An excellent movie that is something different for Star Wars

Rating: 9/10 (6 January 2018)

This is an excellent movie which breaks new ground for Star Wars, focusing for the most part on a band of unknown heroes rather than the Skywalker clan. It is suspenseful, poignant, hopeful and perfectly captures the feel of the era of the Star Wars galaxy just before "A New Hope".
The Good:
1. The Atmosphere - this is difficult to put my finger on, but something about the atmosphere of this movie is spot on for Star Wars. The director has simply done an amazing job of bringing the Star Wars universe to life, and making it authentic and believable. I suspect this has a lot to do with attention to the smallest details of the sort that the moviegoer doesn't even consciously recognize, but would have missed if they were not there.
2. The plot - gripping and suspenseful, it is also great fun as it answers those nagging little questions you might have from "A New Hope", such as why did the Empire leave a gaping flaw in the Death Star plans anyway?
3. The visuals - stunning as I would expect from a Star Wars film, including the final space battle which is remarkably crisp and easy to follow visually even though it is all presumably CGI.
4. New characters - from Jyn Erso to K-2SO, we are given enough time with them to get some sympathy for them as they face their destiny. We also are led to understand how much courage it took to be a Rebel facing off against the seemingly invincible Empire. Say what you will about the Rebels, but they all had guts.
5. Director Krennic - one almost feels sorry for this character. Yes, he is a slimy little weasel, but one senses that he began life as an ordinary joe and climbed the Imperial ranks through sheer merit, only to always be one step behind his competition including the icy and aristocratic Tarkin. His struggle gives us insight into the ambition and treachery that permeate the Imperial ranks.
6. The Death Star - a character in its own right, it was thrilling to see the original Death Star on screen again, with a powerful musical score to match. We even get to visit some of the same iconic locations from "A New Hope", and the awesome power and menace of the Galactic Empire has never been more clear. This is all the more so since unlike "A New Hope", we get to see and spend time on the planets (or parts of them) which are destroyed by this technological terror, which makes the emotional impact of the superlaser's devastation much more powerful.
7. CGI Tarkin - some people didn't like him but I can't understand why. This was a thrilling performance, and it was great fun to see a classic cinematic villain resurrected on the silver screen. Peter Cushing's estate of course fully approved of this, and I am sure Cushing himself would be very happy to know that his performance was so well received and remembered that fans would want to see him return to the screen in this way decades later.
8. Darth Vader's Castle - this is something completely new and off the charts cool! (And also leads one to wonder if Darth Vader and Sauron share the same architect...) It appears to be on Mustafar, in which case it says a lot about Vader that he would deliberately put his retreat on the same planet where he lost everything - presumably so that he can relive his rage every day, thereby strengthening his power in the dark side of the force. This leads to the next point...
9. Darth Vader himself - it was beyond awesome to see this legendary villain stalk the silver screen once again. Vader in this film is as he originally was, a monster feared across the galaxy. The last few minutes of the film as he faces off alone against the doomed Rebel Troopers are fantastic, and by themselves make this great film worth the price of admission. We can also all be thankful that we still have James Earl Jones with us to reprise his voice work, as there is no Darth Vader without that wonderful voice.
The Indifferent:
1. Not exactly different but mixed, was the appearance of young Princess Leia at the very end of the movie. This is meant to inspire hope, and normally would have, but sadly I happened to first watch this film in the theatre on the same day as Carrie Fisher's tragic passing. So, albeit this is a very personal comment, this final scene for me was very bittersweet and caused the film's high note at the end to fall flat. However, this obviously is in no way the film's fault, and presumably over time as the pain of her loss diminishes, future audiences will be able to watch her appearance in the final scene of the movie and feel the hope and optimism it is meant to inspire. I am quite sure Carrie Fisher would have wanted it that way.
The Bad:
1. Really there is nothing bad about this movie.
Conclusion - you don't need to see this movie to make sense of the Star Wars legendarium but that said, if you don't see it you are denying yourself a richer understanding of the Star Wars universe, not to mention two hours of great fun!