A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Han shot first.
Solo: A Star Wars Story is in… less than an enviable position. It’s up against Deadpool 2, and living in the wake of Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi. And, sadly, I don’t think that latter fact has done it any favors in the public consciousness.
We’re also talking about a movie that had very considerable reshoots (I’ve heard 80%floated by some). Considering the most recent movie to have such large reshoots, it’s easy to have misgivings. So, how was it?
Honestly, I felt it was pretty good. I certainly liked it, as a movie, a lot more than The Last Jedi. Does it push the boundaries of film? No, but it doesn’t have to; it’s a Star Wars film. It’s apparently really easy to forget that the reason Star Wars gained its audience in the late 70’s was that it wasn’t super progressive sci-fi filmmaking. People liked it because it didn’t deal with all of the heavy science fiction stuff; it was about laser swords, explosions, cowboys, and fighting in SPACE.
I mean, even post-season-10 Simpsons writers knew that. How do so many people screw it up so bad?
And Solo is very much in the same vein. It doesn’t break new ground, or anything of the sort. What it does is some sort of cowboy heist movie in space. And it works, because Star Wars isn’t all that complicated, though you wouldn’t guess that it is given the endless trash it has generated over the years. Literally one good book for several dozens written.
But I think I’ve digressed enough. What Solo does best is incorporate a number of elements of the character’s Extended Universe origin story, without actually going wrong. Han’s always been a rogue of sorts, and that’s what makes the movie’s story possible. It’s next to impossible to do a heist story with a boyscout present, unless they’re an obstacle.
Alden Ehrenreich does a fairly good job of getting Harrison Ford’s mannerisms down for the character. And he should, given the coaching. That said, I have a soft spot for the guy, because he was in Hail, Caesar!, and I have a general soft spot for Coen Bros. movies. Regardless, he turns in a very charming performance as Han. Notably, his interactions with Chewbacca being a highlight.
It’s hard to talk about Woody Harrelson’s performance without giving too much away. Likewise for Emilia Clarke, to a somewhat lesser degree. Both however, turn in good performances. As does Paul Bettany, fresh from dying twice in Avengers: Infinity War.
As for Donald Glover, he’s just about the only actor I could imagine as being capable of filling the shoes of a younger Lando Calrissian. I doubt there’s many on the planet with the same level of smoothness as Billy Dee Williams to begin with. That is a man that could sell the absolute shit out of Colt 45. And Donald Glover has his emulation of the man down pat.
As an aside, as for Lando’s navigator droid L3, she’s honestly not as bad as some might have you believe. As a matter of fact, she’s probably infuriating to both sides of the socjus coin. She’s around long enough to drive the anti side ballistic. And for the other side, she’s mostly inoffensive, even having an arc that would likely drive the lot of them nuts.
You would actually be hard-pressed to pick out the reshot scenes versus the originals. For all that was made of the extensive reshoots, they were mostly seamless to my eye. I’d probably chalk that up to Ron Howard. The man gets shit done. He was also, probably, the best choice to replace Lord and Miller because of that.
If I had to be honest with some nitpicks, though, I have about two. First and foremost, aside from being what is essentially a heist movie in the Star Wars universe, it doesn’t stand out as a movie. Don’t get me wrong; it’s a fun popcorn movie, as any good tentpole should be. But while the twists near the end were well executed, they don’t have the level of impact they really needed. They’re not as strong as “No, I am your father.” There’s nothing impressive about them, you see them coming a mile away. And that’s mostlyt this film can only occupy so much time, so it can’t gain that level of momentum. It can’t punch the viewer in the gut with that level of force.
The other would be that the film is very tightly plotted. This makes it so that there’s very little breathing room in the film. Characters have very little chance to simply bounce off of each other, because something is always happening. And do keep in mind, these are both very minor things, with the former being more of a holdback than the latter.
Overall, Solo: A Star Wars Story makes for a fun film. It has a little holding it back, but I was, for the most part, easily able to overlook that. It certainly isn’t perfect. The sad fact is that it has almost certainly been hurt by being in Episode VIII’s shadow. But I’m pretty certain that if the people who felt burned by The Last Jedi saw Solo, they’d feel much the same about it as I do. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it’s a fun film, and you should give it a chance.
3.5/5
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