7PM show. No spoiler review.
The movie presented a pretty neat side of the Star Wars universe. It had the look and feel of the classic films but the polish of Force Awakens with modern effects and sound design.
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It's a popcorn film.
Perhaps more gritty than other films in the franchise. Almost immediately it's apparent that we're not dealing with the stark black and white good and evil Star Wars movies are noted for. The extremes are there but it's tempered with the gray areas of the Empire conscripting the unwilling and rebels dealing with others in harsh terms. Even the rebellion looks to have a less than uniform regime as factions aren't exactly working together.
There is some time given to character development. There are quiet moments as well as the to be expected on-the-nose dialogue. There's a running theme of loss. Kind of a downer for a "fun" film. I suppose that's part of the irony of making wars in the stars a party in space.
Despite the dialogue the actors emote pretty well. At least for a space opera.
The story did a lot of jumping from planet to planet in the first two acts. This was a problem I had with Attack of the Clones as it seemed to divert your attention to and fro without the connective tissue required to vest your interest in the happenings on screen.
Effects are convincing even if now and then I knew we were looking at models on the screen. The combination of practical effects and CG mixed well to fool the eye. There are even some characters who appear even though it seems impossible from a movie-making perspective. If it weren't for the real-world knowledge of the state of the actors you would swear they were in front of the camera looking like they did almost 30 years ago. I won't say who because this is a spoiler free review.
Before I give you my verdict let me give you some reference.
You've probably never read a movie review by me so I should give you some background where I stand. I love Star Wars but only Episodes IV, V and VI. The prequels were largely a silly cartoon to me. Episode VII rehashed so much I wound up bored to tears. I'm one of those who revere Empire Strikes Back as the pinnacle of the franchise blending action, character development and intrigue more effectively than the others.
It's worth mentioning that I'm pretty hard on films in general. It's not often that I'm enchanted by a film's journey and simply don't want it to end. If you're not as harsh in your film critiques then there's a great chance you'll like Rogue One more than I did.
Unlike The Force Awakens this film didn't find the need to scratch the nostalgia itch raw. TFA step by step retreaded the events of previous movies to a tee. To the credit of Rogue One it tried some new things, showed us some new locales yet didn't blow it the way Episodes I-III did.
I'm willing to assert that if you like or love any of the Star Wars films you'll probably at least enjoy Rogue One. There were parts which left me scratching my head. Some parts had me just about to hate the movie but other parts drew me back in. To me it's a fairly flawed film with a smattering of must-see moments.
My verdict is I'm glad I saw it. I'm not eager to see it again. Maybe after a few years I'll come back to it for a home viewing.
In the end I felt let down by flaws inherent in prequels.
For starters whatever stakes there are you know the mission will succeed in retrieving the Death Star plans. Why? You saw Episode IV A New Hope didn't you? That's not a spoiler unless you simply missed all of Star Wars up to now.
Also given the proximity of this movie's timeline to A New Hope it's a mystery where all these new ship designs went. There are also some droids never mentioned or seen in the movies happening after Rogue One's story which stands out to me like a loose end. That may be nit-picking. I admitted earlier I'm pretty hard on movies. It's not because I'm full of myself. I just figure if I can think of it the movie producers probably thought of it too, yet left it in as a creative decision.
I'll leave it up to you if I'm full of myself or not. If you don't want to think too hard and have a fun action packed time in the theater give Rogue One a try. It's been a very long time since there's been a Star Wars film I recommend seeing.
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