The Mandalorian and Grogu

Directed by Jon Favreau, The Mandalorian and Grogu follows the title characters as they embark on a pair of dangerous (and somewhat inconsequential) missions. Filmmaker Favreau, armed with a script written alongside Dave Filoni and Noah Kloor, delivers an unabashedly episodic endeavor that fares best within its briskly-paced and periodically engrossing opening stretch, as the movie, in its early scenes, boasts a compulsively watchable feel that’s heightened by the protagonists’ predictably compelling (and decidedly irresistible) chemistry together – although, by that same token, the curious (and impossible-to-ignore) absence of several of the show’s more memorable figures remains a recurring distraction throughout. And while the picture contains a handful of legitimately exciting set-pieces, including a terrific chase involving a landspeeder, The Mandalorian and Grogu‘s small-scale atmosphere, coupled with its odd lack of forward momentum and an overuse of CGI, paves the way for a midsection and second half that slowly-but-surely wears out its welcome – with the long, drawn-out sequence detailing Grogu’s efforts at saving Pedro Pascal’s Mando certainly emblematic of the movie’s problems. By the time the larger-than-life climax rolls around, The Mandalorian and Grogu has confirmed its place as a disappointing misfire that’s almost entirely devoid of the Star Wars series’ epic sensibilities.

** out of ****