Extraordinary film

Rating: 10/10 (21 December 2019)

Despite JJ Abrams' track record as one of the most talented filmmakers in Hollywood today, nobody could have anticipated the triumph that The Rise of Skywalker is. When A New Hope was released in the late 70's, it brought the world of knight films and westerns into a space environment, generating a passion among young filmgoers that lives to this day. The Empire Strikes Back added the War genre (in particular with its famous opening scene), the Martial Arts genre (through Yoda and his training) and of course a dash of soap opera or tragedy, depending on who you ask. Then nothing. For 30 years, despite multiple attempts. The Force Awakens revived a universe that was dead in a rarely before seen resuscitation tour de force. But it came short of inventing a new genre. The Last Jedi was a mere intermediate step, aimed at setting-up a few pieces for this extraordinary finale, and JJ Abrams was more than happy to delegate its execution to the competent artisan Ryan Johnson. With The Rise of Skywalker, JJ Abrams brings a new genre to space, that of the mythical legend, and by doing so, injects new life into a saga that was feeling completely out of steam. He creates a world where the line between life and death is blurry, where spirits and humans co-exist, and passions cross. He elevates the character of Palpatine (always a weak character in all previous SW films) to the rank of myth, and gives it a meaning that spans the entire saga (unexpectedly turning the saga into the story of the rise and fall of Palpatine). In elevating Star Wars to a true legendary myth (an aspiration that was always there, but could never before have been taken seriously), he extends the boundaries of space itself (creating a new world of the Sith) and reinvents the very nature of space, allowing characters to fly through it at unprecedented speed (never before had we seen the pace of travel visible in this film) and even reinventing the very concept of space, allowing characters in different spaces to interact, touch each other or fight, which is also a true cinematic innovation (and the most extraordinary special effect in the movie, without the use of any special effect to deliver it). And all of it delivered through continuous entertainment at neck breaking speed (it is hard to remember a film recently that felt this action-packed, frantic from minute one until its very end), and some of the most beautiful and creative images that we have ever seen on film in this galaxy.