Solo A Star Wars Story review: Two years after ‘Rogue One’ comes the next stand-alone adventure, revolving around the character of the legendary space cowboy Han Solo.
Solo A Star Wars Story review by Luke Ryan Baldock.
Solo A Star Wars Story review
Disney acquired Star Wars and ever since then we’ve had a Star Wars film a year. Despite being a huge Star Wars fan, this is simply too much. Fatigue even crept into the main series episode with ‘The Last Jedi‘. Now it appears we’re ready to start mining the backstories of every character in the universe, and first up is everyone’s favourite smuggler, Han Solo, in Solo: A Star Wars Story, a look back at the early years of Han, he doesn’t get the ‘Solo’ until later, and the explanation is as needless and as dumb as you might expect.
Solo is pretty much the antithesis of ‘The Last Jedi’, whereas that film tried to subvert all expectations, Solo is extreme fan service. Unfortunately, it is the kind of fan service that elicits as many groans as it does smiles. We never needed this film. It’s the answer to a question that nobody asked. Han’s character development was all there in the original, and so here we backtrack to show him as the person he would become, only to break him down into a colder and more arrogant version of himself. We find out how he got his blaster, how he met Chewie, and also that just about every cool line he had in the original was a mere repeat of a line he heard before.
Solo A Star Wars Story review
Alden Ehrenreich has the unenviable task of stepping into Harrison Ford’s shoes, and for the most part, he does an okay job. It wasn’t until the end I saw glimpses of Solo, but he was never a cringeworthy impersonation either. He certainly keeps the scenes alive, which is more than can be said for Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson, and Paul Bettany, who all cruise on autopilot. Thankfully Chewbacca is a delight, and we see him in more of an action mode, having recast 74-year-old Peter Mayhew with Joonas Suotamo. Best of all though is Donald Glover as Lando, effortlessly oozing cool from every pore. He has a calm swagger and perfect comedic timing. It’s not just those dazzling capes of his that light up the screen.
Related: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story review
Ron Howard, who took over from Christopher Miller and Phil Lord and reportedly reshot 70-80% of the film, has a ball exploring the universe created by George Lucas. Seeing his exploration of the fantasy and use of practical effects makes this his most Willow-y film since the cult classic. There are some wonderful designs and sets, and nothing feels out of place. Even the scenes on Dryden Vos’ (Bettany) yacht, avoid the campy levels of the prequels, and any humour and shift is tone is handled much more successfully than Rian Johnson’s awkward effort.
Solo A Star Wars Story review
Solo is simply a heist movie, which is what it should be. We see Han join a team to pull off that one big score. As with any heist movie, we see treachery, chases, and twists. From the opening speeder chase sequence to a thrilling shoot-out on a train, there’s also a lot of Western to this intergalactic escapade, and it’s to the film’s credit.
Solo is a lot of fun when it gets lost in the action and the back and forth between Solo, Chewie, and Lando. It tries a bit too hard to set up a franchise of its own towards the end, and Ehrenreich isn’t quite the Solo we recognise just yet. However, given the film’s alleged production hell, it’s an enjoyable enough caper that does not need to be frozen in carbonite.
Solo A Star Wars Story review by Luke Ryan Baldock, May 2018.
Solo: A Star Wars Story is released in UK cinemas on Thursday 24th May 2018.
