Good but very different

Rating: 8/10 (21 December 2016)

Rogue One is the first of a series of Star Wars spin off films that really had to set the tone, and I think it did so reasonably well, however as a massive Star Wars fan I left the cinema feeling that the film lacked something.
While the story itself holds up well and has plenty of nods to the original films for all the long term fans out there, I found it lacked a certain sense of adventure that the other films have. There was little characterisation which leaves you struggling to really get behind the characters.
But it wasn't all bad, on the contrary there's plenty of positives, with lots of action and the main battle in the film really taking you back to that galaxy far far away. The CGI was superb, with some really nice surprises popping up. The main droid character K2SO provided much needed comic relief in an otherwise rather grim movie, which is set in the same tone as Empire Strikes Back and seems to be aimed at the 30+ age bracket instead of the 12 year old's all previous movies were aimed at.
Overall the film is very good and definitely worth a watch if you're a Star Wars fan, but can also be enjoyed if you have never seen any of the other films. It's a different kind of Star Wars film that's less Guarfians of the Galaxy and more Saving Private Ryan.