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Cet (105 KP) rated Solo: A Star Wars Story - Soundtrack by John Powell in Music
Jul 15, 2018 (Updated Jul 15, 2018)
Has a Star Wars Feel but not quite memorable
I received a gift copy for this review.
TL;DR It belongs in Star Wars but not memorable enough to make it Star Wars. In other words I doubt you'll hear any of these themes in any fan films.
Let's face it John Williams won't be with us forever. He's closing in on 90 and I've read Episode IX will be his last with Star Wars. Lucas Films getting him to work with other composers is the best thing they could do. However why John Powell? This is not a young buck. Lucas Films needs to get their act together in keeping some regulars. Especially on the tech department.
Now to the review.
I've listened to this soundtrack 3 or so times. To John Powell's credit every track belongs in the star wars universe. However no composition here including the scores by Williams is memorable. We don't have a Duel of Fates, Across the Stars, or my favorite Binary Sunset. These themes if you don't know them by title you will know them by sound, and you will immediately have a visual to go with it.
There are a few tracks that conjure certain scenes from the movie. I'm not sure if that's due to the title of the theme or credit to Powell. The Corellia chase for one is catchy. Capturing an old west feel and Han's gun slinging, and hijacking of a land speeder. However when I watched the movie I don't even recall this theme. I had to listen to the composition while writing this paragraph. So although fitting for the character and setting it's forgettable.
When I stated there isn't any music here that's memorable, that's not entirely true. Around 20 seconds into The Adventures of Han begins a beautiful arrangement. It's short sweet and even repeats 29 seconds in Corellia Chase, and 1 minute 24 seconds into Break Out. This short 10 second snippet should've been treated like Indiana Jones. A recurring theme that we could've linked to Han Solo himself.
On the other hand perhaps the writing and the visual of the movie also holds the music back. I'm fairly sure the above arrangement appears in a few other songs. The movie was 2 hours of action packed scenes. There was no tension due to the fact we knew what was coming. The few characters that I got attached to didn't have their own theme. They should've capitalized more on Vos, Beckett, and even the romance with Qi'ra. None of these characters had a theme.
The music here belongs in Star Wars. It's hard to imagine them anywhere else. In previous Star Wars films the music was just as memorable as the scenes though. If I were to compare it to anything else it would be The Avengers. I couldn't hum any of the compositions, but if I heard em i'd probably recognize where it's from. A image wouldn't go with it, and that's just not Star Wars enough.
TL;DR It belongs in Star Wars but not memorable enough to make it Star Wars. In other words I doubt you'll hear any of these themes in any fan films.
Let's face it John Williams won't be with us forever. He's closing in on 90 and I've read Episode IX will be his last with Star Wars. Lucas Films getting him to work with other composers is the best thing they could do. However why John Powell? This is not a young buck. Lucas Films needs to get their act together in keeping some regulars. Especially on the tech department.
Now to the review.
I've listened to this soundtrack 3 or so times. To John Powell's credit every track belongs in the star wars universe. However no composition here including the scores by Williams is memorable. We don't have a Duel of Fates, Across the Stars, or my favorite Binary Sunset. These themes if you don't know them by title you will know them by sound, and you will immediately have a visual to go with it.
There are a few tracks that conjure certain scenes from the movie. I'm not sure if that's due to the title of the theme or credit to Powell. The Corellia chase for one is catchy. Capturing an old west feel and Han's gun slinging, and hijacking of a land speeder. However when I watched the movie I don't even recall this theme. I had to listen to the composition while writing this paragraph. So although fitting for the character and setting it's forgettable.
When I stated there isn't any music here that's memorable, that's not entirely true. Around 20 seconds into The Adventures of Han begins a beautiful arrangement. It's short sweet and even repeats 29 seconds in Corellia Chase, and 1 minute 24 seconds into Break Out. This short 10 second snippet should've been treated like Indiana Jones. A recurring theme that we could've linked to Han Solo himself.
On the other hand perhaps the writing and the visual of the movie also holds the music back. I'm fairly sure the above arrangement appears in a few other songs. The movie was 2 hours of action packed scenes. There was no tension due to the fact we knew what was coming. The few characters that I got attached to didn't have their own theme. They should've capitalized more on Vos, Beckett, and even the romance with Qi'ra. None of these characters had a theme.
The music here belongs in Star Wars. It's hard to imagine them anywhere else. In previous Star Wars films the music was just as memorable as the scenes though. If I were to compare it to anything else it would be The Avengers. I couldn't hum any of the compositions, but if I heard em i'd probably recognize where it's from. A image wouldn't go with it, and that's just not Star Wars enough.
David McK (3791 KP) rated Thrawn (Star Wars: Thrawn #1) in Books
Jan 28, 2019
I think therte may have been other Star Wars books prior to [a:Timothy Zahn|12479|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1215545810p2/12479.jpg]'s 'Heir to the Empire' trilogy, but I believe all those were set during (or prior to) the events of the movies, with Zahn holding the position of being the first author to be licensed to extend the story beyond the end of 'Return of the Jedi', and thus to kickstart the whole Extended Universe (or EU) of the Star Wars stories prior to the abolition of the same when Disnay acquired Luasfilm.
The three novels in that series - [b:Heir to the Empire|216443|Heir to the Empire (Star Wars The Thrawn Trilogy #1)|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1398253847s/216443.jpg|1133995], [b:Dark Force Rising|216442|Dark Force Rising|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1451092000s/216442.jpg|463790] and [b:The Last Command|216422|The Last Command|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1451092026s/216422.jpg|397139] - set a VERY high bar for the subsequent novels to reach, mainly due to who would become a fan favourite character: that of Grand Admiral Thrawn. Thrawn's past, however, was only ever hinted at in those stories.
When Disney acquired Lucasfilm (and did away with the old EU, renaming them Legends), they did state, however, that they would 'cherry-pick' the best parts for inclusion in the Disney Star Wars canon: a promise they kept when Thrawn appeared as one of the key villains in the third season of the animated TV show 'Star Wars: Rebels'. And, in this, Zahn once again returns to perhaps his most famous creation, filling in (some of) the blans about his early days in the Imperial Navy.
However, this does not concentrate solely on Thrawn himself, but on a couple of other ancillary characters to him (no Rukh or the Noghri, yet), including Ariahdne Pryce - another Imperial from that TV show (and the sections of the novel dealing wih her of which, I found, to be the least interesting).
The three novels in that series - [b:Heir to the Empire|216443|Heir to the Empire (Star Wars The Thrawn Trilogy #1)|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1398253847s/216443.jpg|1133995], [b:Dark Force Rising|216442|Dark Force Rising|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1451092000s/216442.jpg|463790] and [b:The Last Command|216422|The Last Command|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1451092026s/216422.jpg|397139] - set a VERY high bar for the subsequent novels to reach, mainly due to who would become a fan favourite character: that of Grand Admiral Thrawn. Thrawn's past, however, was only ever hinted at in those stories.
When Disney acquired Lucasfilm (and did away with the old EU, renaming them Legends), they did state, however, that they would 'cherry-pick' the best parts for inclusion in the Disney Star Wars canon: a promise they kept when Thrawn appeared as one of the key villains in the third season of the animated TV show 'Star Wars: Rebels'. And, in this, Zahn once again returns to perhaps his most famous creation, filling in (some of) the blans about his early days in the Imperial Navy.
However, this does not concentrate solely on Thrawn himself, but on a couple of other ancillary characters to him (no Rukh or the Noghri, yet), including Ariahdne Pryce - another Imperial from that TV show (and the sections of the novel dealing wih her of which, I found, to be the least interesting).
tapestry100 (306 KP) rated Star Wars: The Rise of a Hero in Books
Aug 2, 2017
Originally reviewed on http://www.frommybookshelf.com
A very simplistic retelling of Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope told entirely around Luke Skywalker's actions in the movie, Star Wars: The Rise of a Hero is an extremely quick read and one that I think most adult readers will probably skip, only because it is so simplistic. However, for early readers who are fans of Star Wars, I think this would be perfect. Since the story is not bogged down by all the myriad details of the movie and is written in such a way as to make everything easy to understand, and is only told from one character's perspective, beginning/early readers should find this volume extremely accessible. And while from an adult reader's POV, I found the story a little too streamlined and the art a little too basic (I know Walt Simonson's art is generally very straightforward and linear, this is even more pronounced here and not up to his usual levels of detail, IMO), I know I'm not the target audience and know for the right reader, this will be a perfect reading experience.
A very simplistic retelling of Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope told entirely around Luke Skywalker's actions in the movie, Star Wars: The Rise of a Hero is an extremely quick read and one that I think most adult readers will probably skip, only because it is so simplistic. However, for early readers who are fans of Star Wars, I think this would be perfect. Since the story is not bogged down by all the myriad details of the movie and is written in such a way as to make everything easy to understand, and is only told from one character's perspective, beginning/early readers should find this volume extremely accessible. And while from an adult reader's POV, I found the story a little too streamlined and the art a little too basic (I know Walt Simonson's art is generally very straightforward and linear, this is even more pronounced here and not up to his usual levels of detail, IMO), I know I'm not the target audience and know for the right reader, this will be a perfect reading experience.
David McK (3791 KP) rated Tatooine Ghost (Star Wars) in Books
Jan 30, 2019
How do you link a Star Wars book set after the classic trilogy (and almost immediately after "The Courtship of Princess Leia") to the events of the prequel trilogy, without knowing how Episode III is going to play out?
Troy Denning's answer to that question is simple: by having his main characters (Leia, Hand, Chewbacca and C-3PO) return to the Skywlaker home planet of Tattoine, on the trail of a stolen Alderaanian painting; a painting that holds secrets that the New Republic don't want discovered by the Empire. As the novel is set on Tatooine, that then allows Denning to continue the story of some of the minor (and major) characters from "The Phantom Menace": what happened to them after Anakin left the planet in the company of Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon Jinn? How had his leaving affected their lives?
As in all official Star Wars novels, the events of this one also ties into voth previous and sebsequent novels: although he himself never really plays a main role within, we also have an early (chronologically speaking) appearance of Grand Admiral Thrawn, and some clues to future events in the Star Wars mythos.
Definitely worth reading.
Troy Denning's answer to that question is simple: by having his main characters (Leia, Hand, Chewbacca and C-3PO) return to the Skywlaker home planet of Tattoine, on the trail of a stolen Alderaanian painting; a painting that holds secrets that the New Republic don't want discovered by the Empire. As the novel is set on Tatooine, that then allows Denning to continue the story of some of the minor (and major) characters from "The Phantom Menace": what happened to them after Anakin left the planet in the company of Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon Jinn? How had his leaving affected their lives?
As in all official Star Wars novels, the events of this one also ties into voth previous and sebsequent novels: although he himself never really plays a main role within, we also have an early (chronologically speaking) appearance of Grand Admiral Thrawn, and some clues to future events in the Star Wars mythos.
Definitely worth reading.
Terry Crews recommended Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) in Movies (curated)
David McK (3791 KP) rated Star Wars: Convergence (The High Republic #5) in Books
May 30, 2026
When I read the blurb of this, the first thing I immediately thought of was:
Romeo and Juliet.
But in space.
And with warring planets instead of warring families.
Now that I've finished it, I can say that - while there *is* a (strong) element of truth in that, it's also not the whole picture.
Set during the High Republic era of Star Wars (so even before the much-maligned TV series 'The Acolyte'), this was an actually an era I hadn't yet dipped my toes in to - to me, Star Wars has always been in and around the time of the original trilogy (showing my age here).
Still, for a 99 pence offer, I thought I might as well give it a try.
While it's by no means the worst Star Wars book I've read (and I've read a few...), it's also not the strongest contender: there's nothing wrong with it per se, and the setting does free it from the usual Jedi vs Sith shenanigans, and so whilst I may pick up any the direct sequel (by a different author, I believe), I'm also not in any rush to do so.
Romeo and Juliet.
But in space.
And with warring planets instead of warring families.
Now that I've finished it, I can say that - while there *is* a (strong) element of truth in that, it's also not the whole picture.
Set during the High Republic era of Star Wars (so even before the much-maligned TV series 'The Acolyte'), this was an actually an era I hadn't yet dipped my toes in to - to me, Star Wars has always been in and around the time of the original trilogy (showing my age here).
Still, for a 99 pence offer, I thought I might as well give it a try.
While it's by no means the worst Star Wars book I've read (and I've read a few...), it's also not the strongest contender: there's nothing wrong with it per se, and the setting does free it from the usual Jedi vs Sith shenanigans, and so whilst I may pick up any the direct sequel (by a different author, I believe), I'm also not in any rush to do so.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015) in Movies
Dec 10, 2019 (Updated Dec 10, 2019)
The Force Awakens is a damn good return to the Star Wars saga, reintroducing us to beloved characters that we haven't seen in decades, whilst simultaneously introducing new and exciting blood.
The new characters take centre stage here - the most important of course being Rey. It's great that in this day and age, young girls all over the world have a strong female protagonist to look up to within Star Wars. There have of course been some great heroines before, but Rey is well developed over the course of TFA, is extremely likable, incredibly badass, and represents the ever heroic light side.
Over on the dark side, we are introduced to Kylo Ren, a villain who idolises the now legendary Darth Vader, to the point where he even wheres a mask. Ren feels emotionally unstable and dangerous throughout, and gives a strong villain for this new trilogy.
We also have Finn, a Stormtrooper who defects after seeing war atrocities commuted by the First Order. This storyline feels important, and it's nice to see that Stormtroopers are human under the armour.
And we also have Poe Dameron. Poe is my least favorite out of the new characters in all honesty. He doesn't feel all that relevant, but he's entertaining enough.
The inclusion of Chewbacca, Han Solo, C3-P0 and Leia, give us a nice shot if nostalgia, as all of our protagonists fight to thwart The First Order, and search for the AWOL Like Skywalker at the same time.
The set pieces and action sequences are nothing short of breathtaking. The CGI is top notch, and Star Wars has honestly never looked this good. All the great thing that JJ Abrams bought to his Star Trek reboot are replicated here and then some.
Saying that, he does play it safe when it comes to the plot, and a lot of the film has a familiar feeling to it. A handful of plot elements borrow heavily from A New Hope, sometimes feeling like a re tread, but for those of us who are less cynical, we can always view it as a love letter instead, from a man who adores Star Wars just as much as we do.
Once again, John Williams provides a fantastic score, and just like that, Star Wars is exciting again.
TFA has flaws here and there, but it's the best Star Wars movie since the original trilogy concluded, and it puts a huge smile on my face.
The new characters take centre stage here - the most important of course being Rey. It's great that in this day and age, young girls all over the world have a strong female protagonist to look up to within Star Wars. There have of course been some great heroines before, but Rey is well developed over the course of TFA, is extremely likable, incredibly badass, and represents the ever heroic light side.
Over on the dark side, we are introduced to Kylo Ren, a villain who idolises the now legendary Darth Vader, to the point where he even wheres a mask. Ren feels emotionally unstable and dangerous throughout, and gives a strong villain for this new trilogy.
We also have Finn, a Stormtrooper who defects after seeing war atrocities commuted by the First Order. This storyline feels important, and it's nice to see that Stormtroopers are human under the armour.
And we also have Poe Dameron. Poe is my least favorite out of the new characters in all honesty. He doesn't feel all that relevant, but he's entertaining enough.
The inclusion of Chewbacca, Han Solo, C3-P0 and Leia, give us a nice shot if nostalgia, as all of our protagonists fight to thwart The First Order, and search for the AWOL Like Skywalker at the same time.
The set pieces and action sequences are nothing short of breathtaking. The CGI is top notch, and Star Wars has honestly never looked this good. All the great thing that JJ Abrams bought to his Star Trek reboot are replicated here and then some.
Saying that, he does play it safe when it comes to the plot, and a lot of the film has a familiar feeling to it. A handful of plot elements borrow heavily from A New Hope, sometimes feeling like a re tread, but for those of us who are less cynical, we can always view it as a love letter instead, from a man who adores Star Wars just as much as we do.
Once again, John Williams provides a fantastic score, and just like that, Star Wars is exciting again.
TFA has flaws here and there, but it's the best Star Wars movie since the original trilogy concluded, and it puts a huge smile on my face.
Kevin Phillipson (10072 KP) rated The Black Hole (1979) in Movies
Jun 14, 2018
Sfx (1 more)
Score
I remember seeing this at the age of nine and being blown away by the effects at the time this was disneys attempt at star wars when i watch it now not a good attempt some good acting still john barry score when he wasnt doing bond i will stil watch occasnally
