I don’t take the plunge lately in dragging myself to the theater but the day after Christmas I schlepped into the city to catch Rogue One in all its Imax glory. Here are just a few quick thoughts if you haven’t seen it yet and are still on the fence...
What’s good about the film?
Forrest Whitaker. Hands down, this is one of the few times I have seen Forrest Whitaker on screen where I wasn’t watching Forrest Whitaker. This time, he WAS the character and I forget the actor and I have to give him a lot of credit for that, truly his performance is to be celebrated.
Look, I’m a Peter Cushing fan in the sense that I remember so many films he was while I was growing up. He was one of those Hammer actors (along with Christopher Lee) and without going into detail I was amazed at how they pulled this one trick off. It is a bit creepy and open’s a Pandora’s Box in a way down the road, not just in film but in other aspects of society but really, really amazing to see. And the one cameo at the end too, that was a nice touch as well especially given recent events.
See I’m trying to avoid spoilers here.
What’s bad?
First, save the money. You can likely catch it on TV. Rogue One is IN the Star Wars universe but it’s not Star Wars.
Now, I’ve managed to go to a movie theater to see two movies in the last two months and I may get to a movie theater six times a year if that. The theater experience doesn’t appeal to me so much anymore. I went to a theater with Imax 3-D and the 3-D is okay, not great but okay because it doesn’t add much to a bad story and Rouge One doessn’t overwhelm.
What do I mean by doesn’t overwhelm?
I fell asleep during the movie. Actually I saw Doctor Strange a few weeks before and wound up napping during that too.
Rogue One dragged though... the script isn’t as tight as it should have been and that’s a big problem. Move away from the excitement of a movie set in the Star Wars Universe and viewed as just another SciFi film and unfortunately Rogue One is very lacking.
Visually it’s good, not great. As I said the pacing is bad, it’s just not as tight as it should or needs to be. Felicity Jones is fine and the rest of the cast is fine too but with the material they have... meh.
The Ugly?
They developed some great characters in Rogue One and let’s just say it was a waste. The movie is a mish-mash and it misses what was the original intent of Star Wars and the films it was based on. Star Wars paid homage to old serials that played in movie theaters long ago, they were filled with action and adventure along with a touch of romance but they did follow some basic rules - Rogue One in it's attempt to be ‘realistic’ moves away from that much to it’s own detriment.
Rogue One relies so heavily on the mythology of Star Wars and tries so hard to separate itself from that mythology that it fails on both counts.
At most this is two stars on a five star scale. Star Wars fans may find themselves delighted for more new Star Wars but it’s not anywhere close to the bar set by other entries in the franchise.
What’s good about the film?
Forrest Whitaker. Hands down, this is one of the few times I have seen Forrest Whitaker on screen where I wasn’t watching Forrest Whitaker. This time, he WAS the character and I forget the actor and I have to give him a lot of credit for that, truly his performance is to be celebrated.
Look, I’m a Peter Cushing fan in the sense that I remember so many films he was while I was growing up. He was one of those Hammer actors (along with Christopher Lee) and without going into detail I was amazed at how they pulled this one trick off. It is a bit creepy and open’s a Pandora’s Box in a way down the road, not just in film but in other aspects of society but really, really amazing to see. And the one cameo at the end too, that was a nice touch as well especially given recent events.
See I’m trying to avoid spoilers here.
What’s bad?
First, save the money. You can likely catch it on TV. Rogue One is IN the Star Wars universe but it’s not Star Wars.
Now, I’ve managed to go to a movie theater to see two movies in the last two months and I may get to a movie theater six times a year if that. The theater experience doesn’t appeal to me so much anymore. I went to a theater with Imax 3-D and the 3-D is okay, not great but okay because it doesn’t add much to a bad story and Rouge One doessn’t overwhelm.
What do I mean by doesn’t overwhelm?
I fell asleep during the movie. Actually I saw Doctor Strange a few weeks before and wound up napping during that too.
Rogue One dragged though... the script isn’t as tight as it should have been and that’s a big problem. Move away from the excitement of a movie set in the Star Wars Universe and viewed as just another SciFi film and unfortunately Rogue One is very lacking.
Visually it’s good, not great. As I said the pacing is bad, it’s just not as tight as it should or needs to be. Felicity Jones is fine and the rest of the cast is fine too but with the material they have... meh.
The Ugly?
They developed some great characters in Rogue One and let’s just say it was a waste. The movie is a mish-mash and it misses what was the original intent of Star Wars and the films it was based on. Star Wars paid homage to old serials that played in movie theaters long ago, they were filled with action and adventure along with a touch of romance but they did follow some basic rules - Rogue One in it's attempt to be ‘realistic’ moves away from that much to it’s own detriment.
Rogue One relies so heavily on the mythology of Star Wars and tries so hard to separate itself from that mythology that it fails on both counts.
At most this is two stars on a five star scale. Star Wars fans may find themselves delighted for more new Star Wars but it’s not anywhere close to the bar set by other entries in the franchise.
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