Rogue One was okay. Definitely better than The Force(d) Awakens. But it doesn't have the necessary kick it should have had. 2/3 of the film is just Jyn Erso wandering around. The real film starts at the last 1/3 part of the film.

Despite having the Rogue One team as the center of the film, there is no Rogue One team. There is only a bunch of ragtags with a noble mission.

Let's start with Jyn Erso. Jyn, the reluctant heroine, was initially uninterested in being involved with the whole Rebellion vs Empire conflict. But after a life-changing event involving her father, only there she started to be engaged. The problem is: this happened too early. Just a moment after her newfound spirit, there is another moment that should have kickstarted Jyn. Something involving her mentor, Saw Gerrera. But instead having that point as the driving force, the writer chose to uplift the mood too early. Leaving us with spirited Jyn, dispirited Jyn, and then spirited again.

Also, the trademark quip you see in the trailer, "I rebel," actually got cut off in the final release. So the rebellious Jyn presented in the trailer is actually not that rebellious in the film. This is one of the problem with character development in the film: we don't get to see how Jyn react with her surrounding. We don't get to know who she actually was, her relationship with her mentor. There is implied that something serious is going on between the two but we don't get to see why she should be emotionally attached to him (or her father, even).

The problem with this character development also happen for the long duration of the film: how the characters bond with each other. Yeah, in the long course of the adventures of Rogue One, we don't actually see them working as a team. There are only Jyn and Cassian and K-2SO, the Force fanboys duo Chirrut and Baze, and the unfortunate ex-Imperial pilot Bodhi Rook stuck in this ragtag group. Oh and a few of Cassian's men, who we hardly knew. Despite having them wandering around together for 85 minutes, the film doesn't give them enough screen time to work as a team. Instead we only see Cassian working with K-2SO as a part of rebellion, Jyn acting as reluctant heroine, Chirrut and Baze as remnants of the ancient Force order, and Bodhi who has no choice but to chauffeur them to their desired places. And a bunch of Cassian's men joining the bandwagon at later times.

So, unlike the solid team we see in Star Wars The Force Unleashed (the game), or maybe other Disney-published film Guardians of the Galaxy, we see here a dysfunctional team who just happen to band together. They are willing to die for a cause, but it's unclear how willing they are to protect each other's back. Yes - because in the course of the movie they only act for the friends they already know. Baze only for Chirrut (and vice-versa), Jyn for Cassain/K-2SO (and vice-versa), and poor guy Bodhi being a lackey because he has no one he knows. When anything goes bad in the team, we don't see them losing as a team - only as individuals.

Speaking of characters, the film also has some unnecessary drama and characters taking dumb decision. The film starts with a really unnecessary death which can be prevented. The same goes with Saw Gerrera. This potential character, derived from the older Expanded Universe saga, is not utilized in full effect. Despite portrayed as important, he remained in the background almost in the whole time, with no air of mystery at all. We hardly knew him.

Felicity Jones acting as Jyn Erso is a bit jarring. She is a better written character compared to Rei in Force(d) Awakens, but Jones don't seem to act her properly. In some sequences she seem to behave awkwardly, like being uncomfortable at the scene. Then just a moment later, she became high and mighty.

In universe, the film also has several weird take on the Star Wars canon. First is Chirrut's constant praying to the Force. No one prayed to the Force before. Force is not Jesus, you don't pray to Him. Lucas' inspiration of the Force was Eastern esoteric religion - it's some sort of energy that surrounds us. Having someone praying to the Force is a very monotheistic approach to the concept of religion.

Another weirdness is the jumping to the hyperspace plot device. Like in The Force(d) Awakens, jumping to hyperspace is utilized as a too convenient deus ex machina: it can be done while in atmosphere. In Star Wars canon (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) you can only jump while in the orbit. The lack of security in Imperial-occupied planets also look very jarring. How can rebel ships slip into the planets that easily?

Despite all that, the last 1/3 part of the film is exciting, albeit using some cliched plot device (romance, main goal being sidelined by petty challenges). The space battle is fine. X-Wing and Y-Wing are utilized properly as fighter and bomber (not otherwise). The tactic with Hammerhead-class cruiser is, while ridiculous, still more satisfying than the one-fighter-destroy-one-SSD-by-crashing in Eps IV. Also the cameo of characters like Tarkin is pleasing to EU fans. The only weird part is the directors and governor addressing Vader as "Lord"--didn't they see them as a peer in Eps IV, by calling him simply as "Darth"?

All in all, not bad, but not that good either. As for the weird tone in first 2/3 of the film, I suspect there is Disney's part in here. Them ordering reshoot to make it more "fun and light-hearted".