Lucasfilm’s latest installment in the Star Wars anthology, which takes place between Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and Episode IV: A New Hope, finally explores the mission that made Luke Skywalker’s journey possible: Rogue One. While the characters lacked development and dimension, “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” departed from common Star Wars tropes to bring a fresh, unique journey from the beloved galaxy far, far away.
The Rebellion has once again joined forces against Darth Vader’s terrorizing Empire, this time with the essential information that the Emperor is building a super weapon capable of destroying entire planets — the infamous Death Star. Enter Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), loner and convict, daughter of the Death Star’s chief engineer and the Rebellion’s key to infiltrating the Empire’s archives.
While Jyn is primarily bitter and ambivalent, her team of fighters, including Rebel pilot Cassian (Diego Luna) and sarcastic bot K2SO (Alan Tudyk), eventually defect from the Rebellion in a rogue mission to steal the Death Star plans once and for all.
Rogue One does echo some common Star Wars journeys of the past, which always seem to include a ragtag team of underdog Rebels, a dysfunctional father-child relationship, and an emphasis on hope that the Light Side will ultimately triumph. However, unlike The Force Awakens, the story hardly uses the audience’s nostalgia as a crutch. While original characters occasionally make appearances — with C3PO and R2D2’s especially unnecessary cameo — the plot holds up by itself, leaning on Jones and Luna to carry both the mission and the movie.
In this aspect is where the viewer is left unsatisfied. While the first ten minutes give us a glimpse into Jyn’s backstory, her characterization is poorly developed, and her motivations shift inexplicably halfway through the film. While she and Cassian are likeable protagonists, they could have swapped lines without any noticeable change in the story. The Force Awakens triumphed at creating new, memorable characters; the Rogue One team was largely forgettable and homogenous.
The movie picks up pace and excitement in the last half as Jyn and Cassian infiltrate the Empire base, inciting a suspenseful large-scale battle. The action, a common pitfall for some blockbusters that employ unearthly weaponry, remains riveting as our heroes run into unique roadblocks that require equally-unique solutions.
The ending, while bittersweet and emotional, capitalizes on the film’s central theme, and arguably the central theme of all Star Wars adventures: hope. While our protagonists are forced to make difficult sacrifices, their efforts are a catalyst for good to ultimately triumph over the Dark Side. We are suddenly parted from characters before even getting to know them, but their journey is a refreshingly epic tale that will tide fans over until the highly-anticipated Episode VIII.
