Could the Leia shot have come from The Holiday Special out-takes?
“First feel fear, then get angry. Then go with your life into the fight.” - Bill Mollison
Carrie Fisher was fucking smashed when she did the Holiday Special.
Carrie Fisher was fucking smashed when she did the Holiday Special.
It may have been for the best.
“First feel fear, then get angry. Then go with your life into the fight.” - Bill Mollison
This movie was fan service from beginning to end. I’m a fan, and I’ve been serviced. I was enthralled and exhilarated, and the ending had me laughing with joy. For example, whereas the use of X-wings and TIE fighters in TFA felt unfortunate and recycled, the same felt 110% at home and appropriate in this period film. Given that the two came out a mere year apart, it makes me wish JJ had let Rogue One be the movie to do the out and out nostalgia stuff like that. Maybe this should have been Disney’s first venture.
I left TFA feeling happy but a little ambivalent. Rogue One had little expectations or “risk,” and I felt great about it. It doesn’t have any existence except being derivative of ANH, and therefore arguably doesn’t add much to the story, but it was a hell of an enjoyable ride for this existing fan of the source material.
Vader was handled 98% spot on. 100% perfect visually, it seems, though his lightsaber moment was… typical, and JEJ doesn’t sound as rough as ANH Vader does.
All the cameos that I can remember at the moment felt natural and made sense, unlike many in the prequels and TFA. The exception is Panda Bobba and Dr. Evazan; I guess they were annoyed that Jyn bumped into them because they were making an absolute beeline to Wuther’s cantina on Tatooine.
Tarkin worked better than I thought he would, and had a larger role that I expected. He looked like he was 90% of the way through his transformation from being a Clone Wars cartoon. (Like he was a cartoon as a younger man, and was fully human in ANH, and he was aaaalmost done with his gradual change in Rogue One.)
Seeing classic X-wing fighter characters was an unexpected surprise and I think it was done well. It looks like a blend of stock footage and new contrivals, but I’ll have to see it again to be sure. Love that the Death Star plans look like shit; makes me glad to have cut their cameo from AOTC.
In the opening of ANH, Vader sees thorough Leia trying to deny that they have the plans, and tells her to cut the crap. In Rogue One, Vader has a murderous rage cut short as he tried to board the Tantive during a battle with the rebellion. The way he handles Leia at the start of ANH doesn’t quite seem to mesh 100% to me. But if that’s the biggest problem, it’s all right.
All in all, I enjoyed the initial viewing much more than my initial viewing of TFA. It’s a much less important film, and has nothing riding on it. Fan service that I’m inclined not to like in saga films shines and finds its rightful place in this one, altogether making an exhilarating ride as the backstory of how Princess Leia got the email that kicked ANH into motion.
This movie was fan service from beginning to end.
Once again I’ll state that I hate that term! I tend to think of them as fun little nods. If this movie isn’t for the fans then who is it meant for?
A very minor tweak is required for 100% Line up of Rogue One and Star Wars (A new Hope)
“Several Transmissions were Beamed aboard this ship, I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you?” Original
“Several Transmissions were Beamed aboard a ship, I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you?” Fixed
I definitely have mixed feelings, but they’re mostly positive. Overall, I really liked the film. Most of my complaints are nit-picky.
First, those planet-identifying title cards. I really, really, didn’t like them. I don’t really know how to explain what bothered me so much about them except to say that they just didn’t feel like Star Wars. We have never needed them before, and some of the locations they introduce (such as, for example, the planet from which the rebels rescue Jyn) barely get enough screen time for their names to really matter to us. Others, such as Yavin 4, are instantly recognizable and simply didn’t need to be identified (I mean, I don’t think anybody would be watching this film unless they’d already seen the main saga). This brings me to another easily identified planet, Mustafar, whose lack of introduction via title card seemed inconsistent with the way other planets had been introduced throughout the film.
On a related note, all that rapid planet hopping in the opening 45 or so minutes of the film was a little disorienting. Too much, too fast. In fact, there were a few points throughout the film where the pacing seemed a little odd.
Next, Vader. His costume was all wrong. Rather than faithfully replicating what we see in ANH (which seems to have been the underlying intention since they went with the red eyes), it seems to be some weird combination of elements from the costumes we see in all three OT films, and it just doesn’t work well. What’s going on with that oversized neck piece that seems to pop out so much? Where is the chain that holds up his cape? His chest armor? The placement of the rear part of his helmet? It just all seemed wrong. So, too, did the voice. While it was obviously good ol’ James Earl Jones speaking, the pitch of his voice didn’t sound quite right. Yes, I know he’s aged and doesn’t sound quite the same as he did even just 11 years ago when voiced Vader in Revenge of the Sith, so I shouldn’t have expected a perfect match, I’ll point out that Vader sounds better on Rebels than he does in Rogue One. Whatever processing they applied to the voice here just wasn’t right. Also, I can totally tell that it’s not David Prowse in the suit. His gait, his stance… it’s just totally, completely different. I also worry that since RO leads so perfectly into the opening of ANH, RO Vader’s badass butchering of those rebel soldiers at the end of the film will make ANH Vader seem hulky, slow, and sort of pathetic by comparison.
The sound effects (particularly the sound of blaster bolts) didn’t really sound consistent with what we hear in episodes 1-6, Clone Wars, and Rebels, all of which are extremely consistent with one another. I had the same issue with TFA, though Rogue One doesn’t seem quite as bad.
Some of the cameos and Easter eggs were nice, but some were just unnecessary fan service. Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba? Really? REALLY?
The digital resurrection of Peter Cushing was the best I’ve ever seen, but the uncanny valley is still there sometimes. Having Tarkin in the film is great and makes sense, but did we need THAT MUCH of him? Just one or two scenes would have been fine, and fewer scenes might have given the crew more time to focus on every frame in which he appears and fine-tune them more precisely. I don’t know how well this CGI Tarkin will age–it’ll be interesting to see how we think it looks ten years down the line.
There’s more, but I don’t want to rant. I also don’t want to make it sounds as though I didn’t enjoy this feel, because I really, really did. In fact, I can’t wait to see it again! It’s by far the best Star Wars prequel yet, and certainly worthy of standing alongside the OT. But there are definitely things that bothered me, and what bothers me most is that they seem like things that should have been easy to get right.
A very minor tweak is required for 100% Line up of Rogue One and Star Wars (A new Hope)
“Several Transmissions were Beamed aboard this ship, I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you?” Original
“Several Transmissions were Beamed aboard a ship, I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you?” Fixed
That’s not the original line. The original line is “Several transmissions were beamed to this ship by rebel spies. I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you.”
Plus, your “fix” actually makes less sense because Vader goes from using the indefinite article “a,” which would suggest that he’s not sure he has the right ship, to insisting that he knows Leia is the one who received the plans.
“Several transmissions were beamed to a ship by rebel spies. I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you.”
Fixed now?
I think that makes sense but if not then I don’t know was just enjoying the fun! 😃
Tweaky says
Beegeebeegeebeegeebeegee
A very minor tweak is required for 100% Line up of Rogue One and Star Wars (A new Hope)
“Several Transmissions were Beamed aboard this ship, I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you?” Original
“Several Transmissions were Beamed aboard a ship, I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you?” Fixed
Vader could’ve misspoke in A New Hope. Not really that big of a deal.
This movie was fan service from beginning to end.
Once again I’ll state that I hate that term! I tend to think of them as fun little nods. If this movie isn’t for the fans then who is it meant for?
Well put, Jameson. I wanted to mention that a few pages back. All movies are fan service, beginning to end. They aren’t made so that groups of scientists can study the in hopes of solving our dependence on fossil fuels or as a way to cure diseases. They’re made for fans to sit in the theater and enjoy.
Along those same lines, I wanted to comment on something else Hal said. To clarify first; I agree with a lot of what Hal posted. What I also want to add is where he sees the film as safe because it isn’t important to the main story of the franchise, I see that as one of the reasons it works so well.
We just had decades of Lucas trying to make movies that were important to the main story. None of them were able to bear the weight of being important to the almighty Saga (genuflect). Force Awakens, while being a non-Lucas film, still suffers from having to be important. I liked a lot of it (Rey, Finn, Poe, Jakuu), but nearly half of it is bogged down answering questions I’ve never asked.
Rogue One works for the same reason Star Wars77 works. It’s an adventure with a beginning, middle, and end. It’s darker, but it works just as well.
“Rogue One” was absolutely sensational.
Damn how I wish TFA was never made and this movie be the first Disney release. Think of the possibilities!
Gareth Edwards is the new George Lucas. The reins of the franchise need to be handed over to him.
I don’t have the words to express how awesome this movie was. I am sad that Disney chose to market this film as an anthology and as standalone. There is nothing “standalone” about it. It’s the new Episode 1.
I’m curious where you think Episodes 2 and 3 would fit in before 4.
I’m curious where you think Episodes 2 and 3 would fit in before 4.
In the garbage.
The new Star Wars canon should be this: RO, ANH, TESB, ROTJ.
The end.
Friend of mine says the R1 cinematographer mentions seeing a 4K DCP of ANH in this interview:
I have a theory about this: we see some of the pilots from ANH with footage taken straight from the original film. Was a restoration finalized to service this purpose? Or just generally for the cinematographer to get a feel for how the era is supposed to look?
Seeking only the most natural looking colors for Star Wars '77
Also, for some reason I welled up when Jimmy Smits was talking with Mon Mothma about “recruiting the jedi that served you in the Clone Wars”. Something just clicked for me right there. Like I could finally accept that the original six films, while half terrible, may really have taken place in the same universe after all.
Seeking only the most natural looking colors for Star Wars '77
Also, for some reason I welled up when Jimmy Smits was talking with Mon Mothma about “recruiting the jedi that served you in the Clone Wars”. Something just clicked for me right there. Like I could finally accept that the original six films, while half terrible, may really have taken place in the same universe after all.
I feel exactly the same way. This film and Rebels work so well as connective tissue that the PT feels much more relevant than it ever has for me. Vader in the tank was another moment where I got a really strong feeling that this is all one story. It occurred to me that if you were to watch these in chronological order, Anakin getting hacked to hell was pretty much the last thing you saw before this one. That one little scene did more to reconcile the Vader of the OT with the Anakin of the PT more than anything else I’ve seen.
I feel exactly the same way. This film and Rebels work so well as connective tissue that the PT feels much more relevant than it ever has for me.
I’m not sure I see it that way. To me, this movie has accomplished the exact opposite – it has rendered the prequels irrelevant. Vader floating in the bacta in a black castle somewhere completely expunges the awful vision of Hayden Christensen and his “I hate you!” and the “Noooooooooo!”
Vader is wrapped back up in his veil of mystery. Shrouded by fog and only-on-the-screen-for-two-seconds camera angles.
Watching TFA last year and RO this year have made the PT even more irrelevant in my mind because they’ve hammered home how poorly executed the PT is.
Friend of mine says the R1 cinematographer mentions seeing a 4K DCP of ANH in this interview:
I have a theory about this: we see some of the pilots from ANH with footage taken straight from the original film. Was a restoration finalized to service this purpose? Or just generally for the cinematographer to get a feel for how the era is supposed to look?
Somewhere was an article where Gareth stated that they found reels and reels of un digitized film from ANH. These shots where all on those reels. (Original Negatives even!)
For how well and how quickly they cleaned those up, it gives you real hope that someone somewhere will find an intact negative and do right by it.
Watching TFA last year and RO this year have made the PT even more irrelevant in my mind because they’ve hammered home how poorly executed the PT is.
RO also renders TFA irrelevant. The reality for the fan base hasn’t fully burned in yet, but RO has grabbed the reins of the SW franchise and jammed it back on track. It’s a coup. In the end, Disney is going to have to rethink the direction of episodes 8 and 9 based on the sensational execution of RO.
Watching TFA last year and RO this year have made the PT even more irrelevant in my mind because they’ve hammered home how poorly executed the PT is.
RO also renders TFA irrelevant. The reality for the fan base hasn’t fully burned in yet, but RO has grabbed the reins of the SW franchise and jammed it back on track. It’s a coup. In the end, Disney is going to have to rethink the direction of episodes 8 and 9 based on the sensational execution of RO.
Haha calm down
Watching TFA last year and RO this year have made the PT even more irrelevant in my mind because they’ve hammered home how poorly executed the PT is.
Agreed.
RO is the only relevant prequel.
Watching TFA last year and RO this year have made the PT even more irrelevant in my mind because they’ve hammered home how poorly executed the PT is.
RO also renders TFA irrelevant. The reality for the fan base hasn’t fully burned in yet, but RO has grabbed the reins of the SW franchise and jammed it back on track. It’s a coup. In the end, Disney is going to have to rethink the direction of episodes 8 and 9 based on the sensational execution of RO.
Yeah ok. Good luck with that. RO will make a percentage of what TFA did, which was all because of repeat business and the OT actors. If the movie sucked people wouldn’t have come back to it. And, btw, reviews for TFA are better than RO. There’s MUCH more “heart” in TFA than there is in RO and you care a helluva lot more about the characters.
That’s not a slam against RO, which I loved, but my excitement about it has been tempered by subsequent viewings.
Watching TFA last year and RO this year have made the PT even more irrelevant in my mind because they’ve hammered home how poorly executed the PT is.
RO also renders TFA irrelevant. The reality for the fan base hasn’t fully burned in yet, but RO has grabbed the reins of the SW franchise and jammed it back on track. It’s a coup. In the end, Disney is going to have to rethink the direction of episodes 8 and 9 based on the sensational execution of RO.
Yeah ok. Good luck with that. RO will make a percentage of what TFA did, which was all because of repeat business and the OT actors. If the movie sucked people wouldn’t have come back to it. And, btw, reviews for TFA are better than RO. There’s MUCH more “heart” in TFA than there is in RO and you care a helluva lot more about the characters.
That’s not a slam against RO, which I loved, but my excitement about it has been tempered by subsequent viewings.
Personally what I take away from it is that Episode eight will be aimed at 5 - 10 year olds and the Anthologies hopefully will be aiming at higher age ranges teens to adults.
I don’t feel the sequel trilogy is really aimed at adults or at least that is my current perception unless they make the sequel trilogy more mature.