Criticisms Of Rogue One

I think most of my criticisms have been listed above by others, but here's my thoughts anyway-

The characters were poor. and the characterisation of them was poor. I don't know if it was Edward's direction or not but the characters never felt 3D to me.
Rey, Finn and Kylo Ren all felt more believable as living characters. Even Poe who got limited screen time felt more realised as a character than Cassian Andor. The RO characters seemed like place holders mostly, like out of the box archetypes but not even the good kind like Luke is. I think Chirrut and Saw Gerrera had the most original characters and I really enjoyed them. but all the others weren't given characters with an original voice. Even Krennick who I think was acted brilliantly was a generic villain.

The next bit I dislike is all the fan service. The film is so reliant on it that the structure of the movie doesn't even work without it. if this was the first SW film you ever saw you wouldn't even understand the last fifteen minutes of the film. it was a film for fans and it felt like a fan-film to me.

And then there's the story, which is pretty dull, its very by the numbers and doesn't bring anything new or important to the SW cannon aside from ironing out the exhaust port in ANH and for that I commend the film. but a comic or novel would have surfaced to explain the exhaust ports existence.

I have a long list of positives about the film too mainly about style/authenticity and showing the grey area of rebel morals and so on. And whilst the scene that got me the most excited is the Vader one that is also my least favourite part of the film as it basically shows how the film is resting on our nostaliga to carry the film and not its own original story which is pretty dull.

As a fan I enjoyed the film. but as someone who enjoys all kinds of films not just Star Wars, this wasn't a film with good characters or an engaging plot unless you already were a SW fan, and even then I found it a bit bland beneath all the brilliant design work.

 

@BobaFettNY21 While I appreciate that your point of view differs from mine, just handing me a clouded rating without the willing to have a constructive dialogue on the topic is just... unfortunate.

For my part, I rate someone's post "clouded" not because I disagree with them, but because their reasoning and logic are just that- clouded.

 

8.5 falls right after ROTJ. ANH(10), TESB(9.5), ROTJ(9), R1(8.5), TFA(8), ROTS(7.5), AOTC(7), and TPM(7.1). Jyn was heroic, Joan of arc. Why do ppl prefer scoundrels, bounty hunters, and Sith Lords.... can't wait for ep.8...

 

I just watched TFA again today. I love Rogue One, but man do I love The Force Awakens. I'm still trying to figure out what is the exact element which makes me like TFA more. I think it's the fact that the 'emotional palette' (for lack of a better word) is much better executed in TFA than in Rogue One. Still, I like Rogue One more than ROTJ, which is a very big thing. After 3 viewings, Rogue One drops a bit: place 4:
#1 ESB (First Star Wars movie I ever saw, I love this movie)
#2.TFA (I love this movie, best SW theatre experience ever)
#3.ANH (Which one do I like more now, A New Hope or......
#4. RO (........Rogue One? It is an awesome movie. Tremendous acting. It has layers of depth and meaning, but just not enough to make it to the top 3)
#5. ROTJ (Everything up there is amazing, but everything down there........nahhhhhh)
#6. TPM (Jar Jar is annoying as f*, and all the politics and trade negotiations are b*, but the movie still has a concentrated narrative that feels Star Wars in every good sense of the word)
#7. ROTS (This movie is getting increasingly annoying with each successive viewing. A depressing piece full of bad acting, horrible dialogue and cluttered screenwriting. It has its moments)
#8. AOTC (Those gunships and clones do look kinda cool though, and yeah I would like to stroke Obi Wan's beard just for once..................................)


Edit: how can someone rate this "off topic", when I just explained one of my major gripes with Rogue One?

 

When I first watched the film I thought that the scene where krennic shoots cassian was a reshoot. Just seemed abit off and her reaction to him falling. That would have left Jyn alone to complete the mission. I think that would have been better then them both hugging on the beach. I thought it was a shame to kill all the rebels. Would have been good to have one of them alive and doing something in the Star Wars galaxy. Really enjoyed the film anyway

 

This has been my take on Rogue One (and most of the pitched spin-off films thus far) – this would have been better material for a novel or limited run comic. I’d much prefer they use Lucasfilm’s major motion picture resources to go places we haven’t been before and create truly STAND-ALONE movies.

 

Which is exactly why they went with Rogue One as their first stand alone in my estimation.
Different but familiar. It's the testing ground to see how people react to a different kind of Star Wars movie.
Now they know that people will still watch it and still like it. And most importantly, still pay to see it!
They can really let the creativity fly now

 

Right . . . like a Han Solo movie . . .

 

And going completely off script from a saga movie, without the safety net of Darth Vader. Recasting the most beloved character. Recasting the coolest character.

Disney isn't stupid. They aren't going to run head first through a brick wall.

I get that it isn't what *you* want, but it is moving further from the saga stories. And this was planned BEFORE Rogue One was a success so the only reason to use that as an example for what I was saying is to obfuscate.

 

This is kind of a ridiculous statement. Yes, the film's story 100% relies on what came before (being built around a small element of A New Hope), kind of proving your second sentence. However, the moments that are winks and nods to fans are generally tiny blips here and there- case in point Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba. Even if you hate that they are in it, it has no bearing on anything, and it's like 4 seconds of screen time.

 

It’s still Han, Lando, Chewie and the Falcon. That’s still quite the safety net of familiarity.

I don’t know what this is supposed to mean. Disney has proven twice already that nostalgia sells. No, they’re not stupid. Staying the course would be the wisest business decision. That’s not to say that’s their goal, but that would be the pragmatic thing to do.

I’m using it to establish a pattern as supporting evidence for my supposition. We’ve had two very heavily nostalgia fueled films so far with R1 and TFA with another already positioned, Han Solo. The only rumors of additional spin-offs have been Boba Fett, Obi-Wan, and Yoda.

‘Hope springs eternal’ and anything’s possible, but there isn’t much evidence to support a claim that these anthologies will “let their creativity fly” so far.

 

It really is a delicate balance: Two many nostalgic references or cameos = unoriginal, fan service. Not enough nostalgia = doesn't feel like Star Wars. Kind of damned if you do, damned if you don't. I personally think R1 struck the perfect balance.

 

It means they aren't going to just make a movie about something that 90% of the general audience hasn't heard about set in the Star Wars universe.
Han Solo started production before Rogue One so it fits the launch pad mentality.

You are basing off rumors that Boba Fett and Yoda will get one...not even Disney/Lucasfilm rumors but just "fans really want it" rumors.

There's been nothing close to concrete outside of Obi-Wan.

 

As far as I'm concerned the films plot ends when all the rebel's we've been following die. as the first act sets them up as characters, but the last 10 minutes of the film feature only OT characters. Vader/Leia. it doesn't structurally work as a satisfying ending unless you already know all the original films and the ending is basically a vader/leia fan service. Imagine if TFA had ended with detailing the map to Skywalker being passed from rebel to rebel with some dark lord and some princess fighting over the plans that hadn't been in the rest of the film. (Vader does feature a little I guess) but Its just not a real ending, it turns into pure fan service as if to say 'This is what you were all actually waiting for- AHN 1.5.
If the credits had rolled after the main cast had been killed off I think everyone would have been disappointing, and if the characters aren't carrying this story then what is?...in my mind it is purely the nostalgia and I think thats weak. I like the film, but it rests too heavily on existing set pieces and cameos and doesn't build many (any?) memorable set pieces of its own.

 

The story would have been horribly incomplete if it ended when Cassian and Leia die. The Vader and Leia scenes tell us that the Rebels got away with the DS plans despite the Empire using their greatest weapons (DS and Vader), thus justifying the sacrifices that we have witnessed. Yes, it would have been unsatisfying without those scenes, as you say, invalidating your own point that those scenes are unnecessary.

 

Of course. However, you’re suggesting this will give them the confidence to move further away and tell self-contained stories. Maybe it will, or maybe it will simply tell them that people will show up regardless so long as ‘Star Wars’ is in the title. Which lesson they learn only time will tell.

It’s still another OT era story based around a recognizable OT character. Regardless of when it was developed, it’s the second spin-off movie to do this. When the third spin-off is announced and diverges from this trajectory, then I’ll have cause to change my reasoning.

Yes, you’re right. It’s not fair to bring up rumors. Although Boba Fett was confirmed to have been Josh Trank’s now shelved project. My point is that we don’t have any indication of Lucasfilm taking the road less traveled yet. Not even informed speculation.

 

Y

you're right that it rounds out the story but I don't think that was the only way to tell this story. I think the end played out like a fan fiction rather than an actual 'star wars' film. It's just a feeling, it felt over indulgent to me. And as much as I enjoyed the Vader scene it highlighted that the film rested very heavily on people going 'ooh Vader!' 'Ooh tie fighters' it did rest on those moments. It just did. Where as TFA has many genuinely memorable moments not borrowed from the OT. I don't come to these forums to argue, and what you say makes sense. I just think you're talking around my main point that this film uses nostalgia as its main driving force. To me the final scene is evidence of this. Anyway I don't really want to argue with you so I guess we will just have to agree to disagree on this particular matter.

 

You truly took my thoughts I've been so frustrated trying to explain to people about the difference. Going to film school and being an arty, imaginativ

You literally stole my thoughts and perfectly wrote them out. Bravo! Bill burr and john Williams (the list goes on) definitely don't get enough street credit. Lucas was the mastermind (which is why I even find a lot to enjoy in the prequels) but his crew really came together to make something special. Magic in a bottle that sadly can't seem to be recreated.. Good thing 1-6 are so rewatchable for me. It's frustrating that most people really can't see the detail or distinguish the difference(which is why so many crap on the prequels) But I know and it sounds like you know what true layers of artistic brilliance is. Thanks for sharing.

--- Double Post Merged, Dec 24, 2016, Original Post Date: Dec 24, 2016 ---

 

Does anybody else have the image of fake Leia burned into their brain?