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FILMTRACKS.COM
PRINTER-FRIENDLY VIEW 
Review of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (John Williams)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... if you have any passion for the Star Wars
franchise whatsoever, John Williams' final big screen score for the
concept as intelligent and wondrous as ever, concluding the sequel
trilogy with rousing satisfaction.
Avoid it... if you demand to hear some of the score's best moments on album, for Disney and Williams inexplicably left several pivotal passages missing from both the commercial product and the "For Your Consideration" awards presentation.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: (John Williams)
Whether you like it or not, this is the ending to the original nine
Star Wars episodes you're going to get. After earning critical
buzz and audience derision, 2017's Star Wars: The Last Jedi
forced the franchise to turn back to uber-filmmaker J.J. Abrams to
salvage its destiny in 2019's Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
While critics and audiences alike expressed initial dissatisfaction with
Abrams' resolution to the Skywalker saga, the film ultimately grossed
over a billion dollars in cinemas and offered more than enough
crowd-pleasing attractions to suffice. Its story could have inhabited
the running time of both the prior film and this one, postulating that a
surviving Emperor Palpatine has been resurrecting the Sith and their
former Galactic Empire while the remnants of interstellar society tried
to pick up the pieces after the wars of the prior generation. The
convenient pivot back to the original Star Wars trilogy allowed
for a wealth of old concepts to grace the screen, and explanations to
the sequel trilogy's mysteries almost inevitably point back to the
franchise's brighter days. Palpatine, for better or worse, has been
guiding the events of this trilogy, eventually returning to true form by
the end of The Rise of Skywalker. His fleet of legacy-inspired
Star Destroyers, each now with the capability to explode a planet (why
were they ever called "star destroyers" before if they couldn't destroy
a star?), is about to launch from a hidden Sith home world, and the
rebel alliance known as the resistance in this trilogy is tasked with
stopping them. Meanwhile, the Rey and Kylo Ren storyline, ever the topic
of curious sensuality, reveals its origins and fate. Luckily for weepy
audiences, the two undersexed youngsters ashamed of their names have
developed the Force's ability to heal wounds, allowing them to be killed
by lightning but emerge later to reveal a goofy grin. As a make-good for
wasted time in The Last Jedi, the franchise brings a bevy of
mostly spoken cameos to this project, allowing, at the very least, the
ever-disgruntled Samuel L. Jackson some fleeting semblance of the return
he's been pleading for ever since Star Wars: Revenge of the
Sith.
The backwards gaze of The Rise of Skywalker is lovingly obliged by composer John Williams, who had announced that this project would represent his final foray into the galaxy far, far away. In his late 80's at the time, Williams was partly retired and balancing his limited energy between occasional concert appearances and special compositions, including one for a new Star Wars theme park. While these Star Wars films do not garner much attention from awards bodies, their music (along with sound and visual effects) do continue to bring nominations --but not wins-- to Williams more than four decades after his debut in the franchise. His involvement in the sequel trilogy was never assured in the first place, and regardless of the thousands of words to follow in this review, one must remember that hearing a new Williams Star Wars score in the year 2019 is extraordinarily special regardless of any quibbles you might have with the music or how the filmmakers utilized it on screen. The maestro even found his way into a very brief cameo as a bartender with a mechanical eye on screen, certainly a first for Williams. Although The Rise of Skywalker marks simply a sentimental end to the sequel trilogy's storyline for most movie-goers, it is also a triumphant goodbye to an era for film music enthusiasts. The amount of work that Williams put into this score is immense, with reports of more than three hours of music composed and recorded, some of it by the request of Abrams for the post-production mayhem that required rearrangements. There will undoubtedly be criticism of Abrams for the manipulation and outright dropping of portions of Williams' music for this project, though the composer did provide him with more than enough material from which to edit. There is a fair amount of tracking from prior scores in the franchise in the final cut, some of it surely for expediency, and the choices are not all that bad. Assembling an analysis of this score based upon only the material available on the two soundtrack presentations for The Rise of Skywalker, one of them being the "For Your Consideration" album only fleetingly available from Disney, is uniquely challenging, because even the music as heard in the final film leaves more questions than answers. For the avid Star Wars or Williams collector, the soundtrack for The Rise of Skywalker will remain something of a frustration until a proper 225-minute album can be released. But until that day, most fans will find peace in the highlights of Williams' work, many of which available up front on the first commercial album. The maestro's attention to detail shines in even this constrained presentation, his new themes and adjustments to old ones as masterful as always. The intelligence of his constructs and orchestrations have not diminished significantly with his age, and he remains keenly aware of the need for guilty pleasure moments in this particular score. The work is a loving farewell by Williams to the 40+ years he has spent in this galaxy, and he reprises a slew of favorite old themes in their original forms as a result. Just like the film, the music is nostalgic, content to restate existing themes in their familiar arrangements while providing a few intellectual nuggets of development to newer ideas. One knock on Williams has been his tendency to regurgitate several bars of music almost wholesale from previous scores into these sequels; that habit is exacerbated here. Some cynics in the crowd may go so far as to assume that Williams was too tired to write new arrangements for these scenes. Another persistent complaint is that Williams tends to apply themes to scenes in ways that don't always make sense; his applications have often intended to match an appropriate emotional response rather than pinpoint accuracy in the representation of a particular person or concept. It doesn't make sense for Yoda's theme, for instance, to make an appearance in a scene in which the character has no relationship whatsoever. But at a time when the franchise needs this kind of nostalgic influence, one cannot help but excuse such sentimental usage. Remember, the mass audiences aren't looking for Williams to re-structure or re-orchestrate a theme; they simply want to be reminded of better times. The composer did write and conduct all of this material himself, relying only upon trusted collaborator William Ross to assist him in orchestrations. Williams chose his standard album arrangement, albeit one that is somewhat out of chronological order when compared to the story. The listening experience succeeds, for the most part, but expect several of the most memorable cues in the film to remain unheard on their own. The general quality of Williams' music for the franchise persists through these later years, the complexity of his melodies and subtle structural connections between themes remaining as commendable as ever. Few composers can match the maestro's ability to execute a musical payoff, his penchant for shameless expositions of heroics in his music unrivalled still. There are fewer self-contained explorations of new themes in The Rise of Skywalker than prior entries, the kinds of cues that introduce a theme strictly for that one scene. Ironically, "The Speeder Chase," the most notable such piece in this score, including its momentous Williamsesque closing, was almost completely removed from the film edit. But the composer rarely allows an extended passage to exist in the score without continued development of a new or previously existing theme. Don't expect any significant alterations to these identities, as Williams reprises them faithfully more often than not, but there are joyous exceptions. The primary melody and chime-led intro for Rey, for instance, matches the character's consistent values by remaining largely static in development in The Rise of Skywalker, though the references to her material are frequent. On the other hand, Kylo Ren's primary descending theme experiences a shift to the major key late in the picture, a significant change. In execution, the themes are afforded the orchestrations you would expect, flowing high strings occupying the new themes for friendship and victory while stoic lower string and choir present the fresh villain's identity. Surprising diversity is provided the Emperor's theme in this score, though some of these passages were tracked in from Revenge of the Sith. This score marks the most triumphant development of that idea, along with a frequent return of the Imperial March as well. Together with Leia's theme, the usual dominance of the Force theme at times, and a remarkably resurgent title theme (essentially Luke's theme), the balance of air time in The Rise of Skywalker is satisfyingly divided between ideas old and new. On the other hand, Finn's chase theme from The Force Awakens and Rose's identity from The Last Jedi are entirely absent, as are some of those scores' most memorable action motifs. Williams surely could have dropped snippets of a few of these ideas into this work, and their total disappearance is unfortunate. Before diving into the analysis of themes from The Rise of Skywalker, please remember that the two album arrangements of the score, as well as the music as edited into the film, are a frightful mess, especially with all the music from Revenge of the Sith and The Force Awakens sprinkled throughout the film edit. The all-new major themes are provided most (but not all!) of their prominent recordings as heard on screen, and there are debuting secondary ideas that may get lost in the shuffle for most listeners. Rising above all the fray is Rey's theme, the most lasting music from the sequel trilogy. The triumphant highlight of Rey's identity in this score is, of course, not on any album; heard during her early training sequence, both her chime and primary melodies are developed into rousing action fare. Another victorious statement of her theme comes at the end of the film version of "Speeder Chase," again not revealed on album. A few others are neglected on the releases for listeners, including the integration of her theme into the intelligence briefing scene, the snake healing scene, her arrival on Exegol, and another moment of heroic significance when she teams up with Ren near the end. On the albums, though, her idea can be heard alluded to on Ren's first journey to Exegol (it's possible this cue was originally meant to accompany Rey's same, later journey and the recording was used earlier instead), tentatively on strings or woodwinds in the middle of "We Go Together" and late in "To Kimiji" before Williams takes the idea into darker territory in "Join Me," where the idea's structural connections to the Emperor really become evident. This sinister exploration continues briefly in "Approaching the Throne" before the catharsis experience in "The Force is With You" (or "Seeing Sights") consolidates her material to solo piano and a cymbal-tingling expression of nerves for full ensemble. Williams offers the theme in both "Farewell" and "A New Home" with sentimentality, the latter keenly aware of the character's original habits. Williams only revists the full-ensemble optimism of Rey's original thematic shades in a brief moment during her return in "Reunion" and in the obligatory "Finale" end credits suite. Throughout the sequel trilogy, the best performance of the idea comes in the end credits of The Force Awakens, though the training sequence development in this score is a notable evolution, and its absence from either album is unforgivable. Balancing Rey's theme in The Rise of Skywalker is a substantial journey for Kylo Ren's theme. After prominent placements heard in the frenzied scene on Mustafar at the beginning and Ren's subsequent flight to Exegol, his primary descending identity continues to dog the protagonists as they flee from him in this story. Ren's two secondary motifs, which had originally bled over as representations of the First Order and Snoke in The Force Awakens, continue to recede here, though they are not totally gone. The menacing tones of the main motif are prominent in "Fleeing From Kimiji" before taking a more tentative stand in "Join Me" and "The Final Saber Duel." Nearly all of these familiar statements are available on album (one exception comes during the reforging of the character's helmet), but an injustice exists in the lack of availability for the redeemed version of Ren's theme. Williams twists the key of the theme slightly to give it a robust, optimistic stance as Ren switches allegiances, and the first hint of this transition comes, intriguingly, during Ren's interlude during Rey's training sequence early in the film. In the awards promo cues "Parents" and "Coming Together," as well as the unreleased cue for the moment Rey and Ren team up, the evolution of this theme is immensely satisfying and synchronized well with the film's shots of Ren. The other stalwart of The Force Awakens returning here is the "March of the Resistance" theme, making a significant splash at several points in "Falcon Flight" before taking on a lighter role in "In the Desert" and "Hallway Shooting" (all cues only heard on the awards promo). The idea doesn't have as much of an impact upon the final battle as one might expect, though it is given its dues in the preparations of "They Will Come" and the fight sequence concluding "Approaching the Throne." The theme does not feature again in the end credits, as it had done in previous films. The only other theme from The Force Awakens to return is Poe's, though it is supplanted by a more generally heroic variant in parts of this score. In its original form, listeners will note it in the film (and awards promo) version of "The Old Death Star," during the unreleased cue for the conversation after Poe visits Leia's body, during the unused first minute or so of "Battle of the Resistance," and at 1:02 into "Reunion," though that last gorgeous performance is omitted from the film, perhaps indicating that a romantic rekindling between Poe and the mysterious Zorii was a late cut. Nothing else explicitly carries over from the two previous scores. Plenty of material from the original Star Wars trilogy informs The Rise of Skywalker; in fact, the original franchise fanfare has more of a role in this score than any other in the prequel or sequel trilogies. The opening scroll has its usual placement of the fanfare, though its segue into action seems carried over from The Force Awakens. The rebel fanfare accompanies the Millenium Falcon twice in "Falcon Flight" while the main theme (for Luke originally but essentially the whole galaxy by this point) spotlights original characters as C-3PO and Chewbacca deal with life and death during the Kijimi sequence. (Both of these moments are totally unreleased, though a later moment of relief involving Luke's theme representing Rey can be heard at 2:20 into "Fleeing From Kimiji.") A brief moment of Luke's theme heard for Poe piloting the Falcon to Rey's rescue was actually tracked material. The theme is retained as Luke encourages Rey in "Destiny of a Jedi" and in action mode during "Battle of the Resistance." The most obvious cue missing from any album is the concert-like A New Hope arrangement of the franchise fanfare as Lando arrives with the new resistance fleet; this cue is extremely impactful in its placement and length during the scene. The rebel fanfare returns a few times for the Falcon as it conducts a late rescue in "The Force is with You," and that exuberance extends to the Luke theme performance early in "Reunion." A dedicated four minutes of the theme closes out the franchise's music on either end of "Finale." The regular use of these themes once again supplants that of the Force as the primary musical identity for the entire concept; in the absence of obvious Skywalker or A New Hope references, the franchise has used the Force theme for the Jedi as its overarching connector. It is used frequently here, as expected, initially during Rey's training sequence and accompanying her conversations with Leia in both that unreleased cue and in "We Go Together." The theme simmers during the intelligence briefing, as Rey heals a snake, while Poe ponders Leia's death later in the picture, and during the backstory conversation between Finn and Jannah, all unreleased cues. The somber rendition early in "Healing Wounds" is available on the awards promo. Notable highlights of the theme come during Luke's return in "Destiny of a Jedi" and "Battle of the Resistance," the latter in action mode akin to its glorious placements in the prequel scores. The Force theme has an understandably outsized role in the final cues of The Rise of Skywalker, beginning with the important mental communication between Ren and Rey in "Coming Together" as she passes a lightsaber to him. While Rey's inspiration from Jedi of the past is scored with her own theme, her actual defeat of Palpatine is afforded a full-scale, accelerating performance of the Force theme, heard in "The Force is With You." In the immediate aftermath, additional Force theme material is applied, though this music seems to have been tracked in from "Peace and Purpose" in The Last Jedi. Interestingly, the Force theme is not a factor in the "Farewell" cue despite the healing implications of the scene. Instead, the idea is provided joyful life early in "Reunion" and is reprised wholesale from the end of The Force Awakens as Rey watches the binary sunset to conclude this story. Unfortunately, the theme is missing in the end credits suite. Two major themes from The Empire Strikes Back return with substantial impact, though, ironically, Williams chose not to even allude to Lando's theme from that film despite his direct presence in this plot. The theme for Yoda was appropriately contained to his scene in The Last Jedi, though here it is reprised broadly in both "Destiny of a Jedi" (as Luke raises his X-wing from the ocean) and in "Reunion," where its concert arrangement makes a totally senseless appearance. (Part of this music was cut from the film, thankfully.) The Imperial March, meanwhile, is all over this score, and Williams seems to be applying it to old Imperial hardware just as the rebel fanfare has come to represent the Millenium Falcon. Ren's initial meeting with Palpatine is offered a rather sudden expression of both the first and second phrases of the theme at deliberate pacing as Star Destroyers ascend from the Exegol surface. This exact recording seems to have been tracked later in the film as a Destroyer wipes out Kijimi. A brief moment of Ren with Darth Vader's helmet interrupts the fantastic "Training Course" cue, and this performance of the theme is powerfully resolute on low brass. As Rey encounters the helmet in person, a softer, unreleased reprise of the idea is heard. The Vader death scene cue from Return of the Jedi is seemingly tracked in to the Death Star throne room exploration scene here, which is an odd choice until you think about the emotional context. The "Finale" suite offers the theme in its original "Imperial March" arrangement from the end credits of The Empire Strikes Back, though it is cut down in length on screen. The most extraordinary thematic usage in The Rise of Skywalker has to be the absolute prevalence of the Emperor's theme from Return of the Jedi. Although it had made a token (and perhaps pointless) appearance in The Last Jedi for Snoke, the idea permeates The Rise of Skywalker in fascinating incarnations both subtle and overt. Announced on usual low woodwinds in "Prologue," the idea explodes in action mode as TIE fighters begin their pursuit of the Falcon in "Falcon Flight," a peculiar but resounding usage perhaps openly revealing that Palpatine is behind everything in this story. The intelligence briefing scene utilizes the theme on ominous woodwinds as a ghostly presence, one of several such applications of the theme in this score that include the conversation in which Ren informs the First Order commanders of Exegol and the scene in which Rey discusses her past with Finn, all of which unreleased. This softer touch to the theme is fascinating, and it continues in "Hard to Get Rid Of," prior to a very brief Vader reference. As the Emperor transmits his ultimatum to the galaxy, it seems like a passage of this theme from Revenge of the Sith is tracked in, and this usage may even extend to Rey's arrival on Exegol. The "Falcon Flight" version of the theme is reprised as the first resistance fleet arrives and the "Prologue" recording reappears as Rey explores the Sith temple. Unreleased is this theme's menacing presence as Palpatine defeats Rey and Ren, though a highlight of the work is released: the fully victorious, choral rendition of the idea late in "The Force is With You." Finally, Leia's theme from A New Hope, "Han Solo and the Princess" from The Empire Strikes Back, and the "Luke and Leia" theme from Return of the Jedi all make cameos. The Leia theme is of particular importance, hinted in the unreleased cue as Lando tells the heroes to convey his affection for her but really taking hold as she prepares for death. Her deathbed scene is scored with a full flute and choral performance in the latter half of "Healing Wounds." A later scene with that theme in which Poe visits Leia's body is another likely tracking from Revenge of the Sith. Her idea returns in the flashback training scene and can be heard in "Destiny of a Jedi." The one use of the Han and Leia love theme comes as Leia lies down to die and Maz narrates about what she must do to connect to Ren; this use is probably tracked from The Empire Strikes Back or The Force Awakens. And while one might expect the "Luke and Leia" theme to exist briefly during their appearance as ghosts at the end of the movie, it instead occupies the Jannah and Lando portion of "Reunion." This usage might have addressed a deleted backstory connection. Williams' all-new themes in The Rise of Skywalker include three primary melodies and several secondary motifs that, to some extent, replace similar representations of the same concepts heard in his previous scores for the franchise. The two rousing themes written for the heroes are combined effortlessly in Williams' "The Rise of Skywalker" album suite that informs portions of the "Finale" end credits. The most prevalent is the friendship theme, heard in the above suite at the 0:53 mark and existing mostly to mark the bond between Poe, Finn, and Rey but also the plight of democratic civilization as a whole. Briefly heard in "Falcon Flight," the friendship theme dominates "We Go Together" with a string-based, wholesome character that would be comfortably at home in Williams' Harry Potter scores. The theme accompanies Lando as he introduces himself and is later tortured by nerves in "A Prisoner." It takes on both a stoic and hopeful personality early in "To Kijimi," and (unreleased) fragments continue as Rey earns the respect of Zorii. Snippets of the theme continue in "Destiny of a Jedi" and soon after in another unreleased cue as Poe and Finn realize that Rey is leading the way to Exegol. The theme is curiously absent from the actual coming together of resistance forces at the major battle on Exegol, but it closes out "Reunion" with dramatic depth. It is the first of the parade of themes following the usual opening to the end credits in "Finale." Meanwhile, its sibling theme for this film, that of victory, is more compellingly memorable. Opening and closing the suite, "The Rise of Skywalker," the victory theme offers some of the score's most satisfying moments, its epic sway concluded by a certainly intentional but rather strange nod to the "Han Solo and the Princess" theme in its final phrase. Hinted as Poe asks Zorii to join the cause in "Fleeing From Kimiji," the idea literally takes flight in "They Will Come," though the performance that graces the end of that cue, straying towards David Arnold's Stargate territory in its melodramatic lines, is sadly dialed out of the film. The trumpet variant of the idea in "Approaching the Throne" (on both the commercial album at 3:10 and awards album at 3:17) was also removed from the picture. The brief interlude for the theme at 3:02 into "The Force is With You" is retained, however. Among the highlights of the entire score is the victory theme performance with choral backing to close out "Farewell," punctuating the relief of seeing the First Order ships destroyed and subsequent celebrations across the galaxy. (Death to Ewoks!) The theme is offered in the second half of the "Finale" in a largely redundant arrangement compared to other recordings. Perhaps the most intriguing new development in the music of The Rise of Skywalker is Williams' decision to craft a new villain's theme to represent all things evil in the story, from the Final Order to Ren's persistent attempts to sway Rey to the dark side. Appropriately named "Anthem of Evil," this idea is summarized by the track of that name and is a fascinating collection of thematic constructs representing Rey, Ren, Vader, and the Emperor all rolled into one new melody that once again sounds as though it would fit snugly within the Harry Potter musical universe. Its extent is not fully realized at first, introduced in the film version of "Prologue," hinted during "In the Desert" to represent the Sith dagger and briefly in "To Kijimi," but it eventually finds its place in the confrontations between Ren and Rey. The "Join Me" cue in particular explores this material, though some of it was dialed out in the movie. It appears again in the throne room scene on the Death Star as Ren again tempts Rey. Not available on album as well is the grandiose performance of the theme during the scene in which Kijimi is destroyed. Sadly, the theme doesn't make a significant impact upon the final conflict, and it only arises in full again in the "Finale" suite. Two other motifs of evil debut in The Rise of Skywalker, one for the Sith Wayfinder device and another for the Knights of Ren. The Wayfinder motif is a series of pulsating string notes in a churning, hypnotic rhythm, heard on album first late in "Journey to Exegol." (It actually belongs in the "Prologue" sequence.) The motif has a brief flourish when Ren destroys the second Wayfinder in the throne room (again unreleased) and in the middle of "Approaching the Throne." Interestingly, Williams neglects the theme at other obvious reference points, including "The Old Death Star" as the dagger is used to locate one of the Wayfinders. Also not entirely clear is the point of the new Knights of Ren theme, which supplants one of Ren's own motifs with a similar but distinct melody. This two-part idea with brutal emphasis on the repetition of its opening note is heard first in the "Prologue" and, for some reason, punctuates the first shot of the Sith temple on Exegol. (There is a suggestion that the Knights actually reside at this temple by some point.) The theme accompanies the gang of baddies as they observe the reforging of Ren's helmet and is later emphasized three times as these goons stand atop a desert bluff looking for Rey. (Both cues remain unreleased.) It is offered briefly at 0:40 into "To Kijimi" as the villains' ship is spotted following the protagonists. Where the Knights of Ren stomp around on Kijimi, their theme follows. The final rendition of the theme exists in "Coming Together," as Ren confronts his old clan. The final new theme of interest in The Rise of Skywalker is one for heroic antics that is most associated with Poe, which makes sense given that the melody is remarkably similar to his proper theme. In a way, the switch from minor to major mode in this theme represents a character that has turned from criminal activity to dedicate himself to the resistance. That is why you hear this theme the moment you see Lando this time around, too. The first major expression of this theme occurs at 1:13 into "Falcon Flight" and is reprised a few times in the film version of "The Speeder Chase." In the latter, it accompanies the "They fly now?" line. This idea exemplifies Williams' masterful connectivity between themes, whether it's manipulating Poe's for new duty or revealing shared progressions between the Emperor's and Rey's themes. The "Anthem of Evil" alone is so rich with structural and rhythmic connections to Rey, Palpatine, Ren's major theme, and the Imperial March that the maestro's wizardry boggles the mind. The pacing and emphasis on certain notes in the Knights of Ren theme tie it closely to Ren's own material as well. On the lighter side, the friendship theme shares fluid melodicism that dates back to Hook on the surface but shares its mode with the themes for Yoda, Anakin, and Rose from prior films in this franchise. The victory theme is a smart collaboration of both Rey's chimes motif and the main Luke theme, the former influencing the progressions and pacing of the initial phrase. The second half of that phrase is suspiciously similar to an inversion of Luke's theme. And, as mentioned before, the concluding bars of the victory theme are identical to those of the "Han Solo and the Princess" theme. While many of these connections won't explicitly click with most listeners, they nonetheless offer important intellectual clues to how the music is woven together over all these films. There are also a few singular themes for individual scenes in The Rise of Skywalker, a technique Williams has used in this franchise since the throne room scene in A New Hope and the asteroid chase in The Empire Strikes Back. Here, the composer pens unique ideas for "The Speeder Chase," including the score's most rousing conclusion to any cue; unfortunately, all but a few fragments of this recording were replaced in the film with a more anonymous alternative (outside of Poe's new theme). The other singular new theme in this score builds from a combination of the concluding cues in the previous two scores, the rhythmic harp motif of "A New Home" (is Rey going to live there?) serving as a stark backdrop for a weighty string melody reminiscent of Schindler's List. One of the consternations bound to arise for Williams enthusiasts is the composer's unease in making some obvious thematic connections when merited. The lack of the Ahch-To Island theme for even a brief moment in the scene there in The Rise of Skywalker is a missed opportunity. Cues totally devoid of thematic reprises or development, such as the pivotal "Advice," are odd reminders that some of the references we are hearing are being dropped in place by the filmmakers, not Williams himself. In the case of that heartbreaking Han Solo scene, Williams offers no connections to the equivalent conversation in The Force Awakens or the Han and Leia theme. Instead, Williams explores disconnected high strings and grim French horn resolution that foreshadows Ren's death scene. The prologue sequence is extraordinarily messy in its music, and a reprise of the Mustafar arrival motif from Revenge of the Sith may have helped place that location. That said, there are nuggets of references Williams makes that are unnecessary but nice touches. Three of them come in "Falcon Flight;" a subtle nod to the chase motif from The Last Jedi is heard at 0:15, the hyperspace motif returns from The Empire Strikes Back at 1:47, and the ensemble hits at the end of the cue harken back to the destruction of Alderaan in A New Hope. During the conversation between Poe and Zorii about resisting the First Order, Williams employs a suspense ostinato familiar to Attack of the Clones. Most remarkably, at 1:35 into "Approaching the Throne," Williams reprises the Palpatine persuasion motif from Revenge of the Sith as the Sith Lord uses his power to influence Rey just as he did Anakin. Not all of these applications are tracked in, though certainly no complete album of music as heard in the film presentation of The Rise of Skywalker would be complete without those moments as well. It is, on the whole, another frightfully microedited score in context, and it's challenging to determine how much music Williams wrote with the album specifically in mind. So many of his best recordings were not featured in the film that one must deduce that either the film was irreparably rearranged after the score was recorded or Williams had concert halls in mind when writing. The "Finale" arrangement certainly smells like Williams favoritism through and through, and his choice to score the closing scenes of his last four Star Wars films with the same two renditions of the Force theme shows a measure of inflexibility. In all of Williams' music for the prequels and sequels, it is Attack of the Clones with the most effective closing cue, if only because it emulates the agonizing dramatism heard at the end of The Empire Strikes Back. The album situation for The Rise of Skywalker is inexcusable, and some of the blame must be placed on Williams' insistence upon his preferred album arrangements. The commercial product of 77 minutes contains a wealth of strong content from the score, but it is missing key sequences and is badly out of order. Disney made available the "For Your Consideration" promo on its awards site for just a matter of a few hours before pulling it down; it did eventually return around the Academy Awards, though by then it had already experienced extensive bootlegging. This 51-minute presentation contains about 21 minutes of unique music, and its sound quality is extremely poor. The "Prologue" and "Journey to Exegol" cues are incomprehensibly arranged on the albums and in the film; the promo's "Prologue" is superior in arrangement to the absolute butchering on the commercial product. Likewise, you have cues like "Approaching the Throne," which differ on all three versions: in the film, on the commercial album, and on the promo. This mess is compounded by the lack of so much fantastic material on the primary album, not to mention some key cues not even included on the promo due, in all likelihood, to the inclusion of older franchise themes. The commercial album contains the opening and closing cues and, of course, the three suites (assuming "The Speeder Chase" is a concert piece). The promo contains the absolutely necessary "Falcon Chase" and duo of "Parents" and "Coming Together" in which you hear the Ren theme turned heroic. Missing from all of this is the "Training Course" montage, the destruction of Kimiji rendition of the "Anthem of Evil," and the phenomenal reprise of the main franchise theme from A New Hope when Lando arrives with the full fleet. The omissions are devastating, as they represent some of the most memorably successful cues in the film. The sum of Williams' work for The Rise of Skywalker is still immeasurably impressive, regardless of these frustrating flaws inherent in the album and film edits. Two source songs, one by Lin-Manuel Miranda and the other by Ricky Tinez, with both co-written by J.J. Abrams, are exempt from the Williams equation. If there was truly over 225 minutes of music recorded for this film, then a 3-CD set will be necessary to illuminate the greatness clearly on display in this final venture for Williams into the Star Wars universe. Expectedly, the maestro's work did not receive the mainstream awards it deserved, but its monumental complexity of thought and transcendence beyond modern fantasy fads ensure its place among Williams' finest efforts. This music marks the end of an era, and it's not hard to imagine that history will view these sequel scores as modern classics unparalleled by their contemporaries.
TRACK LISTINGS:
Regular Commercial Album:
Total Time: 76:32
Disney Awards Promo: Total Time: 50:32
NOTES & QUOTES:
The slipcase packaging of the commercial album contains a list
of performers and a note from the director. The Target-exclusive album
is identical but adds slightly different art and two trading cards. The
Disney promotional album is a digital product with no official
packaging.
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The reviews and other textual content contained on the filmtracks.com site may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of Christian Clemmensen at Filmtracks Publications. All artwork and sound clips from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker are Copyright © 2019, Walt Disney Studios (Promotional Album), Walt Disney Records (Commercial Album) and cannot be redistributed without the label's expressed written consent. Page created 2/17/20 (and not updated significantly since). Lando Calrissian has no need for erectile dysfunction pills. |
