I tried to stay away from reviews and spoilers and for the most part I was successful. I knew the gist of the story but I really didn't know any details or even the names of any of the new characters other than the main character, Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones).
The story is told in five parts. The first part which introduces Jyn when she is just a child and sees her separated from her parents. The second part is where the gang or band of rebels and rogues that accompany Jyn are brought together by Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), a rebellion spy. Most of the second part takes place on the planet Jedha. The third part focuses on an attempt by Jyn to reunite and rescue her father, Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen), a scientist who reluctantly works for the Empire on the design of the Death Star. Most of part three is takes place on the planet Eadu. The fourth part, the climax of the movie, is all about the suicide mission Jyn, Cassian, and a gang of rebel spied undertake to infiltrate the Imperial stronghold on Scarif to steal the plans to the Death Star. The final part is an epilogue which serves to bridge the gap between the end of the fourth act and Start Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope.
This is a very different movie from the other seven. In many ways it is a war movie. In another way it is about a voyage of discovery for Jyn. Most of the other characters weren't as memorable. They had their moments but they didn't get fleshed out in the way she did.
I liked this movie a lot. I've always had a soft spot in heart for war films like this one. It bears some resemblance or has something in common with movies like the Seven Samurai, Sahara, Bridge on the River Kwai to name a few of my favorites.
What a ride. They crammed a lot into this movie. There are a lot of subtle callbacks to earlier Star Wars movies. There were a number of moving, emotional moments and which got me teared up. I want to see it again but I'm not sure if I will see if in the theater again or not any time soon. I almost certainly will buy it so that I can stream it at home.
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I started by writing a much longer more in depth summary of the movie. I hate to just delete my work so here's what remains of my first draft:
The story is about Jyn and it isn't. She is the main character but ultimately the movie is also about how the rebels got the plans to the Death Star. She is key to both story lines because Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen), the scientist who built a defect into the Death Star, is her father. He originally worked for what became the Empire. He abandoned that life and took his wife and child and hid as a farmer. The movie opens with him being recaptured by the Empire. His wife is killed. Jyn, who can't be more than 5 or 6 years old, hides until Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker), a friend of the family, comes for her.
The story then flashes forward 10-15 years. Jyn is a prisoner. She is rescued Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), a rebellion spy, who believes she is the key to making contact with Gerrera. She goes along with Cassian despite not trusting him. They (Jyn and Cassian) travel with K-2SO (Alan Tudyk), a droid, to Jedha in search of a Bodhi Rook (Riz Ahmed), a missing Imperial pilot, who it turns out was sent by Galen looking for Saw Gerrera.
Before they find Bodhi they get mixed up in a fight between stormtroopers and other Rebel forces. It is there that they meet sightless Chirrut Imwe (Donnie Yen) and Baze Malbus (Wen Jiang) just before they are taken prisoner by Gerrera's troops. Despite Jyn's past with Gerrera it didn't end well as he abandoned her when she was 16. It is while they are briefly captives of Gerrera that they meet Bodhi and he joins their gang.
The Death Star is recently completed. Governor Tarkin (Guy Henry) orders Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn) to test the Death Star's planet destroying capabilities on a small scale by destroying Jedha City. Gerrera's hideout is outside the city but shock waves destroy it just as Jyn, Cassian, Bodhi, Chirrut, Baze, and K-2SO escape. Gerrera stays behind and is presumably killed as his mountain hideout collapses.
The next part of the story involves the gang traveling to Eadu, where Galen works. They arrive just before Krennic, who is there to find the traitor who send Bodhi to the rebels. They try to rescue Galen, although it seems that Cassian had orders to kill him which he ultimately does not carry out. There is a fight. Krennic escapes. Jyn gets just enough time for a tearful farewell with her father before of he dies of his wounds.
After a brief meeting back at Rebel HQ Jyn, Cassian, the rest of the gang and a number of volunteers head to Scarif to retrieve the plans to the Death Star. They sneak in using a stolen Empire cargo ship which they acquired when they were on Eadu. Things quickly go wrong, an all out battle ensues. They get the plans but the Death Star shows up and destroys the planet before the surviving members of the strike force can escape.
I began this write up with all kinds of detail. Maybe I should trim that down, maybe I will in the future.
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