Han Solo - A Star Wars Story

[MuteSuperstar]

the focus will be all on the new characters and not on expectations of any of the old guard.

Not helping my level of interest. I think Adam Driver is very talented but the rest of this new crew leaves me cold (especially Poe Dameron....yikes what a bore). Which in the case of TLJ was a much bigger fault of the writing than the actors. At this point I don't see how they can salvage Ep 9 in a way that interests me....but....that's just me. Solo looks decent though and I'm sure I'll get to it in a few months.

(ha you quoted me before my usual 4-5 edits, but the gist is the same)

 

[21stamps]

I don't think Last Jedi had much to do with it other than proximity of release dates. Reception wise, Last Jedi was better received than Solo, even though audiences who saw it still like Solo. Last Jedi was at the top of the streaming movie charts when it came out, and is still #2 on Blu Ray sales. So aside from online fanboi's who don't like the movie because it "ruined star wars", LJ was quite popular.

Regarding Solo, there's a lot to unpack here. A lot of things went into this opening to be very lackluster.

* Only 5 months since last SW film
* Very close proximity to Infinity War and Deadpool, which have similar demographics. I have several friends who are interested in Solo, but they don't see it as on the same level as LJ or even Rogue One (in terms of the epic quality), and since they just went to the movies to see Infinity War, they may wait until it's available for streaming.
* Summer, as opposed to December: December had become "Star Wars Season" in the mind of the public consciousness. Couple that with:
* Not nearly the same level of marketing as for the last several films.
* Memorial Day Weekend has been notoriously bad for new movies for about the last 10 years. Whoever decided to release Solo this weekend must have been crazy.

Really I think the above combined for the big drop. Also, Solo is a fine move. It's a fun tomorrow, as many have described. But it's not a blockbuster level Star Wars film. Beyond the Saga films, Star Wars as a modem franchise is still trying to get it's footing. Marvel and the MCU went through the same growing pains. Hulk/Thor/Captain America, the First Avenger, and Thor Dark World were all not as well received as the Iron Man films. Yet Marvel had found their footing: most of the movies in Phase 3 have been excellent and very well received. Star Wars has to be able to experiment without fanboi's jumping around whenever they make a bold creative choice. They also have to start avoiding "safe" stories like Solo and go in more interesting creative directions. One of the things they Marvel had figured out is that the different movies have to be different types of movies, different styles, different tones, in order to be successful in the long run.

This is the first time in 3 years that we haven’t seen the “new Star Wars” movie on opening day.. and we still don’t have tickets for the coming week.

In my opinion this is a horrible weekend/week for a lot of families to see a movie.... adults or teens only- maybe not so much.

 

[mikejs78]

these endless Marvel movies (I've seen maybe 4 of them) all do well regardless of release date, while we may be seeing a juggernaut like Star Wars starting to hit a certain level of fatigue.

But that isn't the case. Solo is doing better than Dr. Strange, Ant Man, Thor Dark World, Captain America Winter Soldier, Thor, Captain America the First Avenger. It's only because it's Star Wars that it's getting so much scrutiny. For a franchise to be viable long term there are going to be movies that perform at the blockbuster level, and others they do well but not at that level. Time will tell.

Interestingly, Solo will end up doing a little better than Guardians of the Galaxy did it's opening weekend. Yet Guardians went on to do better in later weekends. That could be the case here, given the holiday and no new blockbusters for the next couple of weeks until Jurassic World...

 

[MuteSuperstar]

For a franchise to be viable long term there are going to be movies that perform at the blockbuster level, and others they do well but not at that level. Time will tell.

Well that is fine if you aren't spending $250 - 350 million on a "non-blockbuster" movie (some articles have estimated that the higher figure is the all-in budget for Solo after reshoots and marketing). I still don't know how all this CGI nonsense costs QUITE so much, but whatever.

Even though Dr Strange and Ant-Man didn't do Avengers numbers....they still performed above expectations though. If Solo comes in under expectations, it has to make Disney at least a little nervous that the non-saga Star Wars films may not resonate like some of the "smaller" Marvel movies. Yes, time will tell.

 

[mikejs78]

Well that is fine if you aren't spending $250 - 350 million on a "non-blockbuster" movie (some articles have estimated that the higher figure is the all-in budget for Solo after reshoots and marketing). I still don't know how all this CGI nonsense costs QUITE so much, but whatever.

That's certainly true and I think something that LucasFilms has to learn. There are big budget movies and then smaller budget stories in any franchise. I suspect that what happened with Solo was that the first cut was God-awful, so they had to spend $$ on the reshoots to make it a decent movie. They'll lose money on it but maybe not as much as they would have, and will probably break even after streaming and Blu Ray figures are factored in.

CGI is expensive. Takes a lot of work to make good effects.

 

[MuteSuperstar]

CGI is expensive. Takes a lot of work to make good effects.

And bad ones, clearly.

According to what I've read, Ron Howard had to reshoot 70-80% of the film, so yeah this one got away from them in a very bad way. At least they were lucky to get a competent journeyman or it could have been even worse.

 

[winstongator]

One of the good things for the franchise is that we are now 18 months away from the next SW movie. And it's a saga movie. Enough breathing room and enough time to retool a little to make sure the trilogy goes out with a bang, which I think they may be able to do given that the focus will be all on the new characters and not on expectations of any of the old guard.

Will galaxy’s edge be open before episode 9 opens?

 

[mikejs78]

Will galaxy’s edge be open before episode 9 opens?

Yes, it's supposed to open spring in Disneyland and Fall in WDW.

 

[Hakunamatata]

Thought Solo was the best Disney produced SW flick yet. It definitely is set up for a sequal and most certainly sets the stage for Solo shooting first.

 

[Magenta Panther]

 

[Kevin_W]

This is the first time in 3 years that we haven’t seen the “new Star Wars” movie on opening day.. and we still don’t have tickets for the coming week.

In my opinion this is a horrible weekend/week for a lot of families to see a movie.... adults or teens only- maybe not so much.

Same here. TFA we had tickets as soon as they were available to the public, the other two not long after. This one... we'll get around to seeing sometime. 5 months after the last one is too soon, IMO. They are over-milking this cow. Part fo the reason Star Wars is special is because there were only 3 for the longest time.

Incidentally, we finally just saw Black Panther this weekend. It was good, but perhaps I'm feeling overdone with Marvel as well - hero fights same-powered hero in different suit (Iron Man, Hulk, Ant Man, probably others I'm forgetting).

 

[MuteSuperstar]

Obviously too early for any kind of panic, but if I'm working for Disney I'm thinking ok if a Han Solo movie isn't working, do I really think a Boba Fett movie is going to fly? Bottom line is, get good filmmakers who can bring in great movies for around 150m or 200 max. Do that, and as long as the films are good enough, the money will take care of itself. There's no way these things have to cost 250-350m, especially with mostly no huge names in the casts (certainly no 40m RDJ checks getting written, though I'm not sure what Ford got for TFA).

(all that said I find the expectations and general financial aspect of movies to be pretty darned absurd these days when we've reached the point that a 100m opening is considered subpar)

 

[doctornick]

Obviously too early for any kind of panic, but if I'm working for Disney I'm thinking ok if a Han Solo movie isn't working, do I really think a Boba Fett movie is going to fly? Bottom line is, get good filmmakers who can bring in great movies for around 150m or 200 max. Do that, and as long as the films are good enough, the money will take care of itself. There's no way these things have to cost 250-350m, especially with mostly no huge names in the casts (certainly no 40m RDJ checks getting written, though I'm not sure what Ford got for TFA).

(all that said I find the expectations and general financial aspect of movies to be pretty darned absurd these days when we've reached the point that a 100m opening is considered subpar)

I'd be cool if the Solo respond gets Boba Fett canned and has them focus on smaller scale (cheaper) films that are more story driven in the Star Wars universe.

 

[MisterPenguin]

The 'smaller, cheaper' films already exist: They're called Star Wars animated and live action TV/streaming series coming this year...

 

[21stamps]

We went to see it tonight.. much better than I expected!

Both myself and kiddo loved the movie!

 

[tk924]

So far, for me, the "Star Wars Stories" are much better than the numbered SW movies that Disney has put out.
It looks like Solo is not going to be a huge blockbuster and that's OK. I don't care how much money any movie makes. It only matters to me how I feel once the credits roll. Rogue One and Solo felt more like Star Wars to me than Ep 7 and 8.

 

[21stamps]

So far, for me, the "Star Wars Stories" are much better than the numbered SW movies that Disney has put out.
It looks like Solo is not going to be a huge blockbuster and that's OK. I don't care how much money any movie makes. It only matters to me how I feel once the credits roll. Rogue One and Solo felt more like Star Wars to me than Ep 7 and 8.

I’ve liked all the new movies.. but what I loved about Solo and Rogue One is having a backstory. It makes you (at least-us) want to go back and watch the original trilogy again.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

So far, for me, the "Star Wars Stories" are much better than the numbered SW movies that Disney has put out.
It looks like Solo is not going to be a huge blockbuster and that's OK. I don't care how much money any movie makes. It only matters to me how I feel once the credits roll. Rogue One and Solo felt more like Star Wars to me than Ep 7 and 8.

No doubt...I went to see it last night (had to squeeze it in) and I agree.

The two episodes are frankly crap...we’re adrift in the episodic sea with no real hopes of rescue - it seems. My opinion is Kathy Kennedy and rian Johnson hit the self destruct button...and are too stupid to know it.

But solo was fine...not a bad entry on the whole.

The problem for Star Wars is that I had to go last night and see it to make sure my 10 year wouldn’t hate it...because that’s now a “thing” for Star Wars/disney.

The box office is a problem...however. Kennedy’s awful performance coupled with board greed is a powderkeg

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I'd be cool if the Solo respond gets Boba Fett canned and has them focus on smaller scale (cheaper) films that are more story driven in the Star Wars universe.

Disney is NOT gonna pull back from Star Wars movies...they will frantically try to go off on different angles with more movies if anything

How scary is that???!

They will grind it to the bone. That was always a potential problem...

 

[tk924]

Disney is NOT gonna pull back from Star Wars movies...they will frantically try to go off on different angles with more movies if anything

How scary is that???!

They will grind it to the bone. That was always a potential problem...

You're right. Over saturation could be a big problem. But they're not going to let that stop them either. Just look at what's in the future.


Star Wars: Episode IX
December 20, 2019
Director: J.J. Abrams
Writer: Chris Terrio and J.J. Abrams
Lot's to fix from Ep 8. At this point, I'm keeping my expectations really, really low as I don't think that A) it can't be done and B) i'm not entirely sure they want to.

Star Wars: Boba Fett
Date TBA
Director: James Mangold
Writer: James Mangold
Loved the Logan movie. Great choice for writer/director here.

Rian Johnson's New Star Wars Trilogy
Dates TBA
Writer: Rian Johnson
All we know is that this will take place in previously unexplored areas of the Star Wars universe, and it will kick off a brand new saga of movies completely unrelated to the Skywalker story.
Funny, Episode 8 was unrelated to the Skywalker story too. Have little to no interest here unless he gets some serious help. I mean, just watch this.

New Series from David Benioff and D.B. Weiss
Dates TBA
Writers: David Benioff and D.B. Weiss
Not sure what to expect here. I've never watched Game of Thrones but it seems to be popular. We'll see.

Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi
Date TBA
A standalone movie focusing on Obi-Wan Kenobi has been rumored for a long time, and it sounds like it's finally happening. Stephen Daldry (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close) is in early talks to direct. It's unclear if Ewan McGregor will reprise his role as the Jedi Master, but the actor has said in the past that he'd be happy to return for another movie. He might just get his wish.
If they choose anyone other than Ewan McGregor, forget it. So, 50 - 50, for now.

Disney also announced a slew of release dates for live action films. There are a few that could potentially end up being Star Wars movies, as they fall right in the areas of the calendar that the recent films have been released. The dates are:

May 29, 2020
December 23, 2020
May 28, 2021
December 22, 2021
May 27, 2022

While none of those have been confirmed as Star Wars movies yet, it's worth keeping an eye on them for now!

This does not even include the new Star Wars animated series or the live action TV series to be done by Jon Favreau.



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