Rogue One Spoilers Discussion: I Am With You, Jyn Erso

[Sivin]

I thought this film was absolutely horrible, an ominous sign to me of the spinoffs ahead. It at least found an identity after the rebellion against the rebellion speech that finally allowed me to give a single fuck about any of the characters, but even the Hawaii planet suffered from terrible pacing and stupid decisions.

One of the most visually stunning things I've ever seen, and I wanted to walk out for the entire duration. What good is the cataclysmic destruction of the desert city if I literally do not care if any of the characters die?

I do hope that Disney does not glean from this failure that dark=unsuccessful.

The very easiest way for me to initially determine whether I liked a film is for me to get caught thinking "oh, I want to do that!" Or "ohh! You could do an entire movie based on this premise!"

During Rogue One I was constantly thinking that I could make a more compelling film in my back yard with my phone camera and $100 dollars worth of star wars toys from target. 

[Wrl6199]

3 minutes ago, Sivin said:

I thought this film was absolutely horrible, an ominous sign to me of the spinoffs ahead. It at least found an identity after the rebellion against the rebellion speech that finally allowed me to give a single fuck about any of the characters, but even the Hawaii planet suffered from terrible pacing and stupid decisions.

One of the most visually stunning things I've ever seen, and I wanted to walk out for the entire duration. What good is the cataclysmic destruction of the desert city if I literally do not care if any of the characters die?

I do hope that Disney does not glean from this failure that dark=unsuccessful.

The very easiest way for me to initially determine whether I liked a film is for me to get caught thinking "oh, I want to do that!" Or "ohh! You could do an entire movie based on this premise!"

During Rogue One I was constantly thinking that I could make a more compelling film in my back yard with my phone camera and $100 dollars worth of star wars toys from target. 

Yeah I mean i dont think that the film was horrible but I mean It certainly could have been a lot better. Like for one thing the actor playing Darth Vader.

[All-for-Joffrey]

Incidentally, does anyone know the name of the planet with the rings at the beginning of the movie where Krennic captures Galen/kills Jyn's mom? There's never any screen caption (or dialogue IIRC) to tell you its name and it's really bugging me? At least with Mustafar there was some context. 

[mormont]

19 minutes ago, Sivin said:

I do hope that Disney does not glean from this failure that dark=unsuccessful.

That seems extremely unlikely, as by all indications the film is on course to be highly successful. It's a shame that it failed to appeal to you, but that doesn't make it a failure in any other sense.

[ab aeterno]

43 minutes ago, Sivin said:

I thought this film was absolutely horrible, an ominous sign to me of the spinoffs ahead. It at least found an identity after the rebellion against the rebellion speech that finally allowed me to give a single fuck about any of the characters, but even the Hawaii planet suffered from terrible pacing and stupid decisions.

One of the most visually stunning things I've ever seen, and I wanted to walk out for the entire duration. What good is the cataclysmic destruction of the desert city if I literally do not care if any of the characters die?

I do hope that Disney does not glean from this failure that dark=unsuccessful.

The very easiest way for me to initially determine whether I liked a film is for me to get caught thinking "oh, I want to do that!" Or "ohh! You could do an entire movie based on this premise!"

During Rogue One I was constantly thinking that I could make a more compelling film in my back yard with my phone camera and $100 dollars worth of star wars toys from target. 

I'll take that wager. When will you be posting the outcome? 

15 minutes ago, mormont said:

That seems extremely unlikely, as by all indications the film is on course to be highly successful. It's a shame that it failed to appeal to you, but that doesn't make it a failure in any other sense.

Even moreso than the money, (because after all the prequels made a great deal of money as well,) is the audience reaction. According to Deadline it's getting "A" ratings from most of the key demographics, (although the prequels had "A -" ratings, to be fair); and if Disney has demonstrated anything since it bought Marvel and Lucasfilm, they're looking to hit those key audience categories hard and consistently.

They make as much if not more money from merchandising and home releases as they do from the Box Office, which is why they've been pushing to reduce the gap between cinema release and home releases.

TFA also had an "A" rating, for reference, although it got "A+" ratings from younger and female audiences.

[Macklunkey]

Quite unexpectedly, I enjoyed this film.

[dbunting]

I guess given the nature of the internet and trolls nithing surprises anymore. Rogue One is a very good movie. IMO of course.

Loved that this had fewer creatures and no stupid parkor jump flips like the other recent trilogy had. Focus on real people and real items and the outcome is better. No one leaving the theatre i saw it in was anything but happy.

[Howdyphillip]

I have gotten a lot of flack online for calling this my least favorite Star Wars film, so to quantify my statements even more I will say this. I have seen this movie three times in the theatre now, and I'm not finished with it there. I will most assuredly buy the Blu Ray. I absolutely loved the film.

It is my 8th favorite film of all time now. It just so happens that Star Wars 1-7 I like more. 

[Ferrum Aeternum]

18 minutes ago, dbunting said:

I guess given the nature of the internet and trolls nithing surprises anymore. Rogue One is a very good movie. IMO of course.

Loved that this had fewer creatures and no stupid parkor jump flips like the other recent trilogy had. Focus on real people and real items and the outcome is better. No one leaving the theatre i saw it in was anything but happy.

I'm done giving a fuck what random people think of things that I like. 

I watched Rogue One again this morning and loved it just as much the second time. It's a phenomenal movie. As much as I liked Episode 7, I enjoyed this one much more. 

[PetyrPunkinhead]

This is definitely a movie for Star Wars fans. It makes no qualms about being part of a much larger story and tradition. It's not trying to "introduce" or reboot anything. It's just there to be a gap filler in a larger story, and I do think it also adds some weight to the larger story. There are a lot of fan service moments in R1--some worked better than others, some were more subtle than others, but I loved them all.

I agree with others who've criticized the lack of attachment to some of the characters, but these characters are gonna grow on you with repeat viewings. I liked the Rogue One crew, and I enjoyed how their "band of misfits" met and joined together in the first half of the movie. It was a bit rushed and a bit hokey in some spots, but it certainly wasn't bad. However, the third act of the film is so damn awesome that it just overshadows everything else in the film. The third act reminded me a bit of those WWII films like Where Eagles Dare. The battle on Scariff was pretty great. And when that darkened hallway was lit up red to reveal Vader, fuhgedaboudit. The six year old in me freaked the fuck out in the most awesome possible way. It was better than seeing the Falcon take flight again in TFA. I can't wait to see this film again, and next time it'll be in IMAX 3D.

 

[ab aeterno]

26 minutes ago, Ferrum Aeternum said:

I'm done giving a fuck what random people think of things that I like. 

22 minutes ago, PetyrPunkinhead said:

I agree with others who've criticized the lack of attachment to some of the characters, but these characters are gonna grow on you with repeat viewings. I liked the Rogue One crew, and I enjoyed how their "band of misfits" met and joined together in the first half of the movie. It was a bit rushed and a bit hokey in some spots, but it certainly wasn't bad. However, the third act of the film is so damn awesome that it just overshadows everything else in the film. The third act reminded me a bit of those WWII films like Where Eagles Dare. The battle on Scariff was pretty great. And when that darkened hallway was lit up red to reveal Vader, fuhgedaboudit. The six year old in me freaked the fuck out in the most awesome possible way. It was better than seeing the Falcon take flight again in TFA. I can't wait to see this film again, and next time it'll be in IMAX 3D.

I think the lack of development is a fair criticism, but an amusing one from a Star Wars perspective.

I mean, it's totally not as though a character with about 2 minutes total screentime and four line of dialogue across two movies (okay, five lines if you count screaming,) is one of the most popular characters in the Star Wars franchise.  

[Ferrum Aeternum]

I have to say, I don't understand the lack of attachment. The first 2/3 of the movie was more or less devoted to making sure we were attached to these characters. I about bawled when K2 bought it, playing the hero despite himself. Chirrut making the ultimate sacrifice and then Baze repeating his phrase back to him - how can one not be moved by that? And then Jyn and Cassian at the end, good god. 

If anything, this was the most emotionally involving Star Wars movie for me.  

[Sivin]

I have not caught up with this thread yet, but I feel the need to point out that I was sharing my thoughts and did not intend to pass judgement on anyone who may have enjoyed it, in fact most of the theater seemed to be having a good time as I sat there waiting for each scene to end. If you enjoyed  the presentation then I'm glad you had a good time at the movies. I did not, that is all I was attempting to convey. 

And a brief response to Petyr, I thought Scariff was well presented but by then I had soured past the point of recovery. The last 10 minutes kept me from regretting this outing, but the badass transferring of the data could not save the night. 

[ab aeterno]

2 minutes ago, Ferrum Aeternum said:

I have to say, I don't understand the lack of attachment. The first 2/3 of the movie was more or less devoted to making sure we were attached to these characters. I about bawled when K2 bought it, playing the hero despite himself. Chirrut making the ultimate sacrifice and then Baze repeating his phrase back to him - how can one not be moved by that? And then Jyn and Cassian at the end, good god. 

If anything, this was the most emotionally involving Star Wars movie for me.  

K2 and Chirrut were my favourite characters in the movie. Saw was tragically under utilized though. The way he went out was weak, IMO, and he had the best lines in the movie during a really anti-climactic moment. Those lines should have been delivered while getting mown down on Scarif buying time for Jyn and Cassian.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

8 minutes ago, ab aeterno said:

K2 and Chirrut were my favourite characters in the movie. Saw was tragically under utilized though. The way he went out was weak, IMO, and he had the best lines in the movie during a really anti-climactic moment. Those lines should have been delivered while getting mown down on Scarif buying time for Jyn and Cassian.

I agree that Saw was underutilized and fell victim to the "mentor has to die" trope. Saw shouldn't have been satisfied with dying when he had a chance to escape and keep fighting. 

[ab aeterno]

1 minute ago, Ferrum Aeternum said:

I agree that Saw was underutilized and fell victim to the "mentor has to die" trope. Saw shouldn't have been satisfied with dying when he had a chance to escape and keep fighting. 

Pretty much. It's not even that he has to die. He could have made it to the ship as well, but he just decided to go and look out the window.

Now, I get it if what they're going for is that he's old, he's broken, and he wants to die, but it seems a bit out of character for a ruthless freedom fighter to just give up at that stage.

[generalzod]

2 hours ago, Sivin said:

I thought this film was absolutely horrible, an ominous sign to me of the spinoffs ahead. It at least found an identity after the rebellion against the rebellion speech that finally allowed me to give a single fuck about any of the characters, but even the Hawaii planet suffered from terrible pacing and stupid decisions.

One of the most visually stunning things I've ever seen, and I wanted to walk out for the entire duration. What good is the cataclysmic destruction of the desert city if I literally do not care if any of the characters die?

I do hope that Disney does not glean from this failure that dark=unsuccessful.

The very easiest way for me to initially determine whether I liked a film is for me to get caught thinking "oh, I want to do that!" Or "ohh! You could do an entire movie based on this premise!"

During Rogue One I was constantly thinking that I could make a more compelling film in my back yard with my phone camera and $100 dollars worth of star wars toys from target. 

Wow.  You define hater and lose all credibility with your silly Star Wars toys backyard comment.

You didn't like the blind jedi?  Jyn Erso?  You are cold hearted or have no taste.

I'll call my shot now, Rogue One over time will not only be more beloved than the truly horrid prequels, it will be more beloved by fans than the Force Awakens.

its the closest thing we have to the Empire Strikes Back and that's lost on you.   Go make movies with your toys.

 

and Krennic/cynic/critic is not a coincidence. 

Rebus

a representation of words or syllables by pictures of objects or by symbols whose names resemble the intended words or syllables in sound.

 

his name is  a rebus of "Director Critic"

 

and backwards it's essentially Director Cynic

 

just a coincidence I'm sure 

 

 

[ab aeterno]

14 minutes ago, generalzod said:

and Krennic/cynic/critic is not a coincidence. 

Rebus

a representation of words or syllables by pictures of objects or by symbols whose names resemble the intended words or syllables in sound.

 

his name is  a rebus of "Director Critic"

 

and backwards it's essentially Director Cynic

 

just a coincidence I'm sure 

 

 

If it isn't a coincidence it's just stupid. "Director Critic? Director Cynic?" What the hell are they supposed to mean? Oh wow, the guy building a WMD for an oppressive regime is cynical, shocker. That cynicism really sets him apart from Tarkin.

Let's hope we can keep the self-descriptive names to the Sith. 

And for what it's worth, backwards it's Rotcerid Cinnerk. Ehmahgerd, Cinnerk! Ser Cinnerkal!"

[Fez]

I just got back from seeing this, and I really, really liked. The first half or so was pretty weak, but it picked up after Whitaker's character died, and the last third of the movie was just incredible. I was a little taken aback at first, when the characters first started dying. But then I realized that this was the Star Wars version of Halo: Reach and I settled back, enjoyed the ride, and assumed everyone would end up dead.

I could go into my issues with the first half, and the lack of characterization throughout the movie, but there'd be no point. Except to mention that I agree that the soundtrack was disappointingly weak. All of that pales in comparison to just how much I loved the third act; it was pure action set with all the Star Wars trappings, and it was fantastic.

I liked all the cameos, although seeing RD2D and C-3PO very clearly not on a ship was odd. I assume someone picked them up on the way to the battle, but it was odd not having that as the cameo instead.

I was fine with the CG Tarkin (so long as his surviving family members approved it), although I'm not sure he needed quite as much screentime as he ended up having. It somewhat seemed to be more about showing off the tech LucasFilm used to create him, and the problem there was the tech wasn't perfect. His first scene in particular he looked way too digital.

Vadar was great. I was hoping his rampage would be a little longer, but I was glad to see him show off at least a bit why he's so terrifying.

I hope the movie meets whatever Disney's expectations for it are, and that they continue to allow the anthology movies to be their own thing; rather than keeping the exact same tone as the main ones.

I think I'd place it fourth in my Star Wars rankings: ESB, ANH, TFA, RO, ROTJ, ROTS, TPM, TCW.

For as great as the last third was, because of the weakness up front I have to put Force Awakens ahead of it, which was the more consistent movie. But I am still ready to also put it ahead of Return of the Jedi, which really was a flawed movie (though miles above anything in the prequels).

[Corvinus85]

33 minutes ago, ab aeterno said:

Now, I get it if what they're going for is that he's old, he's broken, and he wants to die, but it seems a bit out of character for a ruthless freedom fighter to just give up at that stage.

A little more explanation there was needed. I could interpret it that when the entire battlefield that he has been fighting on for some time got blown in one move by the Empire, it was finally the straw that broke the camel's back. But we don't know that for sure.