Good Star Wars prequels DO exist!

Rating: 6/10 (16 December 2016)

Well, that was a neat surprise. I went in expecting maybe some nice action, some great special effects and perhaps one or two good actors. What I got blew me away. I'm not a fan of the Star Wars prequel trilogy, and this movie blows all three of them out of the water.
Firstly, this movie looks fantastic. The cinematography showcased is beyond great looking. Rich colours, great backgrounds, just wonderful. The sense of scale in the movie is really great too. When Chirrut and Baze are being chased by an AT-AT, you feel the size, and the danger the characters are going through. The story is really good. The makers got the backstory of A New Hope, and went more in depth to create a story that is at the same time funny and deep. I hear a lot of people saying that the characters weren't explored in depth enough, and didn't get enough backstory. I vehemently disagree. In Pulp Fiction, did we know the backstories of Jules and Vincent? No, and we didn't have to. The dialogue and acting showcased makes us root for the characters just fine. The same is present here. All six of the main cast are very likable and interesting, and I appreciated that each of them were killed off. Some of the deaths had me nearly tearing up, though others, like the death of Bodhi Rook, kind of came out of nowhere and had no fanfare. The CGI recreation of characters Tarkin and Leia were unexpected, and I think looked pretty good. I could still tell that they weren't real, but they looked very good nonetheless. I also liked the cameos from classic OT characters. Some were expected, like Vader and Mon Mothma, but others were very pleasant surprises, like C-3PO and R2-D2, and Dr Evazon and Ponda Baba.
There are a few things wrong with this film, but they are very minimal. The scene at the end of Vader cutting down rebels felt like a bit too much. Vader certainly didn't have that ferocity in the OT. The start of the film felt choppy, with scenes cutting away to other scenes very fast. The musical score was good, but it didn't hold my interest and ends up being the least of all the Star Wars soundtracks. But really, that's it for negatives.
I hope the rest of the films to come in the future are of this quality, because if they are, we could all be in for a real treat.