Up till now most people I talked to about upcoming Star Wars movies, responded that they were looking forward to them. That changed when it came to Solo: A Star Wars Story. Personally I never had a huge connection with Star Wars (only watching them for the first time on VHS in my late teens) but I have been enjoying most of them (forgetting about the first three prequels), so to me this would just be something along the same lines as Rogue One only this time with a character we already know.
Of course Han Solo is one of the most iconic characters in history and maybe that’s the reason people were hesitant about a film looking at his backstory. As we’ve seen with for example Alien: Covenant, sometimes you don’t want answers to some questions. I personally didn’t need an explanation how the Xenomorphs came into being. They should remain a mystery as that just adds to the legend of a character. Some people had the same idea about Solo. But the film is now here so we can find out if this is a film that should have been made and if it indeed demystifies the legend that is the man who did shoot first.
Han (Alden Ehrenreich) and his lover Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke) are part of a local criminal gang, dreaming about escaping it and the planet in order to make better lives for themselves. They get separated and Han is willing to do anything to return to her.
Do you want to know how Han made the Kessel run? How he met Chewbacca or even how he got his last name? (trust me you should asnwer no to the last one as the answer is downright stupid) Are these important questions? To be honest it is exactly when the movie starts answering them that it disappoints. They are the moments when the movie screams “I’m a sequel! Remember these moments mentioned in later films? I’m showing them to you!”. Because of it, Solo just leans too much on the older movies and doesn’t stand on its own feet, which it easily could have.
That doesn’t mean that it isn’t an entertaining movie. It has a couple of interesting action scenes and a couple of moments of humor (Lando’s robot for example). Ehrenreich is fine as Han Solo, even though you never feel like you are looking at a younger version of Harrison Ford. His relationship with Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke) could have used more depth (she hints at things, but never explains them which would make it more complex). What stood out though was that the star of this movie isn’t its title character, but actually Donald Glover’s Lando Calrissian. Although doesn’t have as much screentime as I would have wished he was a scene stealer and a joy to watch. I would love to see a movie about his character as it would possibly allow for a lot more freedom and creativity. I left the cinema with mixed feelings. It is not a bad movie, but it’s not great either. Although you will probably have an entertaining two hours it probably is a movie you won’t watch a second time.
[score7]