Early Rogue One Reviews [No Spoilers]

[Crabbok 9,869]

I've heard people say it's good..... really good. 

 

Kevin Smith said it was on par with Empire Strikes Back....

 

And I'm like "Why the HELL would you even SAY something like that?!?!?!"

 

Even if it IS that good... you can't set people's expectations that high.  That is a virtually impossible standard.   You HAVE to go into a movie expecting it to be mediocre, in order to actually enjoy it. 

 

I'm sure Kevin Smith didn't go into Rogue One expecting another ESB - he probably went in expecting it to be "ok", and that's likely WHY he was so impressed. 

 

I dunno... I'm just afraid that people are overhyping this.   I mean we know how it ends.... it can't be that amazing. 

 

Episode 8 on the other hand - they can do anything!   I'm more interested in seeing all new things and all new plot twists than re-telling of stories we already know.   I wanna see Leia wield a lightsaber in episode 8, and Luke demonstrate some new Force Power like Time Stop.... and Rey with her Triple Bladed Staff, and Finn with Cyber Nunchucks!  

 

 Or whatever.. new stuff. 

 

I can't get that excited about old stuff. 

 

can I?

[VanorDM 11,599]

I can't get that excited about old stuff. 

I'm more excited about Rogue One then I am episode 8. 

 

Be nice to see a movie that doesn't involve the Skywalker legacy and it's not like we know exactly how the movie will end.  We know they'll get the plans to the Rebels, but we don't know what else may be involved in that.

[Hobojebus 11,341]

Kevin Smith is a giant suck up he praised the prequels and batman vs superman, I like his films I don't trust his reviews.

[Bojanglez 2,158]

I mean we know how it ends.... it can't be that amazing. 

 

 

You should get some sleep, you're talking ****

 

After the delightfully polished turd that was TFA, I'm more excited about R1 than I am about Ep8.

[Jo Jo 4,808]

 

I mean we know how it ends.... it can't be that amazing. 

 

 

You should get some sleep, you're talking ****

 

After the delightfully polished turd that was TFA, I'm more excited about R1 than I am about Ep8.

 

 

 

Yep. Apollo 13 was pretty good. We knew how that ended. There are countless others like that.

Edited December 13, 2016 by Jo Jo

[Crabbok 9,869]

 

I mean we know how it ends.... it can't be that amazing. 

 

 

You should get some sleep, you're talking ****

 

After the delightfully polished turd that was TFA, I'm more excited about R1 than I am about Ep8.

 

Wow... couldn't possibly disagree more.   TFA was one of the best movies in my adult life.   Top 5 easily. 

 

My Episode 8 hype is higher than the entire state of Colorado. 

[Jo Jo 4,808]

Early positive (very) review:

 

 

[McFoy 672]

 

 

I mean we know how it ends.... it can't be that amazing. 

 

 

You should get some sleep, you're talking ****

 

After the delightfully polished turd that was TFA, I'm more excited about R1 than I am about Ep8.

 

Wow... couldn't possibly disagree more.   TFA was one of the best movies in my adult life.   Top 5 easily. 

 

My Episode 8 hype is higher than the entire state of Colorado. 

 

Have you seen more than 5 movies? Actually you might be confusing TFA with ANH which is, in all fairness, an easy mistake.

Edited December 13, 2016 by McFoy

[Crabbok 9,869]

If you don't like Episode 7 then fine... just try to understand that not everyone shares your view.  It's one of the only Blu Rays I will watch over and over again.  That and Tron Legacy are my 2 favorites to watch. 

[Derpzilla88 1,291]

I'm with Crabbok on this one. Really enjoyed Episode 7 even if it wasn't perfect and rehashed plotlines from A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. It's the most fantasy-feeling of all the Star Wars movies for some reason and I'll keep watching it as much as I do the other Star Wars movies.

 

Sounds like lots of people didn't like the The Force Awakesn post-movie-hype, but I don't care. I don't need anyone else to like Episode 7 for me to enjoy it.

[Bojanglez 2,158]

 

 

I mean we know how it ends.... it can't be that amazing. 

 

 

You should get some sleep, you're talking ****

 

After the delightfully polished turd that was TFA, I'm more excited about R1 than I am about Ep8.

 

Wow... couldn't possibly disagree more.   TFA was one of the best movies in my adult life.   Top 5 easily. 

 

My Episode 8 hype is higher than the entire state of Colorado. 

 

 

And that's the beauty of an opinion - yours is as valid as mine, and we don't have to share them (or even agree!).  I thought it was a fun-ride but vacuous and shallow and lacked the "convincing world building" that I loved with Lucas' vision.  I went into it really hoping I would love it but by the time we got to the space-octopuses, I already felt pulled out of the experience, like I was watching a bad Star Trek or Starship Troopers scene.

 

Doesn't mean I won't be at the first showing for Ep8, watch it repeatedly in the cinema and then own for later viewing - I am, first and foremost, a Star Wars aficionado to my core but also a realist, and as I rank the movies ESB, ANH, RotS, RotJ, TFA, AotC, TMP, I feel my opinion is perfectly valid

 

If you don't like Episode 7 then fine... just try to understand that not everyone shares your view.  It's one of the only Blu Rays I will watch over and over again.  That and Tron Legacy are my 2 favorites to watch. 

 

I don't think this was directed at me, but if it was then I am 100% onboard, but please don't lose sight of the fact that we are also entitled to our opinions - and if other people's opinions on a forum bother you if we want to bash what we saw as a sub-par movie, don't pull the "hey, respect my right to adore this movie without bothering me with your opinions!"

 

That all said, I have tickets to see Rogue One Thursday night at 8.30 and then we are doing a client-facing premier on Friday morning at 10am - very excited

Edited December 13, 2016 by Bojanglez

[Bojanglez 2,158]

I don't care. I don't need anyone else to like Episode 7 for me to enjoy it.

 

that's the ticket!

[ViscerothSWG 3,940]

 

 

I mean we know how it ends.... it can't be that amazing. 

 

 

You should get some sleep, you're talking ****

 

After the delightfully polished turd that was TFA, I'm more excited about R1 than I am about Ep8.

 

 

 

Yep. Apollo 13 was pretty good. We knew how that ended. There are countless others like that.

 

 

Movies we knew the ending before seeing could be its own rating scale:

 

Apollo 13

-

-

-

Titanic

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Pearl harbor

 

I hope and expect Rogue One to be near the top.

Also loved Ep.7 and looking equally forward to Ep.8.

[VanorDM 11,599]

Movies we knew the ending before seeing could be its own rating scale:

You forgot Lincoln. Or the more historically accurate Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter. I'm sure they leave the events from that documentary out of the history books because the secret government is run by vampires...

[Hobojebus 11,341]

If you don't like Episode 7 then fine... just try to understand that not everyone shares your view.  It's one of the only Blu Rays I will watch over and over again.  That and Tron Legacy are my 2 favorites to watch. 

You realise you undermined your own argument there buddy.

[FTS Gecko 24,135]

 

Movies we knew the ending before seeing could be its own rating scale:

You forgot Lincoln. Or the more historically accurate Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter. I'm sure they leave the events from that documentary out of the history books because the secret government is run by vampires...

 

Seems legit.

[incinerator950 387]

Not merely out of principle of not liking Disney canon, but the people I am close to didn't care for it or didn't like it like the old movies Rogue One looks like another movie made for the kind of people who thought Suicide Squad or any culture shock or concept movie was a good idea. I won't get into that topic, but there's also

It's sad that the animated TIE Fighter short is the only thing I've liked in years.

Edited December 13, 2016 by incinerator950

[Derpzilla88 1,291]

Rogue One looks like another movie made for the kind of people who thought Suicide Squad or any culture shock or concept movie was a good idea.

 

Who in the world thought Suicide Squad was  "culture shock" movie?

 

It's sad that the animated TIE Fighter short is the only thing I've liked in years.

 

That is unfortunate to hear, but I'm not here to change your mind.

 

There's a lot of cool stuff coming from the new canon with Disney, but obviously not everyone is going to agree with the direction they're taking with Star Wars. That will never happen. But they're not making the movies to appease every Star Wars fan. They're going to go their own way with the stories they want to tell in the way that they want to tell them, and the people that are going to enjoy it will. Those that don't like it don't have to but it's best to keep going with the vision already set than trying to do the impossible and please every Star Wars fan out there.

 

At the very least, you have to appreciate that they're trying to bring back parts of the old canon that were popular, just in ways that fits with the stories they're currently telling. The YT-2400, Thrawn, the Interdictor (or immobilizer-Star Destroyer. Whatever it was called before), Malachor, Darth Bane, ect. Jyn Ersa and Cassian have got to be spiritual nods to Jan Ors and Kyle Kataran in some respect. Again, it may not be happening the way some fans like, but at least it shows they're acknowledging what came before the new canon.

Edited December 13, 2016 by Derpzilla88

[markcsoul 2,135]

I feel like people who like TFA a lot and don't like the criticisms are experiencing what people (like me) feel who like the prequels a lot.

 

I'll admit TFA is probably my least favorite star wars film (see my signature), although I still enjoyed it for what it was, and I won't fault those who love it.  I won't go into my reasons for not liking it as much as they are all reasons people have heard before one way or another.

 

Rogue One for me has definitely been my most anticipated movie of the new crop of Disney movies.  Since Disney apparently wants to make movies indefinitely, I'm hoping they end the "saga" films after Episode 9, and focus solely on spin off movies.

 

While there's certain characters I wouldn't mind seeing films about (obi-wan and yoda most come to mind, don't really have a big interest in young han solo right now), I'd prefer they do more independent stories like Rogue One.  Stories that are interesting and still fill in small gaps in the saga.  A few cool ideas of more "war" movies like rogue one they could do would be a movie set during the clone wars, and a movie set post ROTJ showing the final battles against the empire (maybe even a live action battle of jakku??).

Edited December 14, 2016 by markcsoul

[Wraithdt 800]

Not merely out of principle of not liking Disney canon, but the people I am close to didn't care for it or didn't like it like the old movies Rogue One looks like another movie made for the kind of people who thought Suicide Squad or any culture shock or concept movie was a good idea. I won't get into that topic, but there's also

It's sad that the animated TIE Fighter short is the only thing I've liked in years.

So, on one hand we have a story from the prologue of a 90s video game about a lone Rebel Agent who stole the Death Star plans by waltzing into a lightly defended Imperial facility and then waltzing out without so much as a scratch. On the other, a story of a band of Rebel spies who fought tooth and nail to retreive the Death Star Plans from a heavily fortified secret Imperial facility with the involvement of the Rebel fleet and which definitively ties into ANH and addresses the long standing issue about the Death Star's weakness. Gee, I wonder which is the more intriguing story?

The only sad thing here is the pitiful attempt at holding on to a rose-tinted memory of EU while completely dismissing the new canon out of hand because "Disney"!? As if one cannot cherish the old and embrace the new at the same time.

[TheRabidAardvark 324]

 

Not merely out of principle of not liking Disney canon, but the people I am close to didn't care for it or didn't like it like the old movies Rogue One looks like another movie made for the kind of people who thought Suicide Squad or any culture shock or concept movie was a good idea. I won't get into that topic, but there's also

It's sad that the animated TIE Fighter short is the only thing I've liked in years.

So, on one hand we have a story from the prologue of a 90s video game about a lone Rebel Agent who stole the Death Star plans by waltzing into a lightly defended Imperial facility and then waltzing out without so much as a scratch. On the other, a story of a band of Rebel spies who fought tooth and nail to retreive the Death Star Plans from a heavily fortified secret Imperial facility with the involvement of the Rebel fleet and which definitively ties into ANH and addresses the long standing issue about the Death Star's weakness. Gee, I wonder which is the more intriguing story?

The only sad thing here is the pitiful attempt at holding on to a rose-tinted memory of EU while completely dismissing the new canon out of hand because "Disney"!? As if one cannot cherish the old and embrace the new at the same time.

 

Incinerator is one of those types of people who has a pathological hatred for something that completely overrides any intelligent thought, logic, or common sense.  He has yet to prove that wrong.

Arguing with him is like hitting your head against a brick wall repeatedly.  And he has demonstrated he has the intelligence of a brick wall to boot.

[Stay On The Leader 5,431]

Kevin Smith is a giant suck up he praised the prequels and batman vs superman, I like his films I don't trust his reviews.

Just to say, he actually completely destroyed BvS when he saw it.

http://www.slashfilm.com/kevin-smith-batman-v-superman-2/

[Stay On The Leader 5,431]

I've seen Rogue One.  It's very good, not perfect but very good.  Ties into A New Hope wonderfully.

• I love The Force Awakens, it's the most entertaining Star Wars movie by far.  Empire is the best movie, but TFA is most entertaining.  I have Rogue One in with a threesome of Rogue One, ROTJ and ANH and would struggle to really rank them because they're all products of very different eras.  Repeat watches could change this view, but I can see it settling into 3rd spot behind ESB and TFA.
   
• Star Wars will love it, mainstream audiences will like it.  You need your eyes and ears open to catch all the references but there are plenty in there, I watched it with a friend and afterwards we were pointing things out that each other had missed.
   
• Watching a Star Wars movie without a Star Wars soundtrack is odd.  I understand they had to make a decision that not every film is going to use the same music, and they riff off John Williams' score, but it's still going to be jarring to see Star Wars but not hear Star Wars.
   
• There's one minor scene in particular that just... I don't get why it's there.  It's like 30 seconds and you think it's going to mean something then it's just never referenced ever again, like it was meant to lead to something else in the movie but they cut it out and forgot to take this bit with it.
   
• Multiple things from the trailer are not in the film.  You're waiting for things to happen like "ah, this is going to be the bit that I saw in the trailer!" and then they don't happen.
   
• I've seen some reviews say that it doesn't really add anything to Star Wars canon, which I don't really agree with.  It doesn't add much, but then we know so much about what this story has to fit into that there wasn't much room.  I was glad that Gareth Edwards got the chance to at least get a couple of cool new things in, rather than sticking between the lines that had been laid down.

There... reviews with no spoilers.  Easy!

[Scopes 530]

I've seen Rogue One.  It's very good, not perfect but very good.  Ties into A New Hope wonderfully.

• I love The Force Awakens, it's the most entertaining Star Wars movie by far.  Empire is the best movie, but TFA is most entertaining.  I have Rogue One in with a threesome of Rogue One, ROTJ and ANH and would struggle to really rank them because they're all products of very different eras.  Repeat watches could change this view, but I can see it settling into 3rd spot behind ESB and TFA.

   

• Star Wars will love it, mainstream audiences will like it.  You need your eyes and ears open to catch all the references but there are plenty in there, I watched it with a friend and afterwards we were pointing things out that each other had missed.

   

• Watching a Star Wars movie without a Star Wars soundtrack is odd.  I understand they had to make a decision that not every film is going to use the same music, and they riff off John Williams' score, but it's still going to be jarring to see Star Wars but not hear Star Wars.

   

• There's one minor scene in particular that just... I don't get why it's there.  It's like 30 seconds and you think it's going to mean something then it's just never referenced ever again, like it was meant to lead to something else in the movie but they cut it out and forgot to take this bit with it.

   

• Multiple things from the trailer are not in the film.  You're waiting for things to happen like "ah, this is going to be the bit that I saw in the trailer!" and then they don't happen.

   

• I've seen some reviews say that it doesn't really add anything to Star Wars canon, which I don't really agree with.  It doesn't add much, but then we know so much about what this story has to fit into that there wasn't much room.  I was glad that Gareth Edwards got the chance to at least get a couple of cool new things in, rather than sticking between the lines that had been laid down.

There... reviews with no spoilers.  Easy!

 

What's got me bummed (and it's really my only big one) is the lack of a Williams score. I think the music is integral to the experience. 

 

Granted, the Star Trek movie franchise did okay with different themes for some movies ( TMP, TVH, and V had the Goldsmith score, TWOK and TSFS had the Horner score, VI had a unique one) , but I feel it's not coincenidental that my two favorite movies, TWOK and TSFS, are the two that I own the soundtracks for. 

 

Also, not having Goldsmith's Klingon theme in TSFS and TUC was disappointing to me as a fan of the series.

 

That being said, I am cautiously optimistic that this movie will be good. 

 

Just to give some background: I felt that that TFA was a fun popcorn flick, but I didn't like some aspects of it. It's better than the three prequels, but not better than any of the OT in my opinion. The new soundtrack is okay, but my favorite parts are the callbacks to the fanfares from the OT. 

[Stay On The Leader 5,431]

When I was watching Rogue One I absolutely missed the old score.  Right when you know the Imperial March would kick in there something that's almost the Imperial March instead, just enough to remind you what it should really have been.

 

But I know why they did it.  I imagine they sat in the room and said "so are we going to use the original score for every Star Wars film we ever make, or are we going to draw a line and keep that score for the main Skywalker Saga?" (as I believe they're calling it).  I think they made the right choice in the long run to open it up to new music in future films, but for sure the first few times you hear something that's not John Williams it's a niggling problem.