Rebel Moon (2023) - Why isn't this better?

Damn-it Zack Snyder, why do you keep doing this to me?  For anyone who doesn't know, Snyder is (or should I say 'was?') a great director with a real flare for stylish film-making and some of my modern day favourite films have his name on them (300, Dawn of the Dead remake and Watchman - and, for the record, I actually liked Man of Steel).  And yet, in recent years, he seems to have been given more and more control over his output and with it, the quality has dipped.

If you believe the internet rumours, 'Rebel Moon' was pitched to Disney as a potential 'Star Wars' project and they turned it down, so Snyder turned it into an original science fiction/action project due for Netflix.  At first it was two hours long, before an 'extended cut' was released which is roughly three and a half hours long.  I decided to watch this.

It's hard not to compare it to 'Star Wars' as a protagonist on a farming planet has to step up and confront an evil empire who is threatening their world and the universe in general.  This time we have a female lead who has to go on a 'Magnificent Seven' style quest to find a band of powerful warriors capable of saving the planet.

Now, if you overlook how a handful of good fighters can defeat an entire empire of enemy ships, there's simply not much here.  Yes, some of it looks good and the fight scenes are pretty cool and well shot, but, all this film involves is the central character recruiting one helper after the next.  We never get to really know anyone (if you don't include the massive long exposition dumps/flashbacks) and, before we know it, the film is at its 'climactic' end battle and the credits are - finally - rolling.

And you've just invested over three hours of your life in a film where the only real stand-out is Anthony Hopkins' interesting droid character (who's hardly in it!).  Practically the whole of this story could be told in a flashback or prologue to whatever comes next.  I'm still interested in Snyder's work as I do feel he's got more to offer than his recent output, but this one is just too long and rambling and takes itself way too seriously to be classed as 'enjoyable.' Sorry, Zack.

5/10