First impressions of Solo: A Star Wars Story from the world premiere
On Thursday, May 10, the stars of Solo: A Star Wars Story — including Emilia Clarke, who plays Qi’ra — walked the red carpet for the film’s Hollywood premiere. While we don’t have full reviews yet, plenty of attendees took to Twitter to give their initial impressions after the screening was over. What do they have to say? Let’s take a look, starting with Luke Skywalker himself:
NO SPOILERS until everyone's seen it, but I can't wait to see it AGAIN. 👍#SoHighFromSolo pic.twitter.com/LTqDAKIHVF
— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) May 11, 2018
Speaking of Luke, Emilia Clarke told Entertainment Tonight that her Thrones costar Kit Harington (Jon Snow) would be the perfect choice to play the young moisture farmer if he ever gets his own Solo-style reboot. “I feel like I have to say Kit Harington. Because I have to, do you know what I mean?” I don’t quite see it, but props for the loyalty.
While we’re talking about Clarke, Rebecca Darling had some high praise for her performance in Solo.
Emilia Clarke was brilliant as Qi’ra in SOLO: A Star Wars Story - creating a new female leader in the franchise. #HanSoloEvent #HanSolo #StarWars ##HanSoloPremiere pic.twitter.com/yahLtg5lfK
— R We There Yet Mom? (@RWeThereYetMom) May 11, 2018
As for Alden Ehrenreich’s performance as Young Han, IndieWire’s Kate Erbland thinks it takes a moment to get used to, but that it works out in the end:
Mike Ryan from Uproxx agrees; he had lots of praise for Donald Glover’s turn as Young Lando Calrissian, as well.
It does take a bit to get used to Alden as Han, but after 30 minutes or so your brain adjusts. (Also I've now finally seen Clint Howard in a Star Wars movie.) #soloastarwarsstory
— Mike Ryan (@mikeryan) May 11, 2018
A lot of people seem to agree that Donald Glover steals the show:
#SoloAStarWarsStory has a bit of a rough start, but it was a blast of of an adventure. And yes, Donald Glover steals the movie! But you already knew that. pic.twitter.com/4SGiq6tDmQ
— Jenna Busch-Henderson (@JennaBusch) May 11, 2018
My one GIF review of #SoloAStarWarsStory @starwars pic.twitter.com/g4dGJGZiyF
— Angelique Jackson (@angelique814) May 11, 2018
Joel Meares from Rotten Tomatoes thinks Ehrenreich’s performance matches Glovers for swagger.
Wow. Just come out of #SoloAStarWarsStory and can confirm it’s kinda a blast. @donaldglover was as perfect as expected, but Alden Ehrenreich has swagger to match, and spare.
— Joel Meares (@joelmeares) May 11, 2018
Meanwhile, Nerdist’s Michelle Buchman praised both actors, and even said Solo is her new favorite Star Wars film.
Thandie Newton (Maeve on Westworld) is in the film too, and people like Angie Han from Mashable are more than ready to praise her, as well:
Alden Ehrenreich is the real deal, Thandie Newton is who I want to be when I grow up, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s L3... well we’ll talk about that later. 😃 #SoloAStarWarsStory
— Angie J. Han (@ajhan) May 11, 2018
Not everyone loved the movie, like Dennis Tzeng of Collider:
#SoloAStarWarsStory was a mostly fun adventure and solid performances but with a predictable story. Never will be one of my favorite #StarWars movies but I enjoyed enough of it.
— Dennis Tzeng 曾逸凡 (@ThinkHero) May 11, 2018
Eric Eisenberg from CinemaBlend agrees with Tzeng:
Solo: A Star Wars Story is... fine. It's slow to find its footing, but picks up in the second act, and it's definitely fun. Has the occasional prequel problem answering questions I didn't need answers to, but also some fun references. Overall I liked it, didn't love it pic.twitter.com/dV02yRYueA
— Eric Eisenberg (@eeisenberg) May 11, 2018
Back on the positive side, Gizmodo’s Germain Lussier couldn’t be more pleased with the film:
Solo: A Star Wars Story is a goddamn delight. It’s a non-stop adventure packed with way more emotion than your expecting. You’ll have a smile on your face the whole time and leave eager for more. pic.twitter.com/fOsF7Tr95L
— Germain Lussier (@GermainLussier) May 11, 2018
Finally, Wendy Lee Szany of Collider had a more mixed take, but assures us that the heart of the movie is intact:
Solo: A Star Wars Story has a light tone and has some great action sequences. There were great moments but some were a bit too on the nose for me. The Chewie/Han bromance is the thing to watch for.
— Wendy Lee Szany (@WendyLeeSzany) May 11, 2018
So we’ve got a range of reactions, from wild exuberance to tepid acceptance. That seems about par for the course with Disney-era Star Wars films.
Solo: A Star Wars Story hits theaters on May 25.
Next: Emilia Clarke: The ending of Game of Thrones will be “what none of us think it will be”
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