Have you had a chance to watch Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker yet? If you’ve seen it, you may have your own thoughts or opinions on the film. And if you haven’t seen it, there’s no way that you’ve managed to completely avoid hearing about just how divisive reviews have been. So, what does the director think about it all? J.J. Abrams has responded to the critics of The Rise of Skywalker, both when it comes to thoughts about the movie and his relationship with Rian Johnson.
A Rian Johnson & J.J. Abrams Recap
J.J. Abrams directed/produced/wrote the massively successful The Force Awakens, and the newer Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. For some reason, there’s a Star Wars movie in the middle there that Abrams didn’t direct. Rian Johnson (most recently known for directing Knives Out) directed the 2017 trilogy addition of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. As is common for Star Wars films nowadays, the reviews for The Last Jedi were … extra divisive. Many people have cited the swapping around of directors to be partially at fault for the miscommunications.
In a recent interview, J.J. Abrams properly discussed the whole deal with how he feels about Johnson’s directing. According to him, it would be a “more interesting answer” if there had been fighting and conflict. But all in all, he’s just grateful that a talented director was there to take over the film. Abrams even goes on to praise some of Johnson’s choices, such as his dedication to giving Luke a proper arc. While it’s easy to imagine that there’s plenty of bad blood between the directors, there’s always more to the story.
Image via Lucasfilm
J.J. Abrams Responds To Critics Of The Rise of Skywalker
When it came time to directly address the mixed reviews on the new film, Abrams also had some insight. A lot of people watch Star Wars movies, and everyone has their opinion. And while many theatre-goers like to insist that they know what is best for their favorite franchise, not everybody actually does. So, for such a popular film, Abrams and the rest of the team working on the film had to remember that they couldn’t please anyone. As Vanity Fair reported, his response to pleasing everyone was that they had to make decisions that would “please someone and infuriate someone else,” noting that all of their opinions are valid and right.
Even if you hated the newest film, it’s important to remember that the person sitting next to you may have been loving every second of it. Unique opinions on films are what makes cinema great. We all feel and interpret art forms in different ways, and we need to remember this if we want to continue to consider filmmaking as an art. So, Abrams recommends that we need to respect people with different views. And that’s not just for when it comes to Star Wars but in all other walks of life.
Readers, do you agree with J.J. Abrams opinion on how we should be watching The Rise of Skywalker as individual critics? When it comes to critiquing a movie, how do you feel when you find out that your theatre-buddy felt entirely different about the film than you did? We’d love to hear from you on the topic of divisive films!
Featured image via Gage Skidmore.