Rogue One [Official Info] Felicity Jones (Jyn Erso) in Rogue One

Two favourite subtle bits Jones does in the movie, the little anxious baton wave and muttering when K2 grabs the grenade, and her staring down the opening/closing death door above the core like "dammit, I have to deal with this now", also does that when the antenna is misaligned.

Love to see her again but poor Jyn done got blown'd up. Still a better ending than if her and Cassian had escape pod'd away somehow though.

 

Absolutely. RO is a film of real consequences, unlike TROS, while still having a strong sense of hope.

 

The first act of RO also helped to significantly explain Jyn's backstory. So we knew and trusted her as a character.

 

Jyn Erso is still my favorite female Star Wars character and this might be unpopular to say but I like that she wasn't ultimately a force sensitive. She was at the end of the day just like every other Rebel solider fighting for freedom, which makes her sacrifice even more potent IMO. An ordinary person performing incredible acts of valor has always resonated with me more than a Jedi or superhero doing something similar.

Some Jyn art I found from Fantasy Flight games.

 

This.

 

Seems Brie Larson migh have been Auditioning for Jyn Erso.

 

I appreciate what Felicity brought to this role. She helped me to empathize with Jyn. Of course, she always is a wonderful performer. I can't say I've seen a performance from her that I don't like. She was my favorite part of the Aeronauts, a movie that truly frightened me, given all they experienced in the sky on that hot-air balloon. And I saw it in this smaller theater downtown with a friend. My friend was amused by how I would react as though I was in the sky with the characters.



Even when Jyn was a solitary outlaw, she still helped others. That's what I like about her character development. She tries to be this hard loner, but deep down, she cares about injustice.

 

Felicity Jones is one of the best Star Wars actors in the whole series.

 

So I just noticed a small detail about Jyn. She totally uses the force. Well, not really, but kind of.

It's when the Rogue One crew is trying to gain entry into Scarif. Right after Bodhi transmits the clearance code, it cuts to Jyn. And shows Jyn having a moment to herself where she takes out her kyber crystal, looks at it, closes her eyes, and takes a deep breath. Then it goes back to the clearance being granted and everybody being relieved about that.

Now, if you remember, when Lyra gave Jyn that kyber crystal, she told Jyn to trust the force. That had to be what Jyn was thinking to herself when it cuts to her having that moment with the kyber crystal before being permitted entry into Scarif. She was trusting the force, just like her mom told her to. And it worked.

So yea, Jyn is also basically a Jedi.

 

I don't see how that has anything to do with using the force. Hoping that the force might favour them in that situation - if that is even what is happening - hardly means that someone is using the force. It's little different than a human hoping for something to go well, or praying to whoever their god may be. Doesn't mean that they have any impact on the situation at all.

 

Nah, Jyn is basically a Jedi.

Come on now. I didn't mean she was actually using the force. I was saying that more tongue in cheek.

Just thought it was a nice little detail when you reflect back on what her mother tells her after giving her the kyber crystal.

 

Whether or not Jyn was a Jedi or Force-user of any kind, it was crystal (Ha!) clear to me that the Force was with her. She even said it out loud to the strike team: "May the Force be with us."

 

As I was watching it, I actually wondered if the intro with young Jyn was the wrong way to open the movie. I'll set aside that I didn't get anything out of it, and that I don't think it really did anything other than the obvious (Nazis doing Nazi things). I don't think it was needed, I think it ruined the journey/discovery for us, and I think it ended up taking away from Jyn, making it too much about Galen. It may have worked better if we had been thrown into the story with adult Jyn knowing absolutely nothing, with the backstory delivered through those "mysterious" hints in ANH that JJ wanted to capture. It may have worked better if Galen had died before the movie even began. I certainly didn't get anything out of their very brief reunion, and I don't think anything was done with it. It was totally wasted. If Galen isn't actually in the movie, it makes it more about Jyn and her journey. You can still use the hologram as a way to reconnect and motivate. The hologram is just another hint, a glimpse. Less is more. The way it is, there's no mystery for us, only for Jyn discovering what we already know. Remove Galen, and we discover the truth along with Jyn, instead of knowing it from the start.

 

Jyn wasn’t yelly or quirky or bubbly enough for some Star Wars fans, I think. Too subtle a performance.

For me she’s one of the - if not the - best characters in the Disney Star Wars films. Along with the rest of the RO cast.

 

I actually think this was a problem for people who complain about the characters in RO in general. It's a standalone ensemble film and the characterizations are much more like realistic adults than many Star Wars movies. There's a lot of more subtle character work (facial expressions, one off comments, etc) that I think work really well, but you have to pay attention to pick up on them (which is one reason I love rewatching the movie).

It reminds me to some degree (in a good way) of movies like Aliens, Predator, Saving Private Ryan, etc.


A good example is Bodhi Rook - he actually has a neat/compelling arc, but it's done very efficiently and some of it is subtle.

 

Agreed. Characters like Bodhi and Baze made little impression on me the first time (although the other characters more than made up for it), but they turn out to have REALLY compelling arcs. Ironically, my favorite characters (K2 and Chirrut) actually have the least growth (but I still find realistically drawn enough to fit in the world the movie creates). I think these different types of characters round out the ensemble really well.

 

I don't think it ruined anything. If anything, it was the complete opposite. Just randomly dropping "Oh Galen was actually a good guy" feels cheap.

The start did so much to set up things. It did tell us a lot about Krennic's character and helps explain the timeline. It helps set up that Jyn actually had a loving relationship with her parents. It shows how she knows Saw, which is the whole reason why she gets rescued by the Rebels in the first place. Not to mention that with Galen already being dead, you killed all motivation for Jyn to agree to the mission, unless you want to go with she thinks her father is still alive and she finds out he isn't, which is way worse than what we've got. Witnessing her mother's death, her father's abduction, and who was responsible for it, is essential to explain her later behaviour, not to mention the importance in regard to her showdown with Krennic.
Galen being dead would also throw a wrench in the whole story. Galen is essential to the development of the Death Star, that is the whole point. Why would he be dead now if the weapon is only in the process of being finished? And if he is dead, where does Bodhi's motivation come from to rebel against the Empire?

You'd also would have lost the "Stardust" link. The three part "You'll never win ; You'll never win ; You've lost", by Lyra, Galen and Jyn, and all the nice little details the movie is so full of. These lose all meaning if they aren't there right from the beginning.

Jyn may have been the lead character, but this wasn't the hero's journey all over again. It was an ensemble-piece meant to show all the little acts of rebellion "no-name" rebels did to allow for the rebellion to succeed. For that, putting even more focus on Jyn would have been a detriment.

 

Agreed. It’s a perfect opening.

 

What exactly could the Alliance have offered Jyn that she wasn't already doing herself?

Jyn has her rap sheet read aloud to her by the Alliance officers, and then gets offered a chance to make a fresh start by going to work for them. As far as I understand, those were charges brought against Jyn by the Empire. So it's not like the Alliance would have been able to get the charges dropped. And prior to her capture by the Alliance, Jyn was already living under a new identity and had presumably distanced herself a great deal from anywhere she could have been found. Jyn didn't want to join the Alliance, so I wouldn't say they were offering her any kind of safe haven. So what could the Alliance have actually done for Jyn that she wasn't already doing herself? It seems like one of those things that was just part of the dialogue to move the plot along.

 

Yeah, it was simple. We risked ourselves getting you out of prison. Now help us with this one mission - essentially just get us a reintroduction to Saw - and we’ll let you go your merry way afterwards.

 

Fair enough. I guess they do tell her if she doesn't help them they will put her back where they found her. But it still seems like the implication is they will do something for her after she helps them.

 

The Alliance knew she was a good soldier who had once fought against the Empire. I'm sure they hoped to recruit her to join again. Even if that was a long shot, they had nothing to lose by trying, and as it turned out, that's what she did... in spite of the rebel brass.

 

I can see why Satele tears up at the scene of Jyn crying during her dad's message. Felicity Jones this that good. Satele has three Felicity posters (including a Rogue One poster featuring her). I had to talk her into replacing some of her Frozen posters of some featuring Evan Rachel Wood but ain't relevant here. We're gonna watch Rogue One tomorrow. Lookin forward to it.