(Spoilers will be hidden in the footnotes)
Recommended Age Limit: Not younger than 7 or a mature 6-year-old, on account of frightening sequences and the frequency of violence.
But is it Edifying?: It’s more valuable as entertainment than as edification, but the underlying message is solid. Parents may find it useful to spark conversations about morality with their 6-12 year olds, but the movie won’t do that for you.
While watching The Mandalorian and Grogu recently, I was reminded of a distinction (which I owe to the pseudonymous Jane Psmith, who owes it to Robin Laws): the distinction between “iconic” and “dramatic” heroes.
While a dramatic hero follows a character arc in which he is changed by his experience of the world (examples: Orpheus, King Lear, Ben Braddock), an iconic hero undertakes tasks (often serially) and changes the world, restoring order to it, by remaining true to his essential self.
The Mandalorian (and Grogu, for that matter) sits squarely on the “iconic” side of this divide, along with Sherlock Holmes, James Bond, and Batman. You CAN give them a character arc in a film or TV show, but people don’t watch them for their character arcs. People watch them because they want to see them being themselves.
Which kind of story you tend to prefer - one with a dramatic hero or one with an iconic hero - will probably determine whether you enjoy this movie. Critics generally seem to be complaining that the film is unambitious, doesn’t take risks, and feels like an oversized TV episode. The critics are not wrong. If you want character development, the raising of important questions, or deep insights into the human condition, you will be unsatisfied. But if you want to see Din Djarin plowing through squads of stormtroopers on The Way to bring justice to various Big Bads, or watch Grogu take some more heartwarming steps on the path of childhood development, then you’ll likely leave the theater with a smile.
The Mandalorian and Grogu is aimed at children, and perhaps the children are onto something that the critics have forgotten about. Chesterton suggested that:
Because children have abounding vitality, because they are in spirit fierce and free, therefore they want things repeated and unchanged. They always say, “Do it again”; and the grown-up person does it again until he is nearly dead. For grown-up people are not strong enough to exult in monotony.
The critics are bored. But children, and maybe also those who have the heart of a child, are eager to say “Do it again!” to Din Djarin and Grogu until the galaxy runs out of Imperial warlords, crime bosses, and their mooks.
On the topic of plowing through hordes of mooks: the violence is really the main thing parents might want to discern before taking their children to see this movie. Characters are shot, stabbed, set on fire, thrown off cliffs, beaten, crushed, mauled, bitten, poisoned, and/or devoured - but everything is carefully shot in such a way to avoid gore almost entirely. The heroes don’t choose violence without good reason1, but they are certainly not shy about choosing it. Violence aside, the film’s underlying themes, insofar as it has them, are uncomplicated and family-friendly. If there is a “message”, it’s something like “it’s good to be loyal to your family and friends and be ready to sacrifice for them”2. If your children are fine with classic “family” action movies, they will be fine with this one (though maybe don’t bring them if they have a severe phobia of bugs or snakes.)
On the technical side, some elements shine and some don’t. The action is engaging and well-designed: it’s almost always clear what’s going on and why. I think the cold open scene in particular was truly excellent: toggling seamlessly between different kinds of action, delivering exciting twists and turns, and leaving us guessing about what would happen next. Ludwig Goransson delivers a fun score, with a few twists on the typical Mandalorian themes. The dialogue isn’t memorable: there are no truly awesome lines, but no truly terrible ones either. The plot flows logically, and the plot holes are papered over fairly skillfully.3 The acting was serviceable (Jonny Coyne was pretty good, Sigourney Weaver rather less so).
The Mandalorian and Grogu also successfully walked a tightrope between catering to fans and to casual viewers. I watched it with one hard core Star Wars fan (who was on her second viewing) and with My Wife™ who has minimal interest in the Star Wars extended universe. They both enjoyed it. There are plenty of “Easter eggs” and tie-ins for the fans to appreciate, but the movie works just fine whether you know what dejarik is or are just there to watch Baby Yoda be adorable.
Should you watch it? I enjoyed it, and you will too if you approach it in the right spirit. But (unless you are prevailed upon to write a review of it!)4 you probably won’t think much about it afterwards.
Though now I’ve said that, I kind of want to watch the cold open scene again. That was pretty awesome.
Revenge is explicitly rejected as a motivation, actually
Unless your dad is Jabba the Hutt and your surviving family plans to torture you to death for centuries, I guess.
The main one that kept bugging me was the inconsistency about what Grogu can or can’t do with the Force.
Editor’s note: This editor is appreciative!
I’m intrigued to watch it now to see which side I will be on….
Love the idea of an exclusive list for families!