The first stand-alone film in the Star Wars universe, Rogue One bridges the gap between episodes 3 (2005’s Revenge of the Sith) and 4 (the original 1977 motion picture); it is also a movie that lives in the grey zone more than any other in the operatic space saga – depicting the complexity of the actions executed by the Rebel forces that are our protagonists.
What we see is a complicated universe filled with spies, traitors and extremists – a place where no decision is an easy one. Our lead character, Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), is a perfect example of this, for when she was young, her father, Galen (Mads Mikkelsen), a weapons developer, was forcibly taken by Imperial baddie Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn) to finish work on the Death Star (the planet killer from A New Hope). This leaves the impressionable girl in the hands of a radical, ultra dangerous Rebel fighter by the name of Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker), who deserts her at the age of sixteen.
Presently, we find the young woman arrested by the Imperial army. Freed by the Rebels, they are looking for her to broker a meeting with the shoot first, ask questions later Gerrera (who they are hoping can help them find Galen), so they force her to join a group who are headed to his hideout. Leading the team is Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), and he is accompanied by his reprogrammed Imperial droid K-2SO (Alan Tudyk) – much of the film’s humour comes from the very literal robot, who always says things at the worst possible moment.
Gerrera has been tracked down by a defector of the Empire, pilot Bodhi Rook (Riz Ahmed), who has supposedly been sent by Galen with a secret message for the extremist. Without giving too much away, the team (that is centred around Jyn) are joined by Rook, as well as a blind believer of The Force in Chirrut Îmwe (Donnie Yen) and his loyal pal/mercenary Baze Malbus (Wen Jiang).
The rag tag team, dysfunctional and often at odds, heads out to fulfil their near impossible mission – it will answer the question as to why the Death Star had such a gaping flaw in the 1977 motion picture. Replicating an old school style, with its completely against the odds mission à la The Magnificent Seven or many other westerns of that era (also think classic war movies like The Bridge on the River Kwai), I cannot promise that the entire crew will make it out alive, which makes it all the more realistic.
Not without its glaring faults, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story still succeeds in many ways. Despite some pacing issues in the first portion of the film, as well as some problems with character development (the movie should have had more emotional heft than it delivers – unlike the recent Episode 7: The Force Awakens), notwithstanding, it still impressively walks the complicated tightrope of being both a stand-alone film as well as a vital piece of Star Wars lore that is utterly important to the overall story. It is easily watchable for those who are not major fans even though it is chock full of connections to the other two trilogies.
Highlighting some of those exciting connections outside of the Death Star storyline, you will spot Darth Vader a few times – still voiced with gusto by the wonderful James Earl Jones. There is also a cameo from R2-D2 and C-3PO (with Anthony Daniels still providing the voice of the excitable droid). Characters from the Part 1 through 3 trilogy, Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits) and Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly) are also brought back, fitting into the story nicely. Also interesting, but more than a tad distracting, is the return of Peter Cushing as Grand Moff Tarkin (a man who has been dead for over twenty years) – CGI is used to bring him back to life. More successfully, fans of the original feature will spot Angus MacInnes and Drewe Henley, who played Gold Leader Dutch Vander and Red Leader Garven Dreis, in their original glory, being spliced in, to great effect, by utilising unused archival footage from the 1977 adventure.
On the new character front, the most intriguing role comes from Donnie Yen’s Chirrut Îmwe. A fanatical, religious man who truly believes in The Force, despite its disappearance in the universe, he chants “I’m one with the Force, and the Force is with me” like a mantra, and it drives him forward through the perilous adventure. Despite his blindness, he has some of the best action sequences, using his near Force-like skills to succeed against great odds. He also has sharp chemistry with Wen Jiang’s Baze Malbus – a legendary dream team. That is not to say that the other members of the rogue misfits flail, their performances are also solid, though the script is lacking some meat on the bone for them to feel truly three dimensional.
Rogue One builds to a superb crescendo, with the final epic battle being mightily impressive (fusing solo ventures with land, sky and space battles). Its denouement will thrill some, while others might find it a little too perfect when it comes to bridging that so-called gap up to Episode 4. So, go rogue by seeing this Star Wars stand-alone adventure, and discover why it is currently number one at the worldwide box office.