"Hey!, it's only a movie" ("Notebook: Hey, it's only a movie, says Lucas - but who's listening to him?", 2011)
It's funny how Disney spent months saying bitter fanboys trolled The Last Jedi so that audiences would think it was a bad movie, and two years later they themselves make a move that screams fanservice, nostalgia and playing it safe. Had The Last Jedi not being the bummer it was, I'm sure Mickey Mouse would have continued the "subvert expectations" concept boldly defended by Rian Johnson, and yet they didn't.
With a large budget, one has to wonder who aids Disney into hiring people who can't direct, write or produce something worth remembering beyond toy aisles. Obviously, J.J. Abrams had things going south even before he replaced Colin Trevorror as the director. Moreover what he envisioned two films earlier had to be retconned with surgeon's hands.
Star Wars Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker is a film that may or may not suffer from the divisiveness caused by the earlier episode. People who loved having their expectations subverted will probably dislike this final entry, as essentially J.J. decided to pay Johnson back the same way he did in the previous episode: by keeping what's substantial & wiping out remaining secrets he (Abrams) proposed in Episode VII The Force Awakens.
But what does this mean to audiences?
Stunning visuals of bad weather.
Stunning visuals of bad weather warfare.
Well, if you're like me, and didn't love Johnson's take, you will like Abrams' better. Let's face it, the new trilogy didn't have much of a story to tell. New characters and new stories do resemble, or try to resemble the best moments the original trilogy had, and perhaps that's the main problem this new trio of flicks has. Lifelong fans may have been misled by the constant homage Episode VII paid to the original holy trilogy. The sequel tried to bring new ideas to the table, and while I openly bashed the movie in both my review, and when discussing it with friends, I can say my opinion has positively changed a lot thanks to the re-watch effect.
Running two hours and 20 minutes, IX is a fast lane roller-coaster ride where the action, revelations and answers happen with speed. At times I felt there could have been more movies to explain a few things better. However, I think this is the only possible grand finale the new trilogy could have had. So, while it's not a masterpiece (none of the films from this trilogy are), it delivers enough content to play it safe, and satisfy the most fans.
Rey is the ultimate Jedi.
Is it Kylo Ren or Ben Solo?
OK boomer, what is Episode IX about?
After the resistance is defeated by the First Order, the good guys went in hiding, while Rey continues her Jedi training. However, a secret message coming from the outer realms, reveals Darth Sidious is still alive!, while no one calls him THAT on the film, Palpatine is the son of a bitch that helped build the First Order from the dark in order to conquer the galaxy once more. Moreover, he created Snoke and was behind Ben Solo's transformation into Kylo Ren. Now that Ren is the new supreme leader, he decides to track down the Sith lord in order to defeat him and become the ultimate evil in the galaxy.
On the other hand General Leia Organa knows the threat this bastard poses, and sets her own team to find the location of this ultimate evil. Fortunately, the resistance has the extremely talented Rey on their side. Honestly, Rey is the most powerful Jedi ever seen on film. She's so skilled, she can overpower any threat within miles of distance. Unless, it's her dark side equivalent she's fighting against. Kylo Ren gets in the way of the resistance, namely Rey all the time. Unsurprisingly, both resistance and first order will meet once more for a final battle. Only this time the first order will have the advantage of a powerful Sith ally.
The first hour feels like the direct sequel to Episode VII, as if nothing of relevance took place in Episode VIII, which feeds my theory that J.J. Abrams didn't like how Rian Johnson handled the sequel, and like Kylo Ren's restored helmet, J.J. picked up all the pieces left, and carefully bandaged everything to build a new movie.
This is our movie!
Psst, we're here too!
From here on there will be subtle spoilers, so stop right here if you haven't seen it yet. The new trilogy lacked a grand story to tell, and it shows throughout every film. The Force Awakens was a remake of Episode IV, and The Last Jedi was the most original out of the bunch, yet it didn't have a story to tell. I for one, see this new trilogy as an opportunity for the Disney company to sell Star Wars toys with their label on it. Throughout the saga we get a lot of action scenes, dogfights, lightsaber duels, new force powers, modern visually stunning scenes but, and this is the big but of this new saga: Not enough story, undeveloped characters, overpowered characters, no balance! no balance whatsoever. The previous trilogies were balanced. Main characters, antagonists, and secondary characters were all there for a reason, and the reason or reasons, were clearly explained, allowing the viewer to feel the need for these characters to exist in each film. The new trilogy took the main features of classic characters and poured them into new characters that were nothing, but a weaker, unfinished, and underdeveloped version of the original characters. The fact that Rey is now the grandniece of Darth Sidious creates a big hole where fans would ask themselves "Wait, so did this bad motherfucker have a family with kids and everything?". In addition, his survival, and time spent in the shadows building The Final Order (his new army of clones) make Darth Vader's redemption a lot more irrelevant in the canon. He did redeem himself and saved his son from certain death but ultimately, didn't stop the forces of evil from securing their galactic dictatorship. Moreover, The Resistance was completely clueless about their true enemy, although they had Leia Organa & Luke Skywalker, the two surviving Jedi knights on their side! What the hell? Not even The First Order knew about Palpatine's survival and plot.
Dark Rey.
The first order's finest.
Let's set that aside and move on to the other characters. Kylo Ren the "I want to be badder than my granddad" tryhard, finally gets his redemption and returns to the light side as Ben Solo with the aid of Leia's final sacrifice. Obviously, this is a required Mcguffin, in order to allow Rey to even the odds against the powerful Emperor, and speaking of Mcguffins, the way to access the emperor's secret planet is via a wayfinder (they were spoiled long before the movie premiered) a two of a kind Sith artifact that gives the exact location of Sidious hideout. In addition, there's a Sith dagger that was also spoiled long ago. The dagger provides the same info as the Wayfinder. Now, let's move on to Fanservice. If bringing Palpatine back from the death isn't enough, don't worry! J.J.'s got you covered!. IX features tons and tons of ripped off quotes from the previous trilogies. From "I got a bad feeling about this" to "The dark side of the force is a pathway to many abilities, some consider to be unnatural". In addition, there are the unexpected scenes that will take fanservice to the next level. Particularly one scene where a young Luke is training his young sister Leia. How ironic is that? a CGI scene that is more emotional than real scenes. On the other hand, the whole Reylo garbage some fans have been pushing through memes and fan fiction all over the internet, sadly pays them off with the lamest scene in the film. BECAUSE, in the previous films Kylo Ren & Rey were allegedly attracted to each other. I always saw them as enemies. One wanted the other turning to the dark side, while the other wanted the exact opposite. I guess, under J.J.'s eye that's reason enough for you to fall in love with your sworn enemy.
Leia, our princess.
Lando's back from geriatric care management.
Character wise I'd say this is Rey's movie. She's on the most scenes, and we get to see her do a lot of things, and I really liked that because she's my favorite new character. On IX she (Daisy Ridley) delivers some of her best acting in several emotional scenes. The fight scenes were she's in, are incredibly well staged and visually stunning. She is truly a convincing character, perhaps the most powerful Jedi knight out of the franchise. Moreover, characters that weren't popular had far less onscreen time than they previously did. Namely, Rose Tico, and the new characters (Zorii Bliss, Jannah Klaud, Commander D'acy) are all forgettable save for Babu Frik due to the role he plays when aiding the resistance. Other characters play minor roles and don't really add much to the story, save for being there in the background doing stuff while the main characters take the lead. Droid wise, C-3PO & R2D2 return to spend a more crucial role on this film. Especially 3PO who serves as the vessel to unravel Palpatine's location. D-O, the new droid that looks like a hair dryer, is there to sell toys. Which reminds me of The Knights of Ren! Who finally show up in the movie to make you want to buy more toys! As action figures, I'm sure they look great but plot wise, they're as useless as a Stormtrooper playing darts.
C-3PO gets into the action.
Rebel, rebel!
The Rise of Skywalker was clearly a difficult movie to make. Perhaps, the most difficult of the decade. A significant portion of SW fans wasn't shy about sharing their thoughts and views on social media. Times have changed. Today people don't need official media reviewers, they got their opinions, their own sites, and this poses a new threat for film making. Remember when people bashed Sonic The Hedgehog's design? Well, they listened and fixed it. Same with Star Wars. The Last Jedi really turned the tide for Disney, and after all their futile attempts to say Episode VIII was well received, the final episode is all about listening to the fans, which lastly are the reason these movies are made. IX is the best final chapter we could ever ask for despite its ups and downs. Music wise, John Williams has always been the secret character hidden in the background of the franchise. Key classic compositions are brought back in the movie in order to foster the hype for nostalgia. Nevertheless, the new compositions aren't as stunning as what he did in the previous episodes, which is by no means implying his new work is bad or mediocre.
Knights of Lame, ahem! Ren!
The real bad guy.
The third and final act in IX is the expected duel between Rey, Ben Solo & Darth Sidious. It is here where the final revelation takes place. Ben & Rey form a dyad in the force. If the word sounds strange, In sociology, a dyad is a group of two people, the smallest possible social group. As an adjective, "dyadic" describes their interaction. The pair of individuals in a dyad can be linked via romantic interest, family relation, interests, work, partners in crime, or on this case, the force. Palpatine knows this is an opportunity for revitalizing his agonizing body and he sucks out the force energy of Reylo. As soon as he's ready to take matters on his own, he throws Ben Solo into a large fall, just like Vader did 30 years ago with him. Rey is exhausted and her only chance for survival is to summon the spirit of all the previous Jedi before her. "Be with me" takes a whole new meaning. Her first scene in the movie starts with that phrase and we can see why at the climax.
Overall, a decent finale but not a perfect movie. However, I do salute J.J. Abrams effort for putting things in perspective. He even took some of the previous episode ideas and respectfully turned them into a fitting finale.
On a lighter note, let's hope this meme is the last one:
3 years ago I would have never expected to be celebrating my birthday in the movies watching a new Star Wars movie. Although my birthday is on December the 17th, the premiere dates for The Force Awakens & Rogue One were pretty close so, I had and will have for the longest time, vivid fond memories on how I celebrated my birthday at the movies, with a new Star Wars for about 5 years consecutively.
Star Wars, Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, TLJ from here on, is a gigantic leap of faith into the world of bullshit, taken by director Rian Johnson. Everything you thought you knew about Star Wars, isn't going to go the way you think, (paraphrasing Luke Skywalker's utterance heard previously in the last movie trailer).
The Star Wars mythology has had 40 years to grow strong, and it's had its ups and downs, which explains why you shouldn't search for spoilers in the web, because it would ultimately kill the viewing experience for you, and movies are always a personal experience, no matter how many times you watch them with friends or your significant other. The opinions and discussions you may fully enjoy with your posse will always be better if they come from your own personal experience, and as you clearly know by now, our humble blog has been around for almost 10 years and we treat the reader with respect, meaning you will not find any spoilers in this review, because a decent review respects the reader, and ultimately the viewer, so fasten your seat belt 'cause here we go!.
"it's time for the Jedi to end".
"not if I have a say on it".
TFA ended with one of the most hyped cliffhangers of all time: Newcomer Rey (Daisy Ridley) travels in the Millenium Falcon to a far island where the legendary Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill, the star of TLJ) is hiding. The question is, does he want to have a new padawan? Does he want his father's ligthsaber back?. Considering what is explained in TFA, it is clear Skywalker had it with the idea of a new Jedi order, and has moved on to a simpler life where he can no longer put the ones he loves in danger. However, the Rebellion needs the Jedi. His sister needs him, Rey needs him, and in an obvious way, we, the old school fans need him too.
In a recent interview Mark Hamill said how much he would have liked Disney to pay attention to what George Lucas had sketched for episodes VII, VIII & IX because of how different the new trilogy would have gone. Fortunately, Disney had their own agenda. An agenda that lifelong SW fans will thank forever, and don't get me wrong, I do respect and love what Lucas did with the original trilogy and the prequel trilogy (that got too much hate just because) but if you want to make SW a larger, wider, more varied universe, is better to hire some new hands to bring that refreshing feeling a cold beer delivers during summer time.
"Where will you be when diarrhea hits?"
Newfound friends.
Before TLJ premiered, there were hundreds of fan theories and a focus on how this film would be a replica of The Empire Strikes Back due to the many similarities TFA had with A New Hope. J.J. Abrams had an unenviable task two years ago when he set out to make what became TFA:
reboot Star Wars without changing anything. And to his credit, he did
just that by making a shockingly giddy reinvention of that galaxy far,
far away that also played like the greatest hits of what came before.
But for all his success, the rewards found in TLJ prove even greater. At last we have, for the first time in ages, a Star
Wars movie that’s all too happy to go where we don’t expect.
To be sure, Rian Johnson’s evocative and often exhilarating sequel
continues the post-Disney mandate to remix elements that bask in the
familiar. Hence why the First Order is even more imperial this time,
striking back against Resistance forces who look increasingly like
rebels; Jedi and evil sorcerers alike sit in chairs while skeptically
sizing up would-be apprentices; and we even get an epic battle on a
planet that may as well be called Salt Hoth given how powdery white
those crystals look when the AT-M6 walkers stomp across the landscape
like mechanized buffalo grazing during the dregs of winter.
Yet within all this repetition, Johnson uses his poor solitary writing and
directing duties to tease and then brutally manipulate and mangle our nostalgia. His film makes no sense at all!. The first Star Wars film to be ever made by a fucking amateur who thinks forcing changes and forcing stupid Marvel Studios joke will translate for fans as "brand new re-telling". The movie simply sucks from start to finish.
R.I.P. Carrie Fisher.
Snoke is an ugly motherfucker.
Running 152 minutes, TLJ doesn't really feel that long and that may have to do with a lot of unnecessary scenes, like Finn & Rose's story, and the huge amount of retard humor (Marvel Studios Superhero films, I'm talking to you bitch!). On the one hand you have the rebels desperately fighting The First Order. Oscar Isaac's Poe Dameron is clearly here to become the Han Solo of this new trilogy. he's defiant, cocky and yet very important for the Rebel Alliance. In addition, Finn (John Boyega) and his new partner Rose Tico (Kelley Mary Tran) are sent into a filler mission that is as relevant as it is for me to choose a Dr.Pepper instead of Pepsi (nobody cares!). On the other hand, Supreme leader Snoke (Andy Serkis), Kylo Ren (Adam Driver steals the show in TLJ) & General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson) go full idiotic most of the time. Hux, looks like a schizophrenic who needs his medicine, and Snoke clearly has no love for Kylo and makes fun of him and really fucking sucks as a "supreme leader".
But what about the Jedi plot? Rest assured, that you will get plenty of it, and while people tend to focus their attention on Rey, Luke, Kylo & Snoke, TLJ has a lot more disappointment to offer. The question of whether we are good or bad, is a constant motif throughout the movie. Johnson's directing takes it even further, contradicting most of his ideas in previous scenes, with later non-sensical scenes.
Bad takes a whole new meaning in TLJ.
Hey Kylo! this is a Jedi only photo!
Moving onto a heartfelt matter, TLJ is the last performance by Carrie Fisher since she passed away last year in December. Fisher had already finished all of her scenes for TLJ when she died, and according to Rian Johnson her work in the film remained intact and no editing was done whatsoever. Sadly, most of her interactions throughout the movie, sorta give you that poetic justice feeling that she gave all she had left to the character and indeed TLJ will be a bittersweet movie to everyone who followed Princess Leia's adventure since day one. The question whether she makes it to the end of TLJ safe and sound will be answered when you go to the theater yourselves. Unfortunately, there is this one CGI scene, that is perhaps the most stupid thing this wannabe director gives in the whole film. Believe you me, you will hate the scene with all your guts. And speaking of old characters, I believe the critics and fans can agree Mark Hamill delivers, in this film, his greatest performance ever despite a flashback that clarifies why Hamill had issues with the useless Rian Johnson when producing the film, and namely Luke Skywalker's story. I just can't believe the motherfuckers from Disney would hire this turd and grant him a brand new trilogy. I do hope they change this. Rotten Tomatoes (a site which you couldn't care less about) says the "critics" or cocksuckers on a payroll, as I prefer calling them, give it a 93% of freshness while the real critics, we the people, rate it a 56%, which doesn't even grant it the pass grade.
Rey is strong with the force.
From scavenger to Jedi.
TFA was criticized by some fans as being a complete copy of Episode IV, which being far, it was not. The major problem I had watching TLJ is the fact that the film changes so many things in a nonsensical manner, that J.J. Abrams' work feels utterly useless! Most of the mystery and promising aspects behind the new characters is tossed in the garbage compactor for good.
The fact that Disney has just bought 20th Century Fox aims at an even darker future for other film franchises and creators. Owning everything, doesn't make you successful or powerful, it makes a fucking dictator, and dictators are known for killing arts in every way they can. I had so many high hopes for Rey!! I friggin' loved the character!! but what the fuck man!? just like Kylo Ren, they are changed into a state of lame ambiguity in order to makes us think they could turn to opposite, which of course, they do not.
I need to see a medic urgently, please!.
I tried hard for you fans, but I failed you.
In 2015 I watched TFA 5 times in the movie theater, and since then maybe 5 more times at home. The movie was fucking awesome. However, with TLJ, only one time is enough to tell the movie was rushed, and that the producers were more concerned about the marketing department rather than leaving a wide happy smile in their fans. Of course, there are many cocksuckers out there, who would suck Disney's dick for free, just take a look at their latest superhero films to see how bad they really are, but how beloved they are by the non connoisseur section of movie goers.
Man I feel bummed! I even re watch the whole saga again (including Rogue One) and felt that in doing so I made a terrible mistake because, all the good Star Wars films were already there! I just can't believe I watched a bad SW movie!
The jedi?
The rebels!
Overall, TLJ is a transitional movie that lacks so much, you can easily skip it and watch Episode IX in 2019 and understand everything that has transpired in between movies anyway. When I left the theater in 1999, after The Phantom Menace I knew the forthcoming episodes would explain more about the new characters. When people left the theater in 1977 after A New Hope, they felt the same so, it became a Star Wars thing to expect revelations in the sequels. Unfortunately, when I left the theater a couple of nights ago, I felt robbed and raped, because TLJ solves nothing and mangles characters that were larger than life. I ain't buying the nothing is sacred crap. Besides, 153 minutes feel like 10 hours when a film is going nowhere. Rian Johnson, go fuck yourself, We fucking hate what you did with Star Wars.
And one more thing, when George Lucas was asked about the film, he answered "Beautifully made", which translates as "it only looks nice but, there's nothing else". Here are the promising trailers: Trailer #1: Trailer #2: The TV Spots part 1: The TV Spots part 2:
When people talk about movies, they seem to have lots of different reasons to define what makes a film either entertaining & well crafted or boring and terribly executed. Star Wars has been around since 1977, that is 39 years! and no other franchise has lasted this long, hence the necessity to treat Star Wars movies as a unique event in the filming arts.
Last night we were the lucky bastards, as a friend called us when he found out we got tickets for an advanced screening of Rogue One: a Star Wars Story, so, I checked my lightsaber collection for battery replacement and found myself deciding which lightsabers were worthy enough as to accompany my wife & I to an experience we've been sharing since we were dating in the early 2000's. The decision was evident: Darth Vader's lightsaber & Luke (or Anakin's, or Rey's) Skywalker's blue Kyber crystal lightsaber. As usual there was a fairly decent line of fans waiting anxiously for the movie. Complete families in costumes, many people with Star Wars apparel (I was wearing my 2013 "What Would Vader Do?" T-Shirt) and of course, lightsabers. A lot of them.
The Empire.
The rebels.
Once the Lucasfilm logo showed up the theater was silent and that is where director Gareth Edwards told us from the very beginning this wasn't Episode VIII or Episode III and half, no title crawl, just instant giant space ships featuring a flashback story on Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) and then the Rogue One title with music written by Michael Giacchino but somehow based upon John Williams' legendary work. The story by John Knoll & Gary Whitta, plotwise, is nothing longtime fans wouldn't expect, I guess fans spent years of their lives imagining how those Death Star plans got in the hands of the rebellion, namely Princess Leia Organa.
Rogue One is supposed to play as a "side story", a "companion book" to a larger story and yet, what media and the trailers have shown us is, way too little to decide whether this film is a prequel to Episode IV: A New Hope or an actual spin-off film cashing out on the massive popularity George Lucas creation has. The burden of making a movie that wouldn't feel like a parody of itself was clearly an obstacle Edwards & Co. knew how to deal with to the very last drop. Surprisingly enough, Darth Vader, whosevoice is once again played by the great James Earl Jones, is not the only "classic character" you'll see playing an important role during the development of the film. In addition, a big yet clever selection of nods to other Star Wars films are everywhere! don't blink because you'll miss a few! Obviously, watching this film solves the above mentioned "side story" or "sequel" conundrum, specially when it reaches its climax.
Fuck everybody! Long live the Empire!
Black troopers.
The new characters are all victims of the brutal clone wars that destroyed the Jedi knights & galactic democracy. However, not much time is spent explaining why they are here and why they do what they do which is a valiant move considering the episodic Star Wars films feature quite a selection of characters that have a lot to do with plots and subplots, hence the need for explaining and/or developing a bit further than "I'm a good guy/bad guy" BUT, we all know what these characters did even without watching the movie. They're not going to be a part of future sequels, what matters most in this film is the mission, and the mission is clear: Obtain the Death Star's plan from the Empire's archive and send them to the Rebel Alliance in order to give peace a chance.
So, the "new story" has it, the Rebel Alliance is against an extremist group of rebels led by Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker), a man who fought the empire long enough as to being turned into a half-machine half-man. it just so happens this man raised Jyn Erso while her father Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen) a genius engineer who was taken by the empire and forced to aid them in the development of their most brutal state of the art technology to date: the Death Star. So, Gerrera is not willing to work with the Alliance because he prefers a more direct approach. Unfortunately for the Alliance, Galen Erso chose a rogue pilot (Bhody Rook, played by Riz Ahmed) to carry an important message to Gerrera himself, a man Galen trusted him with her daughter. So there you have it! They need Jyn Erso in order to interact with Gerrera and gain the secret message that will allow them to find out more about this new imperial weapon. While all of this happens, Jyn meets other characters that are willing to help her find her father. Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) a rebel alliance agent, Chirrut Imwe (Donnie Yen) a blind martial artists fond of the force (he throws the best joke of the entire movie, and perhaps one of the best Star Wars jokes of all time), Baze Malbus (Wen Jiang) a brave laser machine gun man & K2SO (Alan Tudyk) an re programed imperial droid.
So, who's in?
I'm contacting my old friend.
In a nutshell, they obtain the message Galen Erso sent Gerrera realizing their weapon is far too powerful to actually do something about it. Leading the resistance, another returning character, Mon Mothma (Genevieve O'Reilly) already seen in Episode III: Revenge of the Sith & Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, calls for a decision among all the alliance members and they all decide to cease the fighting in order to avoid a war that will put an end to rebel alliance.
Now, for those thinking the bad guy in the film is Darth Vader, and Vader only, they're extra wrong. Orson Krennic (Ben Mendehlson) is the director of operations from project Death Star, and he is actually the number one guy behind Galen Erso being forced to work for the Empire. Of course, a large collection of classic stormtroopers along with new troopers and lots of X-Wings, Tie Fighters, Imperial Destroyers & AT-AT Walkers are also there to add fun to a movie that feels like a warzone where there are no Jedi knights to bring balance to the force.
Yes Director?
You don't know the power of...
Now for those fans craving for the dark lord of the Sith, Rogue One offers us a couple of interventions that are extra satisfying. The first even offers a glimpse on how... Well, you just watch it and see for yourself. The Second intervention is perhaps the most "Classic Star Wars" moment in the entire film. I mean, it's so fucking massive that you're like "Holy shit! Darth Vader! Go! Go! Go! " and it's this precise scene the one that reveals how this film is connected to Episode IV, so thank the producers of the trailers for not revealing any of the gorgeous surprises this film is packed with. Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits) also appears briefly in the movie, and whether you like it or not he's the connection with the prequel trilogy. Darth Sidious, AKAThe Emperor, the ultimate son of a bitch is only mentioned a few times. Another very important returning character has a lot to do with the Death Star and Episode IV but I won't reveal that here.
So, yay or nay? Rogue One is clearly an excellent movie, the start of something bigger, the "Star Wars Anthology Films" premise has a long way to go yet but, if they follow the fine example set here, I'm sure all those spin-offs they're planning will not only satisfy fans but also film connoisseurs. With a story that is all too familiar, a selection of nods to the original trilogy and a few fantastic surprises, this clearly is the film of the year 2016. And speaking of spin-offs, Rogue One actually works, so we will finally forget about those two Ewok films and the Star Wars Holiday Special (the actual first, spin-off in the SW universe)
The Rogue One crew.
In disguise.
I have to admit I had my doubts whether the film would live up to the expectations and fortunately, after we left the theater those doubts were completely wiped out. Despite the fact, the story is about "how some rebels got the Death Star plans to reach the alliance hands" all that happens in between makes it a very good action movie, it feels like you're in the middle of a war where you know many good guys will die to deliver such important information. I mean, from Episode IV we all know that those plans were delivered but not how, so it's a pretty interesting approach that fortunately, for the viewer, was achieved to the summa cum laude degree. The only thing I didn't quite like was Michael Giacchino's score which was below my expectations. Whenever there was a SW moment, his music was about to sound like something classic and then nothing happened, not even the SW theme!!! that is something I cannot forgive. Music plays a major role in the SW movies.
Overall, a fantastic addition to the SW universe and the best last 10 minutes celluloid can deliver! I guarantee that! Also, everything is settled in a single movie! no need for sequels or prequels or anything like that, just sit back, munch your popcorn while sipping your favorite drink and wait for the multiple nerdgasms the last 10 minutes will deliver, oh by the way, did I tell you about the last 10 minutes?
