‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’ lifts our spirits just enough

“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” – When “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” (2017) reached theatres two years ago, sharks chewed over the head scratching decisions that found their way on screen.  Well, some sharks anyway, or at a minimum, this one. Director Rian Johnson’s venture into the iconic series took some strange, nonsensical turns. For instance, why did Vice Admiral Holdo (Laura Dern) sacrifice herself by ramming her ship into a First Order Star Destroyer, when about 50 droids onboard could have done the job instead? Why did Luke…

‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ carries visual thrills and missed opportunities

“Star Wars: The Last Jedi” – The marketing department behind the Star Wars franchise must be brilliant.  With billions of dollars in tickets sold over eight films (including “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (2016)), hired advertising suits certainly know the cinematic beats that will attract their audience.  On the other hand, Star Wars probably does not need a marketing department at all, because after George Lucas’s visionary masterstroke arrived in 1977, fans bought into his wondrous space opera and the films that followed, and rightfully so! Well, as writer/director…