Tuesday, December 20, 2016

REVIEW: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

I'm so bummed that Gareth Edwards left Godzilla. Like so much. I really like his direction and ideas of how to shoot a film. So...yeah, I was really pleased to see his concepts and ideas put to work in Rogue One. There are times where his ideas of shooting the action from a human perspective are absolutely gorgeous in this film, especially in that final act, but I can't help but feel that there's just a little something missing in the opening act of this film.  But I will say that compared to last years Star Wars project, I do believe that Disney is getting better in their Star Wars ambitions. While I thoroughly enjoyed last years film, I can't help but feel in my excitement of seeing it, that certain things escaped my critique. There were a lot of unanswered questions. If I we're to rate that film again right now, I'd probably score it a 3, as compared to my original 3.5 rating out of four. However, with Rogue One, Star Wars remains in somewhat safer territory, telling a story in the universe we already know. That's what this is, a Star Wars Story. A story about the first major victory that's talked about in the opening scroll of the very first Star Wars film we ever saw. And it's as enjoyable as ever.

But despite this, I cannot help but feel there is something missing from this film. Particularly in the first half. I couldn't make connections to many characters, I didn't really care about any of the conflicts being presented, and I just couldn't get invested in a lot of what was going on. They try to blur the lines as they so often try to do with this universe with the line of good and evil, and honestly...that's just not really possible in this universe. Star Wars has the most obvious villains, and the most obvious heroes. So when I see the films primary antagonist at the beginning of this film tackling about the extreme that will ensure peace, you have no reason to side with him...because you know what they're talking about. In fact, I don't think I'm spoiling anything by saying that from the very beginning, you'll know how the film will end. So I am kinda left with this underwhelming feeling that can come from the prequel films, knowing how things will end. But unlike the prequel films, this film actually tries to have a decent plot without so many obvious plot holes, and that's the strength of this film for me.

Right off the bat, I was a bit surprised actually at the lack the the traditional opening scroll. This film instead just kinda gets the ball rolling, and I didn't mind that too much. The visuals are all wonderfully done, all to a musical score that might as well have come from John Williams himself. I'm telling you all, Michael Giacchino is your go to guy right now. I wish he would have taken a few more risks with the score to give it his own personal touch and whatnot, but he does the music proud in this film, and they could not have had a better substitute. Yes right off the bat, the film does its job of looking and sounding like a Star Wars movie, but whether a different writing team may have been needed or not, the film takes its time in getting the ball rolling.

The characters are characters that I really really REALLY want to like. In ways they remind me a bit of the Guardians of the Galaxy, but they're not that interesting, they're not really fleshed out as other characters in this universe are when we first see them, and I just couldn't make the connections I wanted to make. The Force Awakens on the other hand did an incredible job of introducing us to new characters. Despite knowing so little about her, we have made so many connections to Rey, and there are God knows how many theories regarding just who she is. And Finn is fleshed or wonderfully in that movie, and it easily makes one of my favorite characters in this entire franchise. I don't get any of that here. And I'm sad to say that this was one of the same problems that the Gareth film Godzilla (2014) faced. While I like that movie a lot, our main protagonist in Ford Brody really just wasn't as interesting as his father Joe, who's killed 30 minutes in. I want to lime these characters, I think they're all really unique, really fun characters that with proper development, really would have made me enjoy this film so much more. The blind force worshiper, and his gunner Guardian, the reprogrammed imperial Droid  (which my friend actually made a character like in this tabletop game we play), the imperial pilot, they're all TONS more interesting than our leading roles in Jyn and Cassian! I want to learn more about THEM!

We also get our fair share of cameos from the original film itself, my favorite being Grand Moff Tarkin. Thought I was gonna say Vader, didn't you? Don't lie. Tarkin to me was the one antagonist I always wanted to see more of. I hated that he was killed off so soon. So seeing him play a decently central role in this film was a huge treat to me, but I gotta address the elephant in the room here, because the CGI they use on his face stands out...so damn much. I didn't want to focus so much on this, but there were times I thought his cheek had a mind of its own. His face just doesn't look that convincing. I loved his role, but they probably should have gone the makeup route. And yes, without spoiling anything, you'll get your taste of Vader, and the taste is good. Though I'll say certain cameos were completely unnecessary, I also loved the minor cameo appearances of the Red and Gold leaders of the first film. And let me tell you, THEY looked really convincing.

And speaking of Red and Gold leader, it's time to talk about the action, and it's this film that will slightly raise the bar for future Star Wars films. Gareth is absolutely phenomenal in directing action. He tends to shoot it at ground level as a person would see it happen a lot of the time, and it's absolutely phenomenal. The ground combat is some of the most enjoyable combat the franchise knows. I daresay it rivals the Battle of Hoth. The first time I saw those massive AT-AT walkers appearing in the smoke of battle, I got chills. And finally seeing some Space Combat in these new films, a trait absent in The Force Awakens, it really does show off just what the future can hold for this franchise under Disney. It's absolutely incredible to watch the first major victory of the Rebel Alliance unfolding before your eyes. It's full of tension, suspense, and a lot of the time, you really don't know what exactly is going to happen.

So while flawed, I'm giving Rogue One: A Star Wars Story a three star rating out of four. It intrigued me once things began to get rolling. Does Gareth need to improve his lead roles? Yes he does. Let this film be a fair warning to him on that. I think he's a great director, but there is room for improvement. But what he gets right in this film, he does with flying colors. This film does a great job of adding just a bit more life into this beloved franchise, and yes....I may as well say it, it is my favorite prequel. I'm funny.

Please feel free to request any movie you'd like to see me tackle. Leave a comment down below expressing your own thoughts on the film, and as always, thanks for reading.

Final Verdict: 3/4

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