His work complete on Nevarro, the Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal)  continues on his trek to locate a fabled Jedi on the plant of Corvus. Finding himself walking into a dangerous and savaged world, Din Djarin attempts to locate an elusive Jedi, and encounters Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson), a legend of The Clone Wars and Djarin’s best chance at trying to decipher the mystery behind The Child. Seeking to help the child, Djarin and Tano make a pact to help each other free Corvos of its brutal rulers and the stage is set for one of the most epic episodes of The Mandalorian so-far.

From her introduction in 2008’s Star Wars: The Clone Wars, the character of Ahsoka Tano has been a long-time fan favourite as she first served as the Padawan apprentice to a young Anakin Skywalker, before eventually developing into a full-fledged Jedi Knight. In ‘The Jedi’, Tano moves from being a 2D rendered animated character to a totally real live-action being, and star Rosario Dawson does an incredibly impressive job bringing her to live. Now tough and battle-hardened, Tano is a clear veteran of a long and arduous fight against The Empire, and she is still managing to fight the good fight. Dawson brings a real zen-warrior balance to the character of Tano, and her combination of lightning-fast reflexes and cool demeanour makes her one of the most interesting characters that we’ve met so far.

Alongside the introduction of the character of Ahsoka Tano, ‘The Jedi’ also gives us some incredible details into the nature and history of The Child, who is finally revealed to be named Grogu. In what is the most intriguing parts of the episode, Tano and Grogu share a force-bond and telepathic conversation where Grogu’s past as a Jedi youngling is revealed, and the details that are established here make for incredibly exciting watching. This introduction of Grogu’s past also helps to build his bond even more so to that of Djarin as his protector and ‘father’.

In terms of scale and production, ‘The Jedi’ is the most beautifully shot episode of The Mandalorian to date. Director Dave Filoni grounds this episode’s style and design in the classic samurai cinema of Akira Kurosawa, who had a strong influence on George Lucas’s original creation. From a desolate and barren landscape which is captured in a style similar to sumi-e painting to the Medieval designs of the city of Calodan to the martial arts and samurai movement of ‘The Jedi’s’ immense fight scenes, the language of Kurosawa’s style is all through ‘The Jedi’ and it is beautiful to behold. Filoni also uses a bold use of symbolism in this episode as well, and there are moment where Tano and Grogu’s interactions bear a similarity to the visual motif of the Madonna and Child.

‘The Jedi’ also gives viewers an introduction back to the elegant combat of the Jedi order thanks to Tano’s use of a pair of duel white lightsabers that light up the screen with a combination of fury and grace. The dual action between the Mandalorian and Tano is a terrific fusion of both western and eastern combat styles that we first saw back in the original 1977 Star Wars, and their inclusion here makes for a compelling watch. Tano’s samurai sword duel with ‘The Jedi’s’ big bad, Magistrate Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto), is the episode’s highlight and the action is directly out of Kurosawa’s classic Yojimbo. Tano’s mention of the infamous Grand Admiral Thrawn will also have long-time fans salivating, and will make things very interesting down the road.

Chapter 13 of The Mandalorian, ‘The Jedi’ is the series most beautiful episode to date. It’s Star Wars in its purest form, and I was hooked from beginning to end. They don’t get much better than this.

The Mandalorian streams every Friday on Disney+

Image: Walt Disney Pictures

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Following the same non-linear narrative introduced in the first film, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For follows four interconnected stories through the harsh streets of Basin City. The film’s primary focus is on Dwight McCarthy (Josh Brolin) who is contacted by his former lover, the beautiful Ava Lord (Eva Green), who wishes to escape her abusive husband, billionaire Damien Lord (Marton Csokas). But a love struck Dwight soon learns that Ava’s cry for help might hide far darker intentions.

Brolin is perfect as the pugilistic Dwight, a hard man who has had his share of vices and now ekes out a living as a private investigator. While he’s capable of dispensing a good dose of pain, he also puts himself in the position to receive a fair bit of it himself. Brolin is an absolute beast of man who commands the attention of the screen, and the audience will really be rooting for him to survive and get his payback. The incredibly seductive Green has this definite feminine feline grace and sexuality, which she uses as a razor sharp weapon. This goddess is one bad girl, and the former Bond girl has a lot of fun with her seductive personality. Green was definitely the right choice for the role as she also has the look of a 1940s starlet (which is in keeping with the film’s noir material), and she’s a ball of energy up on screen. The absolutely stunning Rosario Dawson also returns as the tough talking Gail, and brings a dash of smoking sexuality to the film, while Dennis Haysbert takes on the role of the vicious Manute from Michael Clarke Duncan, and is well up to the task.

‘A Dame To Kill For‘ is bookended by two very different, but interconnected stories: ‘Nancy’s Last Dance’ and ‘The Long Bad Night’. “Nancy’s Last Dance” follows Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba) as she tries to cope in the wake of John Hartigan’s (Bruce Willis) death, while plotting to kill Senator Roark (Powers Boothe) while “The Long Bad Night” sees Johnny (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a cocky gambler, who wants to destroy the biggest villain in Sin City at his own game, until he beats the wrong man and events take a turn for the worse. The film also features “Just Another Saturday Night” which finds Marv (Mickey Rourke) back on the streets, waking up on a highway overlooking the Projects, surrounded by several dead young men and unable to remember how he got there.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is front and centre in ‘The Long Bad Night’ portraying a character that plays to Levitt’s strengths as an actor. Johnny is a brash, arrogant, slick hustler who makes no attempt to hide his incredible skill and luck at the poker tables, and his smart-aleck charm will take him along way with audiences. He’s pitted against corruption incarnate with Powers Boothe returning as the sinister Senator Roark. The scenes where these two battle it out at the tables are pretty incredible to watch, and things do get intense. Also keep your eyes open for a surprise cameo from Christopher Lloyd.

Finally, ‘Nancy’s Last Dance’ follows Nancy Callahan as she struggles through the death of John Hartigan, and makes a move to avenge his death. This part of the film was definitely my favorite as its fun to watch Nancy completely fall to pieces, and then go crazy. Nancy’s battling some demons this time around, and her reliance on the bottle isn’t helping. Alba’s commitment is frightening, particularly with the extremes that she goes to in her performance. Again, she has to contend with Powers Boothe’s vial Senator Roark, but she gets some help from Mickey Rourke who returns as the ever lovable Marv, and who has a lot of fun doing what he does best: wrecking absolute havoc.

Miller and Rodriguez were absolutely groundbreaking with the first ‘Sin City’, and the two co-directors were literally ahead of their time with this mind-blowing film through the power and capability of their special effects. With this return trip to the infamous Basin City however, they’ve truly raised the bar with an epic avant garde approach.

Sin City: A Dame To Kill For is violent, brutal and scintillating with every frame, and audiences are sure to lap it all up. So remember to walk down the right back alley in Sin City, because you can find anything….

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