Star Wars Episode IX: The Final Order

I'm not certain if you can strip The Rise of Skywalker of its stupid but Spence, here, attempted in the most elegant fashion possible.

There are great ideas here, for certain. I always maintained that, with Carrie Fisher's untimely passing, Disney, JJ Abrams, Chris Terrio and co ought to have begun Episode IX with Princess Leia having already died off-screen, rather than bafflingly trying to resurrect her through repurposed archive footage. This major issue I had with the original film is resolved here -- I do think, due to this decision, in terms of pacing, Spence's introduction here is the least smooth altered sequence of his edit. We have to handle the fact that both ("somehow") Palpatine has returned and that Princess Leia has gone in very short, close succession -- and the performances from Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver in responding to this news; repurposed from footage placed later in the original film; don't work the best in selling this moment. Also, the moment where Finn and Poe find out about and react to Leia's death -- in the original film, following a defeat in the second act and here, following what's tantamount to a victory in the first -- doesn't exactly line up to where it is now placed in the narrative; they seem to already come in upset for no reason. Despite this, I think the way in which the decision to mostly excise Leia from the film allows the narrative to breathe in a way far superior to what came out in 2019 and gives the characters a great-big kick up the ass in terms of motivation.

This, however, is the only motivation Rey will have for a while as, in cutting out the much-maligned Rey Palpatine arc, she does just seem to be going through the motions here. The overall pacing of the film is much improved when we're not flashing back to Palpatine's son or whatever or being bogged down in revelations from the past -- this edit works very well narratively in placing all events in the present -- but, due to the fact that our protagonist has lesser inner conflict here; that "fetch-quest" structure inherent to the original film that makes it feel incoherent is emphasised. Spence tried his best here, replacing Rey's turmoil over her parentage with a classic Star Warsian fear of turning to the dark side but, without this revelation that she is "Rey Palpatine" in the narrative, it's not backed by much.

Other than that, though, I quite enjoyed this edit. I'd be interested to see what would happen if somebody saw The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi and, instead of The Rise of Skywalker, The Final Order in order to gauge if they'd think of it as a stronger film. There's a lot in this film that just isn't going to work regardless of fan intervention -- Poe and Finn being lost in the fold, the rushed conclusion to every narrative thread established in the previous two films and whether or not you thought bringing back Palpatine was a good idea -- but Spence did a great job in mitigating a lot of the elements that people found most egregious whilst preserving an enjoyable viewing experience.

I was massively disappointed by the end of the sequel trilogy after enjoying the first two parts. It was obviously rushed and too fixated on pleasing the worst people in the fanbase. Too many cooks, too many ingredients.

After hearing about this edit I decided to check it out and I've got to say it's a phenomenal improvement.

Stripping out the stupid lineage plot does wonders to make it more thematically coherent and also makes the characters a lot more interesting. Moving Leia's passing to the start of the film also adds a very nice subtext of the characters feeling lost after loosing their last mentor. Obviously an edit isn't going to fix the rushed scenes and the narrative grinding to a halt to stare at something from the old films, but it's the best you can possibly do with what's available.

The edit itself is superb and is barely noticable if you didn't know what to look out for. Probably one of the best edits I've ever seen.

This isn't going to suddenly turn the film into a masterpiece but it at least lets it feel like some character got an ending they deserved.

Very much looking forward to seeing what they have done with Kenobi.

I actually was a fan of this movie when I first saw it - I know some people absolutely hate it, and I totally see the reasoning behind that point of view. As the years have gone on, I have seen more of the flaws and one of the most glaring issues was the way they tried to shoehorn Leia into the film using old footage.

This edit does a fantastic job getting rid of that entire problem. Having Leia die at the very beginning is genius, as she doesn't really have any impact on the plot. I then love how later when Kylo and Rey are fighting, at the point when Leia originally dies, it creates more drama because it seems like Kylo is naturally drifting back toward the light while Rey is drifting toward the dark side. I really liked that dynamic and the scene really works well once Leia is removed.

I am a big fan of removing Rey as a Palpatine - my only worry is going forward, when new movies come out, will this version of the story flow into whatever comes next? I guess we will have to wait and see - but perhaps a future version where she is still a Palpatine? Wishful thinking, but totally respect why Spence went the "no one" route. And for the time being, this is perfect!

The only reasons I took a couple points off for narrative was since the terrible Leia scenes were removed at the beginning, it did seem to make the first act fly by almost too fast. I felt like it was 5 minutes in and Palpatine has returned, Leia is dead, and the crew is already having the speeder chase in the desert. While I know the actual movie is fast-paced as well (not necessarily a bad thing in my opinion) a viewer perhaps not as familiar with the source material may have a hard time keeping up with what is happening. Not sure how that can be fixed - it is just a problem with the original story. You've made it better, so I guess I'm taking points away from JJ Abrams and not you. =)

Two small other narrative things that perhaps AI can fix in the future - when Rey runs to look at the ancient text - I thought it would be awesome if she whispered something to herself like "luke almost found Exogul" just to hammer home that she is using the books to follow Luke's trail. The viewer eventually will of course pick up on it when Lando explains they were looking for Exogul, but it goes from the briefing to Rey saying "I'm going to start where Luke's trail went cold" - what trail?

Then maybe a line when Lando finds them - since the line "Leia sent me a message" is cut - saying the "resistance sent me a message' just to explain why he is there.

I only suggested those because the AI lines you did add were amazing and sounded like they were originally in the movie!

These are SUPER nitpicky and I LOVED this edit. Highly recommend it! Thanks for making this movie a lot better!

This is, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the BEST re-edit of a movie I have seen. The idea of delving into this one that has frustrated me for years and trying to accomplish what Spencer HAS accomplished here has always filled me with dread. I know what I have to do... but I don't know if I have the strength to do it. The clear focus on what was always a subtext of this trilogy, Rey and Kylo castling in alignment is realised here, clearly and unimpeded by the shambolic script or the unsettling digital puppeteering of the late great Carrie Fisher. Daisy Ridley shines as her frequently silent and physical performance tells you far more than the blunt words the actress was handed ever could. Adam Driver, similarly seems more committed to this story with the contradictory fat neatly trimmed away. This version in cinemas would have left me surprised at a smaller, more personal ending than the trailers pitched, but we collectively would have been all the more nourished for it. Self-motivation rather than expecting the heroes of our past to pull us from the fire. Yet drawing from friendship and experience to BE that fuel. NOW, this is the torch passing it was always intended to be. Bravol 10/10

Star Wars, the franchise with the most fanedits ever. I guess that says something on its own about the original work done in the prequels and the sequels. Anyway, Spence is a legend in editing so I had high hopes for this one, especially since it came out almost two years after the incredible HAL's edit "Ascendant" which Spence kept stuff from and he was right to do so.

Besides this one, I had watched HAL's obviously and also the "Anti Cringe Cut" by DonKamillo because I was really pissed when I first watched the original Episode 9 and I wanted a really aggressive edit (DonKamillo cut 45 minutes(!), but it had many issues, for me at least). Spence's edit I believe is the best of those two worlds. Doesn't cut too much and doesn't cut too little. Plus, is has many from the subtle great changes from HAL's edit.

To be more specific, I personally prefer the 'Rey nobody' version here, I'm tired of the Skywalker/Palpatine lineage, Star Wars is rich enough to have many original new characters. I also prefer that Spence had Leia's death in the beginning and not dying because of the message to Kylo. Although I felt it was a little rushed and out of place. Speaking of the message to Kylo, what a great editing in the fight at the sea between Rey and Kylo! Really loved how Spence handled Leia dying earlier in the movie. My last remark is something that I was certain I would just add as a suggestion, but to my very pleasant suprise, Spence had done it! After the beginning of Episode 8 with Luke casually throwing his lightsaber away, I found completely ironic and out of place the line "that's no way to treat a lightsaber" that he says to Rey when she throws it in the fire. I was like, you did the exact same thing in the previous movie, don't try to retcon it man!

I most definitely recommend this edit to everyone! Spence has, once again, done a great job! For me, it became my new go-to version of the movie!

Thank you Spence for all your hard work, thanks to anyone who read my review and may the force be with you!