First off—spoilers for Episode IX. Duh.
Oh my god, this movie was not good for my blood pressure. I was red in the face by the time the credits rolled. I’m glad my friend was driving, I’m not sure I would have been safe on the road after leaving the theatre. I was simply reeling.
I avoided spoilers all week and had only a vague idea what to expect, so going in I was both terrified I’d get my heart broken and hopeful that I’d get everything I wanted. My mantra: I’ve heard only good things about Reylo, I’ve heard only good things about Reylo, I’ve heard only good things about Reylo… Fuck the rest of the movie, I’ve heard only good things about Reylo…..
And I did indeed get everything I wanted—Force connections, Ben unwilling to hurt her, Ben giving up the Dark Side and rushing to Rey’s side, them kissing, BEN SMILING, etc….
But I also got my heart broken.
I think JJ and his team did what they could to make everyone happy. It was a thankless, impossible task—this last trilogy—the entire situation—became a huge clusterfuck. But they did what they could to satisfy all the theories.
But yeah, Ben died. I’m sure that detail was included to satisfy the fans who wanted him to get his just desserts. And I’m not bitter. Heartbroken, definitely, but not bitter, because I understand that Ben did some really heinous things as Kylo Ren. So I’m trying to be okay with it. I’ll never like that he died, but I’m trying to be okay with it. And I mean, if he had to die, could it have happened in a better way? Not to my thinking. He literally gave her his life. Whether or not that ending sequence with Palpatine made sense in general—not so much—I loved that Ben crawled out of the abyss, bleeding, limping, cradled her lifeless body in his arms (I HATE when people die with their eyes open. It’s so fucking creepy), and transferred his life force to her.
*lip wobbles* Excuse me a moment.
Though what I am bitter about is HOW LITTLE REY SEEMED TO CARE THAT HE DIED! She was sooo happy to come to in his arms, but once he was dead I saw zero mourning from her. She did nothing to memorialize him, she didn’t even speak of him once she rejoined her friends. Did I miss it? Will she ever tell anyone what happened between them? Will she ever tell anyone that Kylo Ren saved her life in the end? That he switched sides and helped her defeat the Emperor?
And hey, did we ever find out what Finn meant to tell Rey?
Oh, and while I chuckled a few times, I cackled long and loud when Rey was burning Ben’s ship on Ahch-To. I turned to my friend and whispered, “So is that the equivalent of throwing all his clothes out on the lawn?”
Anyway, so that’s my initial reaction. I just left the theatre two hours ago. I’ll have to go see it again soon.
Well, maybe. Honestly, I don’t know if my heart could take it.
Oh who am I kidding, I’m going again asap.
Please comment! I want to talk about this!!!!!!!
Hi All
Yes I cant believe what I saw is cannon. Other than most of reylo, the movie was a rushed, thrown together, fan servicey movie that pales in comparison to TLJ stylistically and coherently.
That said I did enjoy the Reylo…the familiar clashes of strong, principled personalities that are writhing in the discomfort of their inner conflicts. Adam’s acting was superb. Daisy was wonderful.
I just wish there was a better plotline for them. But the kiss was divine…
I’m so glad I found your blog! I’ve been having such a horrific movie hangover and I’m so sad about Ben and how they handled him at the end!! I have nothing more to add to what’s been said above (except apparently Finn was going to tell Rey he’s also force sensitive) but it makes me feel better that other people feel the same way I do. Your TLJ novelizations were wonderful and I really hope some day you have time to rewrite history here of TROS and give Reylo a happier ending. T_T
I had to come back and see what you thought. Your assessment is more generous than mine. I think my thoughts and feelings were more in line with yours after the first time I saw it, but the second and third times made me really effing angry and now I am just furious.
I’m furious because from THE BEGINNING Kathleen et al did not include the LucasFilm storyteam, so they wrote this thing without any reference to aaaaaanything else in the Star Wars universe, including what they were doing with Ben in Rise of Kylo Ren (hello, he did not burn down Luke’s temple) or any of the canon novels or any of the massive, huge, important hints being dropped all over the place that redemption and happiness is possible. I have big issues that TROS makes concrete the precedence set by ROTJ, that in order for you to find redemption you must give your life. It’s selfless and poetic, I get it, but I hate that the message is essentially if you’ve been too bad, welp, you just have to die. There’s no life after of trying to make restitution, there’s no hope. Just…dead. Then your Force Ghost can be redeemed (except not Ben’s.)
JJ admitted in interviews that he had no idea how to end this behemoth of a movie. It shows. His ending was terrible. Rey is alone on a sand planet again. The soundtrack calls this song A New Home, which you could interpret as being a new home for her or a new home for the lightsabers, but either way, the scene is stupid because that place means nothing at all for Rey, or Leia for that matter. Only for Luke. This whole dyad they made such a big deal about? Nah. It’s biggest, coolest feature was used to bring Palps all the way back, and now it’s done.
Leia training with Luke in the Force turns her into an absolute monster, because she didn’t even try to help Ben understand what was happening while he was growing up. She just noped out of that and sent him off to Luke.
It also turned all the Force ancestors into jerks because here is Ben, BEGGING for any communication from Anakin or anyone his entire life, and nobody says a word until Rey needs to defeat Palps. The guy resisted turning to the Dark for twenty something years. You’d think someone could have said something to him to make him feel, I dunno, comforted or something?
I love Rey so, so, so much, but this should have been as much Ben’s story as it was her’s. Instead it was all about her. I felt like JJ was just writing this whole intense loveletter to Rey/Daisy and nobody else really mattered. Finn, Poe, Ben, everyone was just there to serve Rey’s story. Also, arcs? Did the writers forget that character arcs were a thing? Because nobody had one in this movie, except maaaaybe Rey, who was given Ben’s arc. (I have a dark legacy I must resist but the anger is pulling me under.)
Finn’s whole purpose was running around this movie yelling “Rey!” and he didn’t grow at all. Poe supposedly learned how to step into Leia’s role, but I saw no actual evidence of that. He did the same thing he did on Starkiller Base, basically. Ben was back to TFA-version (literally what was the point of his helmet?) except that he did seem reluctant to actually fight back against Rey when she’d go ballistic on him, he was all about the dark side until all the sudden he wasn’t. And then he’s killed.
–Kudos to Adam, though. He was definitely the strongest actor in this whole series and he really blew it out of the water in this movie. His agony after “dad” pretty much stopped my heart.
It doesn’t make sense for Rey to decide to be Skywalker, when she had a closer relationship with Han and Ben (Solo) and WAY closer relationship with Leia (Organa) than friggin Luke. But I know the decision was made for the audience, which is just so eye-rolly to me. I wish she’d have said “Just Rey.” That would have been way more powerful. But then they couldn’t call it the Rise of Skywalker since the last Skywalker literally fell down a pit and nobody bothered to help him.
The more I think about this movie, the more I hate it. The more I resent JJ/Kathleen/Chris Terrio/everyone involved in the creation of this story (not the actors. I love them.)
I can’t forgive them for undermining Rey’s whole character by making her a Palpetine. I can’t forgive them for sidelining Rose. And I can’t forgive them for fridging Ben.
There are things I did really like — Ben snatching that necklace off her was peak sexy, the kiss was nice, I loved Rey flying the x-wing, healing, her lightning hands (!!), fighting with Poe, and the serenity of “be with me.” I loved everything Ben did. I loved D-O and Babu Frik, and even Zorri though she is completely disposable. I loved, loved, love the Han reconciliation. But after all the accouting is done, this movie is trash and I’m so disappointed.
(Also, there’s major evidence towards the conspiracy theory that he was originally supposed to live, but the ending got changed last minute. If you’re interested, I’ll link you to the evidence thread. It’s…it’s a lot. Daisy and Adam filmed that last scene on Tattooine together. JJ said that the ending would be “fun” for Ben. Daisy said she was jarred by the ending and had to run to her car to cry in private. The reylo scene was cut together super weird and it only makes sense if it gets edited into a version where he comes back to life after passing out and THEN they kiss. That’s why there’s no footage of Rey mourning Ben. The theory is that the line about Leia giving everything to reach her son? She was supposed to give her life force to him and thereby bring him back. Adam is angry about what they did to Ben in the movie. There’s so much. I don’t know what happened, but something happened, and this hack job of a film was rushed out so they didn’t have to delay another year.)
Great to hear from you, LyricalRiot! Loved hearing what you thought, and sorry for the delayed response.
Not gonna lie, I’m avoiding thinking about the movie too much. It just feels like it would be wasted energy, because what’s done is done, you know? The important thing to me was Reylo, and I’m just grateful they let Reylo be a thing. They didn’t do the relationship justice, but they didn’t shit all over it, either. Maybe just farted on it a bit, having him die and all. 😉 But they didn’t “correct” it like they did so many other things (“treat a lightsabre with respect,” blah blah). We got some lovely Ben scenes—and other lovely moments—and I’m just trying to focus on what I liked about the movie.
But I totally understand your fury. I do wonder sometimes what George Lucas feels about how Disney’s made such a wreck of his beloved brain child.
My own brain short-circuited at the mention of the Rise of Kylo Ren. I didn’t know those comics existed; I’m dying to check those out now. You’re much more plugged in than I.
I see what you mean about the “can only truly atone by dying” issue. I’m a bit torn about it myself. On one hand, I wanted Ben to live and be fully redeemed and live happily ever after because he’s BEN and I have the benefit of an omniscient viewpoint into his mental and emotional conflict. But then I think…if I’d had loved ones die either at his hand or by his orders, I’d feel very different. It’s a rich philosophy I wish could have been explored in the trilogy. An eye for an eye seems like justice—but will that leave the world blind, as they say?
Yeah, I thought the ending was lame (except when Ben was present, naturally). Pretty much anything that included Palpatine was lame. *waves hand dismissively* I don’t give a rat’s about him.
I wonder how JJ or someone would explain why none of the Force ghosts appeared to Ben in his time of need, as you pointed out. They helped Rey resolve the situation, but wouldn’t do anything to prevent it in the first place? They’ll offer Rey advice but never thought to say anything to Ben?
I would agree with you that they shouldn’t have given Rey so much attention story-wise, at least not as it’s been written, except I don’t think it’s so much that they intentionally focused on Rey and sidelined everyone else, I think it’s more that they had way too much story they wanted to tell and tried to cram it all together and by so doing neglected to do any of the storylines or characters justice. They were so concerned with calling back to the other episodes and baiting the fans with nostaglia that they wasted too much time looking back and not enough looking forward, which is why they tripped over their own feet.
I agree, Adam gave a great performance. He was definitely my favorite thing in the movie, as he was in TLJ. At first I thought his expression had been rather stony throughout, until the point where he found Rey dead, but then when I watched the movie a second time I realized it’s all in the eyes (which I should have already known *facepalm*). His overall facial expression was often guarded, but if you watch his eyes, they speak loud and clear. Those wonderful, intense dark eyes. And I mean, I don’t think any of the performances were bad really, all those actors are very talented and wanted so badly to be part of a great Star Wars story, but they were given shitty material to work with.
I very much want to see the evidence for that alternate ending, if you please. That’s fascinating; I haven’t heard anything about that.
Would like the link for the theory please
I had someone tell me that after the initial shots both with Ben tearing through it he forest and Poe’s hyper-skipping (or whatever it was called), the thought that went through their head was ‘so this is preparing me for what the rest of the movie is going to be like…skipping from thing to thing’. That’s exactly what it was. Way too fast, way too much. Absolutely everything was rushed. The part with Chewie lost all emotional play because 30 seconds later they were like…just kidding…he’s fine.
I’ve also decided that I’m pissed off about the force too. I really thought where both movies were going we’re finding a balance. In the originals the force was this mystic energy that no one understood but you knew it bound everything together but not everyone could use it. In the prequels it showed what happened when you took things to extremes – all one way or the other. The Clone Wars expanded on the idea that it was supposed to be balanced. Not all good, not all bad. They had the perfect set up with Rey and Ben…Both of them were two parts of a whole. Ben was bad with a little bit good and Rey was good with a little bit bad. Together they couple keep each other from going to extremes. It made the romance something more than just romance for sake of romance. This movie…this movie threw all of that out the window and made the force something solely to be manipulated. They could have set the stage not only for the rumored Old Republic trilogy but also allowed for an expansion into the future. Ben’s redemption could have been used to bring the New Order under control. It’s been talked about time and time again in these movies and even in the Mandalorian that the resistance can’t manage things by themselves. There are too many remnants of the Empire. Instead…it’s like they just decided to burn it all down.
I’m not sure it was all thrown out the window…they kept the fact that Rey and Ben were a Force dyad, two halves of a whole. That’s why they had a special connection to one another. I’m not sure that was something JJ intended in TFA, but after TLJ laid the ying and yang motif on real thick, he kept it but gave it his own spin in ROS. Those videos that I posted links to in my second comment explained something I hadn’t realized while watching—I thought Ben was just giving his life to her because he loved her and wanted to save the life of someone he loved rather than take it—in other, lamer words, make up for killing his father by saving Rey. And while I’m sure that was part of what was going on there, apparently it was a Force thing, too; he was also joining the two Force spirits that had lived separately within each of them. His spirit dwells now in Rey. So in the end I guess he got what he wanted—they’ll forge a new order together, he just won’t have a corporeal presence. And I think Rey’s yellow sabre in the end was supposed to signify that she had married the dark and light within her and found a balance, at least within herself. But definitely, it was all rather cheapened by the sloppy storytelling.
Oh thank goodness you got to see it! There are very few people I can discuss this with. As usual you are spot on with everything you said. Let me vent about the movie as a whole first…what the flip…I’m not sure I’m happy with any of the characters. I was happiest with Ben’s character arc. I think it was the most complete…until the end but I‘ll get back to Ben in a minute. Rey – meh…I didn’t hate it. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t love it but I didn’t hate it. But I do feel like they googled ‘fan theories for Rey’s parents’ and picked one with zero thought to whether it made sense. There is NOTHING in any of the other movies that even points to Palpatine – no throw away line that we can all point back to now and say “ahhh”. And, to top it off, they lessened Anakin’s redemption in Return of the Jedi because he didn’t actually kill him. But whatever…moving on to the others…Poe took about 15 steps backwards. He had such a GREAT development in The Last Jedi and now…’I can’t do anything by myself’. I did however really enjoy his backstory getting filled in a bit. Finn…they desperately want to give him a love interest…so in this movie let’s give him multiple options. Rose is apparently just now a friend, maybe? Then let’s dangle Rey with the whole ‘there’s something I want to tell you’ and then never bring it up while simultaneously dangling Poe/Rey with Poe’s line about not saying anything because Poe was there. Then let’s add in the former storm trooper who may or may not be Lando’s daughter. This is not supposed to be a soap opera. Argh!!! But, aside from killing Ben, the worst offense was what they did to Hux. He went from a pretty decent villain in The Force Awakens with a back story of he killed his father to rise up in the ranks. He wasn’t bad in The Last Jedi…he totally would have killed Ben if given a chance. Now…he’s comic relief and a laughing stock. Keri Russell’s role…amounts to next to nothing, the knights of Ren…nothing.
Movie wise they did a TERRIBLE job explaining things. Did you realize Ben was on Mustafar in the very first scene? Where he was “raging”. (Seriously, was the crawl written by a teenager?). How cool is that…all you had to do is add a title telling you where you are, or show Vader’s castle. And at the end, are you telling me thousands of Sith just sat there? Where did they come from in the first place. ARGH!!!!
So Reylo…I think those two are the only ones with any chemistry. Adam Driver was outstanding. Their fight on the destroyed Death Star was great. Her healing him and telling him she wanted to take Ben’s hand…wonderful scene. Then, at the end…my all time favorite scene was when she slipped him the lightsaber. I LOVED THAT. But…She shut down the connection at the end of The Last Jedi…but now it’s 100% open with her having no control on when he connects with her?
Then, at the very end, you miss a complete pay off, tie everything together scene…when she sees Luke and Leia as Force ghosts on Tatooine…WHY WEREN’T ANAKIN AND BEN THERE! It could have been an easy shot to do. Ties it to the originals, the prequels, and these. ARGH.
So…now I’m going to just live in my own little world where Ben didn’t die at the end. Sure he’s done some horrible things but that’s what a redemption arc does…it redeems the character.
I know it sounds like I hated the movie…it’s weird…I didn’t. I didn’t love it by any means, but I think I’m just horribly disappointed in it. Marvel has ruined me for continuity, I’m looking forward to seeing what Kevin Feige does with Star Wars now.
I pretty much agree with all that. I didn’t hate the movie (these last three movies remain my favorites of them all because Ben Solo), but it wasn’t good either. The story was a rushed, slapped-together mess. It moved from point to point so quickly I was about ready to holler STOP! in the theatre. So quickly that I barely followed the plot and could not explain the movie to my brother tonight (he didn’t care if he was spoiled or not). All I could tell him was the stuff between Rey, Ben, and Palpatine and that plot thread didn’t even make a whole lot of sense. My poor brother just kind of stared at me in blank bafflement. So much was shoehorned in; I can’t remember the names of anyone or anywhere new. They were just clutter anyway. And no, I had no idea where Ben was in the beginning. I was preoccupied trying to understand what he was doing and why he was doing it.
As for characters, I still find Finn clingy and annoying, especially when he’s a secret-tease. I don’t think he was going to tell Rey he cared about her romantically, because I felt zero sparks between them, but I don’t have any other suggestions (other fans might; I haven’t had time yet to browse theories). They seem to have shut down the Poe and Finn ship, too, giving them each a kinda-sorta-not-really female love interest. Or at least they made it clear which sex they were attracted to. And yeah, Finn had zero chemistry with Rose too. He and that new chick seemed to have a bit of chemistry but whatevs, it had no significance. Speaking of her, though, I half expected her to turn out to be Lando’s daughter, like you, but if that was revealed I probably would have thrown my shoe at the screen.
I like Poe a lot more than I like Finn, though I’m still not overly fond of him. I didn’t need background for him but I guess it was an interesting little fact. Oscar Isaac’s a funny guy, though, he delivered the humor well. That look he gave Russell’s character at the end was fantastic. “Hey there, glad you survived.” “Likewise.” “You wanna come over and kiss me? To celebrate?” “Umm…no.” Lol.
I’ve never been overly fond of Rey’s character, either, I mostly tolerate her for the sake of the Reylo romance. I never cared who her parents were, though I respected Rian’s “nobody” subversion. She hardly smiled in this movie, which did nothing to endear her to me. She was almost always grimacing or crying or snarling. I got stressed out just watching her be stressed out. Which did not help my blood pressure.
And Ben….. How many lines did Adam Driver even have? I feel like I barely heard him speak. He just gave Rey smoldering looks. Which was delightful, but come on, give the poor guy something to work with. I agree that his arc turned out best—which is a huge freaking relief, my god—though like most of the movie, it felt rushed. At the fight at the end, which sabre did Rey give him to use? I hoped it would be his mom’s, that might have been some nice symbolism. But his and Rey’s scenes together were pretty cool; in the desert, everything on the Death Star, and on whatever Palpatine’s planet was called, Excalibur or Exovere or something. Though I don’t understand—I know Ben said he came down to that desert personally because he wanted to see her and talk to her. But why did he come at her at a million miles an hour like he meant to splatter her across the dunes?
And hey—my friend had to point this out to me, I didn’t even notice and I hate myself for it—when Rey healed him on the Star, she healed his scar, too. Healed all damage she’d done. *lip wobbles* *sniffs*
Oh, and all those Sith—I don’t think those were real beings, I got the impression that they were spirits, all the spirits of the Sith dwelling within Palpatine, just like all the Jedi lived on within Rey. But so much of that sequence made no sense to me. So when they were finally both in front of him, Palpatine stole their life force to regain his strength? Did I hear that right? But then I don’t understand how they were still alive.
And I agree, Hux’s character went downhill fast. I heard a reviewer say they made him a bitch in TLJ and here he died like a bitch. I agree with that, and while it’s a shame, I’m also okay with it. That opening sequence in TLJ killed any intimidation factor he might have originally possessed. I honestly thought Ben was the spy and he had some strategy in playing both sides, but I guess they had to do something with Hux.
Yep, I also think there were multiple missed opportunities for the resolution. Am I the only hyper-romantic Reylo who thought she’d say Rey Solo? (…visions of Rose on Ellis Island at the end of Titanic… “Rose. Rose Dawson.”…) I admit, that would have been rather ridiculous, but nevertheless I hoped. Skywalker is close enough 😉 And I also thought Ben would appear, alone or otherwise. MAJOR disappointed when he didn’t. Seriously, he just died and that was it. No ghost, no memorial, no mention of him. The more I think about that, the more it’s pissing me off. He was a major character and his switching sides was a huge deal. Respect that, please.
I think I’ll go see it again tomorrow and try to pick up more details.
I found these helpful in explaining some of the WTF aspects. This guy usually knows what he’s talking about.
Star Wars Rise of Skywalker Review and Ending Explained
Star Wars Rise of Skywalker TOP 20 WTF and Ending Questions
Star Wars Rise Of Skywalker TOP 20 Easter Eggs – Cameo Scene Breakdown