OK so here are some more lengthy (yet fairly scrambled) impressions.. I'm still digesting what I saw last night. Keep in mind, this is all subject to change as my opinions of SW movies swing wildly and my initial impressions are always the worst.
Overall I didn't like it. I don't hate it or think it's bad, but thought it was quite flat and lacked emotional resonance. Which is too bad, because at times, it was charming, human and very funny. It could have legitimately been a great SW movie, and Alden was the best part about it. I was wrong about him, and I think most people were too.
Let's get the bad out of the way first:
- The movie felt flat and generally not very engaging. I thought the introduction to Qi'ra/Han's relationship felt forced; when they got separated I didn't really care that much and I feel like I really should have. It would have made their reuniting/relationship in the later part of the movie more emotionally gripping.
- Lacked an emotional core. I think three or four people died in this movie and I didn't really feel much for any of them or for the characters who had to deal with their passing (though Glover's scene was very good, the sudden shift in tone felt out of place). It was still a step up from R1, no doubt, but I just wasn't invested most of the time.
- Action was frequently dull. Maybe part of this was because I sat off to the side and didn't have a very good seat, but I was expecting the falcon stuff to be some of the best action pieces in the movie and it just.. wasn't there. The big squid thing.. I just wasn't into it. Though the speed boost sequence was great. TFA/TLJ did a far better job with the falcon, without question. The train car stuff was actually pretty unique and interesting, but most of the set pieces just didn't do anything for me. There were a few standout moments that made me smile, but was expecting more.
- Callbacks.. this is the first time I've felt like they were just too obvious and excessive. They easily could have done almost all of the ones they did and implemented them more subtly, instead of hitting the audience over the head. Some were a lot of fun and excellent, but many were not.
- Visually, much of the movie was bland. Wayyy too much cloudy grey/brown. I wanted a more vibrant, lively looking setting. Yes, you can still accomplish that and include the tone/atmosphere they were shooting for. Some excellent shots and use of color, but most of the time just looked very washed out.
- Some bad/unfunny jokes that should have been scrapped ("my thumbs are sore" was a low point.. felt out of character). The whole Chewie meeting fight was kinda weird and off for me. Han speaking like a Wookie was.. strange, lol.
- The cameo was.. cool but confusing and seemed to come out of nowhere. Maybe this will become clearer when I watch again.
- The middle section really sagged for me. I felt like there was just nothing interesting happening for a good half hour or so.
- Wasn't super impressed with much of Chewie/Han's interactions and thought this would be the best part of the movie. They had some really great moments but overall thought the Kasdans would write a lot more for them.
- Solo's name. Just.. that was disappointing to me. Some random ass Imperial officer gives him his name? Eh.. there are a million better ways to do it.
- Directly copying Han/Leia's kiss in the falcon was terrible and felt really lazy to me (and even being interrupted). Which is a shame because I enjoyed a lot of their more subtle interactions.
- In comparison to R1, this movie felt incredibly tiny and contained. World building was pretty good, but I would have liked to see more populated areas.
- Some of the twists felt contrived and unnecessary.
- Alden's delivery of "I have a really good feeling about this" is still bad (ironically), IMO. One of the few moments he felt out of place to me.
Now the good:
- Alden. He is his own Han Solo and he won me over by the end. I wouldn't mind seeing him reprise in a better movie. I was wrong.
- Clarke was great and people should be ashamed of trashing her for no reason. She had great chemistry with Ehrenreich, even if their introduction was rocky.
- Some excellent scenes with Han/Qi'Ra paired with a great score.
- Some really fun interactions between Han/Lando/Chewie.
- Lando. Glover did a great job with him and made him his own, as Alden did with Han.
- The score was better than I thought it would be. I thought it was actually quite good even if subtle.
- Some fantastic shots with the falcon and cool sequences on the train.
- Alden just had great delivery most of the time. Some classic Han lines/moments.
- Beckett was fun.
These are just random thoughts with no real train of thought (left a lot out) still and I'll be able to better collect them after I see the movie again. Overall, I'd give it about a 6/10, a little worse than R1. For reference, I'd give TFA/TLJ about 8/10. It's passable but could have been much,
much better.
All things considered though.. it's amazing this movie isn't a disaster. Howard worked magic to get it functional.
