The Most "Rogue" of all Star Wars Movies For Sure

Rating: 7/10 (16 December 2016)

Rogue One is the first stand alone movie to be released in the Star Wars franchise, and with that comes some new expectations for the series and more specifically for this movie. With the exception of maybe episode 1 and episode 7 the viewer has had a pretty good idea of what they were going to get from each individual Star Wars movie, we would continue the story from the previous movie and unravel more of the saga. Rogue One tells a very specific story that happens to take place somewhere in between episode 3 and episode 4, but this is not episode 3.5, it is more fleshing out possibly the most beloved universe in movie history, and for the most part it is a success.
One of the really difficult things about how to tell the story of Rogue One is that it does not really have the massive amounts of fan service to draw from. It takes place in a bit of a dark period in the galaxy, not just because it is a war torn galaxy but because we don't know much about the events during this time. There are a few things here and there that are to service the fans, but for the most part this movie introduces us to some new people and places that we have not seen previously, and I think the movie is better for it. It is nice to see what people without the last name of Skywalker are doing, and maybe creating some new characters to inhabit the galaxy.
Rogue One also has the difficult job of being the makeshift bridge between the prequels and the original trilogy, and as stated before they do a great job of not trying to explain everything that happened in that time and instead giving this movie a more focused vision. From the start you can tell that while this movie is about the Star Wars universe, it is definitely has it's own feel. Rogue One is more a war movie than any of the other Star Wars movies. This means a darker tone and a less fun time at the movies. This is not necessarily a bad thing, it helps to separate this movie from the main series but will certainly make it a less enjoyable affair.
While not as well casted as episode 7(few movies are) Rogue One introduces some new characters to us and while I won't go nuts about the acting chops in a Star Wars movie, Felicity Jones holds her own as a bonafide star in Rogue One, even though her character has some likability flaws at the beginning. Another thing that would be silly to judge harshly in a Star Wars movie is the writing. The overall plot has some holes that are covered up in some of the laziest ways I can possibly imagine, and the dialogue is mostly forgettable, but the overall scope of the plot is great, and will satisfy almost every fan of the first 7 movies.
Star Wars has been up at the top of my favorite movie franchises since I was a tot, and just the fact that I get to see a new movie with Darth Vader and storm troopers in it makes me very happy, but Rogue One is not a perfect movie by any stretch. The main thing that I think was missing from episode 7 and hopefully will play a bigger part in the coming movie was space battles. In a movie titled Rogue One there better be some high level fighter pilot battles, and while there is a decent battle at the end, I still felt shorted a bit. This is kind of the overall feel of Rogue One, yes its a good Star Wars movie and yes Vader is in it, but the twist at the end of the punch is missing. All in all I am pretty happy that we are getting solid Star Wars movies almost yearly now, and to be honest I saw keep them coming.