Rogue One 2016
I was quite saftisfied with The Force Awakens last year, though I realize not everybody liked it, and it seems a lot of the people who weren’t crazy about that movie are liking Rogue One better. I am happy with both of them and both have made great use of the very rich Star Wars legacy to tell their stories. Not heavy on light sabers and jedi stuff this time, there are still great space ships, stormtroopers, Darth Vader, droids (a vast improvement over C3P0), great planets, etc. I enjoyed the characters, action, special effects, and just about everything you see in the movie, but I feel like the plot is a little lacking. Maybe it is a common theme that a small ragtag group of people can do amazing things despite horrible odds, but I would like to see something, anything, that would have improved the odds a little. If it is a caper film, I would like to see the protagonists plan it out a little better or have some better weapon, information, abilities, or something that could conceivably have them match up well against the superpower of the Empire. I just felt like they were in over their heads most of the movie. Still, even with that, everything works, and it looks fantastic. I thought this was supposed to be kind of a side story, but it is actually an immediate prequel to the original Star Wars, and a far better installment than the other three prequels.
Update in September 2020: I watched the movie again, maybe the third time, having bought it on blu-ray, but watching in 4k on Disney Plus. Some of the steps seem a little too contrived and maybe unnecessary, but this is still a great movie. And it is a great looking movie. There are a lot of amazing settings, starting with the black beach at the beginning, but so many more, which are just gorgeous.
Written: 24 Dec 2016
Owned on: Blu-ray, DVD, Digital