Putting the War in Star Wars
(This
review contains minor spoilers!)
As a huge Star Wars fan I’ve got a lot
to say about this one, so take a seat, get comfortable, grab yourself some blue
milk and a wookie cookie, as I give my full thoughts on the first Star Wars
Anthology movie (are they still calling them that? I haven’t heard that term be
used in a while), Rogue One!
Rogue One is a very interesting movie
in that it’s an incredibly different take on Star Wars as a whole, one that I
really didn’t think Disney would have the balls to make as a film. The type of
story seen here is usually reserved for expanded universe novels, and yet here
it is in all its glory on the big screen. And you know what? It works. I’m not
exaggerating when I say that Rogue One is easily the darkest Star Wars movie
yet, trumping even the kid-murdering Revenge of the Sith. It’s geared towards a
more adult audience, but older kids will surely enjoy it as well.
The inclusion of stuff like
lightsabers and Jedi often propels Star Wars into more of a science-fantasy
genre, but with all that mostly thrown out the window for this movie, Rogue One
plays like a full-on war movie. Between ducking and hiding through the streets
of a busy marketplace and attempting to snipe a target through the rain, this
movie is much more grounded in reality than any Star Wars before it, adding on
greatly to the darker nature of Rogue One as a whole.
This added darkness plays into some crazy
action sequences, as Rogue One explores what it’s like to be a Rebel foot soldier
in a much bigger battle. The battles have an air of desperation about them, as
the evil Empire is made out to be much more threatening here than it ever was
in the Original Trilogy. Stormtroopers actually make their marks this time
around, and it’s incredibly nerve-wracking. The Rebel Alliance is also pulled
into a more morally gray area than it was before, especially considering how
the lead, Jyn Erso, isn’t involved with them at all, leading her to questioning
several of their decisions.
Speaking of Jyn, let’s talk about the
characters. While most of them are good, there are a few weak spots here and
there. Jyn is a really strong and complex character, with a chip on her
shoulder having been pushed around the galaxy her whole life as a means to keep
her safe. While she’s not quite as entertaining as Leia or as compelling as
Rey, she’s a character you enjoy spending time with. Similarly, new droid K-2SO
is a very lovable character, with his sarcastic quips making up much of the
film’s humour. The main villain, the sinister Director Krennic, works as a
contrast to the cool, calm and collected nature of the Imperial officers we’ve
seen in the past through his ambitious and sometimes erratic nature, and his
connection to Jyn and her family makes him all the more interesting, although
it isn’t explored as much as I would’ve liked. Honestly, if Krennic had gotten
more screentime to further establish his character, that would’ve made him an
even better villain. The absolute best part of the movie, however, is the duo
of force-sensitive warrior Chirrut Imwe and his machine gun toting partner Baze
Malbus. They’re both awesome samurai-style characters, each with some witty and
cool moments, and the worst part about them is that, again, they don’t get
nearly as much screentime as they deserve. I sincerely hope we see more of them
through the Expanded Universe, because I need more.
Unfortunately that’s all for the
highlights, as far as the major characters go. The others are forgettable at
best. Male lead Cassian Andor has all the personality of a sheet of cardboard,
and while the filmmakers try to give him a sympathetic backstory to make us
feel for him, it ultimately goes nowhere as it seems to have gotten shelved to
fix the already jumpy pacing of the first half of the film, which I’ll get back
to later. And then there’s a rogue Imperial pilot that the movie tries to sell
us as an important character, but it turns out its kind of hard to do that
when, as far as I can remember, they never mention his name once in the entire
film. He ultimately serves his purpose for the story and that’s it. The
absolute biggest disappointment in the entire movie, however, comes with
Forrest Whitaker as Saw Gerrera. The movie builds Saw up to be this crazy Rebel
extremist willing to go to any means to get information, but once you meet him
he feels more like a senile old man being played by an actor who’s feeling kind
of bored.
In fact, the entire first third of the movie is centered
around Saw, and it moves about as fast as the banthas in the original Lego Star
Wars, which is to say that it’s not fast at all. The first 15 minutes are spent
jumping from planet to planet trying to set up multiple characters at once,
when the focus should’ve been entirely on Jyn. Then, once everybody’s finally together,
it’s a slow walk to Saw Gerrera’s place that feels like it could’ve been
greatly cut down. Once that’s out of the way, though, Rogue One finally gets
going and becomes an action movie that can stand up to the best of them, giving
us one of the best final battles in Star Wars history. I don’t really want to
spoil much about it, but I’ll say that it feels like a splice of the best parts
of the Battle of Endor from Return of the Jedi and the opening to Revenge of
the Sith.
Rogue One also holds several returning characters from
previous movies, some in major roles and others in cameos. Most are played by
different actors than those who played them in the original films save for a
few, and they fill their roles well. They do try a new technique on one of the
supporting roles (a returning face that I’m pretty sure wasn’t in any of the
promotional materials, so I won’t spoil who it is) in that they digitally alter
the actor’s face to make him more resemble the original actor who played the
character in the Original Trilogy. In all honesty, I didn’t even notice there
was any CGI used, but some of the people I saw it with did complain that it was
a bit obvious, so maybe if you do notice it’s there it can be an issue.
Now here’s the part of the review where I guess I’m supposed
to talk about Darth Vader’s role in the movie, but I blatantly refuse to explicitly
say anything that Mr. Tall, Dark and Asthmatic does in Rogue One. You need to see it for yourself. What I will
say is that in very little screentime the filmmakers are able to reaffirm Vader’s
standing as one of the greatest villains in cinema history, and James Earl
Jones returning as that iconic voice is just the icing on the cake.
The last major thing that needs to be
said about Rogue One is the set design and cinematography. The overall feel of
the movie is just brilliant. It combines the updated visuals and practical
effects of The Force Awakens with a very retro-Star Wars feel that looks like
it jumped straight out of 1977. The first shot of a Star Destroyer looming out
of the Death Star’s shadow looks just like the original models used in A New
Hope, painstakingly detailed and updated that it looks great in HD. As for the
cinematography, director Gareth Edwards puts his amazing talents in demonstrating
the sheer size of things to good use. The Death Star has never looked quite
this massive or dangerous. It reminded me a lot of the Moon from The Legend of
Zelda: Majora’s Mask, as it looms ever closer and closer spelling impending
doom for everyone should the mission fail. This is one of those movies that, if
you’re going to see it in the theatre, I’d recommend seeing it in IMAX. It’s
not a complete necessity to see it like that the way Doctor Strange was, but it’ll
allow you to fully appreciate the film all the more.
Rogue One is a lot of things. It’s a
very self-contained story filled with great set design, an awesome story, some
of the darkest themes Star Wars has seen to date, and incredible action
punctuated by an excellent finale. I do wish that more time was spent on some
of the lesser characters (and less time was spent on some of the others) and
that the pacing of the opening was a little quicker, but overall Rogue One is a
great movie. Does it at all compare to last year’s awesome Force Awakens or any
of the films in the Original Trilogy? That’s kind of hard to say, especially with
how different and removed Rogue One is from the rest of the saga. But honestly,
it’s not trying to live up to those movies. Rogue One is a Star Wars Story
through and through, and it’s one that’s worth seeing for yourself.
FINAL SCORE
8/10
Great
No comments:
Post a Comment