Rogue One: A Star Wars Story REVIEW
This time last December saw us welcoming Star Wars back to the big screen. Now, one year later, we have our first non-episodic entry into the franchise with Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Rogue One is a direct prequel to A New Hope and tells the story of a young woman named Jyn Erso as she’s recruited by the Rebel Alliance to spy on and fight against the Empire.
Jyn Erso, played by Felicity Jones, leads a colorful cast of characters that prove to be some of the most memorable in the entire franchise. While Jyn demonstrates herself as a powerful, seemingly fearless leader, her defining character traits are frequently upstaged by her friends. However, this is more of a testament to the writing of her crew, rather than a glaring lack of depth on her part. This ragtag team of heroes brings with it an array of powerful performances accented perfectly with a surprising amount of humor. Standouts Donnie Yen and Alan Tudyk brilliantly illustrate the line that Rogue One walks as it blends together a sense of nostalgia for the original Star Wars trilogy with the urge for expanding that universe farther than we’ve ever seen.
The frequent levity is welcome in this film, as it’s a far grittier take on Star Wars than the rest of the series. While the humor, banter, and rich personalities bolster these characters through the story, unfortunate pacing issues hinder it early on. Rogue One seems a little nervous to dwell on its own exposition too long, rocketing between locations and scenes that lead to the main plot as quickly as possible. While many will appreciate the film being economic with its screen-time to these scenes, it seems that some could have been grouped together to appear more cohesive.
When Rogue One does linger, it benefits greatly from it. Director Gareth Edwards brings an unprecedented sense of scale to this film, drawing the audience’s eye to tiny details that help immerse them deeper into Star Wars than ever before. Whether it’s the fabric of rings surrounding a planet, the earth-shattering rumble of an Imperial walker marching through smoke, or the sheer magnitude of a Star Destroyer exiting hyperspace, Rogue One is a visual delight from start to finish. Unrestrained by certain tropes of the episodic entries in Star Wars, this film is free to experiment and leaves us with some truly exhilarating moments. Set pieces are fascinating and look as if they were ripped directly from the sketchbook of Ralph McQuarrie, which will please diehard fans. It’s these details that showcase Rogue One as a film made by fans for fans.
Director Gareth Edwards surrounds himself with a talented team of filmmakers, the most notable among them being cinematographer Greig Fraser, the man behind shooting Zero Dark Thirty and Foxcatcher. A noticeable low point however is the film’s music. Rogue One employs several themes from the original trilogy, and those are the best portions of this film’s soundtrack. Whenever the new score by Michael Giacchino kicks in, it leaves scenes feeling somewhat empty. Any sense of desperation, fear, or triumph in this film is not strengthened by Giacchino’s music, if the music is even noticed at all.
Overall, this is an extremely enjoyable film. The premise is simple, effective, and appealing to longtime fans of the franchise as well as newcomers. It’s not a perfect film, but it’s without question the most authentic Star Wars experience on the big screen in a long time. This isn’t to say that The Force Awakens is inauthentic, but certain aspects of Episode 7's presentation -particularly the heavy handed fan service moments- have not aged well upon repeat viewings. As Rogue One ages, it will be interesting to see how it’s popularity among it’s fanbase will endure in comparison with the other films.
If you’re on the fence about Rogue One, I would definitely recommend going to see it. It’s a refreshing take on a long-standing franchise, it takes risks, and as a huge Star Wars fan, it’s some of the most fun I’ve had in the theater this year.
4 out of 5
