Gryphos
Auror
There might as well be a spoiler thread for Rogue One, so here we go. I saw this yesterday, and went out of my way to see it again today. So it goes without saying that I really like this film. I thought it delivered exactly what it was meant to: a grounded, action-packed war movie set in the Star Wars universe.
Some standout things I enjoyed:
K2SO. Easily my favourite character. This droid had some damn funny lines, and he could also kick some major ass when he had to. I came close to tearing up when he died.
Chirrut and Baze. Chirrut, played by legendary badass Donnie Yen, was also fantastic. As to his abilities, I'm certain he's force-sensitive (either that or he's Daredevil), but clearly not trained in the Force like the Jedi. I loved that he had more joy and personality than your typical mystic monk character. And his relationship with Baze was great. Their combined death was a really poignant moment.
Orson Krennick. To me, Krennick is supposed to be the epitome of the ambitious bureaucrat desperate to rise above his station. Like other such figures, he's outmanoeuvred by a rival (Tarkin) and falls like Icarus, forgotten by history. The poeticism of his fate, being killed by his own weapon, hardly needs stating. The entire conflict between him and Tarkin reminded me in many ways of the bureaucracy of the Nazi state.
Darth Vader. He only had two scenes, but that's fine by me; the story isn't about him. In the first scene he knocked Krennick down a peg, as well as deliver a very amusing pun ("careful not to choke on your aspirations, Director". In his second scene, he wrecked shop in pursuit of the Death Star data; that little section was like something out of a horror film.
The general fate of the main crew was really well done, I think. I admire the artistic integrity of the creators to have all the main characters die, and it was definitely the right decision. Jyn and Cassian's last moment on the beach, holding hands and embracing whilst the wave of destruction rushes towards them, was, again, really poignant. And Bohdi's sudden death highlighted how quickly tides can turn and people can meet their demise on the battlefield.
And, finally, basically the entire third act was a non-stop thrill ride. The ground battle and the space battle combined to form possibly the greatest spectacle in any Star Wars film. Darth Vader's rampage was the cherry on top.
The faults:
Nothing major, but I suppose there were some odd and pointless scenes. One example of that would be the tentacle mind-reader monster, especially since, for a creature that's supposed to drive people mad, Bodhi didn't seem too affected in the long run.
You could also say that some of the characters were underdeveloped. Bodhi, again, could have been explored more. And while most the major characters did have arcs (K2: being given a blaster, Jyn: embracing the rebellion, Cassian: coming to terms with his past sins and not killing Galen, Baze: being one with the Force again), I couldn't identify one in Bodhi or Chirrut. Chirrut, I suppose doesn't really need one, since it can be said his purpose is to support Baze's arc. And Bodhi is a difficult case. He does definitely have closure ("This is for you, Galen"), but there wasn't really any visible character arc. Although, saying that, you could say his arc is, similar to Jyn, becoming a rebel. K2 even says that line when Bodhi guns down those pursuing stormtroopers on Eadu: "you're a rebel now." So I dunno, but it definitely could have been done better, whatever the case.
Little things:
The CGI on Tarkin and Leia was quite something. Some people like to nitpick that it was noticeable and distracting, but me, I have no problem with it. First off, it was necessary. Why let Peter Cushing's death stop you from including a vital character to the film? And having young Leia at the end acts as the perfect lead-in to A New Hope, since that film must start only an hour or so after this ends. Plus, CGI has come a hell of a way, hasn't it? Now it's able to basically fully integrate a computer generated person into live action. If this technology keeps improving, think of the possibilities!
This is tiny, but what the hell happened to that admiral who led the attack on the space gate? I believe his was the rebel flagship that was disabled by Vader's destroyer, but we never see what happened to him, whether he escaped or not.
The destruction of the Death Star was awe-inspiring. I loved that one shot of the explosion from Jedha reaching into space as the camera pans up to show the Death Star.
Overall, damn good. I'm going to let it settle in my mind before I finalise my critical opinion, as it were, but I can easily say at present moment that this film is well worth the price of admission. Hell, the final battle in itself is worth the price of admission.
Some standout things I enjoyed:
K2SO. Easily my favourite character. This droid had some damn funny lines, and he could also kick some major ass when he had to. I came close to tearing up when he died.
Chirrut and Baze. Chirrut, played by legendary badass Donnie Yen, was also fantastic. As to his abilities, I'm certain he's force-sensitive (either that or he's Daredevil), but clearly not trained in the Force like the Jedi. I loved that he had more joy and personality than your typical mystic monk character. And his relationship with Baze was great. Their combined death was a really poignant moment.
Orson Krennick. To me, Krennick is supposed to be the epitome of the ambitious bureaucrat desperate to rise above his station. Like other such figures, he's outmanoeuvred by a rival (Tarkin) and falls like Icarus, forgotten by history. The poeticism of his fate, being killed by his own weapon, hardly needs stating. The entire conflict between him and Tarkin reminded me in many ways of the bureaucracy of the Nazi state.
Darth Vader. He only had two scenes, but that's fine by me; the story isn't about him. In the first scene he knocked Krennick down a peg, as well as deliver a very amusing pun ("careful not to choke on your aspirations, Director". In his second scene, he wrecked shop in pursuit of the Death Star data; that little section was like something out of a horror film.
The general fate of the main crew was really well done, I think. I admire the artistic integrity of the creators to have all the main characters die, and it was definitely the right decision. Jyn and Cassian's last moment on the beach, holding hands and embracing whilst the wave of destruction rushes towards them, was, again, really poignant. And Bohdi's sudden death highlighted how quickly tides can turn and people can meet their demise on the battlefield.
And, finally, basically the entire third act was a non-stop thrill ride. The ground battle and the space battle combined to form possibly the greatest spectacle in any Star Wars film. Darth Vader's rampage was the cherry on top.
The faults:
Nothing major, but I suppose there were some odd and pointless scenes. One example of that would be the tentacle mind-reader monster, especially since, for a creature that's supposed to drive people mad, Bodhi didn't seem too affected in the long run.
You could also say that some of the characters were underdeveloped. Bodhi, again, could have been explored more. And while most the major characters did have arcs (K2: being given a blaster, Jyn: embracing the rebellion, Cassian: coming to terms with his past sins and not killing Galen, Baze: being one with the Force again), I couldn't identify one in Bodhi or Chirrut. Chirrut, I suppose doesn't really need one, since it can be said his purpose is to support Baze's arc. And Bodhi is a difficult case. He does definitely have closure ("This is for you, Galen"), but there wasn't really any visible character arc. Although, saying that, you could say his arc is, similar to Jyn, becoming a rebel. K2 even says that line when Bodhi guns down those pursuing stormtroopers on Eadu: "you're a rebel now." So I dunno, but it definitely could have been done better, whatever the case.
Little things:
The CGI on Tarkin and Leia was quite something. Some people like to nitpick that it was noticeable and distracting, but me, I have no problem with it. First off, it was necessary. Why let Peter Cushing's death stop you from including a vital character to the film? And having young Leia at the end acts as the perfect lead-in to A New Hope, since that film must start only an hour or so after this ends. Plus, CGI has come a hell of a way, hasn't it? Now it's able to basically fully integrate a computer generated person into live action. If this technology keeps improving, think of the possibilities!
This is tiny, but what the hell happened to that admiral who led the attack on the space gate? I believe his was the rebel flagship that was disabled by Vader's destroyer, but we never see what happened to him, whether he escaped or not.
The destruction of the Death Star was awe-inspiring. I loved that one shot of the explosion from Jedha reaching into space as the camera pans up to show the Death Star.
Overall, damn good. I'm going to let it settle in my mind before I finalise my critical opinion, as it were, but I can easily say at present moment that this film is well worth the price of admission. Hell, the final battle in itself is worth the price of admission.