'Rebel Moon - Part Two: Director's Cut' Reviews: "a genuinely great film, a sweeping epic that makes this whole rollercoaster feel worth it"

        On August 2, 2024, Netflix released 'Rebel Moon - Part Two: Director's Cut', which is a re-release of the film with director Zack Snyder's added footage. Ironically, this cut has fared better than the original cut, currently holding at 40% on Rotten Tomatoes. For anyone unfamiliar with the franchise, it centers on rebels on a remote moon as they fight for their home. The ensemble cast includes Sofia Boutella, Anthony Hopkins, Djimon Hounsou, Ed Skrein, Michiel Huisman, Ray Fisher, and Bae Doo-na. But what did the critics say?

        Chase Hutchinson of Collider was less than impressed, stating, "It’s less a director’s cut that offers anything worth revisiting, and more Snyder's glorified rearranging of deck chairs on the Titanic. You might see a new piece of furniture as it sinks down, but it only descends all the faster from the dead weight." Concluding, "While more resonant than anything that preceded it and the subsequent tiresome final stinger of an added scene that plays more like a threat of more, a new song of mourning near the end would be best if it served as a farewell to this sad attempt at a sci-fi epic for good."

Photo by Kilyan Stockalingum on Unsplash

        James Preston Poole of But Why Tho? A Geek Community praises the film, stating, "When Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver hit Netflix in April 2024, it offered slight growth over the first film’s many failings. With both films hobbled by a bizarre Netflix deal where Zack Snyder would release compromised PG-13 cuts then get to release his full vision later, the whole enterprise feels bound to lose the audience. Now that the true versions of each part of the film are available, the time has come to see if this project was worth all the hoopla. Rebel Moon – Chapter One: Chalice of Blood (Director’s Cut) was a major improvement on its prior version that still couldn’t hide inherent structural issues. Rebel Moon – Chapter Two: Curse of Forgiveness (Rebel Moon – Chapter Two: Director’s Cut), on the other hand, is a genuinely great film, a sweeping epic that makes this whole rollercoaster feel worth it."

       William Bibbiani of The Wrap notes, "Still cloyingly derivative and relatively shallow, especially compared to their most obvious influences." Continuing, "Zack Snyder’s “Rebel Moon” movies are back, and this time they’re longer than ever. Not better, for the most part. Just longer. Unlike many director’s cuts — including Snyder’s own “Justice League” — the updated versions of “Rebel Moon” don’t change the narrative very much. There’s a little more backstory and a lot more fake-looking CGI blood, but “Rebel Moon — Chapter 1: Chalice of Blood” and “Rebel Moon — Chapter 2: Curse of Forgiveness” tell the same tale as before and make about as much of an impact."

       Luke Y. Thompson of SuperHeroHype says, "The newest Snyder cut plays like the most mindless faux-machismo video game in the universe, and that’s exactly what it wants to be. No stars for forcing us critics to watch the watered-down versions first, especially in a streaming era where theatrical age restrictions don’t matter. If you have any inner cinematic bloodlust, however, this should feed the beast. Pagan space Gods help me, but I kind of want to see what comes next, if anything."