“My pain became rage. My rage became revenge.” –Nemesis
The continuation of Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon—Part One: A Child of Fire has finally arrived. And I must say, Rebel Moon—Part Two: The Scargiver is a significant step up from its predecessor.
Part Two: The Scargiver takes us on a sci-fi journey with Kora (Sofia Boutella), Gunnar (Michiel Huisman), Titus (Djimon Hounsou), Nemesis (Doona Bae), Tarak (Staz Nair) and Millius (Elise Duffy) on Veldt, as they brace themselves for the impending assault by the Motherworld. Guided by Noble (Ed Skrein) in a quest for the Scargiver, Kora, and his trusted ally, Cassius (Alfonso Herrera), the Veldt team is yet to fathom the magnitude of the threat. Rebel Moon—Part Two: The Scargiver compensates for the occasional action in Part One: A Child of Fire and delves deeper into the characters, forging a stronger bond between the audience and the story.
Of course, this wouldn’t be possible without the exceptional cast. Sofia Boutella shines as Kora, delivering a performance that is nothing short of brilliant. As always, Boutella’s portrayal is spot-on, and she skillfully balances the character’s emotions with the physicality required for the role. We delve deeper into Kora’s character in this film, and Boutella’s electrifying performance brings her to life. In a recent interview, Boutella shared, “What spoke to me is the fact that she gives herself a chance for an alternative and that she does recognize the goodness in people…” Boutella’s embodiment of this during her performance as Kora is commendable. Alongside Michiel Huisman as Gunnar, he and Boutella have great chemistry as their relationship functions as one of the core emotional throughlines of Part Two.
In addition, Djimon Hounsou steals the show as Titus. Hounsou effortlessly portrays the General and serves as another leader whom the rebels look to for guidance as they gear up for the upcoming battle. During a pivotal scene where the rebels are gathered around a table, sharing the stories that have led them all to this moment, each character shares their backstories, and it was essential to learn more about them and why they decided to venture to Veldt and save this small farming planet. Doona Bae, Staz Nair and Elise Duffy show off their acting chops, all three delivering the emotion needed for their respective backstory scenes.
Rebel Moon—Part Two: The Scargiver wouldn’t be the same without its menacing villain. Portrayed by Ed Skrein, Noble is a villain you love to hate. Much like his co-star, Boutella, Skrein plays the physicality of his role to perfection. Skrein never reigns in his performance and is as terrifying in Part Two as in Part One. Although Skrein is not a stranger to playing villains, he shines in the role of Noble. Entitled, elitist and cruel, you want Noble to get his comeuppance. However, you never wish for Skrein to leave your screen – he’s that good.
Snyder, as usual, has an excellent eye for action. In Part Two, the action surpasses that of Part One. If you wanted an epic space battle, there are many in this film, along with Snyder’s staple slow-motion shots. The battle sequences are well-shot and boast significant visual effects, but the hand-to-hand combat and fighting are exceptional. Stunt Coordinator Freddy Bouciegues, whose stunt coordination and fight choreography work you might recognize from films such as Zack Snyder’s Justice League, Love, Death & Robots, and Terminator: Dark Fate, just to name a few, did a phenomenal job. The fight scenes are clean, impactful and brutal – particularly the attack on Veldt and the new fight between Kora and Noble.
Where Part Two: The Scargiver lacks is its pacing and, at times, its writing. Certain scenes lingered too long, whereas others didn’t linger enough. In some of the more pivotal moments, this was a detriment to the film and a hindrance to the storytelling the movie tried to convey. It seems that a lot was left on the cutting room floor to keep this cut of the film at a certain runtime and maintain the PG-13 rating. While there is an apparent attempt to have the audience care more about the characters, specifically the group of rebels, the scenes shared between them were the ones I wished lingered longer. If anything, this made me wonder what the extended/director’s cuts will be like and how it will alter the pacing and storytelling.
It might not be reinventing the wheel, but the issues that the PG-13-rated parts suffer from could have been resolved. Netflix likely should have led with the extended cuts. Despite some flaws, Rebel Moon—Part Two: The Scargiver has better character work and some better action throughout than Part One. Pacing issues aside, the performances and action hold the film together well enough to create an entertaining sci-fi flick.
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