Rogue One Review (Spoilers)

[Water Bob]

I didn't watch the Clone Wars. Was Saw a character on that show?

He became quite a nut in Rogue One. All that running from the Empire and staying off the grid has taken its toll on him.

"Did you come to kill ME?"

He was ready to just stop running. He didn't have anything to live for anymore. He was tired of running.

Interesting character.

 

[Jester David]

I didn't watch the Clone Wars. Was Saw a character on that show?

He became quite a nut in Rogue One. All that running from the Empire and staying off the grid has taken its toll on him.

"Did you come to kill ME?"

He was ready to just stop running. He didn't have anything to live for anymore. He was tired of running.

Interesting character.

Saw appeared in 4 episodes as a member of a freedom fighting band being trained in attacking droids by Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan, Ashoka.
Not a huge character. Bringing him into the movie is actually a neat and obscure reference.

And now he's also going to appear in Star Wars Rebels.

 

[Water Bob]

Is Saw nuts in the Clone Wars, too? Or, is that time wearing on him?

 

[Jester David]

Is Saw nuts in the Clone Wars, too? Or, is that time wearing on him?

He was more aggressive/ impulsive. I can see him breaking with the regular Rebels. The nuts part likely comes from spending twenty years fighting, and trading one oppressive regime for another.

 

[Ryujin]

He was more aggressive/ impulsive. I can see him breaking with the regular Rebels. The nuts part likely comes from spending twenty years fighting, and trading one oppressive regime for another.

Not to mention trading more flesh for metal.

 

[Leatherhead]

Went out and saw the movie, finally. It was OK, but I don't think I will put it in my machete order view list though. Though if I could take out the last parts of the movie featuring Vader and cut them into the beginning of episode 4, that would be ideal.

The CGI didn't really bother me up until Leia was on screen, then it got really weird, though I suspect that had more to do with Carrie Fisher's recent passing. I knew the CGI was there, I suppose I am just more desensitized to it now.

It did, in fact, remind me more of someones re-accounting of an Star Wars RPG group than a movie. Partly because of the precariously assembled rag-tag crew, partly because they couldn't get any help from the big-name "NPCs", partly because there were some throw away plot points that went nowhere (like seriously, the mind-squid didn't have any impact on the story, wtf?), partly because the battles were the best parts. Though I have to say the "Who are you?" scene on the top of the antenna array was great. Most though, I would say it comes down to the character's deaths not stinging, as if the characters themselves were purposely crafted in such a way as to minimize the impact of their inevitable demise. It felt like textbook murder-hobo character building. Fun and quirky, yet disposable.

 

[Imaculata]

It did, in fact, remind me more of someones re-accounting of an Star Wars RPG group than a movie. Partly because of the precariously assembled rag-tag crew, partly because they couldn't get any help from the big-name "NPCs", partly because there were some throw away plot points that went nowhere (like seriously, the mind-squid didn't have any impact on the story, wtf?), partly because the battles were the best parts. Though I have to say the "Who are you?" scene on the top of the antenna array was great. Most though, I would say it comes down to the character's deaths not stinging, as if the characters themselves were purposely crafted in such a way as to minimize the impact of their inevitable demise. It felt like textbook murder-hobo character building. Fun and quirky, yet disposable.

This was one of my biggest issues with the film. There are very few actual 'scenes' with the characters, where they talk to each other, and build them up. And it left them rather flat, and failed to make me care about them. The only character that got any development was Jyn, and all we got for her was a bare bones back story that was pretty cliche, even by Star Wars standards. But we didn't get any scenes with her to make us like her, or to explain who she is.

What I feel she needed, was a scene like Han Solo got in the Cantina. A scene where we see her talk to other characters, and see her do something that defines her character. Likewise for the other characters. It also didn't help that almost all of the humor was given to KT-SO, leaving the other characters very humorless.

Compare this with a movie like Serenity, where even if you haven't seen the show Firefly, you are given enough scenes with each character to understand them. They all have a few funny lines, and scenes that define their character. They have scenes where they interact with each other. In Rogue One, it felt like they wanted to move as quickly as possible from one action scene to the next, leaving no room for character development. Without character development, the movie has no heart, and doesn't make me care about anything that happens.

 

[Mallus]

There was no reason for Krennic to visit him on "unspecified lava planet", other than to get choked and throw a Vader cameo in.

Just saw it, and loved it, more or less, but on this particular point...

... we can debate the overall necessity of the lava planet scene, but Krennic has a clear reason for going there.

Krennic is trying to do an end-run around Tarkin, who had just moved in to take credit/command of the Death Star project after its first successful test. So Krennic zips off to the unnamed lava planet to go over Tarkin's head and plead his case directly to Vader.

Who is... unimpressed.

I think it's a pretty good scene because we get to see Krennic learn his place in the Empire the hard way. It also fits with the character's general type, i.e. the living embodiment of the banality of evil, a fascist project manager who can't deliver his deliverables on time because the real talent left the company.

 

[Water Bob]

My ranking of SW movies now is probably:

V
IV
R1
V
VII
--- big gap ---
III
I
II

You like The Empire Strikes Back so much that it occupies place #1 and place #4!

 

[Imaculata]

I think it's a pretty good scene because we get to see Krennic learn his place in the Empire the hard way. It also fits with the character's general type, i.e. the living embodiment of the banality of evil, a fascist project manager who can't deliver his deliverables on time because the real talent left the company.

To me it felt like they just wanted another scene with Vader, and show off his lava castle. But it didn't really further the plot in my opinion.