“The Rise of Skywalker” Timeline with Musical Cues/Analysis

I saw The Rise of Skywalker for a second time on Monday. As much as I wanted to bring my portable recorders, I understand and respect that doing so would be illegal, so I had to do it the old-fashioned way: I took 30 pages of handwritten notes on the plot and the music, which I've edited, revised, and posted below. ​The underlined time stamps are the film's timeline (ex: 1:14 means one hour and fourteen minutes into the film), while boldface text refers to the soundtracks (ex: OST, track 14, 3:27 means that that music can be heard on the original soundtrack at 3:27 on the fourteenth track; FYC, track 6, 2:49 means that that music can be heard on the For Your Consideration soundtrack at 2:49 on the sixth track). I'll be seeing the film again next week, and no doubt adding to this timeline. Anybody out there in cyber space who can fill in some of the blanks (or make any corrections), please do so in the comments :-)

0:00
“A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...”
Opening crawl – OST, track 1, 0:00

0:02
Kylo flies his start ship, power motive x2 (horns, fortissimo) – FYC, track 1, 0:08 & OST, track 2, 1:02
Kylo's power motive interrupted (descending horn) – FYC, track 1, 0:29 & OST, track 2, 1:32
Kylo pauses: high strings – FYC, track 1, 0:37 & OST, track 2, 1:40
Kylo finds the wayfinder: wannabe motive – FYC, track 1, 0:48 & OST, track 2, 2:26
Kylo flies to new planet: string ostinato with trumpet melody – FYC, track 1, 0:58

0:03
Kylo lands: brass – FYC, track 1, 1:29 & OST, track 1, 1:47
Kylo enters Palpatine's temple: no music

0:04
Palpatine: “At last. … Snoke trained you well.” - no music
Palpatine: “I made Snoke. … Unnatural.” - incidental music, not on OST or FYC

0:05
Palpatine: “A new empire.” Imperial March as fleet emerges – OST, track 2, 1:57
Palpatine: “Become what your grandfather forever could not. … She is not who you think she is.” Brass play Palpatine's theme – not in OST or FYC

0:06
Chewie plays Poe and Finn (“He's definitely cheating”) on board the Millenium Falcon – no music

0:07
Alarm sounds
“A spy in the First Order.” Viola, brass chorale – not on OST or FYC

0:08
TIE fighters attack Falcon: Palpatine's theme (brass, fast) – FYC, track 2, 0:21
Finn: “How do we thank you?” “Win the war.” Resistance March – FYC, track 2 0:21 or 0:53?
Finn destroys a TIE fighter: Rebel Fanfare – FYC, track 2, 0:58

0:09
Lightspeed skip #1: jaunty orchestral hits – FYC, track 2, 1:53
Lightspeed skip #2: Rebel Fanfare – FYC, track 2, 2:04
Lightspeed skip #3

0:10
Rey: “Be with me. They're not with me.” Rey's melody, first 2 phrases, horn with strings – no on OST or FYC
Leia: “Be patient.”
Leia hands Rey Luke's old lightsaber
Rey begins training course: ascending horns – not in OST or FYC
Rey's chimes (horns), as she runs the course – not on OST or FYC

0:11
Rey's melody (strings) as she continues the course – not in OST or FYC
Kylo looks at Vader's mask: Imperial March – not in OST or FYC
Rey battles droid on training course, flash to Kylo

0:12
Rey's flashbacks
BB-8 stuck under tree – no music

0:13
Rey: “I didn't finish. I got distracted.”
Rey hands saber back to Leia. “I will earn it one day.” New, tender musical theme? - not on OST or FYC?

0:14
Falcon lands – no music
Poe and Finn argue

0:15
Poe: “We've decoded...” 4-beat string ostinto – no on OST or FYC
“The emperor is dead.” Palpatine's theme – not on OST or FYC

0:16
“The Final Order … Exegol.” String glissandos – not on OST or FYC
Leia: “Always in the shadows.”
Rey and Leia discuss the wayfinder: Force theme (horn, first two phrases) – not on OST or FYC

0:17
Rey: “I need to finish what Luke started.”
Rey to Leia: “I don't want to go without your blessing, but I will.” Rey's melody – not on OST or FYC
Poe: “We go together.” Together theme (strings) – FYC, track 3, 0:00 & OST, track 9, 0:00

0:18
Rey to Leia: “So much I want to tell you.” Rey's melody – FYC, track 3, 1:07 & OST, track 9, 1:29
Leia hands saber back to Rey: Force theme, phrases 1-4 (horn) – FYC, track 3, 1:22 & OST, track 9, 1:45
Leia: “Never be afraid of who you are.”

0:19
Falcon departs – FYC, track 3, 1:16 & OST, track 9, 2:09
Kylo fixes helmet: this is a new theme/motive that appears throughout the film, but not sure exactly what yet since it does not appear in OST or FYC

0:20
Kylo appears with fixed helmet: power motive x2 (horn, fortissimo) – not in OST or FYC
Conference room
Kylo: “We have a spy.” Palpatine's theme – not in OST or FYC
“We must correct the error of Starkiller base.” - no music
Kylo's force choke recalls Vader's own from A New Hope's conference room scene

0:21
Falcon lands on Pasaana – no music

0:22
Pasaana festival – Lin Manuel-Miranda's music?

0:23
Rey sees alien children
Rey: “I don't have a family name. I'm just Rey.” Rey's melody (flute) – not in OST or FYC
Rey/Kylo ForceTime

0:24
Kylo: “Why didn't you take my hand?”
Kylo: “I don't have to kill you.” Wannabe motive – not in OST or FYC
Kylo grabs Rey's necklace

0:25
Rey: “We have to go.” Incidental music – not on OST or FYC
Lando saves them.
Lando: “Wookies stand out in a crowd.”

0:26
TIE fighters appear: horn call – not on OST or FYC

0:27
Lando: “Give Leia my love.” Leia's theme (flute with strings) – not on OST or FYC

0:28
Speeder chase – not in OST or FYC (even though one of the OST tracks is titled “The speeder chase”)
Finn: “They fly now?”

0:29
Rey: “I've seen that ship before.”

0:30
Quick sand – no music
Finn: “Rey, I never told you...”

0:31
Leia gets bad news: “Be optimistic.”
Underground tunnels: incidental music – no ton OST or FYC
Rey ignites saber, Poe turns on flashlight

0:32
Walking through tunnels – no music
find speeder: incidental creepy music – not on OST or FYC

0:33
Discover Sith dagger
3PO: “Location of the wayfinder is on the dagger. … My programming prohibits me.” - no music
Snake appears: incidental music – not on OST or FYC

0:34
Rey approaches snake – no music
Rey sees snake's wound: incidental music – not on OST or FYC
Rey moves toward wound: Rey's melody (flute with strings) – no on OST or FYC

0:35
Rey heals snake: Force theme, phrases 1 and 2 (horn) – not on OST or FYC
Rey: “Force energy from me to him.”
Knights of Ren: Knights motive x3(?) - no on OST or FYC

0:36
Rey senses something: “I'll be right behind you.”
Finn, Poe, and Cheiw board new ship: Resistance March (brass) – FYC, track 4, 0:25
Resistance (clarinet) – FYC, track 4, 0:38

0:37
Chewie goes after Rey, Knights of Ren spot him: timpani – FYC, track 4, 1:02
Rey walks out: creepy Bartok- or Shostakovich-like strings – FYC, track 4, 1:08

0:38
Finn: “It's Ren.” Agitated strings with horn – FYC, track 4, 1:51
Kylo approaches: hints of Anthem of evil (horn) – FYC, track 4, 1:59
Rey waits, ignites saber: creepy high strings – FYC, track 4, 2:12

0:39
Rey leaps, slashes Kylo's ship, Kylo crashes
Finn: “They got Chewie!”

0:40
Rey Force grabs shuttle
Kylo emerges from flames: Power motive (horn, fortissimo, x2) – not on OST or FYC
Tug of war between Rey and Kylo: wannabe motive (horn) – not on OST or FYC

0:41
Rey's force lightning – no music
Rey: “I lose control. … That power came from me.” - no music

0:42
Rey: “I had a vision of the throne of the Sith.”: horn call – FYC, track 5, 0:30
Hux: “Another transport.”

0:43
Chewie survived: Together theme (strings) – FYC, track 5, 1:03
3PO: “Only in my memory now” - no music

0:44
Kijimi
Poe: “We're all in this til the end”: Together theme (brass) – FYC, track 6, 0:15
Together theme (horn + flute) – FYC, track 6, 0:30

0:45
BB-8 activates D-O: Together theme – FYC, track 6, 0:56
D-O meets Rey: “No thank you.”
Rey: “Somebody treated him badly”: Rey's melody (flute) – FYC, track 6, 1:13
Arrival on Kijimi – no music

0:46
Poe sneaks around Kijimi – no music
Poe: “They're everywhere.”
Poe: “follow me”: sneaky low strings – not in OST or FYC
Zorri appears

0:47
Rey kicks Zorri's ass: “We could really use your help.”
Zorri: “Not that you care....”
Rey: “I care”: Together theme (strings, brief) – not on OST or FYC

0:48
Knights of Ren appear on Kijimi

0:49
Babu Frik – no music
Poe: “Can you make him translate?”
Finn: “Doesn't R2 back up your memory?”
3PO: “If this mission fails...”: incidental music – not on OST or FYC

0:50
3PO: “Taking one last look at my friends”: main theme (horn with tender strings) – not on OST or FYC
Kylo informed about Kijimi

0:51
3PO: “There's something else we could try...”
Babu pulls plug
Zorri shows First Order captain's medallion, landing privileges for any vessel

0:52
Zorri to Poe: “Want to come with me?”: incidental music – not on OST or FYC
Poe: “I can't walk out.”
Zorri: “They win by making you think you're alone.”

0:53
Rey: “My parents were on Oggi's ship.”
3PO activated with red eyes

0:54
Ren's destroyer: Power motive x1 (horn), followed by high strings – OST, track 8, 2:05
Rey: “Chewie's alive”: main theme (clarinet, softly) – OST, track 8, 2:20

0:55
Rey: “We have to go.”
Poe to Zorri: “Can I kiss you?”
Wannabe motive (horn) – FYC, track 7, 0:35

0:56
Land on destroyer: incidental – not on OST or FYC
Rey senses dagger: incidental – not on OST or FYC

0:57
Rey splits up with Poe/Finn/Chewie
Kylo: “She's close. Search the city again.”

0:58
Resistance March (horn, slowly) – FYC, track 8, 1:25
Poe shot, stormtroopers capture Poe, Finn, and Chewie

0:59
Rey finds dagger, Vader's mask: Imperial March (horns with creepy strings) – not on OST or FYC
Kylo: “You're hard to find.” - no music
Rey: “You're hard to get rid of.”
Kylo: “I know the rest of your story”: incidental – not in OST or FYC

1:00
Rey flashbacks
Kylo: “They sold you to protect you.”

1:01
Pryde: “Terminate them.”
Kylo: “You don't know the whole story. It was Palpatine”: Palpatine's theme (brass) – not on OST or FYC

1:02
Hux: “I'd like to do this myself. … I'm the spy.”

1:03
Rey kicks ass: Rey's melody first phrase (horn) – not on OST or FYC
Kylo's Power motive (horn with agitated strings) – not on OST or FYC
Poe, Finn, and Chewie spot the Falcon: Rebel Fanfare – not on OST or FYC
Finn shoots Hux.
Hux: “I need Kylo Ren to lose.”
Kylo and Rey meet on landing platform: creepy high strings – OST, track 10, 0:00 & FYC, tack 10, 0:00

1:04
Kylo: “He saw what you'd become. … You're his granddaughter. … You are a Palpatine.”
Kylo: “We're a dyad in the Force”: Anthem of Evil (heavy strings) – OST, track 10, 0:58 & FYC, track 10, 0:59

1:05
Kylo: “We'll kill him together.”
Kylo offers Rey his hand: Anthem of evil (muted horn) – OST, track 10, 1:45 & FYC, track 10, 1:28
Falcon appears: Main theme – FYC, track 10, 1:53
Rey rescued: Rey's melody – FYC, track 10, 2:09

1:06
Hux dies.
Falcon's landing gear busted.
Rey: “Find Palpatine and destroy him”: Palpatine's theme (woodwinds) – not in OST or FYC

1:07
Falcon crash lands on Endor moon

1:08
Rey removes dagger: harp ostinato – OST, track 4, 0:49 & FYC, track 11, 0:43
Rey lines up dagger: Imperial March – OST, track 4, 1:15 & FYC, track 11, 0:59

1:09
Jenna: “Rough landing.”
Rey: “We can't wait until tomorrow”: Rey's countermelody – FYC, track 11, 1:47

1:10
Finn and Jenna both former First Order stormtroopers – no music

1:11
Jenna: “We mutinied”: soft incidental strings – not on OST or FYC
Finn: “The Force brought me here”: Force theme, all 4 phrases (horn with strings) – not on OST or FYC
Rey takes skimmer: low string ostinato – OST, track 4, 2:25

1:12
Rey on the water: horn call – OST, track 4, 2:40
Rey on the water: trumpet ascending – OST, track 4, 2:54
Finn and Poe argue whether ot not to go after Rey – no music

1:13
Rey approaches Death Star: ostinato with horn – FYC, track 12, 0:15
Jenna: “There is another skimmer.”

1:14
Rey climbs into Death Star: incidental – not on OST or FYC
Rey reaches throne room: Imperial March (high strings) – not on OST or FYC

1:15
Rey finds wayfinder – no music
Rey discovers her Sith self: “Don't be afraid of who you are.”

1:16
Rey loses wayfinder, Kylo picks it up – no music
Kylo: “You wanted to prove to my mother you were a Jedi, but you proved something else.”

1:17
Kylo: “The dark side is in our nature”: Anthem of Evil (flute) – not in OST or FYC
Kylo crushes wayfinder, Rey attacks (out of anger?)

1:18
Maz: “Leia knows what must be done”: Leia's theme (cello) – not in OST or FYC
Rey and Kylo battle – no music

1:19
Battle continues – no music

1:20
Battle continues: incidental music (horn calls) – not in OST or FYC
Kylo's Power motive (horns, fortissimo, x1) – FYC, track 12, 0:50 & OST, track 12, 0:41

1:21
Leia: “Ben”: slow string chord – FFYC, track 13, 1:20 & OST, track 12, 1:03
Rey stabs Kylo – no music
Kylo falls: tender strings with a big suspension – FYC, track 14, 0:00

1:22
Rey considers her next move: magical music – FYC, track 14, 0:32 & OST, track 12, 1:43
Rey heals Kylo: force theme (flute, first two phrases) – FYC, track 14, 0:42 & OST, track 12, 1:53

1:23
Rey: “I did want to take your hand.”
Rey boards Kylo's ship and flies away: horn and trumpet – FYC, track 14, 1:30 & OST, track 12, 2:40
Maz: “Goodbye dear princess”: Leia's full theme (flute with strings) – FYC, track 14, 1:49 & OST, track 12, 2:54

1:24
Kylo stands alone – no music
Han: “Hey kid.”

1:25
Han: “Kylo is dead, my son is alive”: high creepy strings – FYC, track 15, 0:00

1:26
Ben: “I know what I have to do, but I don't know if I have the strength to do it.”
Ben throws saber: Anthem of evil – FYC, track 15, 1:15?

1:27
Palpatine's hologram with General Pryde
Palpatine: “The final order begins.”
Star destroyer blows Kijimi: Imperial March – not on OST or FYC

1:28
Poe: “Every ship in the fleet has planet-destroying power”: Plapatine's theme (brass and choir) – not on OST or FYC

1:29
Poe talks to Leia's body: Leia's theme (horn solo with gentle string accompaniment) – not on OST or FYC
Poe: “I'm not ready”: Force theme – not on OST or FYC
Lando: “Never ready. … We had each other.”

1:30
Poe to Finn: “I can't do this alone”: Poe's theme (first time in film) – not on OST or FYC
Rey burns Kylo's ship on Ach-To island: Rey's melody (flute) – OST, track 6, 0:22
Rey throws saber into flames, Luke catches it: Force theme, first two phrases – OST, track 6, 0:45

1:31
Luke: “A jedi's weapon deserves more respect.”
Rey: “I was just doing what you did.”
Luke: “I was wrong. … What are you afraid of?”
Rey: “Myself.”
Luke: “Because you are a Palpatine? … Leia knew, too.”

1:32
Rey: “Leia still trained me”: Force theme, phrases 1 and 2 – not on OST or FYC
Luke: “Some things are stronger than blood.”
Luke gives Rey Leia's saber: Leia's theme (flute) – OST, track 6, 3:20

1:33
Luke: “A thousand generations live in you now”: Main theme (flute) – OST, track 6, 3:40
Luke: “You have everythign you need”: Together theme (strings) – OST, track 6, 4:00

1:34
Luke lifts x-wing: Yoda's theme – OST, track 6, 4:23

1:35
R2 restores 3PO's memory – no music

1:36
Red 5: incidental agitated strings – not in OST or FYC
Finn: “It's Rey. … She's showing us the way”: Together theme (strings) – OST, track 11, 0:59?
Resistance formulates plan: Resistance March (strings) – OST, track 11, 1:40?

1:37
Poe: “They'll come. We're not alone”: Conclusion theme (first time heard in film, and first time on OST) - OST, track 11, 2:30
Resistance intro & march (horn) – OST, track 11, 1:40?

1:38
“Today we make our last stand.”
Finn: “Now we take the war to them.”
Rey arrives on Exegol: agitated string ostinato – not on OST or FYC

1:39
Rey enters Palpatine's temple: Palpatine's theme (low brass and choir) – not on OST or FYC
Resistance March and Palpatine's theme, back and forth – not on OST or FYC

1:40
Poe: “Welcome to Exegol”: low string hits with icy high strings – not on OST or FYC
Rey approaches Palpatine's throne: Palpatine's theme with high violin trills – not on OST or FYC

1:41
Main theme (horn) – FYC, track 16, 0:09 & OST, track 13, 1:18
Finn: “I feel it”: Force theme – FYC, track 16, 0:38 & OST, track 13, 1:46
low string ostinato – FYC, track 16, 0:51 & OST, track 13, 1:56

1:42
“They're not using speeders”: Force theme (low trumpet) – FYC, track 16, 1:19 & OST, track 13, 2:14

1:43
Rey keeps walking towards Palpatine's throne: low strings with agitated viola and creepy high strings – OST, track 14, 0:00 & FYC, track 17, 0:00
Rey sees the throne: two big orchestral chords – OST, track 14, 0:38 & FYC, track 17, 0:34 (?)

1:44
Palpatine: “Long have I waited.”
Palpatine: “It's in your blood”: Rey's melody – OST, track 14, 1:18 & FYC, track 17, 1:21

1:45
Anthem of evil – OST, track 14, 1:44 & FYC, track 17, 1:49

1:46
Finn and Jenna destroy Nav signal: trumpet/horn sequence – OST, track 14, 2:56 & FYC, track 17, 3:10
Resistance march (horn) – OST, track 14, 3:28 & FYC, track 17, 3:34

1:47
Palpatine: “The time has come”: a capella choir – OST, track 14, 3:55 & FYC, track 17, 4:04

1:48
Palpatine shows Rey the dogfight: “Only you have the power to save them”: choir – FYC, track 18, 0:30
Mix of Ren's Power motive with Rey's melody orchestration? - FYC, track 18, 1:21

1:49
Ren attacks: power motive (horn, x2) – FYC, track 18, 1:35

1:50
Knights of Ren defeat Ben

1:51
Force theme (flute with harp? Celeste?) - FYC, track 19, 1:20
Rey attacks: Rey's melody (horn) – not on OST or FYC
Rey's chimes (brass) – not on OST or FYC
Rey and Ben see each other: Rey's countermelody – not on OST or FYC

1:52
Palpatine attacks

1:53
Palpatine sucks life from Rey and Ben

1:54
Lando: “More of us.”
Fleet arrives: main theme (trumpet) – not on OST or FYC

1:55
Zorri arrives: Main 2nd theme (horn) – not on OST or FYC
Palpatine: “Look what you have made”: Palpatine's theme (brass) – not on OST or FYC

1:56
Palpatine: “As once I fell, so falls the last Skywalker”: Palpatine's theme (brass) – not on OST or FYC
Palpatine force lightnings the resistance fleet

1:57
Rey wakes up: tender strings/harp/choir – not on OST or FYC
Rey: “Be with me”: Rey's chimes (piano) – OST, track 15, 0:40 & FYC, track 20, 0:44

1:58
Rey stands and grabs Leia's saber: Rey's melody (horn) – OST, track 15, 1:42 & FYC, track 20, 1:44

1:59
Palpatine: “let your death be the final work in the story of the Rebellion”: Palpatine's theme (brass and choir, fortissimo) – OST, track 15, 2:13 & FYC, track 20, 2:20
Palpatine: “I am all the Sith”: struggling strings – OST, track 15, 2:32 & FYC, track 20, 2:40
Rey: “And I am all the Jedi”: Force theme (horn) – OST, track 15, 2:41 & FYC, track 20, 2:49
Palpatine defeated

2:00
Command ship blows up: Force theme (all four phrases)
Conclusion theme – OST, track 15, 3:00? & FYC, track 21, 0:02

2:01
Falcon rescues Finn and Jenna: Rebel fanfare – OST, track 15, 3:26 & FYC, track 21, 0:39

2:02
Ben pulls himself up: ascending strings – FYC, track 22, 1:09?
Ben approaches Rey's body: power motive (flute) – OST, track 16, 1:06

2:03
Ben hugs Rey: poignant strings with big usspension – OST, track 16, 1:49

2:04
Ben heals Rey: Rey's melody (strings) – OST, track 16, 2:30
Rey: “Ben”
Ben and Rey kiss

2:05
Ben dies: solemn low brass – OST, track 16, 3:20 & FYC, track 22, 2:40
Leia's body disappears: strings – OST, track 16, 3:34 & FYC, track 22, 2:50
Rey flies Red 5: horn theme – OST, track 16, 3:57 & FYC, track 22, 3:13
Conclusion theme (horn with choir) – OST, track 16, 4:20 & FYC, track 22, 3:36

2:06
Conclusion theme (strings, then trumpet) – OST, track 16, 4:30 & FYC, track 22, 3:50
Ewoks: horn calls – OST, track 17, 0:00
Main theme (woodwinds + horn in octaves) – OST, track 17, 0:17
Force theme (horn, all four phrases) – OST, track 17, 0:29

2:07
Poe and Zorri: OST has Poe's theme here (OST, track 17, 1:02), but taken out for the film? Why??
Maz gives Chewie medal: Yoda's theme (why?) - OST, track 17, 1:19 and 1:39

2:08
Rey lands: Chimes x1, melody (high strings with flute answers) – OST, track 17, 2:20 and 2:29
Lando and Jenna: Luke and Leia (cellos) – OST, track 17, 2:42

2:09
Poe, Finn, and Rey group hug: together theme – OST, track 17, 3:28
Tattooine. Jawa: “Utini” - no music

2:10
Rey visits old Skywalker homestead: harp ostinato – FYC, track 23, 0:00 & OST, track 18, 0:00
Rey slides: chimes – FYC, track 23, 0:21 & OST, track 18, 0:20

2:11
Rey wraps and buries sabers: key change – FYC, track 23, 0:48 & OST, track 18, 0:48
Stranger: “Who are you?” - no music

2:12
Rey: “Skywalker”
Force ghosts of Luke and Leia: Force theme, phrases 1-4 – OST, track 19, 0:00
Rey walks off into binary sunset.

2:13
End Credits – OST, track 19, 0:32


Leftovers
OST, track 3 never heard in film (concert arrangement)
OST, track 5 never appears in film
OST, track 7 never appears in film
FYC, track 9 – almost entirely incidental. Difficult to pinpoint in film. Probably around 1:00?