripe with it, particularly the Chewbacca one. At least give it 30 minutes, it felt like the reveal was the very next scene.

To be fair, they had a tough time writing around the lack of Leia footage which killed a lot of the potentially intense moments completely. She's the one who would have reacted to Palpatine's return and we get nothing, her big sacrifice ends up with someone else explaining what she's going to do whilst the audience sees the back of her head etc. Her dialogue ends up feeling like one of those NPCs that gives a generic response when you've spoken to them too many times.

The film skims over it, but the Sith acolytes and that whole lair was interesting, as was the dark Rey vision. I'd have liked them to run with the Chewie death a bit longer so they could have explored her darker side a bit more, but this is Star Wars so you're never getting anything too gritty.

I didn't hate it, probably the best of the new lot for me.

[Shindig]

They put the old cast in just to kill them off in the following films? That's quite weak.

[phonics]

Wait, what are people angry about? That’s the best one of the modern trilogy...

Everyone’s story felt complete. The balance was restored with Palpatine trading for Leia and Kylo whatever his name was.

Basically seems people are mad that Jon Boyega and the Pilot weren’t gay lovers and the Chinese lady wasn’t in it that much.

[phonics]

Helmet lady’s outfit was cool as fuck though.

[Ian]

I'd put Last Jedi above this one. I won't go to the cinema again but I do want to watch this one again now I've thought about it a little.

[phonics]

The Last Jedi felt like it lasted longer than Hanukkah.

[phonics]

Like who the fuck are these people. What did they even do that they’re so fucking mad about?

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[Adamski]

I thought it was really good. Tied everything up nicely without feeling too cheesy.

[Mike]

Just got in from seeing this, I really enjoyed it overall. Preferred 7 but it was better than 8.

[Ian]

I rewatched Force Awakens last night and it really does throw into focus how much these three seem to be a mess of not having had things properly planned out. Arsing about with various characters (Hux, Finn, Ren, Snoke, I guess at Rose to that) and it just feeling like after the criticisms they didn't have any real conviction for anything they'd built and just went "ER ER ER PALPATINE?"

[Giggles]

Should never have went the direction they did with the Snoke lad.

[Ian]

It seems like per trilogy there's only about three, maybe four, Force users who are allowed to be both prominent and competent. Snoke didn't make the cut so nae luck if you had any interest in finding out what Darth Hefner's deal was.

[Henry]

Seen it. Poorly written nonsense, full of ass-pulls and retcons. But that's what you get with JJ Abrams.