Zack Snyder's Rebel Moon: Part Two - The Scargiver - Review Thread

Rotten Tomatoes:

• 16% (58 Reviews)- 3.6/10 average rating

• 45% - Audience Score

Metacritic: 36/100 (21 Reviews)

Reviews:

DEADLINE

Zack Snyder’s Space Opera Descends Even Further Into A Black Hole Of Nothingness: Slow-motion scenes that sputter story pacing? Check. Poorly developed characters? Check. Plot holes bigger than the Milky Way? Check.…And we’re back, with part two of Zack Snyder Netflix space opera Rebel Moon-Part Two: The Scargiver You might be shocked to hear this, but part two manages to somehow be worse than part one. It’s biggest crime? Nothing happening for way too long

Variety :

‘Rebel Moon — Part Two: The Scargiver’ Review: An Even More Rote Story, but a Bigger and Better Battle. The second chapter of Zack Snyder's intergalactic epic is every bit as derivative as "Part One," but the climactic showdown sizzles. And guess what? It may not be over.

The Hollywood Reporter:

‘Rebel Moon — Part Two: The Scargiver’ Review: Zack Snyder, Netflix, Rinse, Repeat

If you thought the previous installment was all build-up, you may be distressed to learn that the follow-up is…a lot more build-up. Although this time it’s a little faster-paced and leads to an extended battle sequence comprising roughly the film’s second half. It’s hard to tell, however, since Snyder employs so much of his trademark slow-motion that you get the feeling the movie would be a short if delivered at normal speed"

IndieWire (D)

The Second Half of Zack Snyder’s Sci-Fi Debacle Is Almost as Disastrous as the First. Any real hope for the second part of Snyder's Netflix epic has been dead since last December, but it's still shocking to discover just how lifeless this movie feels.

IGN (4/10)

The second part of Zack Snyder's Rebel Moon space opera, The Scargiver, delivers a half-baked conclusion to a well-trodden story with flimsy character studies and lacklustre action.

Guardian (3/5)

Rebel Moon almost certainly didn’t need to be two multiple-cut movies. It probably could have gotten by as zero. But as a playground for Snyder’s favorite bits of speed-ramping, shallow-focusing and pulp thievery, it’s harmless, sometimes pleasingly weird fun. (That said, the first part is better and weirder.) The large-scale pointlessness feels more soothing than his past insistence on attempting to translate Watchmen into a big-screen epic, or make Superman into a tortured soul. Even Rebel Moon’s shameless attempts at serialization – The Scargiver essentially ends with another extended sequel tease, this time for a movie that stands a decent chance of never happening – feel freeing, because they excuse Snyder from the uncomfortable business of staging an apocalyptic showdown, or, worse, imparting a mournful philosophy. The whole bludgeoning enterprise is so daftly sincere, you could almost call it sweet.

San Francisco Chronicle (5/10)

Does its conclusion make up for the gluten overload that was most of “Rebel Moon”? Well, the series’ not-at-all-original theme is redemption, so that depends on whether you’re in a forgiving mood or sufficiently wowed.

Independent (2/5)

The Scargiver is at least basic enough to feel relatively inoffensive; the first film’s uncomfortably vague deployment of racist and sexual violence has been reduced to a single reference to the empire’s hatred of “ethnic impurity” (never to be picked up again). There’s a heck of a lot of religious imagery – including an ironically Christ-like resurrection for Noble and a troupe of evil cardinals – that never actually impacts a single plot point or theme. Of course, Snyder may argue that this is all covered in some spin-off book, comic, or video game. Or maybe in the six-hour cut. But what fun is a film that tries to force you to consume more content? That’s not art. That’s blackmail.

Collider (3/10)

Not only does neither part of Rebel Moon work, but The Scargiver is such a downgrade that it could prove difficult for the franchise to bounce back for more. The story narrows itself so comprehensively that it scrambles to reach for a dangling thread in a forced closing conversation. That Snyder has expressed his interest in making not only another film but instead a potential six movies in total may excite those who also appreciated his earlier work. For those who have now seen these two, it feels more like a threat rather than a tease.

Empire (2/5)

Marginally better than Part One, but still a weird, messy and humourless sci-fi that gives you little reason to cheer the potential continuation of this Snyderverse.

Telegraph (UK) - 2/5

But nothing here or in the previous instalment will make you give the slightest fig who wins. Yes, the world of Rebel Moon is richly imagined, even if its origins as an aborted Star Wars project still remain far too obvious. In place of storytelling, though, it’s built on unwieldy lore dumps: we’re given hundreds of details about this galaxy far far away, but no reasons to care about any of them.

Slashfilm - 4/10

Snyder once again displays his usual knack for crafting the occasional breathtaking visual and colorful splash page — a kiss silhouetted by the Veldt equivalent of magic hour, a spaceship foregrounded by an eclipsing star, and a stunning tableau of lasers crisscrossing in the heat of battle are memorable highlights — but his insistence on serving as his own director of photography continues to hold him back at every turn.

Release Date: April 19, 2024

Synopsis:

Rebel Moon — Part Two: The Scargiver continues the epic saga of Kora and the surviving warriors as they prepare to sacrifice everything, fighting alongside the brave people of Veldt, to defend a once peaceful village, a newfound homeland for those who have lost their own in the fight against the Motherworld. On the eve of their battle the warriors must face the truths of their own pasts, each revealing why they fight. As the full force of the Realm bears down on the burgeoning rebellion, unbreakable bonds are forged, heroes emerge, and legends are made.

Starring:

• Sofia Boutella

• Djimon Hounsou

• Ed Skrein

• Michiel Huisman

• Doona Bae

• Ray Fisher

• Staz Nair

• Fra Fee

• Elise Duffy

• Anthony Hopkins