ROGUE ONE REVIEW
“Rebellions are built on hope.” Man what a great movie Gareth Edwards delivered to us. Rogue One is my favourite Star Wars movie since the original trilogy was released so it’s about time that I wrote up a review for it. I have to admit that I was not excited at all for this movie to come out, my focus was on the ‘Episode’ movies and didn’t have any faith that the ‘Star Wars Story’ movies would be any good. I didn’t know anything about it and I didn’t want to know. Boy was I wrong. Normally I would be in the theatres on the first weekend for Star Wars movies but with Rogue One I didn’t see it until the second or third week. To that point I had heard nothing but good things and when I finally watched the trailer my excitement started to build. I would put the 2nd Official Trailer up there with the best of all time. When I finally got to the theatre and watched it, I felt like a real dummy for not embracing the movie from day one and was beyond thankful that I didn’t encounter any spoilers leading up to it. I’ll never forget how I felt watching the ending sequence with Darth Vader, I had no idea it was coming and was completely blown away. But I’ll talk more about that scene later.
Rogue One was the perfect kind of prequel movie in that it not only stood on it’s own as a great movie but it also did its job of enhancing the movie it precedes, A New Hope. When fans were talking about plot holes in the movies, the Empire leaving a big opening on the surface that could potentially lead to the destruction of the Death Star was always brought up. Fans trying to defend it just talked about it being an oversight that the Empire never considered but it did seem kind of far fetched that with all the planning and work that went into constructing a weapon of that magnitude that they would leave an opening that easily accessible that could destroy the entire thing. But Rogue One has ended those discussions with a brilliant explanation for it. Kind of funny that the entire reason Rogue One might have been made was to put an end to those criticisms but I’m glad they did bc it gave us one of the best Star Wars movies.
The cast for the movie couldn’t have been better, everyone just crushed their roles and made it easy to buy into the story. Gareth Edwards crushed it as Director and def understands how to make a ‘Star Wars’ movie. The visuals of the planets, battles, etc.. were just phenomenal and left the audience mesmerized. Initially I was worried that the movie might ruin A New Hope but it did the exact opposite of that, it actually made A New Hope better. So let’s get into the actual review of the movie:
The movie starts off with the intensity kicked way up as we see an Imperial shuttle make it’s way onto the surface of a planet. We see the Erso family scramble to get themselves ready for whoever is on this Imperial shuttle. Galen Erso is played by Mads Mikkelson, Jyn Erso is played by Felicity Jones and they are just terrific performances. Galen tells a young Jyn, “Whatever I do, I do it to protect you.” Jyn’s mother Lyra tells Jyn to hide as Galen goes out to deal with the Imperial officer Krennic in an awesome performance from Ben Mendelsohn. The death troopers that accompany Krennic are def intimidating. Galen is one of the best scientists in the galaxy and has been helping the Empire build the Death Star but doesn’t want any part of it anymore. Galen has been hiding out on the planet Lah’mu with his family trying to avoid the Empire but they tracked him down as his skills are needed to finish the Death Star.
Krennic tries to sell that the Death Star will create peace throughout the Galaxy but Galen counters with a great line, ‘you’re confusing peace with terror.” Galen has no interest in becoming one of the heroes of the Empire but Krennic is not giving him a choice. To try and protect his family, Galen tells Krennic that his wife and daughter are dead but Krennic doesn’t seem like he believes it. Lyra comes out of hiding confirming Krennic’s suspicions while Galen tries to plead with her to stay away. Lyra knows that Krennic plans to take Galen and the family back to Empire controlled territory so that Galen will finish the work on the Death Star with his family being held as hostages. Lyra has a blaster and you know things are not going to go good for her if she uses it as Galen begs her to put it down. But a desperate Lyra takes a shot at Krennic that connects but it isn’t a fatal shot and he commands the death troopers to kill her. Galen is taken and Krennic instructs the death troopers to find Jyn. Lyra’s death immediately shows how high the stakes are and reinforces the evil that is the Empire. Shocking scene to start the movie and keep the audience on edge for the rest of it.
The death troopers search but are unsuccessful in finding Jyn who is hiding in a small space disguised as a rock. Eventually Jyn is found by Saw Gerrera, a rebel soldier that is loyal to Galen. Jyn is forced to live a hard, lonely life going from being with her loving family to landing right in the thick of the battle vs the Empire living with people she barely knows. Fast forward to 15 years later when Jyn is imprisoned by the Empire and it really hammers home how hard life is going for her. Next we get the introduction of Cassian Andor played by Diego Luna in an awesome performance as he takes part in a secret meeting with a spy named Tivik who does a great job of showing his paranoia and fear of the Empire. Tivik tells Cassian about the defection of an Imperial pilot who is telling the Rebels that the Empire is making a weapon using kyber crystals and that the weapon is a ‘planet killer.’ The pilot says he was sent by Galen Erso who is an old friend of Saw Gerreras. The meeting is compromised by 2 stormtroopers who are promptly killed by Cassian which causes Tivik to start freaking out, drawing attention to them so Cassian kills him too. This scene does a great job of showing that living under the rule of the Empire is a kind of hell as Tivik talks about there being spies everywhere. You also understand why a lot of the rebels like Cassian are so jaded, having to kill someone that is trying to help you to save yourself and the information you received is necessary but would make it impossible to feel like a ‘good guy.’
Next we meet the Imperial pilot defector Bodhi Rook played by Riz Ahmed in a really great performance. He has a message from Galen he needs to deliver to Saw Gerrera asap but the rebels on Saw’s crew are very skeptical about Bodhi so they bind his arms and put a bag over his head. Bodhi is panicked and frantic to deliver the message to Saw as time is of the essence but Saw’s rebels are in no rush. Now we see Jyn on the inside of a prisoner transport when it is suddenly attacked but Jyn is in no danger as the purpose of the attack is to free her. But Jyn is very distrustful esp of people she doesn’t know so she starts fighting and is about to escape when she is choke slammed by a re-programmed Imperial droid named K2S0 who says ‘congratulations, you are being rescued. Please do not resist.’ Lol
Jyn is taken to a Rebel base with the leaders of the Rebellion wanting to question her. They list off her ‘crimes’ and reveal that they know who she really is, Jyn Erso daughter of Imperial scientist Galen Erso. It’s clear the Empire are the bad guys and the Rebels are the good guys but the alliance isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, they are very jaded due to constant hiding and fighting. Senator Mon Mothma provides some clarity on the relationship between the Rebellion and Saw Gererra, “Yes, but Saw Gerrera’s an extremist. He’s been fighting on his own since he broke with the Rebellion. His militancy has caused the Alliance a great many problems. We have no choice now but to try to mend that broken trust.” I love that they introduced some depth to the good guys by having them make choices that are ‘bad’ on paper but necessary in the war vs the Empire, making the characters more realistic. Cassian especially has no faith in anyone and is very critical of Galen accusing him of being a willing soldier of the Empire trying to trick the rebellion.
CASSIAN: When was the last time you were in contact with your father?
JYN: 15 years ago.
CASSIAN: Any idea where he’s been all that time?
JYN: I like to think he’s dead, makes things easier.
CASSIAN: Easier than what? That he’s being a tool of the Imperial war machine?
JYN: I’ve never had the luxury of political opinions.
CASSIAN: Really? When was your last contact with Saw Gerrera?
JYN: It’s been a long time.
CASSIAN: He’d remember you, though, wouldn’t he? He might agree to meet you, if you came as a friend.
JYN: I was a child, Saw Gerrera saved my life. He raised me. But I’ve no idea where he is. I haven’t seen him in years.
The Alliance is desperate to find Galen so they can stop the Death Star from becoming operational. It creates a sense of dread when they talk about the Death Star and how panicked they are about destroying it. Over the years I think some fans think of the Empire and the Death Star as ‘cool’ but this movie delivers the realism of it and what it would be like living under these conditions. It would be anything but ‘cool.’ Jyn is their key to Saul Guerera, the defector pilot and Galen so they make promises to clear her name and give her the freedom she seeks if she will help them extract Galen from the place he is working. Jyn agrees, I think in part bc it might lead to a reunion with her father who she hasn’t seen in over 15 years.
K2SO isn’t a fan of Jyn to say the least, ‘I see the Council is sending you with us to Jedha.’ ‘Apparently so.’ ‘That is a bad idea. I think so, and so does Cassian. What do I know? My specialty is just strategic analysis.’ Lol After she tells Cassian she just found the blaster she has, K2SO responds, ‘I find that answer vague and unconvincing. Would you like to know the probability of her using it against you? It’s high. It’s very high.’ So great. We learn the plan is for Cassian to kill Galen instead of extract him so he can’t finish the weapon and just use Jyn to figure out his location. Bodhi is finally introduced to Saw Gerrera but the other rebels are presenting Bodhi as being captured but he is adamant saying he defected. They also say they found the msg from Galen on him but he corrects them and tells Saw he freely gave it to them. Saw is not convinced and tells the rebels to prepare Bodhi for Bor Gullet. I don’t like CGI tech for humans esp ones that have already passed away but it was def cool seeing Tarkin again. Tarkin confronts Krennic about the defector pilot spreading rumours about the existence of the Death Star and tells him that the Emperor will not tolerate any more delays. A test of the Death Star is scheduled with Krennics reputation and life on the line.
Jyn’s memories show that Galen was a good father stuck in service to the empire. As Cassian and Jyn prepare to head into Jedha, Jyn wants K2SO to stay behind which gives us another great exchange. ‘I can blend in. I’m an Imperial droid. The city is under Imperial occupation.’ ‘Half the people here wanna reprogram you. The other half wanna put a hole in your head.’ ‘I’m surprised you’re so concerned with my safety.’ I’m not. I’m just worried they might miss you… and hit me.’ ‘Doesn’t sound so bad to me’ lol love the dynamic btwn Jyn and K2SO. Not a big fan of the Bor Gullet stuff but it shows the paranoia Saul has been consumed with and it proves that Bodie is on their side but the affects of the Bor Gullet have Bodie not in his right mind. Cool cameo from the guys that give Luke a hard time in ANH but I wonder how they got off Jedha before it was destroyed, must have had some kind of ride. The occupation of Jedha by the Empire shows how dire life is for most in the galaxy, there is so much tension and fear in the air on Jedha. Galen was right in that they use terror to control people and that the ‘peace’ they speak of is just a myth. A blind stranger asks Jyn about her Kyber necklace, “How did you know I was wearing a necklace?… For that answer you must pay. What do you know of kyber crystals?… My father, he said they powered the Jedi lightsabers… The strongest stars have hearts of kyber.’
Then we get an awesome attack on the stormtrooper tank by Saw Gerrera’s rebels, delivered some great action. Jyn gets to show that she isn’t just a pretty face, she can kick some serious ass. Cassian has to kill one of the rebels to save Jyn as the rebel is about to throw a bomb right where Jyn is standing, this would have consequences later. As jaded as Jyn is, she still has a hero’s heart and proves it by saving a small child during the attack. Jyn blows away an Imperial droid that looks exactly like K2SO seconds before the real K2SO shows up, ‘did you know that wasn’t me!?’ ‘Yeah. Of course.’ Lol more stormtroopers show up and K2SO tries to act like an Imperial droid, ‘Where are you taking these prisoners?’ ‘These are prisoners.’ ‘Yes. Where are you taking them?’ ‘I am… taking them… to imprison them… in prison.’ ‘He’s taking us to…’ ‘*SMACK* Quiet! And there’s a fresh one if you mouth off again.’ Fcking LOL it looks like Jyn, Cassian and K2SO are about to be captured when the 2 man calvary shows up. What a fn awesome intro of Chirrut and Baze, Guardians of the Whills that used to look after the Kyber Temple that the Empire is stripping to fuel the Death Star. Chirrut is blind but is unbelievably skilled and takes down multiple stormtroopers without a blaster. Baze is also unbelievably skilled but his skills are with the blaster as he takes out the rest of the stromtroopers attacking Chirrut. Loved their dynamic as best friends, Chirrut’s love of the Force and Jedi made me a huge fan immediately. Chirrut is played by Donnie Yen and Baze is played by Jiang Wen and they delivered two incredible performances.
After the stormtroopers are taken care of, Saw’s rebels surround Jyn, Cassian, Chirrut and Baze and they are pissed off after one of them saw Cassian kill their man. Jyn reveals who she really is and demands to be taken to see Saw. The rebels realize Saw would want to talk to the daughter of Galen Erso so they imprison the rest of the crew and take Jyn to see Saw. Hilarious moment when they put a bag over Chirrut’s head, ‘Are you *kidding* me? I’m blind!’ lol Chirrut may not have his eyesight but he can still see more than anyone would think. After Cassian says he has never been imprisoned Chirrut says there is more than 1 kind of prison and that Cassian carries his prison wherever he goes. Love that line bc it shows that the effects of the Rebellion have taken a serious toll on Cassian and cost him his peace. In the cell we first hear Chirrut repeating his Force prayer over and over, ‘I am one with the Force and the Force is with me’ and I fn love that. Made me wish Chirrut could have existed when the Jedi were around. They notice that there is an Imperial pilot in the next cell, Baze wants to kill him but Cassian realizes it could be the defector and tries to question the pilot. It is Bodhi but the affects of Bor Gullet have Bodhi in a daze unable to speak coherently or access his memory until Cassian mentions Galen Erso and it all starts coming back.
Jyn is brought before Saw who is surprised but pleased to see her. However Saw’s paranoia takes over and he becomes fearful that Jyn was sent to get close to him and kill him. But Jyn quickly convinces him that is not the case. We learn that Jyn was a part of Saw’s rebel group but a few years ago Saw abandoned Jyn bc ppl were starting to figure out who she was and would use her as a hostage. Obviously it was necessary to protect her but it just adds to the tough, lonely life that Jyn had to live. Jyn tells Saw her role with the Rebels is over and she doesn’t care about the cause anymore. Saw is incredulous asking if she is really ok with seeing the Imperial flags flying over the galaxy. Jyn responds, ‘it’s not a problem if you don’t look up.’ Shows the toll the Rebellion has taken on Jyn. Fighting against evil is not easy, esp evil that has the choking control that the Empire does. The fight will beat you down for a long, long time and sometimes it’s hard to see a day where victory is achieved and everyone can live a life of peace and true freedom. We see that in Cassian, Saw, Jyn and the rest of the rebels. Giving up means that evil has more of a chance to win but after so much turmoil and hardships, sometimes you just run out of fuel to fight and that is where Jyn is at. Saw tells Jyn he has something to show her. Before we get to see it, we go to the Death Star where Tarkin and Krennic are ready to watch the test run of the ultimate weapon. Krennic says he can destroy the whole moon but Tarkin says just the Holy city of Jedha is enough for the test and they prepare to fire the weapon.
Back on Jedha, Saw reveals he has a message from Galen that he wants Jyn to see. Man what a heartbreaking scene watching Jyn listen to Galen’s message, this is the first time Jyn has seen her father in over 15 years. He is so close yet so far, she can see him and hear his voice but can’t touch him. You know that the biggest desire in her heart at that point is to be reunited with her father. Great acting from Felicity Jones in this scene. Galen’s message is one of my fav scenes, brilliant storytelling as he breaks down his plan of making the Empire think they needed him to complete the Death Star as he worked on setting a trap to destroy the station.
Galen: Saw, if you’re watching this, then perhaps there is a chance to save the Alliance. Perhaps there’s a chance to explain myself and, though I don’t dare hope for too much, a chance for Jyn, if she’s alive, if you can possibly find her to let her know that my love for her has never faded and how desperately I’ve missed her. Jyn, my Stardust, I can’t imagine what you think of me. When I was taken, I faced some bitter truths. I was told that, soon enough, Krennic would have you as well. As time went by, I knew that you were either dead or so well hidden that he would never find you. I knew if I refused to work, if I took my own life, it would only be a matter of time before Krennic realized he no longer needed me to complete the project. So I did the one thing that nobody expected: I lied. I learned to lie. I played the part of a beaten man resigned to the sanctuary of his work. I made myself indispensable, and all the while I laid the groundwork of my revenge. We call it the Death Star. There is no better name. And the day is coming soon when it will be unleashed. I’ve placed a weakness deep within the system. A flaw so small and powerful, they’ll never find it. But, Jyn. Jyn, if you’re listening My beloved, so much of my life has been wasted. I try to think of you only in the moments when I’m strong, because the pain of not having you with me Your mother. Our family. The pain of that loss is so overwhelming I risk failing even now. It’s just so hard not to think of you. Think of where you are. My Stardust. Saw, the reactor module, that’s the key. That’s the place I’ve laid my trap. It’s well hidden and unstable, one blast to any part of it will destroy the entire station. You’ll need the plans, the structural plans for the Death Star to find the reactor. I know there’s a complete engineering archive in the data vault at the Citadel Tower on Scarif. Any pressurized explosion to the reactor module will set off a chain reaction that will destroy the entire station…
Without Galen Erso, Luke never gets a chance to destroy the Death Star so when it comes to heroes of the Rebellion, Galen is up there with Luke. Having this story of Galen and his trap gives the final attack on the Death Star in ANH even more emotion than it already had. The message cuts off before the end due to the destruction caused by the Death Star and Cassian finds them just in time but they have to hustle bc Jedha is about to be wiped out. Saw is on oxygen and is in rough shape from his long battles with the Empire so he refuses to run anymore and has resigned himself to being destroyed with Jedha. Sucked to see Saw die, thought we would get more of him and I wanted to see more but what we got was still great. Loved seeing Forrest Whitaker in the Star Wars universe. “Save the Rebellion! Save the dream…” The destruction of Jedha is a crazy visual, the Empire successfully wiped out the last reminder of the Jedi. Would love to see Movies or a live-action TV series about the times when Jedha was a flourishing city. The escape from Jedha reminds me of the Millennium Falcon escaping the creature in ESB as it’s jaws are about to close. Cassian def has a Han Solo vibe to him and saves the day by punching the ship into Hyperdrive. Could have been a disaster bc K2SO hadn’t made the proper calculations yet but that’s why Droids are only so useful, sometimes you need human instinct to survive.
We go back to the Death Star to see a confrontation between Tarkin and Krennic. Krennic really is an interesting character, he is high up on the food chain but not at the top so he never has the power or control that he desires. We see that with him losing control of the Death Star and its achievements to Tarkin. “We stand here amid my achievement, not yours!” Tarkin uses the security breach of the defecting pilot to justify taking over control of the Death Star while Krennic scrambles to try and hold on to his power. Krennic knows that with the Death Star complete, Tarkin would probably kill him sooner or later to avoid any more conflict. So Krennic decides to personally confront Galen Erso on Eadu, where the defecting pilot was sent from and try to plug any leaks once and for all.
Galen Erso is a hero of the Rebellion for his decisions but the leaders of the Rebellion don’t know that so the orders for Cassian to kill him still stand. It’s a solemn scene amongst the Rogue One team as Chirrut and Baze lament the destruction of Jedha while Cassian struggles with his orders to kill Galen. I love the exchange between Bodie and Jyn as Bodie explains that he was sent by Galen to get the message about how to destroy the Death Star to the Rebellion. “Yes, your father… He said I could get right by myself. He said I could make it right, if I was brave enough and listened to what was in my heart. Do something about it. Guess it was too late.” Jyn tries to make Cassian understand that they are wrong about her father but Cassian is still skeptical saying that Galen did build the Death Star. “Because he knew they’d do it without him. My father made a choice. He sacrificed himself for the Rebellion. He’s rigged a trap inside it. That’s why he sent you. To bring that message.” Man I love the story that they told in this movie and I love that it increases my love and enjoyment of the original trilogy. Brilliant of Galen to realize they would figure out how to build it eventually without him and then there would be no chance of destroying it so he made a brutal yet crucial choice to build it but with a trap. Talk about walking the razors edge. Unfortunately Jyn couldn’t save the hologram so she only has her words but Cassian knows they need more proof than that to convince the leaders of the Alliance. Chirrut says he believes her, further solidifying the awesomeness of his character. To be fair, Jyn doesn’t do a great job of explaining how the trap laid by Galen will destroy the Death Star. “The reactor. He’s placed a weakness there. He’s been hiding it for years. He said if you can blow the reactor- the module- the whole system goes down. You need to send word to the Alliance.” Saying ‘the whole system goes down’ is def an understatement considering the blow to the reactor causes the entire station to fcking explode lol but in her defense she only saw the message once and her emotions were heightened big time.
They are lucky they had Bodie flying into Eadu to avoid the trackers bc they barely made it as it was, really intense watching and not knowing if they would crash or be discovered. After the crash landing, Cassian wants to go find Galen but doesn’t want Jyn to come with him bc she is the only one that heard the message. Jyn tries to counter that she told everyone so they all know it but K2SO gives her shit about the vagueness of what she said, “One blast to the reactor module and the whole system goes down. That’s how you said it. The whole system goes down.” Lol Chirrut figures out Cassian is going to kill Galen saying the Force moves darkly near a creature that is about to kill. He is blind but can still see. K2SO confirms this by saying that Cassian had his blaster in a sniper configuration. Cassian and Bodie find a good spot to see the platform and Bodie identifies Galen to Cassian who then instructs Bodie to go find them a ship to escape in while he does what he has to do. Intensity is through the roof when Cassian is looking through his scope at Galen but Cassian shows his worth by not pulling the trigger when he had the chance.
Krennic has arrived on Eadu to confront Galen but pretends to be friendly letting Galen know that the battle station is complete. Saying he has an announcement, Krennic has Galen gather all of his engineers on the platform. Krennic then announces that someone has betrayed the Empire by sending messages to the Rebellion and unless someone confesses they will all be killed. Right before the shooting starts, Galen steps in front of his engineers and confesses that he is the traitor but Krennic has the engineers killed anyways. Jyn has made her way to the platform but has no idea of the danger she and everyone on the platform is in. After losing contact with the Rogue One team bc of the crash landing, the Rebellion fears they are dead and sends an attack squadron to finish the job of killing Galen. This leads to a fn cool Battle of Eadu as the Rebel X-Wings start unloading on the platform. TIE Fighters are dispatched to counter the X-Wings and we get an awesome moment when Chirrut takes out the tie fighter with his Bow blaster. Great moment for a great character.
With the battle in the air raging, Jyn makes her move and calls out “FATHER!” to try and get her father out of harms way. Before Galen realizes who she is, an X-Wing bombs the platform taking out Galen and Krennic. An Empire Captain gets Krennic out of there as Jyn runs to her father’s side. Really emotional scene as Jyn reunites with her father for the first time in over 15 years:
JYN: Papa. Papa, it’s me. It’s Jyn.
GALEN: Jyn. Stardust.
JYN: Papa. I’ve seen your message. The hologram, I’ve seen it.
GALEN: It must be destroyed.
JYN: I know. I know. We will.
GALEN: Jyn. Look at you. I’ve so much to tell you.
But those are his last words as Galen dies in Jyn’s arms, so fn sad man. And how ironic that Galen was Killed by the Alliance instead of the Empire. I had hope that Galen would be able to survive his wounds but that was quickly snuffed out. I really felt for Jyn not only watching her father die in her arms but having to leave him there on that platform. Her tough life just keeps getting tougher. Fcking loved Baze mowing down the Stormtroopers to give Jyn and Cassian time to escape. Bodie commandeers an Empire ship and takes out some stormtroopers prompting K2SO to say, “Well done. You’re a Rebel now.” Love it. They successfully escape Eadu but there is no celebration as we get a fn intense confrontation btwn Jyn/Cassian.
CASSIAN: I had every chance to pull the trigger. But did I? Did I?
JYN: You might as well have. My father was living proof and you put him at risk. Those were Alliance bombs that killed him!
CASSIAN: I had orders! Orders that I disobeyed! But you wouldn’t understand that.
JYN: Orders? When you know they’re wrong? You might as well be a stormtrooper.
CASSIAN: What do you know? We don’t all have the luxury of deciding when and where we want to care about something. Suddenly the Rebellion is real for you? Some of us live it. I’ve been in this fight since I was 6 years old. You’re not the only one who lost everything. Some of us just decided to do something about it.
Man that last response from Cassian instantly made me think of Boromir in Lord of the Rings. In LOTR, the people of Gondor have been on the frontlines spilling blood and losing lives fighting Suaron for years before the Fellowship gets together which causes Boromir to become jaded about not using the ring and taking orders from people that haven’t been in the fight. Cassian says he has been in the fight since he was 6 years old and has clearly lost many people that he loved to this fight vs the Empire. But in the end, Boromir shows his quality by agreeing to help Frodo destroy the ring and by dying an honourable death. Just as Cassian shows his by not killing Galen and helping Jyn acquire the Death Star plans. I def understand Jyn’s point of view about taking orders when you know they’re wrong, that’s part of the reason I never followed by families footsteps and joined the military, I knew that I couldn’t just blindly follow orders without questioning if they were right or wrong. There is no innocence in war, taking a great quote from Game of Thrones, “There is good and evil on both sides of every war ever fought.”
What a treat getting to see Darth Vader in his lair on Mustafaar. He has acquired immense power but Anakin is absolutely living a tortured existence. When he is out of the suit he has to be in a fluid chamber to deal with the burns and his only other option is to be in the mechanical Vader suit where he is more machine than man. Considering what he did to betray the Jedi, you can’t really feel sorry for Anakin but damn did he pay for his choices. Vader is the only one that has a clue about Galen potentially setting a trap and compromising the weapon, makes sense. Krennic’s ego and aspirations get on Vaders nerves as he force chokes Krennic and says, “Be careful not to choke on your aspirations, Director.” Lol totally an Anakin line.
The Rogue One team has made their way back to Yavin 4 to brief the Alliance on everything they have learned about the Death Star. The Alliance is scared and they have every right to be considering the devastating potential of the Death Star. No Rebel Base or civilian city would be safe as the Death Star could eventually destroy every planet they set up on. The leaders are talking about scattering the Rebel Fleet and disbanding the Alliance while Bail Organa desperately tries to rally their courage and keep the fight going, especially when they have a chance to take the Death Star down and win the fight. Some are fearful while others are saying the don’t believe in the existence of the Death Star while Jyn defends her father asking what reason he would have to lie and saying that he gave his life to help the Rebellion destroy the Death Star. If the Death Star is real some of the leaders feel they have no chance to defeat it and I love Jyn’s response, “What chance do we have? The question is ‘What choice?’ Run? Hide? Plead for mercy? Scatter your forces? You give way to an enemy this evil with this much power and you condemn the galaxy to an eternity of submission. The time to fight is now! Send your best troops to Scarif. Send the whole rebel fleet if you have to. We need to capture the Death Star plans if there is any hope of destroying it.” It’s all for naught, the Alliance needs to be unanimous to make the decision but I still love Jyn stepping up to rally the rebels to keep fighting, ‘Rebellions are built on hope.’ Fcking chills, man. For what it’s worth, I’d fight with you Jyn.
Jyn is pissed but refuses to give up. Chirrut, Baze and Bodie agree to help her but they know the 4 of them is not enough. Enter Cassian bringing the troops to help Jyn, “They were never going to believe you. But I do. I believe you. We’d like to volunteer. Some of us… … most of us, we’ve done terrible things on behalf of the Rebellion. We’re spies. Saboteurs. Assassins. Everything I did, I did for the Rebellion. And every time I walked away from something I wanted to forget I told myself it was for a cause that I believed in. A cause that was worth it. Without that, we’re lost. Everything we’ve done would have been for nothing. I couldn’t face myself if I gave up now. None of us could.” Fcking great moment. And we get another hilarious line from K2SO, ‘Jyn ill be there for you…Cassian said I had to’ LOL Jyn saying ‘Im not used to people sticking around when things go bad’ gives us another glimpse into the hard life she has lived. ‘May the Force be with us’ chills, man. Love Bodie coming up with the call sign for the Imperial Ship they have stolen, “Rogue, Rogue One….There is no Rogue One….There is now.” Fck yeah.
Def cool to see Bail Organa again. Mon Mothma mentions ‘Your friend the Jedi’ OBI WAN! And then says he needs someone he can trust to get the message to him to which he responds, “I would trust her with my life’ LEIA!! Oh man I just love the little things like that, one of the many reasons that this movie enhances the original trilogy. Jyn’s speech to the troops before they go after the plans gets me fn fired up, “Saw Gerrera used to say, one fighter with a sharp stick and nothing left to lose can take the day. They have no idea we’re coming. They have no reason to expect us. If we can make it to the ground, we’ll take the next chance. And the next. On and on until we win… or the chances are spent. The Death Star plans are down there. Cassian, K2, and I will find them. We’ll find a way to find them.” So fn awesome. Cassian also has a fn great line, “Melshi, Pao, Baze, Chirrut, you’ll take main squad, move east and get wide of the ship. Find a position between here and the tower. Once you get to the best spot, light the place up. Make ten men feel like a hundred.” Make 10 men feel like a hundred, fck yeah.
Jyn says goodbye to Chirrut and Baze as she heads onto the planet in disguise with Cassian and K2SO. “I’ve got a bad feeling about th…QUIET!” Lol was wondering when they would sneak that line in there and that was perfect. We see the Rebels sneaking into their positions to plant the detonators when Cassian finally gives the signal, ‘light it up.’ The plan worked as the Stormtroopers that were on the path that Jyn and Cassian needed to take to get the plans are deployed to deal with the explosions. Aboard the Death Star, Tarkin is informed of the attack on Scarif and realizes that the original plans for the Death Star are on Scarif so he sets course for it. Knowing that Krennic is also on Scarif clearly makes Tarkin realize he can get 2 birds stoned at once by destroying the planet. On Yavin 4, the Alliance is informed that Rebels have attacked Scarif and the Rebel Fleet moves to join the fight and help. We get a cameo from C3PO and R2D2 as they watch the Rebel Fleet take off. Great move by Bodie to impersonate an Imperial Officer drawing the stormtroopers to a pad that is not being attacked to help his friends.
Fn cool visual to see the AT-ACT on a beach in water, such a contrast from seeing the AT-AT on the frozen planet Hoth in ESB and 1 of the things that makes Rogue One so awesome. The battle on the ground is so intense and full of action, just a great sequence. Chills when the Rebel Fleet shows up at Scarif and all the squadron leaders start reporting. Fn awesome to see the X-Wings take out the AT-ACT with help from Baze. The Empire has closed the shield gate above the planet so the Rogue One crew is stuck there and can’t get any transmissions out. Cassian tells Bodie to hook into the Comm Tower so they can transmit the plans to the Alliance but it is going to prove difficult given the battle going on. Bodie tells another rebel to get a message to the crew outside the ship to find the master switch and turn it on so Bodie can connect to the Comm Tower. Jyn and Cassian are searching with K2SO for the Death Star plans but are running into trouble. Jyn gives K2SO a blaster to protect himself which leads to a positive comment from K2, “Your behavior, Jyn Erso, is continually unexpected.” Jyn and K2SO had such a great dynamic. Jyn and Cassian leave to find the plans while K2SO stays behind at the communications desk. Stormtroopers arrive, see the Imperial officer on the ground and figure out that K2SO is not on their side so they engage but K2 kills them however this will now bring more stormtroopers so they are running out of time.
The Battle of Scarif in the air with the Rebel X-Wings vs the Imperial TIE Fighters is so fcking great, the cuts intertwined with the beach battle and Jyn and Cassian searching for plans is perfect. Love the moment when Cassian is searching for the plans and Jyn finally knows for sure which one it is, “Stardust. That’s it….How do you know that?….I know bc it’s me.” K2SO gets the location for the Stardust file seconds before his position is overwhelmed by stormtroopers. The death of K2SO is tough to watch and is as close to being emotional about a droid dying as I can get. The way he is being shot at the same time trying to tell Cassian and Jyn how to transmit the plans stokes the emotions, “Climb. Climb. You can still send the plans to the fleet. If they open the shield gate, you can broadcast from the tower! Locking the vault door now. Goodbye.” Fn sucked to see K2SO die but he absolutely died a hero. Great character that provided comic relief yet it didn’t affect his ability to play it serious. 1 of my favourite droids and K2SO sits in the top of the class with C3PO and R2D2.
Krennic is informed that there is unauthorized access at the data vault which causes Krennic to panic even more and he goes to the data vault with 2 Imperial officers. Cassian pleads with Bodhi to get communications up with the Alliance bc they have found the plans and need to transmit them. Bodhi says he can’t bc the master switch hasn’t been flipped yet and again tries to contact the Rebels to get them to flip the switch. Every Rebel that goes after the switch gets shot which causes Chirrut to take matters into his own hands. Chirrut makes his way towards the master switch while blaster fire barely misses him from every direction as he repeats over and over, “I’m one with the Force and the Force is with me.” Miraculously Chirrut makes it to the master switch and flips it on allowing Bodhi to communicate with the Alliance. Fuck what a moment. Seconds after, Chirrut is hit and fatally wounded by an explosion as Baze runs to him. “Chirrut! Chirrut, don’t go. Don’t go. I’m here. I’m here. It’s okay. It’s okay….Look for the Force and you will always find me. The Force is with me. I’m one with the Force. The Force is with me. I’m one with the Force. The Force is with me…..I’m one with the Force.’ Chirrut isn’t in the Original Trilogy so his death could be expected but it was still tough to watch. Hate to lose a great character like Chirrut but he lived and died as a badass and ended up as 1 of the best additions to the Star Wars Universe. Wish he had been around when the Jedi were active bc not many had more respect for the Force than Chirrut, I think Yoda would have loved him. Lived as a legend and died a hero.
Jyn and Cassian climb the data vault and retrieve the plans but Krennic shows up and starts shooting at them. He hits Cassian who falls seemingly to his death. Jyn has to keep going so she continues to climb and makes it to the Comm Tower but can’t transmit bc the antenna isn’t aligned. She goes out to reset the alignment and is almost killed after a TIE Fighter shoots the platform but Jyn hangs on and makes it back up to successfully realign the antenna. Bodhi is finally able to get through to the Alliance to tell them that they need the shield gate down to transmit the plans. Moments after, a grenade is thrown in by a stormtrooper and Bodhi is killed. Man what a great character, sucked to see him die but in the end Bodhi got the message through and died a hero. General Raddus of the Alliance got Bodhi’s message and put a plan in motion to take out the shield gate. Using an Alliance Hammerhead corvette, they ram it into a disabled Imperial Star Destroyer which sends it into another Star Destroyer that ends up crashing through the shield gate and disabling it. Awesome sequence.
After Jyn realigns the antenna, she is immediately confronted by Krennic who is ready to shoot her with his blaster. Jyn tells Krennic that she is the daughter of Galen and Lyra Erso and taunts him with the information that her father built a fuse to destroy the Death Star inside it and she just told the Alliance how to light it. Krennic thinks the shield gate is still up and brags that he loses nothing but time while Jyn dies with the Rebellion when Cassian returns and shoots Krennic in the chest/shoulder. Jyn wants to finish Krennic off but Cassian holds her back knowing it would cause her nothing but pain and says it’s over. The plans have been fully uploaded to the Alliance so the mission was a complete success. Baze is devastated over Chirrut’s death and decides to go out in a blaze of glory, taking out as many stormtroopers as he can before an Imperial grenade goes off and kills him. Such a kickass character, sad to see him go but like Chirrut, he died a hero. As I’ve said many times already, the Battle of Scarif in the air and on the beach is one of the best in the series or any fantasy story. Filled with intensity, amazing battle scenes and big time emotion.
Krennic starts to regain consciousness in time to see the Death Star emerge from hyperspace and he is horrified knowing that they are going to use the weapon and there is no time for him to get off Scarif. Tarkin calls for a single reactor ignition like they used on Jedha and the Death Star successfully fires into Scarif starting a chain reaction of destruction. General Raddus sees this happen and knows that there is no hope to save anyone and that the Rogue One crew will die on Scarif. “Rogue One, may the Force be with you. All ships, prepare for jump to hyperspace!” Emotional scene, Fuck the Empire man. Darth Vader shows up in his ship the Devastator and they start taking out the Rebel ships as the Alliance retreats back to Yavin 4. When someone tells Vader that a Rebel ship received a transmission from Scarif, he orders the officer to prepare a boarding party. During my first watch, I was still so shocked by the deaths of the Rogue One crew that it didn’t register that we may see Darth Vader in action. Jyn and Cassian make it to the beach in time to realize this is the end for them as the devastation from the Death Star firing created a giant wave that is about to engulf them.
JYN: I’m glad you came.
CASSIAN: You father would have been proud of you, Jyn.
Jyn and Cassian embrace in a tight hug, they successfully got the plans to the Rebellion and die in each others arms. Emotional scene, man. 2 awesome characters that helped carry the movie and make it the masterpiece that it is. The dreamer in me was thinking that in a perfect world, Jyn survives and gets together with Luke and they have a daughter named Rey lol but I also would have been fine seeing them both survive and continue their love story, really loved both characters. Jyn and Cassian sacrificed their lives for the Rebellion, for the cause, they saved the dream and died heroes.
Here I am in the theatre trying to process the emotions of the entire Rogue One crew being killed and thinking the movie is over after seeing the Rebels get the plans on a disc when…Dark hallway, familiar breathing, red light saber ignites. HOLY SHIT this was a fcking incredible scene. My jaw legitimately dropped and I sat there in complete awe of the awesome power of Darth Vader. Star Wars fans sat through 3 Prequel movies to see Darth Vader kick some ass and instead got emotional Vader with that godawful ‘NOOOOOOOOOOOO’ lol so bad but Rogue One delivered the goods in a scene that nobody was even expecting. Vader appears in the hall of the Rebel ship so the Rebels fire at him but he is blocking the shots with the Force and his lightsaber while using the Force to take the rebels guns and throw the men around the hallway. The Rebel with the plans is trying to get away as Vader makes his way down the hallway of the ship cutting down every single Rebel with his lightsaber. I know the plans get away safely but I was so hooked into the moment that I was like ‘Fucking GO! He’s coming!!’ lol the door is jammed so the Rebel frantically yells for someone to take the plans and someone does right as Vader puts his lightsaber through the guy. The ship pulls away and heads off into space as Vader stands on the platform coming oh so close to ending the Rebellion. THIS was the Darth Vader that everyone wanted to see. This scene does justice to one of the greatest villains in cinema/fantasy history and firmly establishes his badassery. Any new fan of Star Wars that watches Rogue One first will feel the fear go down their spine when Vader enters the Rebel ship at the beginning of A New Hope. Unbelievable scene that totally caught me off guard but made me so fcking happy and excited leaving the theatre. That is the emotion you want from any movie but especially Star Wars.
On board the Rebel ship that got away, Captain Antilles talks to Princess Leia! “Your Highness. The transmission we received. What is it they’ve sent us?” “Hope.” I’m not gonna lie, I saw this movie right after Carrie Fisher died so my emotions were high and that final scene brought the tears out. As I said earlier, I am no fan of using CGI for Human Beings esp ones that have died but it really helped end the movie on an epic note. What an incredible job the Rogue One team did in bringing us one of the best Star Wars movies. Gareth Edwards deserves so much credit for bringing us this incredible story. This movie has everything that Star Wars is supposed to be. Excitement, adventure, humour, heroicness, emotions and it makes the Original Trilogy even better. After the first time I watched it in theatres, I immediately had to watch A New Hope. Now every time I watch it I try to make sure I have more time bc I know I’m gonna have to watch ANH. That’s exactly what you want a prequel type movie to do. And now when Luke nails that impossible shot to take down the Death Star in A New Hope, he’s not just doing it for a mostly faceless rebellion and galaxy. He’s doing it for Jyn. And Galen. And Lyra. And Cassian. And Chirrut. And Baze. And Bodhi. And K2SO. And Saw. And every member of the Rebellion that has sacrificed their lives. And every innocent person in places like Jedha living under the brutal control of the Empire. I always loved the final scene of A New Hope when Luke destroys the Death Star but now I really feel the emotions and it weighs much more heavily after watching Rogue One.
The biggest criticisms I’ve heard about Rogue One are that people think the first half is boring and that the characters are not defined enough. I couldn’t more strongly disagree with both. The movie is def a slow build towards the epic climax but once you see the amazing ending it should make you appreciate the first half and how it built everything up slowly. The second half wouldn’t mean as much without the first half delivering a great slow build. We still get some awesome action scenes on Jedha and see the story about Galen creating a trap play out. Then the second point, that is so off the mark to me that I think some people just want something to complain about. We get enough information on each member of the Rogue One crew to figure out their story. Sure I would love to see every characters back story fleshed out completely but then the movie would be 10 fcking hours long lol Han Solo didn’t get barely any back story yet fans somehow figured him out. We see Jyn’s back story so it’s easy to figure out her character. Cassian is bitter and jaded after being in this fight since he was 6 years old. Chirrut and Baze were Guardians of the Whills so they have been guarding the Temple, protecting the legacy of the Jedi. Bodhi was once loyal to the Empire but his good heart wouldn’t allow him to serve their evil so he defected. There wasn’t time for any kinda of depth in the explanation of each character, they gave us enough to define each character and make you care about them and then focused on the story they were trying to tell. To each their own but I had to respond to those complaints bc I feel they were both things that the movie did well.
I consider Rogue One to be the best Star Wars movie since the Original Trilogy and 4th best Star Wars movie after the OT which is always funny to me since I originally had no interest in it. The death of the entire Rogue One team brings realism to the movies and shows just how high the stakes are for the Good guys. After I saw the final sequence with Darth Vader, I was so thankful but also surprised that I didn’t have it spoiled for me. That would have been a devastating blow bc I’ll never forget the feeling of watching that scene while having absolutely zero expectation that it was coming. I’ve always wanted to see Darth Vader kick some serious ass and Rogue One delivered it 10,000% It was honestly one of the best movie experiences I have ever had and I just love it more and more after every re-watch. I love A New Hope so the fact that Rogue One makes it even better really shapes my feelings on it. As does the fact that it solidifies Darth Vader’s reputation as a badass villain. But it also stands on it’s own as a great adventure story introducing us to some awesome new characters and a legendary droid in K2SO that sacrificed themselves for the greater good. It gave us some unbelievably beautiful shots of new planets. It gave us one of the best space battles. The score was perfect. Rogue One checks all the boxes for a great movie and delivers everything that makes a movie great.
So that brings me to the end of this review and I really enjoyed writing about this awesome movie I just don’t know why it took me so long. I’m glad that most Star Wars fans appreciate the movie and consider it one of the best bc the entire crew deserves it. I love that they finally shut up all the people that complained about the Empire leaving an opening on the surface that could destroy the entire thing lol I love that they made Luke’s big moment even bigger. I love that there is such an awesome story behind the plans that Leia sent to Obi Wan. Rogue One delivers both in and out of the movie. It’s easy to relate to considering the world we live in. We’re not exactly living under the Empire but people loyal to evil have been in control of our world for a long time creating similar conditions that we saw in Jedha. And the only hope we have to take our world back are the underdogs that are willing to sacrifice and keep fighting no matter the cost. Rogue One teaches us to stay true to your friends and never give up hope. Bc Rebellions are built on hope.
