Cast your mind back to December 2023 and you may recall the release of the sci-fi movie, Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire. The film arrived on Netflix just before Christmas, and told the story of a young woman named Kora who recruits an army of warriors to help defend her home from an invading force.
As the title suggested, that movie was the first instalment in a multi-part story. Today, that story continues with the second chapter: Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver.
Directed and co-written by Zack Snyder, and available to stream on Netflix today, Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver stars Sofia Boutella, Djimon Hounsou, Ed Skrein, and Anthony Hopkins. The film picks up directly after the events of Part One, with Kora and her warriors back on her home planet of Veldt, preparing to mount a defence.
In the film, following the supposed defeat of Admiral Atticus Noble, Kora and Co. have returned home under the belief that Veldt is finally safe. However, after Admiral Noble is resurrected it quickly becomes clear Veldt is about to enter a desperate situation, with an invasion set to take place within five days.
With the odds stacked against them, the warriors and the farmers of Veldt prepare for war. But will they survive the oncoming battle?
Those who watched Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire will know the whole film played very much like a Star Wars movie. The reason for this is because director Zack Snyder originally pitched Rebel Moon to Lucasfilm as a Star Wars project, and when they turned him down he went to Netflix and made the film without any of the Star Wars references.
The result was a movie that walked a similar line as the Skywalker saga, while adding in dashes of Duneand Seven Samurai for good measure. For those wondering, Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver is more of the same.
And as this second helping is more of the same, if you liked Part One then you’ll like Part Two just as much. This is essentially the concluding half of one large tale, and it matches the tone and general aesthetic of what came before.
As Part Two is so closely linked to Part One it benefits and suffers from the same peaks and pitfalls. The visuals are impressive, the action scenes spectacular, and the cast all fine, but the story is still largely nonexistent, there’s a considerable amount of waffle, and scenes run much longer than they need to.
With the release of Part Two it becomes very clear this film and its predecessor could (and probably should) have been condensed into one movie. Zack Snyder has a habit of padding things to the Nth degree, and the Rebel Moon films are a perfect example of this.
That said, he certainly does know how to make a good looking film, and Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver is definitely that. It’s gorgeous in places and also entertaining too.
Yes, the pacing is a bit all over the place, but there’s enough going on to keep things interesting. When the story falters, the action sequences and special effects pick up some of the slack, and this helps to smooth over some of the cracks.
Highlights of Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver are largely confined to the second half of the film, as this is where all the action can be found. The first hour of the movie is mostly exposition, while the second hour is essentially a war picture.
This is where all the laser guns, explosions, and kick-ass battles take place. Kora and her warriors are given the opportunity to do their job (i.e. defend Veldt), and there is much death and destruction chucked at the screen.
There is also a rather cool non-copyright infringing lightsaber battle toward the climax which is fun, and a short scene involving the droid, Jimmy blowing up a ship which is cool. Toss in a rousing musical score from Tom Holkenborg and there’s a fair bit to entertain.
I’ll paraphrase something I said in my review of Part One, and that is, if you’re not already on board by this stage, Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver probably isn’t for you. If you liked Part One, you’ll like Part Two, and if found Part One to be too derivative and a bit of a drag then it’s the same again and you should go watch something else.
Personally, I like enough of what Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver has to offer to say it works OK enough for me. I’m not sure I’m invested in any of the characters, but as a piece of entertainment for two hours it’s fine.
More entries in the Rebel Moon movie series have been teased, and the open-ended nature of Part Two suggests further instalments are possible, but for now this film simple offers another couple of hours of fantasy froth and fun. If you like this sort of thing then take it for what it is.
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