![]() As such, any new addition to the canon demands more than just a passing familiarity with the previously established lore, while the slightest infidelity on the filmmakers’ part threatens to upset its followers. At the risk of being sacrilegious, “Star Wars” - with its notions of Jedis and the Force - has become one of the world’s favorite myths, bypassing a number of traditional belief systems in its increasingly cult-like appeal (give it another century, and fandom could well crystallize into worship). ![]() If this all sounds dauntingly technical, that’s because it is. With all due respect to comic-book devotees, this is the “Suicide Squad” audiences have been waiting for this year. And quite a few of the principal characters die, which would be upsetting for young viewers, but provides fans old enough to remember seeing “Star Wars” in theaters with a heroic sacrifice designed to inspire a “Remember the Alamo!”-style rallying cry when it comes time for the Red Squadron to do its business. The plot is designed less like a flashy video game, and more like a down-and-dirty war movie (think documentaries about the conflict in Syria, rather than stodgy World War II films). There are no Ewoks or Jar Jar Binks-like characters here, thrown in just to appeal to pre-school-aged audiences. ![]() Plus (and here’s the aspect that should send longtime “Star Wars” fans into ecstatic orbit), director Gareth Edwards has finally made the first “Star Wars” movie for grown-ups. Now we know why the Death Star has an Achilles’ heel and how that information fell into Princess Leia’s hands. ![]() Not only does “Rogue One” overlap ever so slightly with “A New Hope,” but it takes that blockbuster’s biggest weakness - that a small one-man fighter can blow up a battlestation the size of a class-four moon - and actually turns this egregious design flaw into an asset. Be warned, though: Every detail that follows could dilute the surprise factor of what’s coyly being billed as a Jedi-free spinoff, but might more accurately be described as “Star Wars: Episode 3.9,” so perfectly does it set up George Lucas’ 1977 original. No spoilers there, since earthlings first saw that glorious explosion nearly 40 years ago. ![]() A short time before “ Star Wars,” in a galaxy far, far away, the Rebel heroes featured in “ Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” took the first step that led to the Death Star’s destruction. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |