I expected it to be good and it was

Rating: 9/10 (17 January 2017)

I grew up with the original trilogy and all the merchandise in the 80s, so I have lived and breathed Star Wars, it's a part of me and I know the originals inside out. In the 90s I was a young adult and interested in other things, so the second trilogy passed by quietly - altho I did see each film. I liked Force Awakens, it was a trip back to childhood and a well made Star Wars movie.
Rogue One had my expectations high for a couple of reasons, #1 it being a new original Star Wars movie, but close #2 being the director Gareth Edwards. I absolutely loved his movie Monsters. Godzilla wasn't quite as good, but the atmosphere was there. I think Edwards has a great eye for cinematography, use of close ups in contrast to wide open spaces and great locations. He also clearly understands the need of drama and buildup and not going for straight up action. This was very clear in Monsters, which is basically a talkie, not much action there. Even Godzilla has relatively little action and a long build up, but the whole movie didn't work quite as well as Monsters.
Rogue One looks amazing, everything is spot on. Cinematography, locations, fx, the cast and how they look. It was great seeing men with sideburns and vanishing hair, it was of course obvious to style them according to the first Star Wars movie made in the late 70's for continuity, but it was very well done. The cast doesn't look like they are superstars, they look real and gritty.
The story works. In the beginning the movie moves quickly from one place to another, but it sticks together quite well. It's basically quite a straight forward movie, even to a point of being maybe a tad too long for what it has to tell. I was surprised how much this movie mirrors todays conflicts in middle east and the fact that it clearly takes the terrorist point of view. I'm also quite surprised how easily people have accepted this or not seen the connection. There is even a holy city by the name of Jedha and there is a real city of Jeddah close to Mecca. It really is not that far fetched to see rebels as extremist terrorists and empire as the "world police".
Acting is good. While Felicity Jones' portrayal of Jyn Erso is not quite as interesting as it could be, I'd say Cassian Andor by Diego Luna is a well written and portrayed character. I also liked Ben Mendelsohn's Krennic as the villain, very well acted. K-2SO as the C3PO style comic relief works perfectly, this is really a perfect example of a well done comic relief. The rest of the cast - while quite big - are all good and interesting, well portrayed characters.
Actions scenes are amazingly done, even tho I'm not a huge fan of action, but here it works.
After the amazing use of music for atmosphere in Monsters, I was slightly disappointed with the soundtrack in Rogue One. The John Williams connection is there, the original themes when ever Vader or a familiar character is on screen, but the rest of the themes are a bit so-so. There are variations of the original themes, which made me think "that's not how it's supposed to go", slightly distracting. And the themes didn't feel emotionally that fitting. I understand you can't go with an electronic soundtrack for a Star Wars movie, but I may have tried a bit different themes and orchestrations for a movie like this.
All in all highly recommended. Stands on it's own, but there are spine tingling moments for Star Wars fans, especially in the end. While Force Awakens was a bit of a pastiche of the originals, this one takes it's own approach for most part. It's more of a sci-fi war drama, but with a proper dose of Star Wars we know and love.