Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has provided a controversial conclusion to the Skywalker saga. Fans have scanned scenes for everything from symbolic showpieces to Easter eggs, and some have even begun to critique the editing of the film itself.
One specific scene involving Rey and Kylo Ren has given rise to inquisitive minds considering that the speed of some shots was reversed. The simple editing technique of reversing footage has been used in the making of previous Star Wars films and was frequently employed in the now-laughable sci-fi flicks of yesteryear like Lost in Space and even Star Trek: TOS. Despite this fan theory though, editor Maryann Brandon told ComicBook.com that the sequence under scrutiny does not use such an editing technique.
If you’ll recall, at one point we find Rey and Kylo Ren clashing with the Sith Lord Palpatine amid the movie’s most intense battle sequence. It’s here that Rey meets her end and, in turn, Kylo Ren brings her back but only at the cost of the supreme sacrifice. Some have claimed that in this sequence, the moment when Rey lifts up Kylo to embrace him was actually created by reversing a clip of Rey laying Kylo on the ground. However, Brandon stated this scene is not, in fact, a reversed shot.
In regards to employing this reverse effect in post, the editor noted:
“I’m not saying I wouldn’t do it, I’m just saying I didn’t do it in that particular instance. There are shots where I’ve done that, forward and back and forward, to elongate a shot or reach an effect I wanted. But it’s just not in that scene.”
Playing with the speed or runtime of a clip is not only an effect used among cheesy sixties sci-fi programs, as it can be used to pull off some real gravity-defying visuals, too. The Star Wars franchise is not above using these techniques, either. They are, after all, tried and true methods of the cinematic art. But, to the disappointment of some fans, the moment in question from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker did not use reverse footage.