We didn't need Rogue One, but I'm happy it exists

Rating: 7/10 (22 December 2017)

Yeah, this whole movie wasn't needed, but for what it is I'm happy it brought us back to the original setting, feel and look of the original trilogy
Story: Jyn Erso is sent on a mission to find her father Galen, who helped design the Empire's ultimate weapon, the Death Star, and retrieve the stolen Death Star plans, in the hope of defeating this great and deadly weapon. On the way she is accompanied by some guy with an accent, a robot, a defected Imperial worker-guy, a blind guy and his friend, and other stuff happens to
I'm writing this after writing my review for The Last Jedi, and so far, this film is the only one I haven't got anything bad to say about. I know what the end goal of the film is and I know it's achieved, but the story of A to B was enjoyable enough. I wanna see that old rebellious spirit shine through the characters, and mostly it does.
Tarkin and Leia, both brought back to life using CGI. Not at the point where it's Dawn of the Planet of the Apes realistic, but a good start, and no I didn't think it was 'disrespectful' to the actors or any of that; it's bringing the characters to life, not the real life people. I like Jyn, but there's nothing really deep or interesting about her.
I liked seeing C3PO, R2D2, Darth Vader again, with Vader having one of the best scenes in the franchise at the end. The new 'engaging' characters, let's talk about them. Cassian Andor, he's just a guy, nothing special about him. K-2S0, the comic relief droic, he was fun. Definitely felt something when he was killed off. Chirrut and Baze; both fine characters. They were there pretty much to remind the audience that the force exists (well that, and to sign off on the diversity quota). I liked Chirrut's belief in the force aiding him through his blindness, and his whole "giving Jyn hope" arc. The defected Imperial pilot Bodhi was a little interesting, definitely gives you the realisation that some, if not A LOT, of empire members aren't actually evil; most are just doing their jobs in the face of being killed. That was an interesting idea to include. Forest Whitaker as Saul Gerrera, what a joke. Does nothing, and dies like a chump. A stand out character I guess was Krennic, but by the end I got bored of him, and I knew he'd die by the end anyway. It was also nice seeing Mon Mothma again.
Overall, I don't love or hate this movie. I guess for the longest time fans always wondered "who was it that got the rebellion the Death Star plans", so here we are. It's the best Star Wars fan film to date. Could have had any characters or settings fill that mystery, and they did it well. Gareth Edwards did a fine job.