The Mandalorian And Grogu: The Quest for a Substantial Plot

Skip the theaters for this one and wait for the OTT release

The Mandalorian and Grogu is a pretty lame attempt at Star Wars movie storytelling, and it could easily be mistaken for one of the episodes in The Mandalorian series on Disney+.

I went in with such high expectations after The Mandalorian series that it was quite a letdown, from the lack of a plot, very low screen time for Sigourney Weaver, and basically nothing special ever happening at all!

TMJ Rating: 🍿🍿/5

The Plot of The Mandalorian And Grogu

Din Djarin and Grogu are bounty hunters who work for the New Republic ( A rebel democratic government ) in the interest of preventing a war, mostly with the First Order.

Mando and Grogu go on a series of adventures to rescue Rotta the Hutt, the son of Jabba the Hutt, in return for capturing the much bigger fish Commander Coin of the First Order.

The story drags quite a bit, and it almost feels like a side quest. The only thing entertaining in this movie is the fact that Grogu is doing a little bit more than he does in a single episode at a time in the series on Disney+.

Characters, CGI, and Practical Effects

You also get to see Martin Scorsese as a Star Wars character, where he even gets to keep his eyebrows as an alien character. The creatures in this movie are bizarre in the way they need to be — for example, a couple of toilet monsters that look like mutated alligators crossed with leeches.

Sigourney Weaver was one of the main reasons I went to watch the movie in the theaters, and she has so little screen time that it is barely worth it to go only for her. I mean, she has been in some of the most well-known sci-fi movies, from Ridley Scott's Alien to James Cameron's Avatar Franchise. Hell, she even had a more impactful role in this completely forgettable OTT movie, The Gorge!

As usual, 3D is the wrong choice and format for this movie, as the brightness tends to be lower. It is best to watch this movie on a 2D IMAX screen or just in plain 2D format for the best viewing experience.

The visuals in The Mandalorian and Grogu and their crew are great, combined with practical effects that could have been better.

The battles are not that great, except maybe for a couple of surprises in this franchise.

Rotta the Hutt has a unique fighting style in the gladiatorial Arena and is played by Jeremy Allen white.

The Kyuozo Bounty hunter Embo reminds one of Rayden in Mortal Kombat because of the metallic hat and John Wick because of his slender build. And the battle between Din Djarin and him is pretty cool, and it is set at night.

The aerial battle with Din Djarin's Razor Crest is pretty awesome and reminds one of Top Gun: Maverick, starring Tom Cruise, because of the high-speed aerial maneuvers.

The interaction between the Mandalorian and Grogu is shown much more, as the movie’s title suggests, and their interactions are animated quite expressively. Even Predator Badlands seems to have had a better plot than this disappointing movie adaptation of The Mandalorian series, which is far better, even in its worst episode.

How it Could Have Been Made Better

They could have focused more on character building through a personal quest for the Mandalorian. As for Grogu, the plot points could have been as simple as discovering something new connected to Yoda or his race in general.

Another avenue to explore ( further ) would have been the Midichlorian-derived powers, which they touched upon but did not explore enough.

The movie creators could have gone the more lucrative route by adapting this into a short film, an OTT-only release, a mini-series, or any other format that could be monetized more easily with fewer marketing efforts.

Worth Watching? On OTT Maybe

This movie is not worth all the hype of the iconic duo raised by the series. It is a good watch for OTT, even in that case, it can be, when nothing else awesome is on the OTT service.