Star Wars Episode VII: The Cult of Darkness

Star Wars Episode VII: The Cult of Darkness is the seventh installment in the Star Wars saga. It was released on May 4, 2015. It was written by Michael Fisher and directed by Dave Filoni.

Opening Crawl
Three Decades have passed since the Battle of Endor. Though the Empire was defeated, threats to peace remained. The most recent of the threats is a dark side cult, dedicated to resurrecting a long-dead Sith Lord, Darth Bane.

The most recent battle between the cult and the Jedi resulted in the death of Luke Skywalker’ wife, Mara Jade. Enraged, Luke avenged his wife, drawing on the Dark Side to do so.

Plagued by guilt, Skywalker has retreated into self-reflective exile, leaving the leadership of the Jedi Order to his sister, Leia Solo…

Plot Summary
The film opens with Anakin Solo (Chase Ellison) and Tahiri Veila (Skyler Samuels) returning to Veritas, the new location for the Jedi Order, from the old Temple on Coruscant, where they scored the archives for clues relating to the Cult of Bane’s next objective. They report to Jedi Master Leia Skywalker-Solo (Carrie Fisher), telling her that the cult has already retrieved most of the objects necessary for the resurrection ceremony. What remains however, are Bane’s remains, which are the central element to such a ceremony.

Leia asks if they know where the ashes are. Anakin replies that they don’t, but they have a couple of theories. They report that they searched the quarters that once belonged to Palpatine in the Senate building as well as the entire Temple for the ashes but found nothing. That leaves the third theory: Palpatine had them with him on the Second Death Star when he died.

Leia reminds Anakin that the Death Star was destroyed over Endor. Anakin replies that the remains crashed into Endor’s oceans and asks for permission to go search them. Leia believes it is a fool’s errand but agrees to the mission on the condition that Han and Chewbacca accompany them. Anakin agrees.

They meet Han and Chewbacca on the east landing platform and board the freighter, setting off for Endor.

When they arrive, the Falcon submerges below the water. Anakin and Tahiri drop out of the ship in diving gear and cut their way into the throne room. They begin searching for the ashes, entering the Emperor’s bed chambers, which creeps the pair out. Inside the bedroom, they find the urn that contains Bane’s ashes.

Before they can leave with it, a pair of Sith cultists attack them. The Jedi manage to fend them off, but in the course of the fight, the hull of the ship is slashed and filled with water. Anakin and Tahiri are forced to retreat to the Falcon, leaving the ashes behind.

The cultists return to their base on the planet Moriband, the onetime homeworld of the Sith.

The Falcon lands back on Veritas, where Anakin and Tahiri report their failure to Leia. They examine the instructions for the resurrection ritual found in the Temple Archives and realize that if the cult is successful, a great threat will rise.

Back on Moriband, the Sith prepare everything for the ritual: Bane’s ashes, his lightsaber crystal and an ancient Sith Staff. The only thing they need is a host body. They have chosen Luke Skywalker to be this host. Darth Talon leaves herself to capture Skywalker.

Back at the Jedi Temple, Anakin wakes from a vision of Luke in danger. Beside him, Tahiri wakes up as well, and the two go to alert Leia. Han, Leia, Anakin, Tahiri and the droids set off to warn Luke.

On the planet Ach-To, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) wakes from a dream of his wife, Mara Jade (Amber Heard), sensing danger. He summons his lightsaber and goes outside, where Darth Talon is striding towards Luke’s dwelling with a full squadron of cultists. Luke ignites his weapon and moves into action, disarming all of the cultists with ease. Once they are all defeated, only Darth Talon is left. She ignites her lightsaber and duels with Luke, gaining the upper hand and striking off his mechanical hand.

She then sends him flying into the outside wall of his dwelling with Force lightning, knocking him unconscious.

By the time the Falcon arrives, Luke is gone.

Fearing the worst, Leia calls for reinforcements from Mon Mothma (Caroline Blakiston), and summons the full force of the Jedi Order to converge on Moriband.

While Han takes command of the Jedi’s navy division, and Lando leads the New Republic forces, Leia leads the surface attack, accompanied by Anakin and Tahiri.

They enter the Sith Temple, where Luke is bound to a stone slab, around which the ashes have been mixed with Bane’s lightsaber crystal and spread around the unconscious Jedi Master. Talon begins chanting in an ancient language, and the ashes catch on fire as she works ancient Sith Alchemy. Leia interrupts her, and the two women duel, while Anakin and Tahiri fight off the cultists. During the fight, Anakin reaches his uncle and starts to free him, but stops when he sees Luke’s eyes, glowing yellow. Luke, now possessed by Darth Bane, breaks free of his bonds and stands. In place of the stump where his mechanical hand was, a normal human hand regrows. Bane summons his secondary lightsaber from Talon’s belt and ignites it, leaping off the table. Leia and Talon stop fighting, Leia to watch in horror as Bane slaughters the cultists, and Talon to watch in awe. When the cultists are all dead, Talon bows before Bane, saying that she is his humble servant, his most faithful apprentice. Bane accepts her, then turns to Leia, Anakin and Tahiri. Anakin moves in for an attack, but Bane uses the Force to freeze all three of them in place. He then takes them outside and forces them to watch as he moves through the forces of both the Jedi and the cultists, killing all of them. He then turns his attention to the skies, where he claps his hands, sending a wave of Dark Side energy at both fleets, decimating them.

He turns back to the frozen Jedi and smiles, declaring that they may live, for now. He then leaves with Talon.

Han lands the Falcon on Moriband and reports that most of the New Republic and Jedi fleets have been decimated, but there are a few survivors. Leia cries on his shoulder for the loss of Luke, and Han comforts her.

Meanwhile, Anakin and Tahiri check the fallen Jedi for survivors, eventually realizing that Bane did indeed slaughter all of them. The few surviving Jedi and New Republic fighters retreat from Moriband, with Leia promising Luke that they will find a way to free him.

Cast (in order of appearance)
Chase Ellison as Anakin Solo

Skyler Samuels as Tahiri Veila

Kenny Baker as R2-D2

Carrie Fisher as Leia Skywalker-Solo

Anthony Daniels as C-3P0

Harrison Ford as Han Solo

Christian Bale as Sith Cultist #1

Daniel Craig as Sith Cultist #2

Lupita Nyong'o as Darth Talon

Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker

Amber Heard as Mara Jade Skywalker

Caroline Blakiston as Chancellor Mon Mothma

Billy Dee Williams as General Lando Calrissian

and Mark Hamill as Darth Bane