Ok, so I’ve never seen “The Mandalorian” TV series. After “The Last Jedi,” I was 40 years into “Star Wars” and that seemed like enough. Really: I never understood “Baby Yoda” or other references.
If you’re like me, I have good news. You need to know nothing about the series, which ran for three years, in order to enjoy “The Mandalorian and Grogu.” Director Jon Favreau and his writers have set up such an amiable, easy to get premise that you don’t even need to know whether this story takes place during the trajectory of the 10 (counting “Rogue Nation”) original films.
Pedro Pascal, who seems to be in everything, continues his role as Din Djarin, aka The Mandalorian. He’s a bounty hunter and adventurer not unlike Han Solo although he wears a helmet most of the time. His sidekick is Grogu, who seems real but is animatronic. They reminded me of other human-non human space buddies like Ryland Grace and Rocky from “Project Hail Marty,” or even Han Solo and Chewbacca.
Din is a man of integrity, but he has a price, so Sigourney Weaver, who plays the leader of the galactic rebels, hires him for a job that could get him killed and everyone else blown up. At this point, I’m pretty cynical, so you now everything will work out ok and that there will be two sequels. So sit back, and relax.
I think people forget that “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” were all based on serials that played in theaters before TV was a thing. There was no endgame or higher purpose. Like “Flash Gordon.” They were just fun romps, diversions from reality. I felt like “The Mandalorian” movie was like that, a relief from the news. it’s totally captivating.
I guess this is also maybe the first “Star Wars” movie without John Williams as composer. But Ludwig Göransson has done a superb job with the score. It’s not just that it will get Oscar attention, but the music hums with life and character not unlike something we’d get from Williams. It illuminates the movie in all the right places and drives the story forward. It’s also full of catchy hooks that I kept looking forward to.
There are a lot of “Star Wars” Easter eggs to keep the fan boys and girls happy. The main antagonist is Rotta the Hutt, son of the late, lamented Jobba the Hutt. (Jeremy Allen White, not sounding like “The Bear,” is his voice.) Indeed, we get to meet a few members of the Hutt family, and they are not an attractive gang. Still, we know so much about Jobba at this point, it’s totally fun the meet the relatives. They would never have been invited to the Skywalkers for dinner.
Grogu is a mini-Yoda, I guess from whatever species that constitutes. He’s cute as a button, even though he never speaks. But like Yoda, he’s totally ingratiating. Because he doesn’t speak, he’s not terribly philosophical, but — even if you don’t know him from the series — he supplies ballast and humor to Din’s dour personality.
And yet, for me. Grogu was almost the scene stealer but was usurped by someone else. The voice of legendary director Martin Scorsese is used for a snappy four-armed CGI kiosk operator who knows what’s going on across the universe. Din pumps him for information and “Hugo” (named for a Scorsese movie) is a slick operator with all the answers. I hope Scorsese got a merchandise royalty.
I’ve read some carping on line that “The Mandalorian and Grogu” — which sounds to me like “Wayland Flowers and Madame” — is “just fan service” or a long episode of the series. Again, so what? To those of us who knew nothing going in, this is a real movie and nothing less. Pedro Pascal, as he was in “Fantastic Four” and other projects, is a sympathetic guide through an eccentric world that you can only find in movies. He and Grogu are quickly established in a warm relationship. You never get tired of learning more about them.
One or two more of these? Yes, probably. I do hope that The Mandalorian gets a romance — there are no women in this movie. But there will never be great drama. This is called ‘fun.’
