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Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) Film Review by Gareth Rhodes
Directed by Gareth Edwards • Written by
This entry was posted in Film Reviews and tagged a-wing, alan tudyk, ben mendelsohn, chris weitz, darth vader, death star, diego luna, donnie yen, felicity jones, forest whitaker, gary whitta, george lucas, grand moff tarkin, john knoll, jyn erso, mads mikkelsen, mon mothma, peter cushing, riz ahmed, rogue one, rogue one a star wars story, stormtroopers, tony gilroy, wen jiang, x-wing, y-wing. Bookmark the permalink.
MAN I want to see this. Nice review. Seems like Gareth Edwards has redeemed himself after Monsters and Godzilla, which were lacklustre and pretty flawed in my opinion. Even if it is too similar to them, I’d probably love Rogue One, because I’m a bit of a massive Star Wars fan.
Reuben
Reuben, I can’t wait to get your opinion on Rogue One. Part of why I love movies can be attributed to the way Star Wars made me feel as a child, so the bar is always fairly high with anything that dips into this universe. To say I wasn’t disappointed is a huge understatement. Loved it!
Hey, I’ve seen it and it was great! https://stuffandthatreviews.wordpress.com/2016/12/16/rogue-one-a-star-wars-story-2016-review/
I’ll pop over abc check out your thoughts.
Totally agree with you. Rogue One was excellent. Loved it so much. It was everything I wanted and more. The last 20 minutes was soooo good!
There were things they did that were risky, which made me love it even more. It’s encouraging that the Star Wars series is being overseen by a company bold enough to make good artistic choices. A lot of credit must go to Kathleen Kennedy.
Great review! You’re right, this movie does build slowly but that final third act–wow. I felt they used just the right amount of Darth Vader, and it really made an impact. I didn’t love Gareth Edwards’ take on Godzilla, but I thought he did an excellent job here.
Great to hear from you on this one! You’re spot on about Vader – the way they used him heightened the impact and that end sequence was jaw-dropping. I felt the same way about Edwards’ Godzilla, but he’s turned me around after Rogue One.
Well written, as always! To me, Gareth Edwards has yet to disappoint. Rogue One was such a gritty, rugged portrayal of the Star Wars universe, yet held enough levity and emotional depth to retain what we all love about the saga to begin with. I can’t wait to see this one again, and again, and again.
Thank you, Brett. You know, the more I think about Rogue One, the more I’m amazed by it. I was surprised by how much it was its own film, which is testimony to the freedom given to Edwards by the studio. Rian Johnson has spoken of similar freedom in relation to his time on Episode VIII. There were a lot of people unhappy with Lucas signing everything over to the Mouse House, but on this evidence, it’s the best thing that could’ve happened to Star Wars.
I have been debating with myself over this one.
Reasons to see this:
Godzilla remains one of best summer blockbusters I’ve seen.
Felicity Jones’s performance in The Theory of Everything remains one of the most captivating I’ve seen.
This review.
Reasons not to see this:
After all the fuzz about last year’s Force Awakens, I have never, never, never ever felt as angry and disappointed over a movie, not so much because it was bad (it wasn’t) but because everybody seemed to love it, whilst I just saw a nostalgia induced biggest fan film in history. It scares me to think nostalgia is the new type of filmmaking.
I also hate the subtitle.
Hey Ricardo, it’s great to hear from you. Despite your misgivings with The Force Awakens, I’d give Rogue One a swing. It’s completely different to any other Star Wars film you’ve seen before and moreover, features one of the greatest sequences of the entire saga. There’s also a lot of heart and emotion to it.
You convinced me friend, and I went and saw it last night.
My thoughts are up. Tell me what you think!
Superb review Gareth (I’ve just posted mine), I agree with your thoughts – the small differences in approach to Rogue One give it – as you say – a real sense of ‘newness’ whilst also feeling part of the overall tapestry of the Star Wars universe.
Sets us up nicely for Episode VIII!
Thanks Chris, I left the cinema dazzled. I’m impressed with how Disney have handled Star Wars. They are fully respectful to its past, while aiming far into the future for generations to come. While the chaos of the real world presents extremes of daily struggle, it’s good to know we have another chapter of pure escapism to fall in to. Looking forward to reading your review.
While I enjoyed the movie’s fan service, I’ll need more than homages to A New Hope for Disney to convince me that a Star Wars cinematic universe is a good idea.
There was a lot more going on than just homages to A New Hope. This is a new kind of Star Wars with new texture and tone. Sure, there are things in the script that recall ANH, but like I said in review, I think these are lot more to do with where we are in the timeline, than outright homage. It’s funny to me how teens like ‘fan service’ have become dirty words in critic circles, yet you don’t hear the people who loves these movies complaining. With the pure talent of Rian Johnson onboard for Episode VIII, I’d say the Star Wars universe has never felt healthier.
Nice review Gareth for a pretty good movie.
I loved this film. Thought it distinguished itself wonderfully from the films that came before it. it truly shows off what the rebellion was and how much of a war the road to freedom was. Great review. Definitely agree that we should do nothing but love and cherish Star Wars
It’s easy to be cynical about Star Wars, but it’s more rewarding to embrace it with an open imagination. Lucas will forever deserve credit, but in new hands, it’s doing just fine.