A movie caught between a director and the studio

Rating: 7/10 (15 December 2016)

Rogue One is a movie that wishes to tell the story of the Rebellion's darker side, the anti-heroes who don't care who gets caught in the crossfire be it Imperial or Civilian.
The story follows Jyn Erso, the daughter of Galen Erso, the lead scientist who created the Death Star. In a quest to find her father, she learns that Galen left a critical flaw in the Death Star's design. Jyn joins the Rebellion in hopes to fulfilling her father's wishes.
Director Gareth Edwards tends to focus more on characters rather than spectacle, as seen in his previous films of Godzilla and Monsters. Here, the reverse happens. While Edwards' mastery of scale is something to behold, the large cast of characters have barely a moment to flesh themselves out. The stand-out is Alan Tudyk's K-2SO, a reprogrammed Imperial Droid that can't help but say what's on his mind and Donnie Yen's Chirrut, a devout believer in the Force who cannot wield it.
The film reported a number of reshoots and they can't help but stick out. Just when Edwards wants to take an original turn in the Star Wars universe, a surprise cameo or two pops out of nowhere. Just as the film wishes to go darker, K-2SO says a funny one liner. It feels as though Disney is so afraid of fans disliking their film, they go the opposite direction and stuff it full of fan service, regardless of how it relates to the actual plot.
I don't know if Gareth Edwards' original cut of the film would've been any better, but get the feeling there wouldn't be so much tonal clash if it did. Still, the spectacle alone and the effects from ILM make this film something to enjoy in the theater.