Rogue One Reviewed – Star Wars like you’ve never seen it before

Writing a review on a Star Wars movie is tough especially if you are an ardent fan yourself who has lived and breathed the franchise since the day Darth Vader strode in all his dark majesty down the corridor of the Tantive IV searching for the Death Star plans. Looking at it objectively, even with fanboyism put aside, Rogue One succeeds to impress even though everyone knows what comes after the movie, seeing as it’s set just before the events that kicked off Episode 4.

Even with that known outcome looming over the horizon, Rogue One proves to be a remarkable achievement as we were kept on the edge of our seats throughout the movie wondering about the fates of the characters that we meet on this journey. We will do our very best to keep this review spoiler free.

Director Gareth Edwards has the monumental task of telling a story that we are all too familiar with and has the uphill task of making us care enough to emotionally invest in this standalone storyline that exists apart but within Star Wars canon.

Going Rogue
Rogue One takes some liberties to be different from its predecessors. From the very beginning, you know that this isn’t your father’s Star Wars as the classic text crawl is omitted and the movie goes straight into the action.

The staccato pace doesn’t let up from the get-go, with the movie  introducing the ensemble cast that consists of seven main characters at a rapid but digestible pace. Given that this is a two-hour movie, it is a pity that many characters are not as fleshed out as we would like them to be. Some are roughly sketched archetypes that fill a given need in the storyline but little beyond that.

As the trailers have pointed out numerous times, we have Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) and Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) taking centre stage to drive the plot. While they take the limelight, the supporting cast make it stand out even more. Notable supporting characters include the reprogrammed Imperial Droid with an attitude K-2SO and blind warrior monk Chirrut Imwe (Donnie Yen) both of whom steal the scene every time they are on screen with deadpan dialogue and perfectly timed witty comebacks that lighten the dark tone of the movie.

That’s No Moon!
If you are going in as a Star Wars fan, understand that Rogue One basically ticks off almost every box on the checklist of things that make a Star Wars film: Massive super weapon, check. Fearless rebels, check. Darth Vader, check. Massive land and space battles, double check Witty one-liners, ditto.

Many mainstays of the Star Wars universe also make a reappearance for Rogue One.Even actors who have passed to the great beyond have returned to reprise their roles, digitally of course. Peter Cushing, who played Grand Moff Tarkin, looks pretty much alive in 2016 despite having died in 1994. Though it may be off-putting at first, the digital recreation of Tarkin does a very convincing job of distilling the ruthlessness of the character so well.

Fortunately, Rogue One does overly rely on the goodwill of the franchise and manages to stand on its own two feet, presenting a well-paced story that brings the audience along until its climactic penultimate battle scene which hits all the right points in terms of pacing, suspense and action to make it one of the finest battles out of the whole franchise with heavy action from space and ground assets from both the Rebel Alliance and the Empire. There’s the full array of hardware on offer including the titular X-Wing, the TIE Fighter as well as callbacks to Star Wars: Rebels, if you’re particularly observant. There’s new hardware on offer as well including the movie’s new U Wing and the new TIE Striker.

The show also manages to fill several gaping plot holes that have always existed in the movie with some surprising deftness as well as several cameos from important characters in the franchise including the aforementioned appearance by Grand Moff Tarkin.

Rogue One is unmistakably darker than other Star Wars films so much so that it may be slightly disturbing for younger audiences even though there is no blood and gore on screen. Perhaps it is alright for Rogue One to take this less trodden path though it is something to be aware of if you’re bringing in younger audiences to watch the movie. Rather than the classic good-vs-evil storylines where evil and good are clear cut, Rogue One explores a morally gray area between the two that is far grittier than ever before in the franchise.

In the same manner, as the Rebel Alliance fought against the Empire, Rogue One rebelliously stands proudly on its own as a Star Wars story that is worth telling.

Text: Chong Jinn Xiung