Note: This review was originally posted on my Letterboxd.
The Mandalorian and Grogu is weird. Not so much because of the content of the film, although the ratio of funky little guys and odd creatures is delightfully high, but more so its release and what it means for Star Wars as a whole. On paper it makes sense. The Mandalorian is probably the most popular of the Disney+ shows and Grogu since his debut has become an icon so naturally if Disney was gonna give any of the Star Wars shows a theatrical release this is the route to go.
But there’s striking while the iron’s hot and then there’s The Mandalorian and Grogu. Retrofitted from plans for a potential season four and released three years too late, The Mandalorian and Grogu feels less like an event, like Star Wars films of the past, but more so a desperate attempt by Disney to recapture fans attention. That might be harsh considering that I did overall have a good time with The Mandalorian and Grogu, even with a very tedious second act, but it’s hard to shake the feeling that Star Wars is gonna be nothing more than fan service and memberberries trying to appease the most insufferable fan base imaginable.
Enough of my hang-ups. Time for my thoughts on the actual movie and it’s… pretty good honestly. In fact for the first 40-60 minutes it borders on being great. Following a fun opening sequence of Mando hunting an imperial bounty, which starts with Mando, Pedro Pascal returning once again, being Star Wars John Wick and ends with him taking on three AT-ATs, the movie immediately introduces the main mission: Rescue Jabba’s son Rotta so the Hutts will give us the information to bring a former Imperial War-Lord to justice. Not the most complex set-up in the world but Mandalorian and Grogu isn’t trying to be anything more and for a while this is good enough.
The first act is a blast of set-piece after set-piece as Mando and Grogu go to the planet of Shakari, which looks suspiciously like LA from Blade Runner but with the added bonus of a sandwich shop owner that’s a four-armed monkey looking guy voiced by Martin Scorsese. (Have I mentioned that there’s a bunch of funky little guys in this movie and each one is great.) It’s everything on Shakari that showcases why The Mandalorian is great with city chases, Mando wreaking havoc in bars full of bad guys, and gladiator battles with a variety of space monsters. And Ludwig Göransson’s score helps aid in making these sequences stand out delivering a score that feels completely different from what we expect from Star Wars.
For a while The Mandalorian and Grogu delivers on the popcorn matinee fun that Star Wars has done so well in the past. However, once we leave Shakari the pacing of the film grinds to a halt and doesn’t really pick back up until the last 30-40 minutes. There’s fun to be had, Grogu is always charming to watch and the introduction of a family of Babu Frik guys is probably the best thing this franchise has ever done. But the movie kind of meanders for a while unsure of what to do and pivots back and forth between being a muppet movie, amazing, and an extended version of the rancor sequence from Return of the Jedi, not as amazing.
The movie does pick up steam in the final act and ends on a high note but it never reaches the peak of its first act. But that first act is so much fun and it’s always delightful to see puppets in movies again so I recommend it once it hits steaming which this feels like it was made for.
3/5
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