The Internet Reacts To The Rise Of Skywalker

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has barely been out for a day, and already the internet is splitting apart over the film.

The latest story set in the galaxy far, far away hit theaters on Thursday, December 19, and response to the final installment of the Skywalker saga is now pouring in across social media. 

So far, professional critics haven't exactly been enamored with the film — with most arguing that the movie provides too much fan service and too little substance — but for some fans, that's exactly what they were looking for. Star Wars enthusiasts across the globe have flocked to Twitter with their unfiltered thoughts and feelings toward The Rise of Skywalker, and reactions have ranged from gushing in awe over the ending of a 42-year story to complete disgust at the J.J. Abrams-directed film as a whole.

Diehard Star Wars fans were up late on Thursday night catching the premiere of The Rise of Skywalker, but many shared on social media that the film was absolutely worth the lack of sleep and subsequent caffeine overdose that came with seeing it as soon as it dropped in theaters. Tons of fans had nothing but love to give to The Rise of Skywalker — appreciating it for the good and the not-so-great, praising the film's handling of closing out the Skywalker saga with a satisfying story and fulfilling ending, applauding the decisions writer-director J.J. Abrams made with certain characters, and totally loving the fact that the film featured a hefty dose of fan service.

"I loved it. For me, it provided perfect closure," one Twitter user wrote after seeing The Rise of Skywalker. "The acting, the effects, the action sequences... all brilliant.
I've loved Star Wars since the 80's and I was not let down by #RiseofSkywalker. To all those involved, from past to present... I thank you."

A Twitter user by the name of Mike Pilozzi shared after his screening, "The Rise of Skywalker embodies everything I love about Star Wars, and it never skips a beat. A perfect ending to the Skywalker Saga. Take it from a kid born in 1977, it's epic."

Another fan gave particular praise to lead actors Daisy Ridley, who portrays the rising Jedi Rey, and Adam Driver, the man behind the villainous Kylo Ren, when reacting to The Rise of Skywalker. They wrote on Twitter, "J.J. Abrams did an incredible job. I felt every second of this movie! The acting is the best I've seen in Star Wars History. #RiseofSkywalker Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver killed it!"

Many other fans had similarly emotional responses to the new film as the cast and crew had during their private screening of The Rise of Skywalker earlier this month.

"#RiseofSkywalker was brilliant amazing fantastic and it made this die hard fan so happy and I had tears running down my cheek it was amazing in every sense," one fan wrote on Twitter. Another added, "So, Rise of Skywalker. D*** it. I'm crying. What a perfect end. My other childhood memories end here." And yet another Star Wars enthusiast was reduced to tears in their screening of The Rise of Skywalker: "Just came out of a triple bill of the SW sequels. [The Force Awakens] is fantastic, [The Last Jedi] is still perfect. As for #RiseofSkywalker. A wholly satisfying, completely shocking conclusion. I was sobbing uncontrollably during the last 15 minutes. This legendary saga couldn't have ended any better."

Given the controversial reception of The Last Jedi in 2017, some members of the Star Wars fandom decided to heap their praise on The Rise of Skywalker by knocking its predecessor down another peg or two. 

"Forget the bad reviews this is a blast! J.J. Abrams managed to fix the Ryan [sic] Johnson mess from the last movie and give a thrill ride at the same time. The fans will love it. Great job!" one fan tweeted. Another added fuel to that fire, calling The Rise of Skywalker "a great movie and it's the best one out of the new trilogy" andarguing that Abrams did what he could to "save the series" after The Last Jedi.

Of course, there were countless people who were less than impressed by The Rise of Skywalker, and they were plenty vocal on social media as well.

"After a 2nd viewing I can confidently say that Star Wars IX: Rise of Skywalker BLOWS," one Twitter user posted. "It's the perfect confluence of horrible pacing, uncomfortable close ups, terribly inconsistent use of their own cannon [sic], and forced Star wars cliches ad nauseam. They couldn't leave it at six."

Another user held nothing back in slamming The Rise of Skywalker as a messy, confused excuse for a movie by tweeting, "Rise of Skywalker was absolutely terrible. You could tell J.J. really tried, but it was a mess. A sequel to a movie we never saw. The best analogy I have is that of when an artist redraws a child's drawing: you can see there's skill and talent but it's still a child's drawing."

Elsewhere on Twitter, one user took a swipe at both Johnson and Abrams in their tweet reacting to The Rise of Skywalker: "It's almost like an over reliance of nostalgia, 2 different directors trying to retcon each other and no clear story planned from the beginning was a bad thing. What a f****** mess."

Others called the film "pure trash," "contrived garbage of the highest order," disappointing, underwhelming, a "waste of time," and "the worst Star Wars movie since Attack of the Clones." Even one fan who enjoyed The Rise of Skywalker said it was a flat-out bad movie: "The Rise of Skywalker is the worst movie I have ever loved. It was a dumpster fire of fanfiction tropes that made no sense. There was no character development that made sense, there were no stakes. It was a trash movie. But it was MY trash."

Aside from the cast of The Rise of Skywalker, plenty of other big names have shared their reactions to the film. It should come as no surprise that the response has been mixed in this realm as well: some criticize it for a number of different reasons, while others share love for it and bask in the nostalgia that The Rise of Skywalker inspired. 

Barely Lethal and Fanboys director Kyle Newman couldn't have been more satisfied with The Rise of Skywalker. He wrote in two separate tweets, "Advice to fellow #StarWars fans: Don't let the critics get you down!!! Go have a g***** blast at the theater. There are so many great things about #TheRiseOfSkywalker. It's flawed but it's FUN. And don't forget to bring that kid who lives inside you as your guest. They'll dig it [...] I just saw THE RISE OF SKYWALKER again. And I was wrong. It's not just good — it's a f****** great STAR WARS film. Just wow. @jjabrams and the whole team. The entire crowd at Chinese Theater was cheering and crying."

Ming-Na Wen, the actress best known for her role as Melinda May on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and who recently appeared as Fennec Shand on the Star Wars series The Mandalorian, praised Kylo Ren actor Adam Driver and Poe Dameron star Oscar Isaac for their performances in the film. She tweeted, "Lovely meeting Adam Driver and Oscar Isaac. They were great in #TheRiseOfSkywalker! Go see it!"

Jack Howard — an English writer, director, and actor — felt that The Rise of Skywalker "ends the new trilogy with a disappointing whimper." He added on Twitter, "It plays out like a fan film, back-peddling decisions in The Last Jedi in favour of connecting dots to satisfy a specific group rather than tell an original story. It feels like the series is at war with itself."

IGN editor-in-chief Terri Schwartz felt like perhaps there was a bit too much going on during the film, calling it "an apology for The Last Jedi in some ways and a sequel to The Force Awakens in many." Schwartz found the lack of continuity in The Rise of Skywalker frustrating, although she admitted there was much she loved about the film as well. 

How Star Wars Conquered the Universe author Chris Taylor echoed Schwartz's sentiments about how The Rise of Skywalker was spinning too many plates at once. He noted that the movie certainly gave him a lot to think about, joking that it was going to take him "about 9 days to process."

The Schmoedown creator Kristian Harloff was among those who felt The Rise of Skywalker was a satisfying ending to the trilogy, but with a few caveats: "Lot to take in with #riseofskywalker. It is the big adventure, lightsaber adventure, I hoped for. A few things I still wonder if it was necessary but it was a very satisfying end to this new trilogy."

When offering up his thoughts on The Rise of Skywalker, ESPN writer Ryan McGee shared his sweet tradition of taking his young daughter to see the latest Star Wars movies, just like he had done when he was a child: "We laughed and cried and went 'Whoa!' and had a helluva time. Just like I did with my family 30+ years ago. To me, that's the magic of it."

McGee wasn't alone in feeling nostalgic while watching the latest entry in the Star Wars film franchise. Vanity Fair correspondent Anthony Breznican also had flashbacks to his childhood during his Rise of Skywalker showing: "When people talk about #StarWars, they talk about their childhoods. Their best memories. The people they loved and shared it with. #TheRiseOfSkywalker brings back all those feelings. And then some. I absolutely loved it."

It's certainly a mixed bag of opinions so far, but hopefully for most fans, watching The Rise of Skywalker will stir their inner child who grew up watching the Star Wars films.

The Rise of Skywalker is in theaters now.