Discussion Rogue One: What I liked and Didn't like (SPOILERS)

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BE ADVISED THAT THIS POST WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR STAR WARS: ROGUE ONE. IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE MOVIE YET, DO NOT READ THIS.




So I've seen Rogue One, and let me just say overall I thought it was a fantastic movie. It was everything I hoped it would be and more. I'm going to list what I liked and didn't like about it specifically.

Liked

• The overall story. It worked out so well and tied in perfectly with A New Hope. It didn't feel rushed or confusing. Compared to The Force Awakens, it was a lot more coherent and had many less plot holes. It also answered one of the biggest mysteries about Star Wars, and not in some stupid or half-baked way. I thought Galen Erso's purposeful inclusion of the reactor hole in the Death Star to essentially trick the Empire and give them the finger was great.
• The new characters. I thought each of the gang had great personalities and they all actually had an impact on the story. Unfortunately they all met their demise, as expected, and I found it hard to watch in theaters because of how dark and emotional it all was. I think the casting was done excellently, particularly having Forest Whitaker and Ben Mendelsohn play such strong characters.
• The Environments. I loved the looks of the new planets. They were all a welcome break from the dull, bland planet types we've seen before. Eadu and Scarif were unique and memorable, and much more nice then having yet another snow planet or another forest or desert planet.
• The returning characters. Seeing classics like Bail Organa and Darth Vader return to Star Wars was such a welcome sight. Other minor cameos like Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba were complete shocks to me and I loved seeing them on screen. Darth Vader was the star of the show here. His rampage near the end was one of the best scenes of the film.
• Some of the stuff that was cut out. In the trailers, I remember seeing lots of cringeworthy dialogue being present that wasn't in the final movie. Thank God for that being removed.
• Other callbacks to the Original Trilogy. Seeing a lot of the humorous 70s-style technology make a comeback in this movie was great fun. It ties Rogue One even more into A New Hope.

On the Fence

• The music. Don't get me wrong, I thought the music was good, but it didn't seem all that memorable compared to the soundtracks of the previous movies. Maybe it's the fact that John Williams didn't compose this one.
• The CGI recreations of Tarkin and Leia. I loved seeing these characters in the movie. I almost crapped myself seeing the latter, as I didn't expect seeing Leia at all. It's just a little morbid and off-putting though seeing someone like Peter Cushing, who's been dead for 22 years, revived and placed back in the Star Wars universe. The CGI recreations weren't necessarily bad, but they were just weird.

Disliked

• They killed off my favorite characters first. Why does this always happen? Saw Gererra, K2-SO, and Chirrut Imwe were my favorite characters in the movie, and they were the first to die. It's a shame, but they at least went out in a decent manner and not cheaply.
• C3-PO and R2-D2's cameos. Unlike some of the other returnees, their appearances felt kind of forced and unnecessary.

Rogue One was amazing. I can seriously say that it's my new favorite Star Wars movie. It was a lot better than The Force Awakens. You can pin this on Gareth Edward's direction, the plot, the casting, or whatever, but to me it just ticked all the right boxes and it was a real cinematic masterpiece. What are your thoughts?