ABOUT THE MOVIE:

“Lucasfilm and director J.J. Abrams join forces once again to take viewers on an epic journey to a galaxy far, far away with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the riveting conclusion of the seminal Skywalker saga, where new legends will be born and the final battle for freedom is yet to come. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker opens in U.S. theaters on December 20.

The film stars Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Anthony Daniels, Naomi Ackie, Domhnall Gleeson, Richard E. Grant, Lupita Nyong’o, Keri Russell, Joonas Suotamo, Kelly Marie Tran, and Billy Dee Williams.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Kathleen Kennedy, Abrams and Michelle Rejwan. Callum Greene, Tommy Gormley and Jason McGatlin serve as executive producers. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was written by J.J. Abrams & Chris Terrio and opens in U.S. theaters on December 20.”

“Never underestimate a droid.”

– Leia 

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WHAT TO EXPECT:

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is a much more intense movie than I expected. I reverted back to biting my nails (DANGIT, they were getting length again!) because right from the start your jaw is open, brow is furrowed and heart-rate starts to speed up. This episode is darker and characters are far more creepy than ever. There are scenes that are drastic, that have a shock factor; these scenes might make those with dark humor laugh but others cringe, and children never forget, unfortunately.

The violence is more direct than others. I felt like we actually saw more fighting and actual hits than in other episodes.

Bring tissues. We both got emotional, happy and sad, multiple times. Daisy Ridley’s performance is spectacular. Her character shows growth, depth and determination. Rey is AMAZING!

WHAT I LOVED:

I’ll answer your aching question without telling you the exact answer right now: I loved that we FINALLY find out WHO Rey is. But more than that, like I said above, this movie dives into her character and who she is as person. Because we are more than just a name. A name doesn’t define us, our character, how we treat people, each decision we make does. 

I loved that Abrams gave the beloved character, Leia, a sincere closure to her story. With Carrie Fisher’s passing, we all knew her chapter needed to end and this tale was written perfectly.

I loved how again, we are able to see such bonds forged between robots and others. It can mimic our real life, that even though we may not be of the same background, we can have deep bonds, deep friendships that become like family. Connection is connection.

I also appreciated how fresh this episode is with fantastic visuals and the humor we love while giving a nod to the classics. It has some fun surprises that brought tears to our eyes and even cheers at times.

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CAN YOUR LITTLE WILDERNESS EXPLORER SEE THIS MOVIE:

As much as I want to say yes because it’s the final episode, I can’t. This movie is too heavy and intense for young wilderness explorers to handle. I suggest you watch this first and decide for your child, since you know their scare-factor the best.

Will my kids see it? Yes, but we had to give my kids a warning on it when they see it this weekend. We told them that when they see the first scary character to envision “Mr. Bean” and then visualizing Mr. Bean should help them not be scared. (There’s similarities between the two, oddly.) 

SO, DID I GIVE 5 OUT OF 5 BALLOONS:

Yes, 5 balloons, I LOVED it! We have tickets to see it again of course!

STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER is in theaters now!