The release of a new Star Wars film used to be a major event, but it feels less so with Star Wars: The Mandalorian And Grogu, which has been spun out of a television show now three series and 24 episodes old, and to date only available to subscribers to Disney+. But now, with strategic generosity, Disney is giving us all the chance to share in the adventures of the masked and pretty much invincible bounty hunter (voiced, Darth Vader-style, by Pedro Pascal) and his cute little green sidekick, Grogu, an infant of whatever species old Yoda turned out to be.
Grogu is actually 50 years old, yet he walks and gurgles like a human baby but, nevertheless, can occasionally wield the Force quite effectively. Which is handy when you’re flying around the outer rim of the galaxy, helping the Mandalorian clean up all these wicked, scheming, post-Imperial warlords.
Plot and Characters
As our mismatched pair venture to a distant moon in search of Rotta the Hutt, son of the bikini-loving Jabba, a few important things quickly become clear. There are few human characters in this new film and even fewer female human characters. Yes, Sigourney Weaver pops up towards the end to provide gravitas and a faux sense of history, but she’s never even been in the franchise before.
Instead there is a heavy reliance on puppetry, prosthetics and visual effects, coupled with an over-abundance of carefully calculated cuteness. Where once there were Ewoks (their appearance in Return Of The Jedi was the moment I emotionally gave up on the franchise) now there is not just Grogu but little whiskery space mechanics wobbling around. They reminded me of Michael Bentine’s Potty Time, which used to be on a far, far away TV channel a long time ago… just as more violent encounters (do look out for the terrifying dragonsnake) have echoes of the pioneering stop-motion work of the great Ray Harryhausen. It’s all a bit retro, in a deliberate, Disney-like way.
Action and Storytelling
The result is not a film for sentient grown-ups and spends a lot of time looking like just one fight after another, albeit with occasional moments of comic relief. But for those with children or grandchildren to entertain, it will probably hit a carefully planned spot.
We haven’t had a big new Star Wars movie for seven years – and you may feel like we’re still waiting, after watching Star Wars: The Mandalorian And Grogu, which is essentially a TV special upgraded to IMAX. Here ‘The evil galactic empire has fallen’ – and with the galaxy’s fate no longer hanging in the balance, we are treated to a scrappy sidebar adventure.
The plot, as far as it goes, is this. Mercenary bounty hunter The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal, wasted under a helmet) and his tiny, cuddly, foster child Grogu (a mini version of Yoda) accept a job from the New Republic’s Colonel Ward (Sigourney Weaver – seemingly one of the last women left in the galaxy). Their mission? Rescue Jabba the Hutt’s son Rotta, a musclebound slug voiced by Jeremy Allen White.
To that end, the pair travel to a Blade Runner-esque planet, where Rotta is competing in a Gladiatorial death tournament. Cue a tooth, claw and tentacle assault of ferocious cage-fighting CGI creatures that sees director Jon Favreau gleefully throw all his toys into the pram. You want action? This over-delivers, with chases, shoot-em-ups, big clanking AT-ATs firing lasers and endless fights stuffed with more monsters than a Warhammer bargain bin.
What it’s not so strong on is good, old-fashioned, epic storytelling of the kind that made Star Wars, er, Star Wars. There’s barely a whiff of suspense, and unless you’ve seen the Mandalorian TV series, the crucial emotional bond between Mando and Grogu remains mysterious. But the film has a not-so-secret weapon: Baby Yoda’s cuteness. When in doubt, the movie simply has Grogu scrunch up his face like he’s on the potty and emit an adorable sound. Resistance is futile.
