Movie: Rogue One

Rogue One:  the latest Star Wars installment.  There are very few films that I distinctly remember viewing for the first time.  Star Wars: A New Hope aka Episode IV is among the few.  The theatre where the original Star Wars played in 1977 no longer exists; I think the building is now an auto parts store.  I was hooked from its opening scene.  The main question I’ve asked myself with respect to the subsequent episodes has been, “Would I have enjoyed this film if I wasn’t already a fan?”  As for Rogue One, the answer is “yes”.   Felicity Jones is excellent in the lead role of Jyn Erso, daughter of Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen), the scientist responsible for creating the Death Star.  The storyline presented by writers Chris Weitz and Tony Gilroy explains the events that led to one of the key scenes in the original Star Wars, the Death Star’s destruction of Princess Leia’s home planet.  Rogue One was directed by Gareth Edwards and has a panorama of the required characters: renegade imperial pilot (Riz Ahmed); tough minded resistance player (Diego Luna), bearded warrior (Wen Jiang); and blind Force-chanting monk (Donnie Yen).  I would like to have seen more of the militant warrior played by Forest Whitaker.  Perhaps a short fall of Rogue One is its lack of the inventive and original special effects that so captured me back in 1977.  The battle scenes during this 133 minute film, though good, are somewhat old hat.  One thing that is quite inventive is casting actor Guy Henry, who has a build and voice similar to Peter Cushing and, through technology, imposing on him Cushing’s face to re-create the Death Star Captain.  The same technology is used in the Princess Leia scene using Norwegian actor Ingvild Deila.  I was also pleased that James Earl Jones once again voiced Darth Vader in his limited appearances.  Bottom line: for anyone who is a Star Wars fan, you should definitely see this film on the big screen.  Conversely, if you are not already a fan, this film will not be your moment of conversion.