This is the way.

The Mandalorian and Grogu — 2.5/5

For the record, I did not watch the TV show, because I had no interest in it. But I also watched this without having much interest in it, and that's just how life works out sometimes, don't make a big deal out of it. And hey, the big takeaway: the little alien is cute. His janky-ass puppetry is fun, it's human. And then, aside from a hand up its ass, there is nothing inside that little thing. He has no story. He's only just a cute thing, beginning and end. Which is the crux of the problem: this movie has no characters. Every time Mando faintly speaks, he just showcases why bullets can't hit him: he's barely there. He's air; you can walk right through him. A great mystery of Hollywood is how a man who became known via an incredibly charming character in 'Game of Thrones' was then made to play self-serious sad-sacks in every other property he's cast in. That's essentially the movie: here's a bunch of fun things, do nothing with them. I'd almost prefer the movie went entirely silent, I think that would have been a lot more interesting choice. But it's fine. You can turn it on halfway through and wash your dishes with it on in the background. But the beautiful appeal of those types of movies is that at least there's a scene or two that grabs your attention, and you just let the water run, enraptured, before returning to your task. Nothing of the sort here. I almost want to give this a lower score just because at least in the slew of recent things I've given a 2.5, I can at least see ambition in them. Nothing of the sort here.