Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - Review
Director: Gareth Edwards
Cast: Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Forrest Whitaker, Donnie Yen, Riz Ahmed, Ben Mendelshon, Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Jiang Wen
The producers of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story have described the deviations away from the episodic formula and foray into spin-offs, with Rogue One, being the first as an experiment. Testing the waters to see whether or not audiences would react positively to a narrative not revolving around the Skywalker lineage, if you will. It's safe to say that the producers of the picture have executed one of the most successful so called "experiments" in Hollywood's history and showcases that Lucas Film continues to go from strength to strength.
Leading into the events that occur in Star Wars: A New Hope, Rogue One tells the story of how the revels came into the possession of the Death Star plans. An eclectic group of freedom fighters, led by Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), band together to find Jyn's father, Galen (Mads Mikkelsen), an engineer on the Death Star, and recover the plans to render the Empire's weapon of mass destruction ineffective.
It's undisputed and almost nonnegotiable that the Empire is emphatically and thoroughly evil and the Rebellion are the knights in shining X-Wings, intent on thwarting the Empire and scuppering their dastardly plans. However, in the case of Rogue One, the stand alone/spin-off/kinda prequel but also a sequel to the prequel of the original Star Wars trilogy (phew!), it colours the rebels with shades of grey as they make questionable decisions that aren't always morally sound. Diego Luna's Captain Cassian, a rebel spy, embodies this premise as he is often asked to enact circumstances that even the audience will feel is a wrongful call, incorporating a thought-provoking addition to the franchise that echoes the true complexities of warfare and highlights the unsavoury decisions made on both sides. This verisimilitude translates into the film's visuals as director Gareth Edwards claims that he studied footage from real wars to draw inspiration for the battle scenes, and these influences are evident within the sequences. They're dark and gritty in a way that the galactic franchise has never been before. Whilst undeniably a blockbuster, Rogue One proves to be a Star Wars film unconcerned with pandering to the masses for all-ages audience appeal, posing very real and mature sensibilities.
In Episodes 1-7, there have been familiar characters throughout that anchor the audience in the galaxy far far away, and besides the exception of one cloaked, raspy voiced Sith Lord (and perhaps a couple of other recognisable figures...), Rogue One consists of entirely fresh faces. There's also a noticeable omission of Jedi and subsequently lightsabers (until one jaw-dropping moment that'll sprout nerd tears), elements that are almost the essence of Star Wars, but you surprisingly don't miss them. Due to Donnie Yen's character apparently pioneering the Force Fanboy Community and the multiple references to the Jedi, their presence is always in the ether. However, a Star Wars stereotype that continues to pervade even the stand-alines is the completely incompetent and even buffoonish Stormtroopers - it's like they've never been taught to handle a weapon, let alone fire them effectively at their targets.
However, these blunders allow out team of protagonists to prevail time and time again, but the manner in which this group of rebels living on the fringes of society are thrown together results in a lack of spark and chemistry in their interactions. Although, this oversight in no way prevents us from rooting for them as individuals and as a collective. The true standout amongst the group of freedom fighters comes in the form of the long-limbed K2-SO, the know-it-all droid who will surely cement himself as a fan favourite after this winning appearance. Not adorable like R2-D2 and BB-8 nor grating like the pretentious but loveable C3-PO, K2-SO is a straight-talking Sheldon Cooper-esque droid who provides most of the film's humour and moments of alleviation.
An action-packed spectacle with moments of unflinching brutality, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story puts the "Wars" in "Star Wars" and gives the fans the adult space opera they've so longed for.
EB
Cast: Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Forrest Whitaker, Donnie Yen, Riz Ahmed, Ben Mendelshon, Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Jiang Wen
The producers of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story have described the deviations away from the episodic formula and foray into spin-offs, with Rogue One, being the first as an experiment. Testing the waters to see whether or not audiences would react positively to a narrative not revolving around the Skywalker lineage, if you will. It's safe to say that the producers of the picture have executed one of the most successful so called "experiments" in Hollywood's history and showcases that Lucas Film continues to go from strength to strength.Leading into the events that occur in Star Wars: A New Hope, Rogue One tells the story of how the revels came into the possession of the Death Star plans. An eclectic group of freedom fighters, led by Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), band together to find Jyn's father, Galen (Mads Mikkelsen), an engineer on the Death Star, and recover the plans to render the Empire's weapon of mass destruction ineffective.
It's undisputed and almost nonnegotiable that the Empire is emphatically and thoroughly evil and the Rebellion are the knights in shining X-Wings, intent on thwarting the Empire and scuppering their dastardly plans. However, in the case of Rogue One, the stand alone/spin-off/kinda prequel but also a sequel to the prequel of the original Star Wars trilogy (phew!), it colours the rebels with shades of grey as they make questionable decisions that aren't always morally sound. Diego Luna's Captain Cassian, a rebel spy, embodies this premise as he is often asked to enact circumstances that even the audience will feel is a wrongful call, incorporating a thought-provoking addition to the franchise that echoes the true complexities of warfare and highlights the unsavoury decisions made on both sides. This verisimilitude translates into the film's visuals as director Gareth Edwards claims that he studied footage from real wars to draw inspiration for the battle scenes, and these influences are evident within the sequences. They're dark and gritty in a way that the galactic franchise has never been before. Whilst undeniably a blockbuster, Rogue One proves to be a Star Wars film unconcerned with pandering to the masses for all-ages audience appeal, posing very real and mature sensibilities.
In Episodes 1-7, there have been familiar characters throughout that anchor the audience in the galaxy far far away, and besides the exception of one cloaked, raspy voiced Sith Lord (and perhaps a couple of other recognisable figures...), Rogue One consists of entirely fresh faces. There's also a noticeable omission of Jedi and subsequently lightsabers (until one jaw-dropping moment that'll sprout nerd tears), elements that are almost the essence of Star Wars, but you surprisingly don't miss them. Due to Donnie Yen's character apparently pioneering the Force Fanboy Community and the multiple references to the Jedi, their presence is always in the ether. However, a Star Wars stereotype that continues to pervade even the stand-alines is the completely incompetent and even buffoonish Stormtroopers - it's like they've never been taught to handle a weapon, let alone fire them effectively at their targets.
However, these blunders allow out team of protagonists to prevail time and time again, but the manner in which this group of rebels living on the fringes of society are thrown together results in a lack of spark and chemistry in their interactions. Although, this oversight in no way prevents us from rooting for them as individuals and as a collective. The true standout amongst the group of freedom fighters comes in the form of the long-limbed K2-SO, the know-it-all droid who will surely cement himself as a fan favourite after this winning appearance. Not adorable like R2-D2 and BB-8 nor grating like the pretentious but loveable C3-PO, K2-SO is a straight-talking Sheldon Cooper-esque droid who provides most of the film's humour and moments of alleviation.
An action-packed spectacle with moments of unflinching brutality, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story puts the "Wars" in "Star Wars" and gives the fans the adult space opera they've so longed for.
EB
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