The Force is strong with this, or so they say

Rating: 4/10 (19 December 2016)

I have never truly enjoyed any of the "Star Wars" movies. Seen all of them except "Force Awakens" – which I tried to watch on a flight and got so bored after about eight minutes that switched to something else. Not that it was badly done. I just couldn't find anything to care about.
But I can dig why many people like or even love the Lucas seminal creation. It's the same reason why many still love Elvis Presley, The Beatles or, say, Frank Sinatra. When the first "SW" came out in 1977, it was phenomenal cultural event in a sense that today's cinema lovers can't quite fathom.
The age of blockbuster movies had barely begun, the sci-fi movies in general had never been mass friendly – it was a dry, intellectual or just downright trashy field, and always geek-oriented. And the wider audience had never had a chance to experience such a big-scale, detail-rich, lovingly crafted made up universe.
Sure, the screenplays have always been mediocre. Even "SW" creator George Lucas has freely admitted that he was not a good writer. But fans were happy to satisfy with style and quantity because these movies sure do have lot to offer to the eyes: places, characters, action, design, details...
Don't forget that blockbuster movies were still a new thing. The next trilogy, released from 1999 to 2005, never received the same amount of love because people were much more used to screen spectacles than in 1977-1983. They still admired the visuals and Lucas's team's world creating skills. But it just wasn't the same.
And that may be the reason why I never cared about "SW". I stepped on Lucas's train so late that I had already my firm beliefs about what good story means. I had seen seen many big screen extravaganzas already and acquired a taste for more depth than usual blockbusters are prepared to offer.
Still, I decided to give "Rogue One" a go. The reviewers have already praised the fresh approach where we have a strong female hero and how there's no clear line between good and evil side before and how plays out like a war movie, etc.
But watching it myself, I instantly remembered why I don't care about "SW":
* new faces on screen but the same style of wooden acting and dialogue that feels like characters just reciting their lines instead of really talking to each other
* characters have almost zero depth so there's no really argument for being interested in them, if you are not "SW" fan which makes you interested already
* I didn't acquire a cohesive sense of time and place, just a series of scenes which don't always connect to a greater whole and often don't even have a proper flow.
* For most of the time, "Rogue One" felt like a bunch a short movies that are connected by faces and places. Like a picture book where you have to concentrate only on one or two pages at a time. And many of those pages are not even exciting, maybe due to hammy acting and depthless characters.
* The only part that feels like more than a series of loosely connected scenes is the rebel attack which can really be compared to war movie in its own right.
What I liked about "Rogue One" was this female hero everyone's talking about who never plays on the gender card but acts like a soldier on the battlefield as everybody else. And the visuals are cool as always, all these pictoresque places, interesting details, awe-inducing battles. And, of course, the war movie part. And the heartfelt prologue.
So for me, as a person who doesn't swallow "SW" hype easily, there is maybe an hour of adventure interesting enough for watching and another hour and ten minutes just enduring and hoping it will not get too boring.