A side story

Rating: 8/10 (15 December 2016)

There's some minor spoilers in this review, but to me they are not bad enough to ruin any of the enjoyment of watching the movie.
For the previous Star Wars movie, I was all aboard the hype train. For this one, I was looking forward to it, but I was not really following the press about the movie leading up to it, so I went in with less expectations (though still very excited to see it). And I'm happy with what I saw.
This movie is very much a side story, and it is felt throughout it. You can see the Star Wars saga in it, not just through the setting, but also through the feeling you get from it. It's a very contained story, on the fringes of the mythos we are familiar with. The soundtrack is and off-shoot of the familiar Star Wars soundtrack. The locations are partly familiar, but also new. It would be natural to watch this along with the rest of the saga, but it would be like a break from the Skylwaker-story, rather than an addition to it. So in the sense that it is a "Star Wars story", and not an "episode", it works really well.
There is a lot of elements and references to the other movies, and I know some has been critical to these. Mostly I did not have a problem with them, as many of the characters that were familiar, really were relevant from the story, like Tarkin, Vader and the heads of the rebellion. There are even some references that I'm sure most people won't notice (and many that I am certain I did not get). One I appreciated is that you get to see who had the call sign "red five" before Luke got it in the first Star Wars movie. One reference I can understand people are critical of, is the inclusion of C3P0 and R2-D2. While the fact that they are there probably is not controversial, they're scene added little beyond "here we are!", which kind of took you out of the film. But it was also nice to see them, and to know that Anthony Daniels didn't miss out on this film (as he has been in the rest of them).
Regarding Vader and Tarkin, I must admit that some of the scenes with them made me feel a bit uneasy. It was strange to hear Darth Vader talk in that setting, but say different tings than I have heard him say so many times. I'm sure that the voice was the same (the actor was the same, so it should be), but it still felt a bit off. Maybe this is something one gets used to after seeing the movie more times. Tarkin's appearance was a joy, but I still don't feel modern day CGI is good enough for this. I've spoken to people who didn't notice, but I was thrown into the uncanny valley as soon as he appeared. But I am still glad they included him.
This is a different type of Star Wars film, and maybe what I liked best about it was how it showed you the realty of a rebellion. How the rebel groups live dangerous lives, aren't always organized, and can be considered terrorists. This was especially clear in the fight in Jedha's streets. The parallels to the battle we there and what's going on the Middle East are obvious, and hit me hard. I did not expect that from watching a Star Wars film, and I am really happy that they went there. They even touch upon how rebels fraction into groups that work for the same goal, but in different ways.
And the fact that this is a stand alone film, also leaves them open to sacrifice more. I won't go into the fate of the various characters, but I will say that I wish we got to bond more with them, so that last part of the movie would have a bigger effect on you. I loved many of the character's, but I've watched other movies that had me care more for the character's in the same amount of time. I'm not sure if they held back, or if they just couldn't fit it all into the run time, but either way I feel we as the audience missed out on many good character moments.
My biggest disappointment with this movie, was probably the music. It's good, I guess I am not complaining about it, but I felt that it was a bit underwhelming. There's some of the music from the sagas, but of the new music, it often just sounded like vague imitations, instead of new, powerful themes. Maybe this is also about having to get used to the music, and having it grow on you.
And as with all the major Star Wars movies, this is a movie that people will end up seeing many times. And with time, it will be another one of the classic Star Wars movies.