Rogue One

[GoktimusPrime]

New Rogue One trailer (http://www.hypable.com/new-star-wars-rogue-one-trailer-celebration/) with behind the scenes goodies. :)

I think that the director makes a really good point when he says that the tricky thing with working with an existing franchise is that you want to respect it enough not to mess it up and keep it faithful, but you don't want to respect it too much so that you're just copying what's come before and not bringing anything new to the table. If you make it too different then fans cry, "Ruined Forever!", but if you make it too similar then fans cry, "New product, same packaging - losers." But it's good to hear that at least he has this in mind and sounds like he's trying to make a good movie, so matter how it turns out at least there seems to be earnest intention in the making of this film. :cool:

I'm personally far more forgiving of movies that could've been better but were made with honest intent (e.g. Star Wars Prequels) over movies that turn out rubbish because the director just doesn't seem to care enough (you all know what I'm talking about ;)). JMHO.

[philby]

i am excited for this and enjoyed the new stuff. i have to say though i am slightly nervous or apprehensive about it at the same time. i thought the initial description of the movie as being a slightly more gritty, darker, no jedi, scrappy war heist about the rebellion was very interesting and different. then recently disney ordered re-shoots because they didn't think it was 'star wars' enough or perhaps too dark. this has me thinking 'well the whole point from the beginning was to do something different, now at the end you are trying to change it'. is this going to make it worse? i feel like it could end up now being in some kind of limbo, in between something different but with light hearted moments shoe-horned in? i dunno.

also being a long time fan of various games, comics and books I won't accept anyone stealing the death star plans who isn't Kyle Katarn ;) from what they've shown so far though I think though that Jyn Erso might possibly take some inspiration from Kyle so it's a little better hehe.

[Megatran]

I would like to see other intergalactic species taking the lead role or be the centre of the story piece ... rather than just being props on the set. Looks like yet another hu-man story in space somewhere.

[GoktimusPrime]

i thought the initial description of the movie as being a slightly more gritty, darker, no jedi, scrappy war heist about the rebellion was very interesting and different.
I like the idea idea of a Star Wars film that has no Force users in it. :) It would make it different from the mainstream Star Wars movies, but also because Force users are meant to be a very rare minority of people in the galaxy. Even at the height of the Jedi they were still a rarity, with Jedi numbering in thousands (I think) among the gazillion number of life forms throughout the galaxy. Many people would have never seen a Force user in their life, thus they've always been something of a myth. Even Qui-Gon Jinn explicitly said, "We're keepers of the peace, not soldiers." The Clone Army was created to bolster Jedi numbers, and of course Jedi were so rare that they only acted as commanding generals in the army, not infantry. Sith are even rarer due to their Rule of Two (to the point that the Jedi had come to believe that the Sith were just "boogeymen" and even the Jedi Council initially refused to believe that the Sith could be real). So I think that it would be really cool to see more Star Wars stories told from the POV of the more common folk in the SW universe rather than the elite few who have a high Midichlorian count^are Force sensitive. ;)


then recently disney ordered re-shoots because they didn't think it was 'star wars' enough or perhaps too dark. this has me thinking 'well the whole point from the beginning was to do something different, now at the end you are trying to change it'. is this going to make it worse? i feel like it could end up now being in some kind of limbo, in between something different but with light hearted moments shoe-horned in? i dunno.
I think that a movie can be both dark, gritty and serious and light hearted at the same time. It all depends on how well it's done. The Empire Strikes Back struck this balance really well by having humorous moments punctuating the intensely dark and emotionally fuelled drama of the story, such as the 'running gag' of Han and Leia's constant arguing (which really was a product of their love for each other), Yoda's goofy silliness (a ruse to test Luke's patience) etc.

"Afraid I was gonna leave without giving you a goodbye kiss?"
"I'd just as soon kiss a Wookiee."
"I can arrange that. You could use a good kiss!"

"No time to discuss this as a committee."
"I am not a committee!"

"How you get so big eating food of this kind?"


also being a long time fan of various games, comics and books I won't accept anyone stealing the death star plans who isn't Kyle Katarn ;) from what they've shown so far though I think though that Jyn Erso might possibly take some inspiration from Kyle so it's a little better hehe.
Eh... Disney have officially stated that their films are ignoring Expanded Universe canon, so I guess Kyle Katarn is about as relevant to this period in the Star Wars film universe as Admiral Thrawn is to the sequels. :o

FWIW I agree with your sentiment. When news of the sequels was first announced I was really looking forward to seeing a lot of stuff from the books being adapted to screen - Thrawn, the Solo kids, Vornskyrs, Mara Jade Skywalker etc. -- and I was especially looking forward to seeing Vong Wars. Alas it's not gonna happen as they've decided to throw that all out in favour of this Knights of Ren thing, Super Leader Snooky-Pooks and other stuff yet to be revealed. :p

[GoktimusPrime]

Eh... Disney have officially stated that their films are ignoring Expanded Universe canon, so I guess Kyle Katarn is about as relevant to this period in the Star Wars film universe as Admiral Thrawn is to the sequels. :o
Looks like I spoke too soon about Thrawn (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=priegK1D_lU). :eek:

[philby]

Looks like I spoke too soon about Thrawn (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=priegK1D_lU). :eek:

yeah i was just about to say that haha. rebels S3 looking pretty damn epic!

[SharkyMcShark]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frdj1zb9sMY

[GoktimusPrime]

Squeeeeee! :D

Interesting to see that Genevieve O'Reilly is reprising her role as Mon Mothma (who she previously played in Revenge of the Sith), although she looks and sounds a lot more like the original here. :)

Donnie Yen's character's line of, "All is as the Force wills it," is interesting. Does this mean that he's a Force user? Former Jedi? Or something else? Because we know that many in the Star Wars universe believe in the Force even if they are not Force users (which makes sense since the Force binds all living things, but only a select few possess the ability to manipulate it). If he is a Jedi then this would be an interesting gesture, because Obi-Wan Kenobi was originally intended to be of Asian appearance. George Lucas initially envisioned Mifune Toshiro playing the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi (even the Jedi's name phonologically sounds Japanese), but Mifune declined believing that Star Wars would be a flop (as most people did before it came out), thus the role went to Sir Alec Guiness. So the possibility of seeing an Asian Jedi may be a slight nod to the initially intended ethnic appearance for ol' Obi-Wan. Or maybe I'm just clutching at straws here (yeah, probably). :p :p :p

I also liked seeing the Death Star "upside down," as there really is no concept of up or down in space anyway (or at best it's subjective). ;)

[Raider]

Where is Ezra Bridger!?

[Lord_Zed]

I'll just be happy to see a Star Wars movie that's not about a Skywalker or Solo. :D

[philby]

Squeeeeee! :D

Interesting to see that Genevieve O'Reilly is reprising her role as Mon Mothma (who she previously played in Revenge of the Sith), although she looks and sounds a lot more like the original here. :)

Donnie Yen's character's line of, "All is as the Force wills it," is interesting. Does this mean that he's a Force user? Former Jedi? Or something else? Because we know that many in the Star Wars universe believe in the Force even if they are not Force users (which makes sense since the Force binds all living things, but only a select few possess the ability to manipulate it). If he is a Jedi then this would be an interesting gesture, because Obi-Wan Kenobi was originally intended to be of Asian appearance. George Lucas initially envisioned Mifune Toshiro playing the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi (even the Jedi's name phonologically sounds Japanese), but Mifune declined believing that Star Wars would be a flop (as most people did before it came out), thus the role went to Sir Alec Guiness. So the possibility of seeing an Asian Jedi may be a slight nod to the initially intended ethnic appearance for ol' Obi-Wan. Or maybe I'm just clutching at straws here (yeah, probably). :p :p :p

I also liked seeing the Death Star "upside down," as there really is no concept of up or down in space anyway (or at best it's subjective). ;)

is that the stick guy? if so then yes he is force sensitive but not a jedi, it has been confirmed earlier.

[philby]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frdj1zb9sMY

some nice epic looking shots there. i really want to see them on the big screen!

[philby]

latest preview from last night:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sC9abcLLQpI

[reillyd]

Is it just me (maybe it is!) but is Jyn Erso insanely beautiful? Those poster shots are just gorgeous, and it's almost enough to make me want to buy a Hot Toys version of her when she's released.

[Lord_Zed]

Is it just me (maybe it is!) but is Jyn Erso insanely beautiful? Those poster shots are just gorgeous, and it's almost enough to make me want to buy a Hot Toys version of her when she's released.

Nope not just you, Felicity Jones has a certain radiance, I noticed that in her minor role in the terrible Amazing Spiderman 2, and then there was The Theory of Everything which demonstrates she has much talent for acting too.

I'm probably going to pass, on the action figure though.

[klystron]

Ok, so who went to the midnight release showings?
I sure did.
Thought it was fan-bloody-tastic. I really, really enjoyed it. More than Force Awakens.

Not going to discuss anything coz, you know... spoilers and all.

Cant wait to see it again!

[ITZTRU]

I saw midnight screening.

That ONE epic nerdgasm scene. That scene alone = WORTH!

[ILikeSoundwave]

I saw midnight screening.

That ONE epic nerdgasm scene. That scene alone = WORTH!

Also went to a midnight screening. I adored the final act of the movie!

[The Ghost]

Saw it this afternoon with my 7yo. Really liked it and was great the way it finished up... that CGI though... yikes.

[SharkyMcShark]

The one scene, and you'll know the one I mean if you've seen it, is just about the coolest two minutes in any movie ever. Ever.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Honestly I have no idea what nerdgasm scene you are referring to as there were so many...

...unless you're referring to the one towards the end...

[Megatran]

Honestly I have no idea what nerdgasm scene you are referring to
Same here.

[SharkyMcShark]

The last two minutes.

[ITZTRU]

Honestly I have no idea what nerdgasm scene you are referring to as there were so many...

...unless you're referring to the one towards the end...

Yeah there were many. But c'mon. You gotta admit. There was that ONE scene that stood out above the rest. And even if you didn't think it stood out above the many others, you still know which one I and the others are talking about... :D

[Ralph Wiggum]

The last two minutes.

Right. That one character absolutely kicking arse in the last two minutes?

Shame this forum doesn't have hidden tags, because I'd enjoy a good discussion. Maybe the title can be changed to *SPOILERS*

[Krayt]

There was one thing I didn't like.... Too much CGI on Tarkin. Granted he looks great and is much needed, just someone went overboard with facial twitches that just aren't Peter Cushing.

And where was lavabase? It's the only thing in the whole movie where you don't get told the name (I may have blinked.... But I don't think so.)

***edit***

God damnit Disney!!! It's Mustafar..... What was wrong with Bast Castle on Vjun????

[SharkyMcShark]

There was one thing I didn't like.... Too much CGI on Tarkin. Granted he looks great and is much needed, just someone went overboard with facial twitches that just aren't Peter Cushing.

And where was lavabase? It's the only thing in the whole movie where you don't get told the name (I may have blinked.... But I don't think so.)

***edit***

God damnit Disney!!! It's Mustafar..... What was wrong with Bast Castle on Vjun????

I'm an old EU fan so my first thought was Vjun too.

[SharkyMcShark]

I really enjoyed the fan service in this one because even though in many ways it was a lot more in-your-face, it worked because the story was in that time and place, instead of TFA which was all call backs.

[Ralph Wiggum]

There was one thing I didn't like.... Too much CGI on Tarkin. Granted he looks great and is much needed, just someone went overboard with facial twitches that just aren't Peter Cushing.

And where was lavabase? It's the only thing in the whole movie where you don't get told the name (I may have blinked.... But I don't think so.)

***edit***

God damnit Disney!!! It's Mustafar..... What was wrong with Bast Castle on Vjun????

Yeah, Tarkin just wasn't right...texturing seemed ok, but those head/facial twitches just made it worse. It was even more prominent in IMAX. Thank goodnes you-know-who ("Hope") was limited to that one seen.

And yeah I figured it was Mustafar for some reason. Maybe because it was the only lava planet in the movies thus far.

[Krayt]

Yeah, Tarkin just wasn't right...texturing seemed ok, but those head/facial twitches just made it worse. It was even more prominent in IMAX. Thank goodnes you-know-who ("Hope") was limited to that one seen.

And yeah I figured it was Mustafar for some reason. Maybe because it was the only lava planet in the movies thus far.

I was hoping for "Luke hiding" logic.... Tatooine as he will never go back = good.... So expected he would never go back to Mustafar after getting fixed did that to him on Couroscant anyway, so why make your base back there?

[Ralph Wiggum]

Looking at other people's theories, it could be either being ordered to reside there by the Emperor as penance for his failure to defeat Obi-Wan, or a deliberate choice to remind himself what happened, and continuing to fuel his anger.

[SharkyMcShark]

SPOILERS BELOW

My expanded thoughts:

Overall I loved it and thought it was one of the most enjoyable films I've seen in a long time. I'm super invested in the Star Wars universe though so I got a massive boost out of the copious fan service in this film.

The story was decent, though I felt a lot of the bits with Forrest Whittaker were unnecessary and I'd rather have had more time with our main crew. The actors were all up to muster, and I particularly enjoyed the performance and characters of Diego Luna, Alan Tudyk and Ben Mendelson.

The way the combat was portrayed was amazing, across the board. The firefights were incredibly visceral, especially towards the end with the AT-ACTs. It was like the Battle of Hoth turned up to 11. Completely and utterly epic. The space/fighter combat was also amazing. In the same way that the land battle on Scariff was like the Battle of Hoth turned up to 11, the space stuff was like the Battle of Endor on roids.

I actually enjoyed CGI Tarkin, though the execution wasn't perfect by any means. One of the main problems is that I felt that the first scene he was in was the weakest from a technical point of view. Later scenes seemed better, and a few of them in the ANH enclosed Death Star control rooms were almost flawless. It was a bold choice to have him so involved but I feel it mostly paid off even if it wasn't completely perfect, though again as a long time fan a large part of that for me might have been the OMG TARKIN factor.

Darth Vader's two scenes were absolutely incredible. The bit where he went postal in the rebel ship was the most enjoyable and cathartic two minutes I think I've ever seen in cinema, mainly because I fully expected the scene to cut after he ignited his saber. I didn't mind the 'choke' pun - Vader was making puns way back in 1977 so it's not like it came out of no where.

The copious amounts of fan service brought a grin to my face each time. Aside from Ponda Baba and Dr Ezavan (the two guys who bullied Luke in the cantina in ANH) it was all reasonably in context and smoothly integrated. I especially loved seeing Gold Leader and Red Leader from the Battle of Yavin pop up.

I don't think I'm in a position to judge whether it was an objectively good movie just because of how invested I am in Star Wars and it's associated lore. However, I can say I've not got as much enjoyment from a movie in ages.

[Trent]

Maybe spoilers ahead depending on how spoiler-sensitive you are.

I must be in the minority then who though it was just ok. The first 1 1/2 hours were kinda meh but it really picked up and got good in the last 40 minutes.

ALTHOUGH, it could have been the cinema I was in. The screen was a little small and the sound a little underdone so I'll wait until it's on Netflix and give it a second chance.

Loved K2SO. He owned every scene he was in.

[shockNwave]

Way back in the 90's a movie called Forrest Gump first introduced a form of CGI that could bring people back from the dead (eg. John Lennon, JFK etc.). Now that CGI has been used to it's best effect in Rogue One with Tarkin to start with. Nerdgasm truly is the word.:D

[Robzy]

Saw it yesterday and LOVED it! Personally, I think it's the best Star Wars film that's been made since ESB.

[Omega Metro]

Saw it yesterday and LOVED it! Personally, I think it's the best Star Wars film that's been made since ESB.

Agree, a little slow at first but I absolutely loved it! It's (almost) everything I want in a Star Wars movie. Even The Ghost was in it. :)

[GoktimusPrime]

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/avatars/meme_spoilers_riversong_zps3g8qve9u.gif


I really enjoyed the fan service in this one because even though in many ways it was a lot more in-your-face, it worked because the story was in that time and place, instead of TFA which was all call backs.
^Totally agree with this! :D The setting of Rogue One allowed for it to jam in a gratuitous number of Original Trilogy Easter Eggs but in a way where it makes perfect sense and doesn't feel out of place. I really liked how they also replicated the same Rebel pilots who flew with Luke to attack the Death Star to also be fighting in the Battle of Scarif. Also cool was how they used the same actor/actress for Bail Organa and Mon Mothma from Revenge of the Sith.

The CG recreated Tarkin and Leia were quite impressive. I agree that they don't look totally convincing, but I once watched a video on computer animation which explained that human faces are the most difficult thing to recreate with CGI simply because the human mind is so intimately familiar with how a face should look like that it will subconsciously and automatically detect even the slightest of imperfections. They can render aliens, creatures, monsters, dinosaurs, vehicles, robots, plants, terrain, asteroids etc. and it all looks convincing to us because we're not used to looking at these things all the time in real life. e.g. if a chimpanzee were to look at a CG chimp (say like the ones in Planet of the Apes) then that chimp would probably look fake to the real chimpanzee. It looks convincing to human audiences because most of us haven't spent our whole lives studying human faces. It's something that our brains have done since we were born - babies learn to look at people's faces in detail, which teaches them the skill of facial recognition.

So to put things in context, generation CG human faces for characters like Tarkin and Leia are arguably the most difficult feats of visual effects in terms of bluffing the audience. Previous movies that did this (e.g. The Crow, Superman Returns etc.) usually do so where the person's face isn't perfectly clear. Brandon Lee's CG face was shrouded in darkness, Jor-El's face was grainy and only appeared inside the big crystal etc. Forrest Gump is different because they took existing video of those people and super-imposed Tom Hanks into it. And we didn't have close-up shots of those faces either, whereas we did with Tarkin and Leia. Leia looked more jarring than Tarkin because she was in an extremely well lit environment with the white-walled and bright interior of the Tantive IV.

It should also be noted that Tarkin's and Leia's faces weren't entirely digitally constructed. They had look-alike performers who had their faces digitally modified to look more like Peter Cushing and Carrie Fisher respectively. Leia was played by Ingvild Deila (http://www.varden.no/kultur/vg-ingvild-fra-skien-far-rolle-i-storfilm-1.1603550), whereas Tarkin was played by Guy Henry (http://cdn2.thr.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/scale_crop_768_433/2016/12/grand_moff_tarkin_guy_henry_split.jpg). Revenge of the Sith had Australian actor Wayne Pygram (https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CM5ktRPUkAAWrv-.jpg) as Average Moff Tarkin without digital modification (they just applied make-up and hair styling to make him bear close resemblance to Cushing, just as they did with MacGregor to make him look more similar to Sir Alec Guinness). But given that it was meant to be a younger version of Tarkin (and also only shown at a distance in darkness), it wasn't absolutely necessary to make him look just like Cushing. Given that Rogue One seems to occur shortly before the events of A New Hope, they've understandably gone to the effort to make Henry and Deila look like their Original Trilogy counterparts.

The voice acting were most likely done a year or so ago (the final year is often post-production, principal photography etc. is usually done early on). This has probably allowed for them to use the original actors for Red and Gold Leaders to voice themselves. The original actor for Red Leader (Drewe Henley) sadly passed away in February this year, but fortunately he was at least able to record his lines before passing. Tarkin was voiced by Stephen Stanton, who also voiced Tarkin in Clone Wars and Rebels. He seems to have improved his ability to mimic Cushing's accent, as I found his accent in Clone Wars to have a too American twang to it. I'm not entirely sure, but IIRC Stanton's Tarkin mispronounces 'data' with the American "day-tah" instead of the English "dah-tah." I might need to listen more closely when I watch it again. But otherwise it was a great improvement over his performance in the animated series where a fair number of American phonics came through. Stanton sounded more distinctly English in Rogue One and I didn't even recognise that it was the same voice actor until I Googled it. :p

Also peculiar how the Star Wars universe - a universe with hyperspace travel and lightsabres - hasn't been able to develop speech therapy techniques good enough to iron out some people's lisps. Director Krennic in Rogue One and General Hux in The Force Awakens both speak with lisps. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to have a go at people with speech impediments, but purely from a science fiction POV it seems odd that a universe with such vastly advanced technology don't seem to have perfected the treatment of lisps (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisp#Treatment). In real life while not perfect, we are able to treat most speech impediments. I wonder if the Stormtroopers are secretly desperately trying not to laugh at their leaders' lisps (https://media.giphy.com/media/IzMA2tuymI8Sc/giphy.gif) like the Centurions in The Life of Brian (http://36.media.tumblr.com/beae09d08288d9de44875bfdb82fb997/tumblr_n91ps1YYQR1rpfnrio2_1280.png). ;)

"I am with the Force and the Force is with the cheese-makers (http://www.okmoviequotes.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/502-Life-of-Brian-quotes.gif)." :p

P.S.: Another really interesting element of Rogue One is how they've blurred the moral lines. While the film still generally portrays the Alliance as goodies and Imperials as baddies, it does also show that heroes often have to make morally questionable decisions in order to achieve their desired results. In other words, the ends justify the means, but that is the same school of ethics that the Empire follows. So the audience is shown a Rebellion that is in some ways merely the other side of the Empire's coin. And in Jehda City we hear one of the Stormtroopers refer to the Rebels as "terrorists," which is pretty much an accurate description of what the Alliance is - left wing terrorists (as described by Randall in Clerks ;)). Rogue One also shows how ironically fractured the Alliance is, with disparate factions and even elements within the same faction failing to cooperate with each other. Something which has proven to be the Alliance's weakness when faced against a far more well organised war machine that is the Galactic Empire. It is only in finally banding together that the Rebels are finally able to successfully obtain the Death Star plans. I can't help but wonder how much better the operation would've been if the Alliance had just agreed to go with Jyn in the first place, rather than allowing a small band of rogues to go it alone, then only to reinforcement them later on. Imagine if it'd been a more concerted effort from the get-go, like say the Rebel assault on Endor etc. But I suppose they needed a reason to explain why the plans were aboard a lone and un-escorted Corvette.

P.P.S: I really loved how they recreated Darth Vader's suit from A New Hope rather than the later episodes. That's an awesome level of attention to detail. :D Compare this with Vader's suit in Revenge of the Sith which was actually based on his suit in Return of the Jedi. Rogue One Vader's suit is faithfully accurate to the way that his costume looked in A New Hope; the helmet lenses are red, not black, and there are no silver stripes on his pauldron.
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Star%20Wars/starwars_darthvader_zpsqkjiq8wo.jpg
L-R: Revenge of the Sith, Rogue One, A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi

[SharkyMcShark]

Something else I enjoyed is the implicit explanation of the small size of the attack for against the Death Star - the Rebel fleet was smashed days before.

[GoktimusPrime]

Good point. The movie also tries to explain why the Death Star just happened to have such a critical flaw built into its design, something that's been the butt of many jokes. It's not the most perfect excuse (as parodied in this CollegeHumour video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agcRwGDKulw)), but obviously they can't undo what already exists in canon, so given what they're working with it's not a bad attempt. :o

I'm eager to see the Honest Trailer for Rogue One, because if anyone can nitpick flaws in a film, it's the Honest Trailer guys. :) And these days a lot of filmmakers are saying that they want to make their films "Honest Trailer proof." ;) Evidently not Michael Bay. :rolleyes: But a good movie is one which Honest Trailer finds difficult to find fault in. Case in point: Honest Trailers - The Empire Strikes Back (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pg1obK0Qfo). They really couldn't find much fault in this film, which goes to show how good it is. :cool:

[Sinnertwin]

Is this worth watching from a story telling point of view?
I mean, we all know where it's going, but is it a meaty story which makes you go ahhh, hmmmm, or... yes, that was interesting, all while quietly stroking your goatee, or is it going to be another Disney safe movie with the occasional fan nod and fight scenes thrown in? I just don't want to see Fast and Furious: In Space, if you know what I mean.

[Facepunches]

Is this worth watching from a story telling point of view?
I mean, we all know where it's going, but is it a meaty story which makes you go ahhh, hmmmm, or... yes, that was interesting, all while quietly stroking your goatee, or is it going to be another Disney safe movie with the occasional fan nod and fight scenes thrown in? I just don't want to see Fast and Furious: In Space, if you know what I mean.
Spoiler: There is that one scene in where they jump a TIE from one building to another :p

[GoktimusPrime]

Is this worth watching from a story telling point of view?
I mean, we all know where it's going, but is it a meaty story which makes you go ahhh, hmmmm, or... yes, that was interesting, all while quietly stroking your goatee, or is it going to be another Disney safe movie with the occasional fan nod and fight scenes thrown in? I just don't want to see Fast and Furious: In Space, if you know what I mean.
Absolutely. :) One thing I love about Rogue One is that in the absence of any Jedi, the story focuses entirely on non-Jedi characters as its protagonists. One of the protagonists is Force-sensitive, but not a Jedi. The only proper Force User we see is Darth Vader. And this is accurate to the way that the Galaxy is set up in A New Hope, because as Tarkin says to Vader, "The Jedi are extinct, their fire has gone out of the universe. You, my friend, are all that's left of their religion."

[CoRDS]

Saw this yesterday with my 12yr old son
it was amazing. the feel was very starwars, it was definitely a WAR movie

[SharkyMcShark]

I can confirm that this film stands up to a second viewing.

After the second time around though I feel even stronger that all the bits with Saw Gerrera and his insurgents were reasonably pointless. The part with the mind reading squid monster was probably the low point of the film.

I'd have much preferred that time to have gone to getting to know a bit more about some of the tertiary protagonists. The film would be stronger if that time was used to give some character to the commando squad and Blue Squadron.

[i_amtrunks]

The Saw parts were weak, I wonder if they trimmed some. The whole mind reading beast made no sense and I am not sure why it was left in when the rest was ignored.

I also was a fan of the ending even though some of the deaths were dull, but not everyone can go out in a blaze of glory. That being said Blazes death was very underwhelming, considering that there was a battalion of troops firing moments before who should've still been firing after Chirrut had been wiped out. Blaze shouldn't have made it to Chirrut let alone another 20 metres up the beach.

I do wonder if the set designers and effects designers were pulling their hair out at having to keep the 1970s look to the Death Star when everything else was made to look so much better! :p

[GoktimusPrime]

While Saw's role could've been smaller, I wouldn't say that they're useless - unlike say Jar Jar Binks in Phantom Menace. Saw does play his part in the story, namely...
* Saving Jyn and raising her. This also showed who Saw used to be as opposed to who he became later on. Apparently Saw originated from the Clone Wars series (season 5?) but I have yet to watch it, so I guess the character may make more sense for those who are more familiar with the TV series. At least it's not just an "insert Expanded Universe character for the sheer heck of it," as we saw in the Prequels with Aayla Secura etc.
* It allowed Galen to send an Imperial defector (the pilot) to the Rebels. Galen had ties with Saw's Rebels but not with the actual Alliance themselves. The Alliance initially sought out Saw and the pilot in order to find Galen and assassinate him.
* Demonstrating how disorganised the Rebels were, which would have contributed to how it's been so difficult for the Rebels to overthrow the Empire. It's also more realistic in terms of how rebellions/terrorist organisations work. Just look at Al Qaeda, the Taliban, ISIS etc. - these organisations all hate each other and may even fight each other, but they certainly aren't united. And this isn't a new thing either. Even Monty Python's Life of Brian parodied this phenomenon with all the various rebellions keen on overthrowing the Romans to liberate Judea - the Judean People's Front, the People's Front of Judea, the Popular Front etc. And that brilliant scene where the two Centurions just stand and watch the People's Front of Judea and the Campaign for Free Galilee wipe each other out! It's stupid but it happens!

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/montypython_judeanpeoplesfront_zpsd1lzl9hi.jpg

Ultimately, if you removed Saw from the story, the outcome would change. Jyn may have fallen into the hands of the Empire (or died on her own), the pilot would never have made contact contact with the Alliance and the Death Star plans would never have been stolen. This makes Saw an important piece, even if he is kinda weird. Boss Nass and Jabba the Hutt and even Yoda when we first meet him (he's a mischievous imp who steals Luke's food!) are all weirdos, but they all contributed to the plot. Jar Jar Binks on the other hand contributes nothing to almost the entire story of The Phantom Menace. The Jedi would have found their way to Theed without him - it may have taken a bit longer, but they would've gotten there. And Jar Jar's entire presence on Tatooine was completely useless. He didn't do ONE thing that was remotely important on Tatooine. Stepping in animal dung? Stealing food with his tongue? Sniffing animal farts? Getting a numb tongue from a pod racer? Being told not to eat with his tongue at the table? NONE of that is remotely relevant to the plot. They advance nothing in the story and are completely useless.

While I understand that Saw Gerrera may not be the most likable character around, I just wouldn't put him in the same "useless to the story" basket that Jar Jar is in. The brain slug scene to me was meant to show just how utterly paranoid and mentally unhinged this man had become, and why he was no good as an ally to the Rebellion any more. Even Saw realised that he had become redundant to the cause which is why he elected to stay and die on Jehda. Not even Jar Jar had the decency to drown himself at Ohta Gunga. :p


I also was a fan of the ending even though some of the deaths were dull, but not everyone can go out in a blaze of glory. That being said Blazes death was very underwhelming, considering that there was a battalion of troops firing moments before who should've still been firing after Chirrut had been wiped out. Blaze shouldn't have made it to Chirrut let alone another 20 metres up the beach.
I actually liked that as it lent more realism to the movie. As CoRDS said, it's definitely a war movie. And yeah, people die in really undignified ways in warm, just look at Saving Private Ryan or any other movie which accurately portrays warfare. It sucks.

Rogue One takes Star Wars away from the swashbuckling fun adventure that we typically see and moves towards a more realistic war movie. Just as well these super-hot blaster rounds cauterise wounds on impact and we don't see blood gushing everywhere! One incredible scene was seeing that Rebel Commando, the one who tried to take the bunker, later die from his wound.

And I gotta say... K-2SO may be my favourite droid in the Star Wars universe. He's even funnier than See-Threepio (and not nearly as lame/camp - remember that before fans hated on Jar Jar they hated on Threepio) and possibly more versatile than Artoo Detoo. And he can shoot better than an entire squad of Stormtroopers! K-2SO's destruction was one of the most heart-wrenching moments in the Star Wars films IMO. Seeing his eyes flicker out, it felt as though K-2SO's sacrifice was every bit as noble as the other Rebels... it made you momentarily forget that droids are non-living in Star Wars. Losing a droid in the SW universe is like losing an iPhone with Siri. :p

[Meister]

So I just got to see Rogue One.

Whilst if I had to be critically honest I would have to admit it's not a "perfect" movie, however as a Star Wars fan (particularly of the original trilogy) I personally found it extremely enjoyable, particularly that final act.

I'm a fan of Gareth Edwards, I think he has a unique talent for the visual build up and climax of a scene (I.e. The hologram scene between Jin and her father during the first test of the Death Star is a prime example of this, which I think was executed superbly). I think he did a good job overall, even though the final product apparently is an altered form of his original vision (really hope they release the original directors cut of this at some point inthe future)

Anyway, for anyone who would be asking what is the purpose of this movie, I think the best way I could personally answer is:

- It just makes Star Wars better.

And to me that is something special In itself and worth the watch.

Now please excuse me as I need to put on A New Hope. May the Force be with you

[Ralph Wiggum]

For me, growing up with the Lucasarts games, especially with the X-wing series and Dark Forces, this was a match made in heaven.

[drifand]

I predicted everything as it was. I knew many lives were lost and I expected it.
I was kinda hoping for a twist that Vader was not entirely turned and actually turn over the plans to the rebellion lol.

[ITZTRU]

I predicted everything as it was. I knew many lives were lost and I expected it.
I was kinda hoping for a twist that Vader was not entirely turned and actually turn over the plans to the rebellion lol.

Lol. Huh? You "predicted"? "Expected"?
You're not the biggest Star Wars fan, are you? :confused::p

[Ralph Wiggum]

I found it interesting in that the significant loss of Rebels during the Scarif battle, including all of Rogue One, Blue Squadron and a large part of the fleet (including the flagship) made it seem more of a pyrrhic victory than an all out victory. Certainly the opening crawl of A New Hope made it look better than the outcome of Rogue One:


"It is a period of civil war. Rebel spaceships, striking from a hidden base, have won their first victory against the evil Galactic Empire.

During the battle, Rebel spies managed to steal secret plans to the Empire's ultimate weapon, the DEATH STAR, an armored space station with enough power to destroy an entire planet.

The cost in obtaining the Death Star II schematics and the Emperor's plans to be present were clearly alluded to in RotJ when Mon Mothma states that "many Bothans died to bring us this information."

[Krayt]

.... Mon Mothma states that "many Bothans died to bring us this information."

Awww.... poor old Manny (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Manuel_Both-Hanz)

[drifand]

So what's next rogue two on why second Death Star is still
Poorly designed?

[Krayt]

So what's next rogue two on why second Death Star is still
Poorly designed?

What???????

You realise for #2 they flew into the reactor itself... no exhaust port...

and the plans were "ok"... to the emperors eyes... everyone who knew of Galens "flaws" is dead by the time the Medal Ceremony commences... so they just go... "Get the plans, fix that trench Vader says they aimed for... and make it bigger"

[SharkyMcShark]

One of the things I love about this film is how it contextualises a lot of what comes after it the Original Trilogy films.


The Battle of Yavin makes more sense from an in universe point of view now because the Rebel fleet was smashed about two days before hand, which is why there was no cap ship support. Red and Gold Squadron arguably get wiped out so quickly probably because they're so combat fatigued.

The Tantive IV being over Tatooine at the start of ANH isn't a coincidence anymore - Leia was swinging past to pick up Obi Wan on her way to Alderaan.

Obi Wan teaching Luke, leaving Tatooine and the Death Star sequence is more meaningful. The way Rogue One portrayed it was that the Rebellion leadership knew that Bail knew where Obi Wan was, but that he wouldn't go to him unless things got particularly dire. Taken with Rogue One in context, Obi Wan arguably knew that the fact they were reaching out to him meant that things had gotten really bad so he knew it was time to accelerate things.

The Return of the Jedi stolen shuttle gambit being an entirely predicted and failed trick on the part of the Rebels has greater meaning now too seeing as that's exactly how Rogue One managed to sneak into Scariff.



As a fan of the Star Wars EU some of the biggest thrills in this film for me came from seeing things I'd read about committed to film.

Y-Wing bombing run on a Star Destroyer like in the X-Wing books? Check

Darth Vader absolutely wrecking everything in his path like in The Force Unleashed or Dark Lords of the Sith? Check

Starfighters completely smoking AT-ATs like in Isard's Revenge? Check (I am aware they're actually AT-ACTs in this film)

Suicide mission led by a tough as nails female to steal the Death Star plans, just like at the end of Rebel Dream? Check

Bizarre TIE variants that we'll likely never see again, just like most EU books? Check


So what's next rogue two on why second Death Star is still
Poorly designed?

The Death Star 2 was still under construction. The whole point of that entire gambit was to have the station look like it was still under construction, leak the location and that the Emperor was on board to draw out as many Rebels as possible, and then have the superlaser operational to wipe out the Rebel fleet.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Yeah iirc Death Star II once completed would've been impervious with no outward weaknesses. The path into the main core I assume would've been sealed up once construction was completed.

Hence why the Emperor allowed the Rebels to find out the location of Death Star II, knowing it was too tempting a target (or the only chance to take it down) whilst under construction.


The Battle of Yavin makes more sense from an in universe point of view now because the Rebel fleet was smashed about two days before hand, which is why there was no cap ship support. Red and Gold Squadron arguably get wiped out so quickly probably because they're so combat fatigued.

Actually the pre-battle Yavin briefing in ANH makes it clear that capital ships would be decimated by the Death Star's main defenses consisting of turbolasers (can't be bothered digging up the quote). I'm sure the Rebels had other fleets in reserve but starfighters were clearly the way to go.

[Krayt]

As a fan of the Star Wars EU some of the biggest thrills in this film for me came from seeing things I'd read about committed to film.

Y-Wing bombing run on a Star Destroyer like in the X-Wing books? Check

Darth Vader absolutely wrecking everything in his path like in The Force Unleashed or Dark Lords of the Sith? Check

Starfighters completely smoking AT-ATs like in Isard's Revenge? Check (I am aware they're actually AT-ACTs in this film)

Suicide mission led by a tough as nails female to steal the Death Star plans, just like at the end of Rebel Dream? Check

Bizarre TIE variants that we'll likely never see again, just like most EU books? Check



Speaking of things like this... i so thought the Hammerhead was going to do an X-Wing game run through the control towers on the SSDs...

[drifand]

What???????

You realise for #2 they flew into the reactor itself... no exhaust port...

and the plans were "ok"... to the emperors eyes... everyone who knew of Galens "flaws" is dead by the time the Medal Ceremony commences... so they just go... "Get the plans, fix that trench Vader says they aimed for... and make it bigger"

Yah what? I think is still silly weakness imo. Especially big enough for a falcon to fly in. Of course my opinion.

Come to rethink it, the chances of you hitting a bullseye is a lot harder than the second Death Star. Luke had the force to get the shot, not many pilots can ace it. Second Death Star is basically get the shield down and is just a matter of getting pilots in. No Jedi skills required as shown.

[SharkyMcShark]

Yeah iirc Death Star II once completed would've been impervious with no outward weaknesses. The path into the main core I assume would've been sealed up once construction was completed.

Hence why the Emperor allowed the Rebels to find out the location of Death Star II, knowing it was too tempting a target (or the only chance to take it down) whilst under construction.



Actually the pre-battle Yavin briefing in ANH makes it clear that capital ships would be decimated by the Death Star's main defenses consisting of turbolasers (can't be bothered digging up the quote). I'm sure the Rebels had other fleets in reserve but starfighters were clearly the way to go.

I suppose there is the "It's defenses are designed around a direct large-scale assault" line.

In a way though I suppose it does give greater meaning to the ROTJ assault then, and explain that line better - the audience had no idea before ROTJ that the Death Star could do low power ship destroying shots.

[Paulbot]

Even the path into the Death Star II wasn't an easy thing for the Rebels to get to; only two of the fighters managed to make it to the reactor without being destroyed.

Because we didn't see capital ships in ANH, and saw them gathering at the end of ESB and attacking in ROTJ, I had assumed that the rebellion had a much smaller number of big ships at the time of ANH - and the events of that film helped more rebel and add their forces to the mix. So seeing the big armada jump in during this film surprised me. (Even though I've played games like Xwing where there was a big fleet for game purposes).

[Ralph Wiggum]

Well...actually Lando told the fighters to split up in order to try get some of the pursuing Tie Fighters off his back :)

I certainly agree that the Rebels would've gained more support following the Battle of Yavin. But we didn't see Rebel capital ships in ANH simply because of where it was set. The only planets/moons we saw were Tatooine and Yavin 4. And I reckon the Rebels would've ordered any capital ships out of Yavin 4's orbit once they knew the Death Star was approaching.

[Jetfire in the sky]

Yah what? I think is still silly weakness imo. Especially big enough for a falcon to fly in. Of course my opinion.

Come to rethink it, the chances of you hitting a bullseye is a lot harder than the second Death Star. Luke had the force to get the shot, not many pilots can ace it. Second Death Star is basically get the shield down and is just a matter of getting pilots in. No Jedi skills required as shown.

The shield is the main point here, that's what the Empire relied upon pre completion to protect Death Star II.
Yes it took a force wielder to make that glorious shot on the one weakness that was implanted by the designer of the original Death Star but isn't that now the point since R1? ;):p

As a modern canon SW guy and having dropped the previous EU "canon" TFA is a bit of a shemozzle and is realistically a reboot of Star Wars without being a reboot. R1 delivered on a lot of levels, it didn't try to create it's own Methos or pre-retcon stuff for ep 7 and beyond. It's a very solid story and imho is the best introduction to Star Wars for a non Star Wars fan.
If you look at the film on it's own; it's a good space action drama with characters who's plight moves you and as a stand alone it would open up a tonne of questions. That to me is why it would be perfect as "Star Wars 1" :eek::p

[drifand]

In terms of difficulty I think a new hope was rather more difficult especially when you have a freaking ace pilot darth Vader on your arse. What was it? 2m shaft?
Is a one of a shot.

Not saying rotj was easy, just saying it was a bit simpler.

Anyway the movie was fine, as some people comment some actors were not even necessary in it. In any case, is still better than episodes 1-3 anyday

[Wheelie]

Liked it.

[SuspectimusPrime]

The standard Deathtroopers were spot on with their aim against the rebels on the beach - sharpshooting them even when they were hidden behind crates. However the two senior-level Deathtroopers with pauldrons who were with Krennic were killed too easily by Cassian and Jyn when those two were awkwardly hanging by one arm each?

I would have liked to see the Deathtroopers use more creative methods of earning their namesake.

Perhaps a hand-to-hand or melee showdown scene with Chirrut & Baze. TFA has already shown us a glimpse of how good Stormtrooper melee battles can be. Extra movie-points for Donnie Yen smashing the Deathtroopers' helmets/armour to reveal a grotesque Frankenstein patchwork of cyborg implants that are keeping them alive. But, oh well, this is a Disney movie :p

This might tie in nicely with the question of why there aren't anymore Deathtroopers after Krennic's demise - if they were simply an elite commando squad, surely given time the Imperials could have trained more (by say the Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi).

[SharkyMcShark]

The standard Deathtroopers were spot on with their aim against the rebels on the beach - sharpshooting them even when they were hidden behind crates. However the two senior-level Deathtroopers with pauldrons who were with Krennic were killed too easily by Cassian and Jyn when those two were awkwardly hanging by one arm each?

I would have liked to see the Deathtroopers use more creative methods of earning their namesake.

Perhaps a hand-to-hand or melee showdown scene with Chirrut & Baze. TFA has already shown us a glimpse of how good Stormtrooper melee battles can be. Extra movie-points for Donnie Yen smashing the Deathtroopers' helmets/armour to reveal a grotesque Frankenstein patchwork of cyborg implants that are keeping them alive. But, oh well, this is a Disney movie :p

This might tie in nicely with the question of why there aren't anymore Deathtroopers after Krennic's demise - if they were simply an elite commando squad, surely given time the Imperials could have trained more (by say the Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi).

As I understand it canonically they were the personal military guards of the officials on the Death Star I project, so they were likely rolled into other parts of the Stormtrooper corps after R1.

[Ralph Wiggum]

I've yet to find a cool piece of Rogue One merchandise to buy. My collecting has restricted to Transformers Masterpiece only, but I allowed myself a Artfx+ Kylo Ren and FO Stormtrooper after Force Awakens. I'd like a cool, high quality piece for Rogue One but am yet to find something I like.

[SuspectimusPrime]

As I understand it canonically they were the personal military guards of the officials on the Death Star I project, so they were likely rolled into other parts of the Stormtrooper corps after R1.

That makes sense. Would be good to see further screen time for that armour though!

[SharkyMcShark]

I've yet to find a cool piece of Rogue One merchandise to buy. My collecting has restricted to Transformers Masterpiece only, but I allowed myself a Artfx+ Kylo Ren and FO Stormtrooper after Force Awakens. I'd like a cool, high quality piece for Rogue One but am yet to find something I like.

Is there not a Black Series Death Trooper Helmet?

I need that at some point (and the Black Series OT Stormtrooper) for my shelf.

[DaptoDog]

Watched it on Sunday. Really enjoyed it though I did like The Force Awakens more. Will watch it again over the Christmas break and will take my son this time since there were no gory deaths or other bad scenes.

Really liked the CGI on Tarkin, thought it was much more realistic than Leia. I think his age lent it to look more authentic.

The final scenes were great, really cool how they tied it into A New Hope.

[klystron]

The standard Deathtroopers were spot on with their aim against the rebels on the beach - sharpshooting them even when they were hidden behind crates. However the two senior-level Deathtroopers with pauldrons who were with Krennic were killed too easily by Cassian and Jyn when those two were awkwardly hanging by one arm each?

snip...

Thats coz Cassian is a bad-ass!
:rolleyes:



I've yet to find a cool piece of Rogue One merchandise to buy.

Me too, but I'm leaning toward the Black Series 6" K-2SO. Looks pretty nice.

[GoktimusPrime]

Thoughts about Rogue One after a second viewing.

Trust is the recurring motif in this story. The entire movie is hinged around the issue of trust. This is a really important recurring theme throughout the story - the loss and building of trust, and how this ultimately links to hope, which is the motif of Episode IV.

I really don't mind Saw Gerrera, and upon a second viewing I think that he's even more important to the plot than some may give him credit for. As I mentioned before, his initial importance is in taking care of Jyn after her mother was killed and father abducted by the Imperials. If Saw had never found her, she'd probably perish in that hole. Jyn's separation and reunion with Saw are all really important parts of her character development. Her separation sowed seeds of despair in Jyn. She is betrayed by a close friend and loses trust in everything and everyone. She stops believing in the Rebel cause and relinquishes herself to keep "looking down" (as she puts it) in order to ignore the injustices caused by the Empire in the galaxy.

Saw himself has also stopped trusting people, becoming suspicious to the point of paranoia. He has a tentacle monster to interrogate people with (even when he doesn't really need to), cos I guess it's cheaper/easier than acquiring an IT-O interrogation droid (as favoured by the Empire). I do agree that the tentacle monster scene is rather pointless to the plot though, but I guess it's there to show just how distrustful Saw had become. And it's a quick scene (unlike say, the Pod Race), so I don't dislike it per se (but I don't really like it either).

Saw, as well as other characters, also serve to show how there's a lot of mistrust among the Rebels. This shows how bad a state the Rebels have become and why they've had so much trouble toppling the Empire before. Importantly, it also shows how desperate the Rebellion was for hope.

But the sacrifice that Saw and his Rebels planted the seeds of trust among Rebels in the Alliance. Seeds which would sprout during the Battle of Scarif, because there are moments in the battle where we hear Alliance Rebels cry out that they were avenging their comrades in Jehda. The Rebel Commandos who are deployed on the beach from the U-Wing all call out, "FOR JEHDA!" as they run into battle, and I'm sure I heard X-Wing pilots say something similar too. There was a feeling of 'we cannot save our friends from Jehda, but we can damn sure avenge them.' The Rebels became a unified force (no pun intended) by the end of Rogue One, and it was this unity which finally posed a threat to the Empire.

Saw also represents a turning point for Jyn, because it is during her reunion with Saw that Jyn turns from being apathetic towards the cause to being passionate. So without that reunion, Jyn would have never undergone that character development and her father's message would probably never have left Jehda. As I said before, I really useless character is one where the plot of a story would not change if you removed that character; like Jar Jar Binks in Episode I or Daniel Witwicky in the entire 3rd Season of Transformers G1. As annoying as Jar Jar is, his appearance in Episode II was actually crucial, because it was Senator Binks who helped Palpatine obtain greater power in the Senate and pass the legislation to activate the Clone Army - and yes - the great joke is that Jar Jar helped to kick start the Empire. :o Jar Jar's appearance in Episode III is useless, but he only appeared as a background character in one scene (i.e. the procession at Padmé's funeral) - but importantly he's not detracting from the story (because he has no dialogue :D), so it's okay.

Another cool thing (which I did notice in my first viewing) is that Galen and his family wore the same "Gi" style of clothing as Luke, Uncle Owen and Obi-Wan Kenobi in A New Hope. I find this important because when I was a kid, I saw the Gi as being the way that commoners would dress in the Star Wars galaxy. Luke and Owen were moisture farmers - as were Galen and Lyra. I assumed that Obi-Wan Kenobi dressed in a Gi because he was disguising himself as a peasant. The robe that he wore was also worn by Owen and Jawas -- I thought it was something to protect beings from heat and sand. So I liked how Rogue One went back to the Original Trilogy's original concept for the Gi... a commoner's dress, not Jedi uniform. One thing I was looking forward to seeing in the Prequels was how the Jedi originally dressed. Would it look something like Luke Skywalker's costume in Return of the Jedi? Nope... it was the same Gi and robe as worn by freakin' moisture farmers. Whaa-?! :confused: My fansplanation is that Jedi dress as commoners as a mark of humility. But this doesn't explain why Obi-Wan didn't ditch his robes after going into exile... surely he'd dress as a different kind of commoner or something else unassuming if the Empire are explicitly hunting Jedi. Heck, you'd think that a lot of commoners would stop wearing the Gi and change to something else just to avoid being mistaken for Jedi!

I counted the number of times "hope" was said in the film. Six times. ;)


The standard Deathtroopers were spot on with their aim against the rebels on the beach - sharpshooting them even when they were hidden behind crates. However the two senior-level Deathtroopers with pauldrons who were with Krennic were killed too easily by Cassian and Jyn when those two were awkwardly hanging by one arm each?
From a RPG/miniature gaming POV I see it in two ways:
1/ Cassian and Jyn won initiative. They got to shoot first, forcing the Imperials to be on the defensive. This was because they saw the door opening and knew that the Imperials were on the other side whereas the Imperials had no idea where Cassian and Jyn were, so the Rebels had the element of surprise.
2/ Line of sight. Cassian and Jyn were under cover, the Deathtroopers were exposed.


I would have liked to see the Deathtroopers use more creative methods of earning their namesake.
Creative but arguably less realistic. The Riot Control Trooper in The Force Awakens went into a melee fight with FN-2187 really because he was all butthurt over seeing a fellow Stormtrooper back stab the First Order. He allowed emotions to cloud his judgement, because logic dictates that guns are better than swords. Duh. But the Riot Control Stormtrooper probably wanted the personal satisfaction of beating him up. From a story-telling POV the scene demonstrates that although Finn has some skill with a lightsabre, it's certainly not perfect. The Stormtrooper actually defeats Finn and would've killed him if Han Solo hadn't intervened. And of course, we see Finn get pwned later on by Kylo Ren. The Death Troopers have no personal feelings about the Rebels, and at an elite level you'd expect them to be able to emotionally detach themselves and focus on completing the mission at hand. The Death Troopers did their fair share of death-dealing... they just did it by shooting because that makes more sense than trying to kill someone via melee! (re: the scene in Indiana Jones where Indy just shoots the dude with the swords :p)

Besides, if you want to start picking on names, the Death Star and Starkiller Base never destroyed a star. Neither did Star Destroyers. The only Imperial weapon that did that was the now non-canonical Sun Crusher.


Really liked the CGI on Tarkin, thought it was much more realistic than Leia. I think his age lent it to look more authentic.
Bear in mind that Tarkin was always shown in darker settings than Leia. The Death Star has black interiors and the black backdrop of space, as well as the dark colours on Tarkin's uniform vs the white interior of the Tantive IV and Leia's white costume. I noticed that Tarkin never stood right next to Krennic, he always spoke with him from a distance. Could it be that they didn't want Krennic's white uniform to further illuminate Tarkin's face? They also had Leia continually looking out of the window into space rather than turning around to face Captain Antilles... could it be so that the light from the corridor would continue to come from behind her?


The final scenes were great, really cool how they tied it into A New Hope.
Agreed! This video (https://vimeo.com/196357074) shows how smoothly the ending of Rogue One blends into the beginning of A New Hope. With other Star Wars movies, there are periods of years or even decades between them, but here it feels like only hours or minutes have elapsed between Rogue One and A New Hope! :eek: The Devastator is literally in hot pursuit of the Tantive IV!

And when I watch the opening scene in A New Hope, there are now lines which hold greater meaning after seeing Rogue One including...
* "There'll be no escape for the Princess this time."
* "You passed directly through a restricted system. Several transmissions were beamed to this ship by Rebel spies. I want to know what happened to the plans they sent you.

And Vader's anger is more justified now. When we see Captain Antilles and Leia answer Vader's questions, it becomes apparent that they're trolling the Sith Lord, and trolling him hard. Like when Bart Simpson is caught red-handed doing something wrong and he goes, "I didn't do it."
e.g.
Cpt. Antilles: "We intercepted no transmissions. This is a consular ship. We're on a diplomatic mission."
Leia: "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm a member of the Imperial Senate on a diplomatic mission to Alderaan..."

Diplomatic mission? Really?! Vader freakin' saw you at the Battle of Scarif -- he nearly boarded the Tantive IV before it broke off from the Rebel flagship. Vader knows that the plans were aboard that Corvette and the Rebels knew it too! They might as well have told Vader that they were just waiting for a mate. :p It's that weak an excuse! Cos before Rogue One, Vader's killing of Captain Antilles seemed to make no sense because dead men can't talk. Vader's mission is to get those plans, surely torturing and interrogating prisoners makes more sense than killing them. But now it makes sense! Vader's asked Antilles a direct question, and Antilles' smart alec reply is basically the verbal equivalent of giving Vader the finger and telling him to go fornicate himself. Little wonder why Vader killed him. He couldn't kill Leia because she's a Senator -- even holding her was tactically dangerous, as pointed out to Vader by an Imperial officer (re: generating sympathy for the Rebellion in the Senate). Vader may well have killed Leia too if not for the diplomatic/political repercussions.

[Krayt]

Creative but arguably less realistic. The Riot Control Trooper in The Force Awakens went into a melee fight with FN-2187 really because he was all butthurt over seeing a fellow Stormtrooper back stab the First Order. He allowed emotions to cloud his judgement, because logic dictates that guns are better than swords. Duh. But the Riot Control Stormtrooper probably wanted the personal satisfaction of beating him up. From a story-telling POV the scene demonstrates that although Finn has some skill with a lightsabre, it's certainly not perfect. The Stormtrooper actually defeats Finn and would've killed him if Han Solo hadn't intervened. And of course, we see Finn get pwned later on by Kylo Ren. The Death Troopers have no personal feelings about the Rebels, and at an elite level you'd expect them to be able to emotionally detach themselves and focus on completing the mission at hand. The Death Troopers did their fair share of death-dealing... they just did it by shooting because that makes more sense than trying to kill someone via melee! (re: the scene in Indiana Jones where Indy just shoots the dude with the swords :p)



You make it sound like Finn fought a random stormtrooper.... FN-2199 was squad mate with Finn from Training to Jakku.... That s why it's such a personal thread in the story

[GoktimusPrime]

I counted the number of times "hope" was said in the film. Six times. ;)
Actually, I think it was five... twice in the scene where Jyn is reunited with Saw, twice during the Alliance council meeting, and once from Leia.

[Krayt]

Actually, I think it was five... twice in the scene where Jyn is reunited with Saw, twice during the Alliance council meeting, and once from Leia.

Cassian said the line to Jyn first

[philby]

One of the things I love about this film is how it contextualises a lot of what comes after it the Original Trilogy films.

The Tantive IV being over Tatooine at the start of ANH isn't a coincidence anymore - Leia was swinging past to pick up Obi Wan on her way to Alderaan.



it wasn't a coincidence back then, she says in the hologram message that her mission to bring him to alderaan has failed, so she was always going there to get him.

[philby]

I went to a midnight screening in Melb then again on the weekend with my dad, I loved it :D Like someone already mentioned, it had a more visceral feel to some of the action scenes which was really intense for star wars and i think worked really well. Initially i wasn't sure how to take Tarkin, it was probably distracting a bit in the first showing but then was better the 2nd time.

I really enjoyed it and will definitely be keen to watch it again with some mates.

I am very curious if they will release deleted scenes and talk about the changes, because there were quite a few differences to some of the previews.

I missed seeing Chopper but did catch the Ghost a few times from Rebels. Someone thought they saw a lasat like Zeb but I missed that as well.

I loved the detail in the ship explosions and collisions too, that was really cool.

Overall really enjoyed it and a worthy addition to the franchise!

[GoktimusPrime]

Come to think of it...
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Star%20Wars/starwars_evazan_jedha_zpslnhqbich.jpg

[GoktimusPrime]

Darth Vader vs Rebels in Rogue One - in 16-bit!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biYMDphGTcg

[MEEEGGGAAATTTRRROOONNN!!!]

Darth Vader vs Rebels in Rogue One - in 16-bit!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biYMDphGTcg

All your Hope are belong to us.

[CHILENO20]

Finally saw it! So much fun, IMO it's better than part 7! Those X-Wing shots are absolutely stunning :eek:

[SuspectimusPrime]

Darth Vader vs Rebels in Rogue One - in 16-bit!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biYMDphGTcg

They missed my fav fatality move - Vader using the force to slam a guy on to the ceiling and then slicing him in half as he slowly walks past!

[shockNwave]

Went to see it a second time. I have to buy the score next time I visit JB HI-FI.:)

[Bumbleb33]

Love my K2SO figure even more now having seen the film :D

[laproblematique]

Love my K2SO figure even more now having seen the film :D

Can't wait for the Hot Toys K-2SO - looks so good!

[GoktimusPrime]

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Star%20Wars/starwars_rogueone_CGIfaces_zpsxcv1kybf.jpg
Behind the scenes of how they made Tarkin's face (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMB2sLwz0Do)

[Raider]

So the stars aligned and the missus and I finally had a chance to head to the movies to see something other than Sing or Trolls... Rogue One! It has been mighty difficult ensuring there were no spoilers since it's release (I mean we all knew what was going to happen but the journey was the adventure) but it was well worth it. Loved it. Perfect ending imho. Oh and I am clearly not a true fan as I was totally like "where are all the Bothans?" and needed to Google the answer...

[SuspectimusPrime]

"where are all the Bothans?"

Considering how badly the Rebellion fleet was decimated in Rogue One, yet still not deserving a one-liner nor a sullen moment of silence in A New Hope, I have extremely high expectations for the Bothans. :D

[GoktimusPrime]

A lot of people have criticised Vader's appearance in Rogue One as being needless. And while I was able to justify his assault on the Rebels, I initially felt that his appearance on Mustafar wasn't necessary as it doesn't really contribute to the plot - and this is true.

But I just realised that that scene does establish something else that contributes to A New Hope -- just how bitter his hatred towards Obi-Wan Kenobi had become. By living at the site where Obi-Wan nearly killed him, Vader is constantly reminded of his defeat which would continually fuel his obsession with wanting to kill Kenobi. Whether the Emperor chose for Vader to live there or if Vader himself chose to live there in order to further feed his own rage is not known, but the result is the same.

This explains why Vader is so keen to immediately hunt down and kill Obi-Wan when he felt his presence on the Death Star. And why there wasn't any kind of emotional reunion between the two characters - no argument, no sustained conversation... just Vader telling Obi-Wan how he's been itching to finish their fight that they had 20 freakin' years ago. :eek: And he didn't order any Stormtroopers to accompany him - it had to be one on one because this was such a personal fight for Vader.

Okay, Vader's interaction with Krennic wasn't really necessary, but it allowed the story to show us how Vader lives, which in turn helps to flesh out (no pun intended) Vader's character and motivations. And we know that the ending of Rogue One explains why Vader's so urinated with the Rebels at the beginning of A New Hope, because those Rebels (including Leia) are trolling Vader so hard!
"Where are the plans?"
"Plans? Dunno what you're talking about, dude. We're a diplomatic mission."
"Pig's bum! I was literally chasing you guys with the plans at your door just an hour ago!"

And the Mustafar scene also helps to further explain why Vader is so obsessed with Obi-Wan Kenobi two decades after their fight. We even see Grand Moff Tarkin in ANH basically tell Vader, "Seriously? Just let it go." - but Vader can't. Mental health practice tells us that the standard way of dealing with trauma is diversion therapy. It's not like in movies and TV shows where people are made to recall their traumatic events (that does happen if they have to testify as a key witness in court, but this is also why this kind of testament is really difficult for victims as it's causing them mental anguish and goes against the healing process; worse still when cases drag on and the witness needs to testify multiple times :(). As far as treating patients are concerned, treatment focuses on getting them to basically stop dwelling on unpleasant events and think about other more positive things. In other words, to get on with their lives. Aside from his suit being a permanent reminder of his greatest defeat, living in proximity to where it happened would possibly be an even bigger and constant reminder. Imagine if a victim of the Boston Marathon bombing who had to have limbs amputated were to live in a building just across the road from where the explosive had gone off. And they were socially isolated - no friends, no family... just looking out the window at the site of that horrible event every day. It would drive you insane... and this explains Vader's state of mind and yeah, his obsession with Obi-Wan must've been part of this insanity.

[SuspectimusPrime]

A lot of people have criticised Vader's appearance in Rogue One as being needless. And while I was able to justify his assault on the Rebels, I initially felt that his appearance on Mustafar wasn't necessary as it doesn't really contribute to the plot - and this is true.

But I just realised that that scene does establish something else that contributes to A New Hope -- just how bitter his hatred towards Obi-Wan Kenobi had become. By living at the site where Obi-Wan nearly killed him, Vader is constantly reminded of his defeat which would continually fuel his obsession with wanting to kill Kenobi. Whether the Emperor chose for Vader to live there or if Vader himself chose to live there in order to further feed his own rage is not known, but the result is the same.

This explains why Vader is so keen to immediately hunt down and kill Obi-Wan when he felt his presence on the Death Star. And why there wasn't any kind of emotional reunion between the two characters - no argument, no sustained conversation... just Vader telling Obi-Wan how he's been itching to finish their fight that they had 20 freakin' years ago. :eek: And he didn't order any Stormtroopers to accompany him - it had to be one on one because this was such a personal fight for Vader.

Okay, Vader's interaction with Krennic wasn't really necessary, but it allowed the story to show us how Vader lives, which in turn helps to flesh out (no pun intended) Vader's character and motivations. And we know that the ending of Rogue One explains why Vader's so urinated with the Rebels at the beginning of A New Hope, because those Rebels (including Leia) are trolling Vader so hard!
"Where are the plans?"
"Plans? Dunno what you're talking about, dude. We're a diplomatic mission."
"Pig's bum! I was literally chasing you guys with the plans at your door just an hour ago!"


I really like this explanation of Vader's castle on Mustafar (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xowl0PShTNI), however have not gone through the author's sources. As usual, spoiler alert, and watch at your own risk :)



And the Mustafar scene also helps to further explain why Vader is so obsessed with Obi-Wan Kenobi two decades after their fight. We even see Grand Moff Tarkin in ANH basically tell Vader, "Seriously? Just let it go." - but Vader can't. Mental health practice tells us that the standard way of dealing with trauma is diversion therapy. It's not like in movies and TV shows where people are made to recall their traumatic events (that does happen if they have to testify as a key witness in court, but this is also why this kind of testament is really difficult for victims as it's causing them mental anguish and goes against the healing process; worse still when cases drag on and the witness needs to testify multiple times :(). As far as treating patients are concerned, treatment focuses on getting them to basically stop dwelling on unpleasant events and think about other more positive things. In other words, to get on with their lives. Aside from his suit being a permanent reminder of his greatest defeat, living in proximity to where it happened would possibly be an even bigger and constant reminder. Imagine if a victim of the Boston Marathon bombing who had to have limbs amputated were to live in a building just across the road from where the explosive had gone off. And they were socially isolated - no friends, no family... just looking out the window at the site of that horrible event every day. It would drive you insane... and this explains Vader's state of mind and yeah, his obsession with Obi-Wan must've been part of this insanity.

Hatred and vengeance is important, but don't forget that Mustafar should be the last place Anakin sees Padme alive; after choking her, he gets beaten by Obi-Wan, and waking up he is told by Sidious that Padme didn't survive. Scene 231 (http://www.imsdb.com/scripts/Star-Wars-Revenge-of-the-Sith.html).

Using your analogy, I see it more like the perpetrator of the Boston Marathon living in close proximity to the site where the love of his life also perished (along with his limbs), when she should not have been there; and then later on runs into an old friend who brought her there (against his plans).
(Also, not-trying to romanticise the Boston Marathon Bombing from an alt POV here...)
At that stage, even killing Obi-Wan won't really give Vader closure.

[philby]

maybe don't look at it from vader's view, but from krennic? he is desperate for this thing to work, he thinks it is his ride to advancement and he wants the emperors approval. instead of the emperor he is stuck with trying to impress tarkin and then gets summoned to see vader. so it could be as much about showing krennic never being able to get an audience with the emperor or that he has to keep going little bits of the way before he will be allowed the priveledge to see him?

[griffin]

Finally got around to seeing it yesterday as it was no longer playing at my nearest theatre, so I had to go to the nearest 16 cineplex... and it only had one session on each day so it was probably in its last week.
I guess being out for 2 months is a long time for movies now, with the distributors trying to break opening records and get everyone to see it in the first week. I just thought that a Star Wars movie would be out longer than this.
Now I can read this topic to see what others thought.
I think the movie fits in between Ep 3 and 4 well, leading straight into Ep 4... making me want to go watch it. But it is ultimately a sad movie.... and I guess it should have been obvious while watching it that all these new major characters had to die before the end of the movie, or else, where were they in Eps 4 to 6. That would make it harder to generate too many fans of those characters or sell as many toys.
I would have liked more involvement by pre-existing characters, but understand why it was difficult or impossible.
It was a little too slow for me during much of the first half, but it was the first time we got a good look at how vast and powerful the Empire really was. (We didn't really see any Imperial strongholds or occupied worlds in Eps 4 to 6 other than the two Death Stars and Tatooine).

[Ralph Wiggum]

Truth be told I didn't think everyone had to die at the end just to avoid any future conflict with Ep 4, 5 and 6. It's a big galaxy and they could've given any reason why all or part of Rogue One weren't around for the subsequent movies (ie captured, recuperating, doing another mission, etc.) But it makes for dramatic viewing and all that so on we go.

[SuspectimusPrime]

I hope Ezra and Kanan gets a good reason to explain why they weren't somewhere in the background with Hera.

[philby]

I think the movie fits in between Ep 3 and 4 well, leading straight into Ep 4... making me want to go watch it. But it is ultimately a sad movie.... and I guess it should have been obvious while watching it that all these new major characters had to die before the end of the movie, or else, where were they in Eps 4 to 6. That would make it harder to generate too many fans of those characters or sell as many toys.
I would have liked more involvement by pre-existing characters, but understand why it was difficult or impossible.
It was a little too slow for me during much of the first half, but it was the first time we got a good look at how vast and powerful the Empire really was. (We didn't really see any Imperial strongholds or occupied worlds in Eps 4 to 6 other than the two Death Stars and Tatooine).

i think you might be the only person complaining it was too slow in the first half! i think the consensus among critics was that it jumped around way too much. it is the first 'spin-off' star wars movie so having more pre-existing characters imo would have made it worse. i really liked the new characters and their journey, i think it would have detracted from it having too many of the old ones in there as they aren't the focus.


I hope Ezra and Kanan gets a good reason to explain why they weren't somewhere in the background with Hera.

they were sitting in the ghost ready for battle? you see the ship 3 times or something as well as hearing general syndulla called over the P/A and chopper rolling past too.

[Megatran]

Things that didn't make sense (to me):
+ Star Destroyer colliding in to another whilst in battle formation.
+ Jyn Erso fitting into an Imperial Ground Crew's uniform. Did it belong to Gary Coleman.
+ Jyn Erso in an Imperial Ground Crew's uniform with the face visor up.

[GoktimusPrime]

I think one important thing about Rogue One's sacrifice was that it inspired the rest of the Rebel Alliance to unite and finally become a force to be reckoned with. Rogue One showed us that the Rebels were divided; you had Mon Mothma and Saw Gerrera's rebels both fighting a common enemy and each other, which happens in real life (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WboggjN_G-4). One historic example of this is the Battle of Thermopylae where a group of 300 Spartans, reinforced by 7000 other Greeks, made a noble stand against 300,000 Persians. The battle was a crushing defeat for the Greeks, with all 300 Spartans killed and about half of the non-Spartan Greeks surviving and retreating (which wasn't an option for the Spartans as they'd rather die in battle than return in defeat). At least Rogue One managed to steal the Death Star plans! :D But in both cases, their sacrifice proved to be a significant morale boost which helped to unify their respective factions. :)

[Megatran]

No Bothans were sacrificed. :p

[GoktimusPrime]

No Bothans were sacrificed. :p
I wouldn't mind seeing that as another spin-off movie. :) But would audiences mind if the main protagonists were aliens? :confused: Alien diversity in Hollywood FTW!

[SuspectimusPrime]

they were sitting in the ghost ready for battle? you see the ship 3 times or something as well as hearing general syndulla called over the P/A and chopper rolling past too.

I saw Chopper and heard General Syndulla called out, but missed seeing the ship. Just googled it! Though that still doesn't confirm if Ezra and Kanan are around.


No Bothans were sacrificed. :p


I wouldn't mind seeing that as another spin-off movie. :) But would audiences mind if the main protagonists were aliens? :confused: Alien diversity in Hollywood FTW!

I expect that spinoff to make the Omaha Beach landing in Saving Private Ryan seem like a cakewalk. :)

Also, Mon Mothma must be present to witness the entire unmitigated experience. ;)

[philby]

Things that didn't make sense (to me):
+ Star Destroyer colliding in to another whilst in battle formation.
+ Jyn Erso fitting into an Imperial Ground Crew's uniform. Did it belong to Gary Coleman.
+ Jyn Erso in an Imperial Ground Crew's uniform with the face visor up.

well the destroyer was disabled and then pushed by the corvette, they didn't just randomly collide. although that happens... :(
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melbourne%E2%80%93Voyager_collision

[Megatran]

The puny size of the Hammerhead corvette to the Star Destroyer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ck30oYMl2F8). W-T-F. And why were the Star Destroyers in so tight orbital formation?

[Ralph Wiggum]

The puny size of the Hammerhead corvette to the Star Destroyer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ck30oYMl2F8). W-T-F. And why were the Star Destroyers in so tight orbital formation?

You're probably thinking of Hammerhead Cruisers which are similar but capital ship sized. The Hamerhead Corvette is more akin to the Corellian Corvette / Blockade Runner which is what Princess Leia was using. And we know that ship is small enough to fit into the main Star Destroyer's docking bay.

Also Star Destroyers being in tight formation allows them to act as fire support to each other as well as being a huge psychological impact when seeing two bearing down on them. We see the tight formation again in ESB when Han flies around some Star Destroyers, nearly causing them to collide (that scene when the officer shouts, "Take evasive action!"

[Megatran]

I'm referring to the one in the embedded youtube link. :)

That scene in ESB was also non-sensical.

[Ralph Wiggum]

I know, so...are you saying the corvettes are too small to push a Star Destroyer? Can you be clearer?

[SuspectimusPrime]

The puny size of the Hammerhead corvette to the Star Destroyer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ck30oYMl2F8). W-T-F. And why were the Star Destroyers in so tight orbital formation?

Because it looks good. :)
https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-biggest-flaws-in-Star-Wars-films/answer/Desmond-Ng-23?srid=SbSu

[Trent]

The puny size of the Hammerhead corvette to the Star Destroyer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ck30oYMl2F8). W-T-F. And why were the Star Destroyers in so tight orbital formation?

There were so many things wrong with that scene that my brain gave up.

[philby]

The puny size of the Hammerhead corvette to the Star Destroyer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ck30oYMl2F8). W-T-F. And why were the Star Destroyers in so tight orbital formation?

well, they are in space where there is no friction resistance and the ship is disabled so it can't push back. i can't remember what effect the difference in mass would have. i guess it was just the little corvette that could :)

[Sinnertwin]

Darth Vader:

-His castle on Mustafar makes sense as it fuels his hatred and anger. I can't quite remember if it was in print or on a YouTube video, but I do recall this being discussed and it makes sense to me. You've lost the love of your life, your best friend and mentor left you to die a horrible death. Nobody is going to be whistling happy tunes after that.

-Having said that, his appearance in Episode 4, to me anyway, doesn't reflect this when he meets Obi Wan on the Death Star.
There's no emotion in his voice, no anger, no hatred & revenge fuelled aggression like we saw when Obi Wan left him to die in ROTS. The best he can manage is a cool



I've been waiting for you, Obi Wan. We meet again at last. The circle is now complete, when I left you I was but the learner, now I am the master.
Your powers are weak, old man.
You should not have come back.

Does that sound like someone who has been holding a mighty grudge for 20 years?

While I think that it's great that we saw Darth Vader slice through a squadron of Rebels (the poor schlub on the ceiling gets my vote for the best death in the SW universe) & drop those phat one liners, I really don't think that it adds any extra dimensions to his characterisation in Episode 4.

[philby]

This is the problem with 'prequels'.. :rolleyes:

[Megatran]

Anyone else put on their Darth Vader voice when reading those lines?

I've been waiting for you, Obi-Wan. We meet again at last. The circle is now complete, when I left you I was but the learner, now I am the master.

Your powers are weak, old man.

You should not have come back.

[Sinnertwin]

Now try it in EP1 Anakin's voice
Wot ahhh medikloriuhns?

[GoktimusPrime]

The Mustafar scene could have been omitted, but I think that Vader's appearance towards the end contributed to the story as it really helps to tie Rogue One into A New Hope and suddenly the opening scene of ANH with Vader's Star Destroyer chasing Leia's Corellian Corvette feels more intense. :) Vader's appearance in R1 was certainly nothing like Jar Jar Binks' appearance in The Phantom Menace where it took up a notable amount of screen time across multiple scenes and ultimately contributed nothing to the overall plot.

As for the tightness of the space battles -- look, a LOT of things in Star Wars is scientifically inaccurate. This includes:
The tightness of an asteroid belt. IRL asteroids are actually thousands of km apart.[list]A smooth rolling ball of a droid like BB8 would have skidded uncontrollably on sand.
A hollow planet like Naboo being able to form, let alone having sufficient/stable gravity
No sound in space
A parsec is a measure of distance, not time. 1 parsec = 3.26 light years.
Blaster bolts (particle beams); most Star Wars movies and other canonical material accurately show blaster bolts not drawing blood. Real life experiments indicate that this might be true if a particle were ever used to shoot a living target, as these pulses are so powerful that they instantly ionise atoms on contact. However, in The Force Awakens, blaster bolts were shown to cause bleeding. Although it may be due to the rupturing of internal organs beyond the point of impact? :confused:
Starkiller Base: sucking all of the energy of a star into a planet would vapourise that planet.
Flight dynamics: Star Wars spaceships and fighters fly like fixed-wing aircraft do in atmosphere, such as banking into turns. Spacecraft never need to do this since they do not rely on air pressure to fly.
The destruction of the Second Death Star would have been catastrophic for Endor. The sheer level of radiation from the explosion of the Death Star's thermonuclear reactor would have destroyed everything and everyone on the surface of Endor facing the Death Star. And anyone who may have been lucky to survive that would probably be killed by the massive chunks of falling debris from the Death Star, hurtling towards the moon's surface at 355,000km/h, hitting with nearly quadruple the amount of force as the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs.
Hyperspace. Let's not even go into the extremely complicated science of faster-than-light speed, but suffice to say that its portrayal in Star Wars isn't the most realistic. George Lucas even admits this and says that Hyperspace in Star Wars is nothing more than a plot device because he needed a way to get his characters from one end of the galaxy to the other without taking hundreds or thousands of years
It's highly unlikely that so many diverse alien races can all happen to survive in an Earth-like atmosphere/planet. They would more likely be like Plo Koon, requiring a device that allows them to breathe in what they consider to be alien atmospheric conditions. Although a LOT of scifi stories do this, not just Star Wars.
One word: Midichlorians.
Light sabres. Again, I won't bore you with an essay on how impossible this is, but again Lucas explained that this was another plot device because he wanted his main characters to have a close-up interpersonal melee weapon rather than guns. He of course created the Force to explain why light sabre users could survive in a universe where people used blaster guns.
...and many more (https://www.amazon.com/Science-Star-Wars-Astrophysicists-Independent/dp/0312263872). ;)

BUT at the end of the day, it doesn't matter. Because Star Wars isn't meant to be science fiction, it's really a fantasy story set in space. It's similar to say Greek/Roman myths or The Lord of the Rings, but the difference is that it has a futuristic space setting rather than an ancient historical setting.

"What do you mean, an African or European swallow?"

[GoktimusPrime]

The circle is now complete...
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Star%20Wars/starwars_rogueone_DVD_zpsc3xtxpvh.jpg

[Meister]

Still rocking the DVD's there Gok?, and shouldn't that be a new hope not empire?

Now on a serious note, honestly, how many times did you repeat that last scene when you finally whacked it on at home? :D

[GoktimusPrime]

Still rocking the DVD's there Gok?, and shouldn't that be a new hope not empire?
In my defence I've been sick all week and sleep deprived. :o Noone else has picked it up though, so a coveted No-Prize for you! :D


Now on a serious note, honestly, how many times did you repeat that last scene when you finally whacked it on at home? :D
Not yet, although there are videos on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5f_B5uJZeEQ) which stitch the ending of Rogue One in with the opening of A New Hope. Better than switching DVDs as there's no lag. ;) Although the earlier vids showed the Darth Vader fight up to the capture of Princess Leia... the videos I'm finding now are showing less and those previous ones have been removed. I suspect that it may be for legal reasons now that the home video versions are out.

P.S.: I've watched this film twice since I bought it. Once yesterday (since I was sick at home). I was still sick at home today but was working from home but I watched it again w/ my daughter after dinner. :D The good thing for her now is that she can ask me all the questions that she wanted to ask before when she saw it in the cinema but couldn't because she knows better than to talk during a film at the movies (unlike some grown adults :rolleyes:). She's now worked out why all of the Rogue One characters had to die as she said to me, 「だから後で見えない・・・」("That's why you don't see them later.") Yep. :)

[Bartrim]

https://youtu.be/XilxJHv9qBI

This is girl's reaction to the end of Rogue One is awesome. Forget the critics and haters and everything else, these movies are meant to be enjoyed and the sheer genuine enjoyment this girl gets from this scene is so beautiful.