Rebel Moon is the product of a 26-year-old idea conceived by co-writers Zack Snyder and Kurt Johnstad when they were in college, based on the idea of a Dirty Dozen movie set in space. The space opera bears many similarities to George Lucas’s Star Wars. Both are set in fictional galactic worlds with diverse varieties of creatures. Also, there is a struggle against an imperial force—the Motherworld in Snyder’s Rebel Moon. In fact, the idea was first pitched to LucasFilm as a “Seven Samurai”-inspired “Star Wars story” before becoming a Netflix original. 

In Zack Snyder’s newest film, the Motherworld, controlled by kings and queens for millennia, rules much of the galaxy. After depleting their planet’s resources, they send their imperial army to invade and mine neighboring planets. After the royal family is assassinated, rumblings of revolution begin in the far reaches of the empire. Self-proclaimed regent Balisarious, played by Fra Fee (more on him in chapter two, hopefully), dispatches imperial soldiers to quash any uprising that threatens the Motherworld.

Former Motherworld soldier Kora (Sofia Boutella) has found new life in a farming village on a moon called Veldt, but her new life is flipped when it is visited by an imperial dreadnought commanded by imperial enforcer Atticus Noble (Ed Skrein), whose aim is to seize the village’s resources. Despite Kora’s warnings, naive farmer Gunnar (Michael Huisman) divulges information about their resources, contradicting the village chief and promptly leading to the chief’s execution. After killing all but one of the occupying soldiers to prevent the rape of one of the villagers, Kora has no choice but to stand with the villagers against the Motherworld. Accompanied by Gunnar, she sets out to find allies, who all have some grudges against the Motherworld, to fight the imperial forces alongside her: General Titus (Djimon Hounsou), a disgraced former general; Tarak (Staz Nair), prince of a world destroyed by the Motherworld; Nemesis (Doona Bae), a legendary swordswoman whose children were killed by imperial forces; and Darrian (Ray Fisher), leader of rebel group The Bloodaxes.

Rebel Moon starts slowly but with the promise of intrigue and thrilling action. Though it only delivers this promise in bits, it is what probably keeps viewers watching till the end. With a second part coming out next year, Child of Fire looks like an audition performance for the second installment. Not unlike the first episode of a TV show, Child of Fire contains only sporadic bits of action, as if to set up the plot for the bulk of the action to take place in the second part. 

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The plot of Child of Fire is a tad simplistic, perhaps because it is set on a premise that is all too familiar: ‘courageous rebels fighting against a repressive ruling regime’. The film is also filled with archetype characters, and the story is almost too predictable, and one keeps watching in the hope that the payoff in the sequel is worth it. Although it feels like a long-winded exposition for the sequel, Child of Fire does not do much in terms of backstories for some of the characters we are introduced to, and they end up not carrying the aura that the story projects for them. What’s fairly exciting, however, is how some of these characters are introduced: Tarak breaks and rides a hippogriff-looking creature, and Nemesis fights a child kidnapping a human spider.  

Credit has to be given for the visual design of the film. The impressive scenery design enhances the inspiring imagery that the cinematography provides by capturing the action in a dynamic manner. Although there is not much diversity among the central characters, the film features several non-human characters with interesting appearances—a brain-like insect creature that communicates by animating corpses, a human spider that kidnaps children, and several other fascinating characters that this world should still have on offer in the second part.

As if handicapped by the nature of the plot, the cast is unable to deliver their best. The characters do not experience growth arcs that would aid the actors in embodying their characters, and just like the movie itself, they seem to be holding back, preparing to be unleashed in the sequel. Unfortunately, this leads to flatness in the expression of their characters, making their lines come out soulless and uninspiring, and speeches that are meant to be stirring float away in the wind. 

Rebel Moon is a film that is a victim of its own ambition; it pales in comparison to its many inspirations. Hopefully, we get all the action and thrills that are promised in the second installment of the film. Viewers may also be consoled by the news that Zack Snyder will be releasing a director’s cut rumored to be out before the sequel- Rebel Moon: The Scargiver.

Rebel Moon premiered on Netflix on December 22.

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Side Musings 

• Set in a galaxy supposedly filled with diverse beings, this is not represented among the central characters, with all of them being humans. 
• Nice Rasputin cosplay from Balisarius.
• Gunnar, you fool.
• I guess we will see all the action in Part 2.