{"id":413196,"date":"2026-05-05T17:18:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T17:18:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/413196\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T17:18:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T17:18:08","slug":"first-reactions-to-25-minutes-of-footage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/413196\/","title":{"rendered":"First Reactions to 25 Minutes of Footage"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tThere has been a ton of speculation \u2014 and a fair amount of skepticism \u2014 about the first Star Wars<\/a> movie in seven years, The Mandalorian & Grogu. The trailers and two clips (below) released so far have resulted in no shortage of opinions. <\/p>\n

\n\tOn Monday night, some Star Wars fans and influencers were treated to the film\u2019s first 25 minutes in Imax, and they\u2019ve taken to social media to share their thoughts. Keep in mind these are influencers who did not see the full film and Disney is rather savvy about who gets invited to such events (the first fan reactions to 2025\u2019s widely panned live-action Snow White, for example, were also enthusiastic<\/a>).<\/p>\n

\n\tStill, these are actual Star Wars fans with plenty of online followers and their opinions matter.<\/p>\n

\n\tTheir verdict?<\/p>\n

\n\tThe film\u2019s opening was really strong, with some extended action that particularly benefited from the Imax format. Several noted that most of what has been shown in the trailers and clips was taken from these first 25 minutes, suggesting writer-director Jon Favreau might be holding back some big surprises from the latter portions of the film (this would be on brand \u2014 Favreau convinced Disney to entirely hide Baby Yoda from The Mandalorian marketing until after the first episode dropped).<\/p>\n

\n\tIf there\u2019s a recurring negative point, it\u2019s that the film struck many as feeling like an elevated version of a TV show rather than having the grandeur of the Skywalker Saga films (or the gorgeous Rogue One). Given that the movie is based on a TV show, that\u2019s likely to be expected.<\/p>\n

\n\tHere is a sample of the comments:<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe 25 minutes felt like a first episode<\/a> of a new season. It\u2019s also great to Mando kicking ass on an #imax<\/a> screen. If you\u2019re only gonna see once in theater, do imax. Sound & scope of the opening action sequence was great. Ludwig [G\u00f6ransson\u2019s] score was [fire].\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI really<\/a> liked what I saw. It has vibes of the original trilogy, the action looks great (especially in IMAX), the plot sounds interesting, and there\u2019s a mystery at its core that caught my attention. I\u2019m really excited!\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe opening scene deserves credit<\/a>. It\u2019s genuinely cool. The CGI still needs some polish, but if the film keeps that momentum, it could easily turn into a hit. I wouldn\u2019t say I didn\u2019t like it, but something felt off when the opening credits rolled, it didn\u2019t quite feel like a Star Wars movie. It came across more like a streaming TV film than a big-screen experience. Overall, I enjoyed what I saw and will still be seated to watch the rest on May 22nd.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cDin Djarin is arguably the coolest<\/a> he\u2019s ever been, and Grogu is as adorable as always. While the movie\u2019s stakes aren\u2019t the highest, a lot of what the trailers show is from early in the film. So hopefully we\u2019ll get some fun surprises.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cVery entertaining, reminds me a lot of the 1st season + the OG Star Wars trilogy in terms of story structure & feel. Action is MASSIVE, the Hutts have a huge part, & I can\u2019t wait to see the rest!\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIf you love the show (as I do), I am positive you will love the movie<\/a> (just based on what we saw). It looks like the show, of course, but there is an elevated quality to it, with more polished VFX and atmosphere \u2026 Mando is still basically Star Wars John Wick and isn\u2019t aiming for the leg when taking out bad guys, so there\u2019s no saturation for a family audience in that regard. Grogu is still adorable and fun, so if you expect him to be like Yoda in Episode II, you\u2019re looking for the wrong movie \u2026 Overall, I got some of the old Star Wars feelings back, and I would have stayed for the whole movie with no complaints if they let us. I don\u2019t know if it will reverse a lot of soured SW fans and some will surely complain no matter what, but who cares? For me, it\u2019s nice to be back in a galaxy far, far away with characters I enjoy, rather than enduring the new ones I don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cCinematic, epic scale <\/a>that demands to be seen on the big screen. Ludwig G\u00f6ransson\u2019s music gave us goosebumps. Had smiles on our faces the entire time watching the footage.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cSo, in many ways, these 25 minutes feel<\/a> like an exciting premiere of a big streaming TV series, one that provides some big setpieces and tees up an exciting season of adventures.\u00a0The Mandalorian and Grogu<\/a>\u00a0is on the big screen\u2014on IMAX, no less, the biggest screens! That gives everything an extra sense of importance, scale, and excitement. This might not be a return to a Star Wars movie from the old days, but the scale is certainly there \u2026 it seems like\u00a0The Mandalorian and Grogu\u00a0is trying to be more than a TV show, though it\u2019s unclear if its ambitious enough to seem on par with the episodic films.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe got to watch<\/a> the first 25 minutes of Jon Favreau\u2019s THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU in @IMAX<\/a>
on this May the 4th and it was such a treat. Already a whole lot of fun. The film looks way better on this huge screen and especially when the aspect ratio expands to the full 1.43.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI\u2019m very happy to report<\/a> that this movie hits the ground RUNNING! Fantastic action and adorable Grogu shenanigans. I can\u2019t wait to see the rest!\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\tHere are the two clips from the film, which opens May 22. <\/p>\n

\n\tAnd this clip is at the 9 minute mark:<\/p>\n