STAR WARS: The Rise of the Modern Myth

What the new trilogy got right and how some of what they messed up could have been fixed.

It’s been three days since I watched Star Wars Episode IX. I couldn’t stop thinking about it so much that I watched it again yesterday. Yes, it is blockbuster. Yes, Disney is taking all my money. Yes, Star Wars is a great cash cow but there is a lot more to be discussed about the last installment of the new trilogy than all the screenwriting issues and how commercial it is (buy your bb8 PJ’s here). Talking about Star Wars means a conversation about love, space fascists, forgiveness… and I am not ready to exit the theatre. Be aware: spoilers are strong in this one.

George Lucas’ fascination with mythology, his friendship with Joseph Campbell, motivated him to deliberately create a modern myth. Despite all the criticisms of the new film, The Rise of Skywalker has not failed this portion of Lucas’ legacy. It is a space opera, a great classic drama, a story you could imagine people repeating to each other, whispering before bed in a galaxy far far away.

I want to dissect some of the most important parts of the story arguing what makes the tale a myth and how it honors what the creator of this Universe first proposed. Then, I want to talk about how I’d “fix” the screenwriting.

 “Some things are stronger than blood”

 Myths are supposed to be explanations, not only of how the world works but how people should live their lives. Myths are, essentially, lessons. In any world, but especially this one, the lesson that one’s blood does not define them is important. I would even argue, necessary.

Psychology has dabbled with the meaning of parentage for more than a century. Stories have been poking on this topic for millenniums. Zeus committed patricide, one could argue God allowed the killing of his only son, Luke’s father is Darth Vader (shock) and Kylo Ren murdered his dad. Big stories, envaulted in magic and miracles, allow for discussions on humanity’s most intimate curses and blessings: the people who raise us form who we are. Should we choose to revolt against them or follow their path, the bonds with people we did not choose defines our lives whether we want it or not. How it is going to define it is up to us.

There is a teenager, somewhere, right now, who is living with a violent parent or guardian. The violence they witness is lodged within them. Depending on the circumstances and formation of the internal world of this child, they can feel like there is nothing to do but give in to the cycle of violence that has formed their memories and collaborated for the creation and understanding of who they are and how they should behave in the world.

The Rise of Skywalker shows a battle that most people only have internally. One of the greatest things about fantasy is that it externalizes classic conflicts. Rey fights an evil version of herself, something so many of us do inside our heads every day. In this movie, I would argue we should have seen more of Rey’s rage and evil tendencies (#byechewie). Humanizing the character would be an important step to make them relatable. One of the greatest things about Greek mythology is that characters like Zeus, Athena and Aphrodite, for as incredible as they are, make mistakes. Rey should have made more mistakes and those mistakes should have had consequences, but more on that in a second.

When Luke turns to Rey and says “some things are stronger than blood” he is referring to the evil that runs through Rey’s veins but also how both Rey and Ben Solo should think about family. Rey is Palpatine’s granddaughter, but her parents chose to fight against him. Ben Solo is Darth Vader’s grandson, but also the son of Leah and Han. He tried to reject the Jedi and not follow his parents’ path at the same time he did not realize the dangers and pain of trying to be like his grandfather. Both are “freed” when they decide to follow a path they feel was chosen by them. If myths are lessons, I like that one: If there is something stronger than where you came from is who you want to be.

“Kylo Ren is dead. My son is alive.”

One of the beautiful things about myths is that, more than most works of fiction, they make us confront the pain of life through the eyes of people we would show no compassion for. Ben Solo is a patricide, serial murderer who contributes with the First Order’s baby stealing practices and destroys entire planets without thinking twice (unless his mommy is on the ship).

If Kylo Ren was a real-life person we would take turns forever spitting on his grave. But Kylo Ren is not a person, the two parts of him, including Ben Solo, are a myth. He is a story created to exercise our hope and forgiveness muscles. Hope that we can remember there is a person under every mask and if we act soon enough that person can be saved, and forgiveness because even though Kylo Ren wasn’t saved we still feel relief for him. I don’t know about y’all but I found myself cheering for Han Solo’s assassin to save the world independently of what he did before. Not forgiving him for the atrocities he committed but genuinely hoping he would do something good and even feel loves. Believing that a person who did terrible things can still do good is the type of lesson I want my children to learn and it has been exercised to it’s maximum in tales like Star Wars.

 “Be with me”

Let’s be honest. We don’t know where people go after they die. If you say you know for a fact what’s going to happen after you shut your eyes for the last time, well… ok. Most people live not knowing where grandpa went

But hey… no matter where you are as far as religion goes, we live hoping something, be it material or metaphysical, stays. Even if it’s just a grain of dust that once was you, something, please, stay.

Star Wars touches on that theme in two ways: One is through the infamous Jedi ghosts and voices that color the story and actually guide the characters in times they feel lost. The other one is that stories about people that were once alive not only guide the characters but have power over them.

Darth Vader was most definitely not alive when Kylo Ren was born but his trajectory was guided by Vader’s legacy. If one is sensitive enough to see, the marks of the people that once were are all around us, guiding us, somehow, to where we need to be. Just like his grandfather, Ben Solo eventually was liberated from the alter ego he chose to live as and found, some, peace.

How to fix ( a bit of) the script

Things need to have consequences. The themes mentioned above are classic mythological enterprises, essentially, who we are, how we are formed and what we leave behind. Some script choices have made these themes so profoundly essential a little less deep.

Rey has a dark side (like we all do). She has an evil grandfather, but she should have a dark side herself. Yes, she is angry that her parents died, but there are very few moments where that anger is explored and she ends up doing regrettable things. I would for sure have killed chewie and would have replaced one of her many pointless fights with Kylo Ren for a scene where they celebrate the life of Han Solo’s best friend.

Every war has consequences. The Last Jedi had really terrible stuff, from a lost Benicio Del Toro to a casino plot that had no pacing or long-lasting changes to that place (in thirty minutes they locked the animals, fixed the windows and beat the children). One thing that movie accomplished is a brief exploration of life and death situations (although Finn or Rose should have died. Maybe I’m too dramatic for Disney features). C3PO should have lost his memory at least until the time where Anakin was his master. That would have connected the generations even more. and brought an even stronger myth characteristic to the surface: Stories repeat themselves. Myths are eternal cycles, the battles between Gods and Titans, good and evil, monsters and heroes are ongoing just like the galaxy’s battle for democracy. Finally, maybe that evil ritual was a bad idea, but Rey being Palpatine’s granddaughter adds to the “saga” aspect of Star Wars it closes a story reinforcing the idea that it will inevitably repeat itself. Just like myths do.

God, there is a lot more to be discussed about this. Will this be my first Youtube video? To be continued.

PS. I feel like I can’t leave without saying Adam Driver. Adam Driver was the best thing hands down.