Today I’m adding #9 to my list that ranks the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies.
ROGUE ONE (2016).
I only saw it once in the theater. Not because I didn’t like it, but sadly, I didn’t get around to seeing it more times before it left theaters.
Here’s what I love:
K-2SO! A very funny character.
Ben Mendelsohn as Krennic is great!
Tarkin!
Darth Vader! Especially at the end when he’s tearing through those poor Rebel fleet troopers.
It is so extremely cool that an often-mocked SW plot hole was fixed. For years people have been making fun of the Death Star having such a serious design flaw of a certain 2-meter-wide exhaust port. But in ROGUE ONE we learn that this was an intentional weakness developed by the Death Star’s chief engineer who is secretly working against the Empire. SO COOL!!
Love the Death Troopers!
Lightsabers being powered by kyber crystals has been part of SW lore for a long time, being seen and referenced in SW comics and cartoons, etc. But ROGUE is the first live action film that has them, which is super cool.
Mon Mothma, Bail Organa, and Leia!
Yavin 4!
Fun to have a Chopper (from REBELS cartoon) cameo!
There’s a lot of great, gritty action in this movie.
And that huge battle at the end – WOW!!
It’s my favorite SW land battle except for Hoth in EMPIRE.
While the land battle is happening, there is the amazing spaceship battle going on…
…and the infiltration mission with Jyn, Cassian, and K-2SO…
…and all three of these story elements deliver huge with terrific action and suspense.
It’s pretty amazing to have a movie where we see the original Death Star again…
…and the way the ending connects to the beginning of STAR WARS is fantastic!
With so much to love about ROGUE ONE, why didn’t I place it higher on the list?
MY COMPLAINTS:
Most of the main Rebel characters don’t really grab me. They’re just okay.
There’s nothing wrong with any of them. They’re not annoying and they don’t have awful dialogue. But at the same time, I just don’t love them like I do Rey, Finn, Poe, Lando, Han, etc. There wasn’t anything all that memorable or likable or fun in their personalities and interactions with each other. With the exception, of course, of K-2SO.
Again, I don’t dislike them. They’re okay. But for me, they fall flat compared to many other SW characters.
(I feel like ROGUE ONE and SOLO have opposite strengths and weaknesses, with SOLO having a super fun cast, but light on large scale, high-stakes action, and ROGUE delivering huge with amazing action, but having too many ho-hum characters.)
Also, there is not nearly enough Darth Vader in this. Lucasfilm hyped him up, putting his mask in the background on the movie poster and novel cover. In addition, Hasbro put out a ROGUE ONE Vader figure months before the movie’s release. And then he only has two or three minutes of screen time, if that. Vader attacking the fleet troopers is one of the most memorable/ talked about scenes in the film. Imagine if he had been involved with the huge land battle on Scarif in some lengthy action scenes. Come on! The makers of this movie had access to arguably the greatest villain in cinematic history, and that’s all they gave us? What a missed opportunity.
I also wish we could have had an appearance from the Emperor.
But my complaints aside, this is a highly entertaining adventure that is a strong addition to the galaxy far, far away. A bit weak on characters, but delivers huge with story and action.
Grade: B
#9 Rogue One
#10 Solo
#11 The Phantom Menace
#12 The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
#13 The Last Jedi
#14 Attack of the Clones
I was really looking forward to this movie. There’s one small line that many died to obtain this information in the originals. I get to see that story! I liked that it expanded the universe for me.