Star Wars: All 9 Skywalker Saga films ranked from worst to best
By Scott Brown
5. The Rise of Skywalker
Easily the most flawed film of the sequel trilogy, The Rise of Skywalker had several impossible tasks. It had to wrap up a 42-year-old story, the sequel trilogy’s story, as well as fit in an ending for Leia three years after Carrie Fisher’s death. This is an unenviable situation to be put in as a filmmaker, and J.J. Abrams did a decent job. It’s a film that is very rough around the edges and a bit uninspired at times, but it’s a fun ride that is absolutely gorgeous to look at.
The best part of The Rise of Skywalker hands down is the story of Rey and Kylo Ren. Their story has consistently been the best part about the Sequel Trilogy and that carries into this film. There are some twists and turns that some people are bound to dislike, which is understandable, but that doesn’t take away from how compelling the two are together. To put it simply, Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren steals the show.
As for the rest of the film, it’s a weird, often convoluted, series of events that has the same problem of serialization that Return of the Jedi has. The difference is that, instead of being slow and sometimes boring like Return of the Jedi, it’s extremely fast-paced and has no time to breathe. The parts are enjoyable, but it doesn’t come together into the most cohesive whole.