Rebel Moon: Part One – A Child of Fire Film Review

Ignore the tomato cartel, Rebel Moon is way better than most space operas that have hit theaters since 2015.

Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire stars Sofia Boutella as Kora, the film’s reluctant hero and most wanted person in the galaxy. Joining her are Michiel Huisman as Gunnar, Charlie Hunnam as Kai, Djimon Hounsou as Titus, Bae Doona as Nemesis, Jenna Malone as Harmada, Anthony Hopkins as Jimmy, Staz Nair as Tarak, Cleopatra Coleman and Ray Fisher as Devra and Darrian Bloodaxe, Fra Fee as Balisarius, and Ed Skrein as Atticus Noble.

It took some time to get going, but I found everything enjoyable by the end of the film. Derivative as Hell, but enjoyable nonetheless. Then again, many books and movies also inspired the first Star Wars.

It’s not a perfect movie by any means. There were some style-over-substance moments and shots that were out of focus on purpose. The movie also moves slowly until Kora and Gunnar leave Veldt to find warriors to fight Noble and his Motherworld forces.

When the galaxy-wide journey began, the movie hooked me. Each member of Kora’s team has their own backstories and arcs that make them their own unique characters. Staz Nair’s Prince Tarak Decimus and Bae Doona’s Nemesis are both cool and have scenes that I think are highlights of the movie.

Kora is a better character than Rey Palpatine. She’s badass, her backstory is fleshed out, and you believe in her mission. She really loves her new home planet and will die defending her people from Atticus Noble. She and Jyn Erso would be best friends.

She’s badass, but not in a “Mary Sue” way. She’s an ass-kicker, but you at least know why she’s such a good fighter. She has a bravery and toughness that’s discovered in childhood by one of the main characters and then develops into greatness, as opposed to her being a nobody who’s just great at being great because the script demands it. Let’s normalize realistic character arcs for our female characters.

You readers know by now that I love a good villain as much as I like a good hero. Ed Skrein does a fine job as the film’s main villain. Atticus Noble’s type of character is another space opera-type character we’ve all seen before. He’s the Grand Moff/General Hux/Balance of Terror Romulan type who lives to serve the evil empire. He kills indiscriminately and subjugates with glee. He and Balisarius are not to be messed with.

George Lucas, James Gunn, and Zack Synder are all masters at creating unique planets filled with cool architecture and fun extras. The film features an ancient Romanesque desert planet, a dingy hyper-industrialized mining planet, and a wretched hive of scum and villainy filled with gross weirdos. I’m glad Snyder didn’t have Veldt be another sad desert planet like Tatooine. The village is a poor farming village, but it is a poor farming planet that looks like New Zealand and features real agriculture.

Rebel Moon is Dune meets Star Wars meets Seven Samurai meets Guardians of The Galaxy, with a hint of Blade Runner in the middle. That might seem bad, but I don’t think that’s a problem. It’s a space opera, and all space operas share similarities with the works from before them. Unlike some of the newer space operas, it’s not derivative enough to make you angry, and all of the main characters are treated with respect.

Daniel Rester of Willamette Weekly summed it up well when he said Rebel Moon: Part One is a “simple but entertaining sci-fi yarn that wears its influences on its sleeve,” and I think that is the best description of the movie I have yet to see. I’m excited to see how The Scargiver and her ragtag group of warriors take down the Motherworld in April. Up next for Snyder is Rebel Moon: Part Two – The Scargiver and an R-rated cut of Part One. Which, if history is any indication, will most likely be just a bit better than the original cut.

7.5/10