Mando and Grohu are sent to collect Rada the Hutt and then bring him back to his aunt and uncle who are running Jabba's empire after his death. If he can return Rada, the Hutt twins will tell the Federation where a wanted criminal is. Of course, things don't go as planned.
The short take on the film is that it is entertaining. The first two acts are essentially TV episodes on the big screen. The third act it lifts into something more. It's a film that plays fine for anyone, whether you've seen the TV series or not.
Is it perfect? Oh hell no. The story is simplistic, the effects are wildly even (and I am not talking about the retro look, I'm talking about things like compositing in the non-retro sequences). There are way too many puns and references, and the need to go for laughs instead of giving the things happening on screen real weight undercuts everything (and Sigourney Weaver is a tad to laid back). Jon Favreau's direction things fine but much of his script is lazy crap.
And yet the film works.
It works because the characters are strong. There is a sense of back story. Yes, the film hits pretty all of the expected scifi/Star Wars tropes, but it it does so with such joy that you don't mind the lack of weight.
It also works because the film's final act has some weight. There is a sense that maybe things are not going to be okay. I was wondering if they were going to kill off our heroes.
And please forgive me for not saying more, but Disney said don't give details, and having once been on a Disney blacklist for a review they didn't like, I'm not going to risk getting booted.
The one thing I need to mention is that the film has a glorious visual sense. What hooked me early was the fact that the film frequently looks like grand epic paintings. The opening sequence with the walkers absolutely blew my mind since it reminded me of all of the great Star Wars paintings I've seen over the last half century. Additionally, the final third, on the Hutt planet, was all like that. The shots were staged as if they are the paintings that were on covers of the old pulp scifi and fantasy novels of the 1960's and 70's (Mando standing sword in hand facing the dragon snake will live rent free in my head forever). The look and feel of those sequences filled me with joy because they exactly mirrored the greatest science fiction/Star Wars films that have been kicking around in my head.
Should you see it.? Yes. Its entertaining. It's handily the best Star Wars film since Rogue One.
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