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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
Following this past December’s release of Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire, the filmmaker returns with the second part of the sci-fi space opera version of Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai. Subtitled Part Two: The Scargiver, the follow-up to Part One finds its main characters and the villagers of Veldt defending their home from the assails of the Motherworld’s Imperium and the admiral of the Dreadnought, Atticus Noble (Ed Skrein). The movie appears to dismiss the first film’s themes of interconnectedness and empathy. This leads to a messy conclusion to the current story that is told.
The film’s story is written by Snyder, and its screenplay is co-written with executive producers Kurt Johnstad and Shay Hatten.
In this review, I will discuss Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver. As the title of this article suggests, there will be no spoilers present here. With that in mind, I will be referencing the prior film’s key elements.
Netflix’s Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver Synopsis
According to Netflix Media Center, here is the synopsis for Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver.
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.
Netflix Media Center
Discussion
Structurally, Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver is out of place in the wider narrative conflict introduced to viewers in the first film. With A Child of Fire, it was easier to note where one act in the plot ended and another began. For The Scargiver, the first act focused on the warriors assisting the villagers of Veldt prepare for the imminent attack via a couple of montage sequences. If combined with Part One, Part Two would have looked to be an intriguing tale of the underdogs of Snyder’s cosmos getting their revenge. On its own, however, Part Two fails to keep up with the merits of its predecessor but somehow lands somewhere on an average feature.
On the one hand, Snyder, Hatten, and Johnstad’s screenplay can be incredibly awkward in places. The dialogue and, more so, the poor character backstories that don’t match anything as alluring as Nemesis’s (Doona Bae) are both factors that contribute to this issue. The warriors of film each have a past to call forth, but aside from Tarak Decimus (Staz Nair) and Nemesis, there is not much viewers need to or do not already know. Conversely, the imagery here and there has something to ponder on.
Old stories can be hard to give up.
General Titus (Djimon Hounsou), ‘Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver’
The movie continues almost immediately from Part One, with Noble waking inside of a chrysalis. This could point to a theme of metamorphosis and transformation through self-destruction. Yet, Part Two keeps viewers guessing at what the larger point even is. Besides the risk of not dying, are there truly any major stakes for the characters?
A Visual Spectacle
Thankfully, there seems to be improvement on the visual effects side. Snyder and his cinematography crew have delightful framing when it comes to capturing emotional pictures. When the warriors first arrive, Kora/Arthelais (Sofia Boutella) and Gunnar’s (Michiel Huisman) silhouettes are seen kissing in the foreground of a dusky Veldt sky. The use of explosions of Imperial ships and machines provides some of the best sights for this movie.
The costume designs, the hair, and the makeup are attractive work from the respective departments. One particular example of this that I find noteworthy is in General Titus’s (Djimon Hounsou) backstory when he explains his fallout with Imperial forces. His appearance as an actual general—and not just a title—demonstrates an assertion of power. Yet, when juxtaposed with soldiers of the Motherworld, audiences can see the disparity between the two parties represented, resulting in a kind of power imbalance.
The stunt and the fight coordination are awesome, especially in action sequences involving Kora, Nemesis, and even Jimmy (Dustin Ceithamer, voiced by Anthony Hopkins). A few portions of Tom Holkenborg’s musical composition match decently with the framing. I like the mournful tune as the villagers gather to look upon one character’s dead body, or the “solemn choral music” as lasers are shot from all sides of the Veldt battlefield.
The Crew Behind Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver
Snyder serves as the director of photography for the film. Jac Fitzgerald and Tucker Korte are the second-unit DPs.
Clay Enos, Chris Strother, and Justin M. Lubin serve as the film’s stills photographers.
Tom “Junkie XL” Holkenborg (The Dark Knight Rises, Mad Max: Fury Road, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Alita: Battle Angel) scores the soundtrack.
Ching-Shan Chang, Dallin Burns, Jack Roberts, Luca Fagagnini, and Rafael Frost compose additional music. Mikael Sandgren is the music editor.
Scott Hecker and Chuck Michael are the sound designers and supervisors. Brad Sokol is the assistant sound editor.
Dody Dorn is the editor.
Lee Bermejo, Tim Divar, David Hartman, Ray Harvie, Daniel Warren Johnson, Jay Oliva, Jeffrey Paulsrud, Richard Poulain, Jared Purrington, and Andres Velasco serve as the storyboard artists.
Kristy Carlson serves as the casting director.
Jeanette Benzie serves as the casting associate. Devin Rossinsky serves as the casting assistant.
Sarah Scott serves as the intimacy coordinator.
Stunt Team
Freddy Bouciegues and John Koyama serve as stunt coordinators. Malosi Leonard serves as an assistant stunt coordinator.
Ryan Gray and Jimmy Chhiu are the fight coordinators.
Mel Jin and Lauren Mary Kim play the Kora stunt doubles. Albert “Spider” Valladares plays the Atticus Noble stunt double.
Derek Johnson plays the Gunnar stunt double.
Michael Timothy Brown plays the Tarak Decimus stunt doubles. Mel Jin and Megan Hui serve as the Nemesis stunt doubles.
Brian Jansa and Janell Emily Haney play the Milius stunt doubles.
Trevor Logan plays the Jimmy stunt double.
Aesthetics
Stephen Swain and Stefan Dechant serve as the production designers. Julien Pougnier serves as the supervising art director.
Desma Murphy, Kevin Ishioka, Sandra Doyle Carmola, Richard L. Johnson, Eric Sundahl, Jennifer Bash, Virginia Berg, and Jason Perrine are the art directors.
Howard Swindell serves as the creature concept artist.
Stephanie Porter serves as the costume designer. Tamsin Costello and Erica Rice are the assistant costume designers.
Aurora Bergere is the makeup department head. Michelle Audrina Kim is the makeup department assistant head.
Jules Holdren is the hair department head. April Schuller is the hair department assistant head.
Justin Raleigh serves as the special effects makeup and prosthetics designer.
Visual Effects
Marcus Taormina, Ken McGaugh, Robin Hollander, Justin Mitchell, Mai-Ling Dydo, Sebastien Francoeur, and Gregory D. Liegey are the visual effects supervisors.
Bryan Searing, Audrey Boivin, Perdita Carvil, Luis Alejandro Guevara, Caroline Guagliardo, Ethan Maharaj, Hugo R. A. Morris, Phi Van Le, Graeme Marshall are the VFX producers.
Tamara Watts Kent and David Robinson are the additional VFX producers.
Michele C. Vallillo is the VFX executive producer.
Brett Schlaman and Jeremy Bradley are the VFX editors. Damian Gomez, Hayley Stablow, and Yufei Skylar Zhang are the VFX assistant editors.
The Cast of Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver
Sofia Boutella (Kingsman: The Secret Service, Star Trek Beyond) portrays Kora, a former soldier for the Motherworld. The character is also referred to as “Arthelais” and “Scargiver”.
Michiel Huisman (The Invitation, Game of Thrones, The Haunting of Hill House, The Flight Attendant) plays Gunnar, a farmer on a world called Veldt. Djimon Hounsou (Push, Guardians of the Galaxy, Shazam!, The King’s Man) portrays Titus, a former general.
Doona Bae portrays Nemesis, a swordmaster.
Staz Nair plays Tarak Decimus, a nobleman-turned-blacksmith. Elise Duffy portrays Milius, a non-binary rebel who fights under the siblings.
Ed Skrein (Deadpool, Alita: Battle Angel) plays Atticus Noble, an admiral for the Motherworld, the film’s primary antagonist. Fra Fee (Disney+’s Hawkeye) portrays Belisarius—a senator and general of the Motherworld and the adoptive father of Kora.
Good Guys
Stuart Martin (Army of Thieves) plays Den, a local farmer on Veldt. Ingvar Sigurdsson (The Northman) portrays Hagen, a local on Veldt who rescued Kora from her crash landing on the world.
Anthony Hopkins (The Silence of the Lambs, The Father) voices “Jimmy”/ James—a JC-1435 machine of the Motherworld’s Mechanicas Militarium and a defender of the slain king. Dustin Ceithamer (The New Mutants, Disney+’s Obi-Wan Kenobi, HBO’s The Last of Us) plays Jimmy’s body.
Charlotte Maggi plays Sam, a farm girl on Veldt. Sky Yang plays Aris, a private under the Motherworld.
Sisse Marie appears as a villager named Astrid.
Ray Fisher (True Detective, Justice League) appears as Darrian Bloodaxe in a flashback. Cleopatra Coleman (The Last Man on Earth, Infinity Pool) portrays Devra Bloodaxe, Darrian’s sister and a co-leader of a rebel army.
Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride, Saw) and Rhian Rees portray the King and the Queen of the Motherworld, respectively. Stella Grace Fitzgerald plays Princess Issa.
Bad Guys
Alfonso Herrera (Fox’s The Exorcist, Sense8, Ozark) plays Cassius, a soldier under Noble.
Max Deacon and Eric Barron play two medics on the Dreadnought. Kevin Stidham plays a Dreadnought officer on the bridge above the engine room.
More Love to Nemesis
As was the case with the first installment in the film series, Bae’s role as Nemesis is a major highlight. The actor and the role she plays are indisputably a stand-out for the movie. At one point, she is cited by one or two of the villagers as a mother figure, which propels her back to her past, mourning over her lifeless children. Nemesis’s backstory is written well if not depicted in a more unique way than others, shedding light on how she had come to acquire gauntlets for her arms and the weapons that she wields.
Unfortunately, the character is not done enough justice. With Part One‘s themes comes the idea of people uniting to defend that which they love. When applying this to Part Two, the outcomes are rushed, and there is nothing to gain that is not said better in the movie’s inspiration, Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai. Considering her fate by the end of the movie, Nemesis deserves a greater conclusion than whatever she did end up getting. It is as if characters forget how impactful she is to the story, or perhaps she is underappreciated in that regard.
Final Thoughts on Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver
More than a weapon. It’s what we’re all trying to be.
Kora (Sofia Boutella), ‘Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver’
While Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai ended with a balance of casualties and survivors, there is such a bad ratio in Snyder’s The Scargiver. This second part to the Rebel Moon mythos does not live up to the first, and it surely is easy to tell that that is the case. I don’t suppose it is as horrid as many make it out to be, but it’s also far from a perfect film. The final scene does propose a third entry in the series, and maybe that’s needed given the dissatisfactory work done here.
2.5/5 stars
Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver is now streaming via Netflix!
Have you seen the film yet? If so, then what are your thoughts on it so far? Let us know! For more action, adventure, and drama-related news and reviews, follow The Cinema Spot on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
