Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) Film Review by Gareth Rhodes

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

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Directed by Gareth Edwards • Written by
Chris Weitz, Tony Gilroy, John Knoll and Gary Whitta

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With Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Alan Tudyk, Donnie Yen, Riz Ahmed, Wen Jiang, Forest Whitaker and Mads Mikkelsen.

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So after all the talk of 40% re-shoots, #DumpStarWars and general confusion over hopping around the timelines, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story ( I always hated that subtitle) is finally here. Directed by Gareth Edwards, whose previous work has recieved lukewarm praise at best, this is the story that takes place directly before the events of Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope.

The plot sees Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) joining the rebellion with a rag-tag gang, in an attempt to steal the plans for the dreaded Death Star. An earthy prologue sets the tone for the piece, as we meet Jyn as a child, living in rural isolation with her mother and father Galen (Mads Mikkelsen), until, that is, the Empire come knocking in the shape of Ben Mendelsohn’s Orson Krennic.

Mendelsohn brings a gnarly arrogance to his scenes, slipping unflinchingly into the cold stream of ambition personified by the Galactic Empire as we’re introduced to a new kind of Star Wars.

Indeed, there are moments when Rogue One feels more akin to Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty than Star Wars, which, for a lifelong fan of the series, makes for a curiously welcome switch. There’s an inherent moral complexity that sets it apart from anything George Lucas created, while harnessing his boundless imagination as a platform to build new levels of cinematic depth and breadth into the series. In Star Wars, the lines between good and evil have never been less emphatic.

Aside from the wonderous use of CGI technology, the diverse range of ethnicity in the cast is a way in which these films have advanced. This is a universe populated by all creatures great and small, so why shouldn’t that apply to the human beings!? Felicity Jones brings pluck and guile to her leading role, which is underpinned by a tragic back story that offers fleeting insights of a kind, battle-weary soul. Anyone familiar with her work on Breathe In or The Theory of Everything will know that Jones is not the kind of actress you’d expect to see fronting Star Wars, but it’s exactly the kind of venturesome casting that gives the film its own identity.

There are many harks back to the original trilogy, but few of them feel like deliberate nostalgia – more like markers for where we are in the timeline. It’s refreshing that Disney have the smarts to licence enterprising, emerging talents like Gareth Edwards to use their multi-billion dollar investment as a playground.

There are things you will notice that are missing from the ‘Star Wars experience’, such as the lack of an opening crawl, yet somehow, the omission of certain elements creates a sense of newness. The film has a slower pace in its first act, which seems to prefer the slow burn approach inherent in so many American westerns, a genre Star Wars is often aligned with.

For the sake of preserving the experience, there are many great things that occur in Rogue One that I won’t spoil – one of them a pure tour-de-force of modern cinema. You haven’t seen Star Wars like this before, and for the most part, that’s a good thing. Yes, there are specific technical limitations, but I defy you not to gasp at the audacity. Those who’ve seen it will know exactly what I’m referring to.

It’s a strange feeling to come away from Rogue One wanting more, as your DVD copy of A New Hope winks at you from the shelf. The hard-edged texture of the movie is far divorced from the playful fantasy of the original trilogy, yet it frequently extends its hand to touch 1977 in surprising ways. An early Christmas present for the fan-base, this new side-chapter is as bold as it is thrilling, complimented by touching moments of heroism that lend further emotional weight to what comes next. Take my advice, don’t dump Star Wars.

4.5/5

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