Rebel Moon Review – If you’ve ever desired to see a film that is like to “Intergalactic 300,” then Zack Snyder’s offering is definitely worth seeing.
Over the course of Rebel Moon’s two hours and fifteen minutes, a group of space-traveling revolutionaries band together to rebel against the cruel and oppressive Motherworld empire—despite the tremendous odds stacked against them. Rebel Moon opens in limited theatres on December 15 and goes live on Netflix on December 22.
Originating from a brief idea for “The Dirty Dozen in space” that co-writer and director Snyder conceived of during their undergraduate days, the science fiction epic, which has cost over $160 million, has been in development for almost 20 years. Snyder briefly thought about re-engineering the project to make it a Star Wars series entry. However, the filmmaker finally chose to set his movie in a unique universe when Disney acquired Lucasfilm in 2012.
The end product is an action-packed space opera influenced by a variety of films, including Heavy Metal, Dune, Seven Samurai, and—you guessed it—Star Wars.Regarding Rebel Moon’s connection to a galaxy far, far away, Snyder told Screen Rant, “I don’t think you can make a sci-fi movie now that’s not going to be compared to a Star Wars movie in some way.”
Rebel Moon: Part One – A Child of Fire, which debuted on Netflix on Friday, is merely the first installment in a two-part series; Part Two – The Scargiver – is scheduled to debut on Netflix on April 19, 2024.
What is the plot of Rebel Moon: Part One?
The first episode of Rebel Moon opens in a tranquil farming colony on the far-off moon Veldt and follows former Motherworld soldier Kora (Sofia Boutella) on her difficult path to become a hero.
Kora had to witness as a youngster as her home world was destroyed and her family was massacred by imperial forces. She was personally chosen by the vicious warlord Regent Balisarius (Fra Fee) to serve as his surrogate daughter following the massacre. Kora was nurtured in Balisarius’ likeness, and he shaped her into the fiercest warrior in the Motherworld. However, a few years before the events of the film, Kora’s spacecraft crashed on Veldt, and she took advantage of the chance to live in peace with the other moon residents because she was sick of killing in the Motherworld’s name.
Boutella explained Kora’s reasons to Hero magazine, saying, “Not only had she been a part of the soldier world she was forced into, but she wanted nothing to do with it and there was no chance she would open that door again, at all costs.” You can see that she’s attempting to get away from it.Observing a hero’s hesitation and internal conflict is fascinating.”
Unfortunately for Kora, her hopes of enjoying a peaceful life are dashed when a fleet led by the sadistic emissary of Balisarius, Admiral Noble (Ed Skrein), arrives on Veldt with the intention of seizing control of the moon’s resources. The lives of the people in her settlement were in danger, so Kora and her fellow farmer and love interest Gunnar (Michiel Huisman) embarked on a planet-hopping mission to enlist a group of misfit rebels, including the Bloodaxes (Ray Fisher and Cleopatra Coleman), master swordswoman Nemesis (Doona Bae), and former Motherworld general Titus (Djimon Hounsou).
Part 2: What to anticipate from Rebel Moon
Kora and her companions will try to overthrow the powerful Motherworld in The Scargiver, which will follow the first film’s path of putting the gang together.
“The subsequent film is essentially a war film,” Snyder stated to Screen Rant. “They harvest the crops at the beginning of the film, and there are a lot of things in the village—this is kind of the ‘Why We Fight’ part of the story. Relationships are something we have time for. And after that comes the great struggle. It’s a lot of fun.”
on Kora’s personal story arc, Boutella informed Hero that additional details on her time as a soldier and the origins of her nickname Scargiver will be revealed in Part 2.
“We find out anything quite tumultuous regarding Kora in the second film and I wonder how the audience will respond to that,” Boutella stated. “It took me a little bit to come to grips with Kora, it took me a while to comprehend her, forgive her and not judge her because I wanted it to originate from a place of full forgiveness and empathy for the character.”