I will give you a quick spoiler free bit here before I dig into the weeds. Solo is a delightfully entertaining film full of nostalgia, fan service, some deep dives into the old Expanded Universe, and a pastiche of genres including heist, film noir, western, and even a little cyberpunk. The supporting characters are mostly a delight, and it manages to both give some surprises and pretty much be exactly what you hoped for. It is not flawless, but it is well worth your time if you are even a casual Star Wars fan, and I would imagine stands on its own pretty well as a space romp. Assuming anyone out there who likes space romps could be unfamiliar with Star Wars.
SPOILERS BEGIN!
The thing that most worried me about Solo was something that it turns out was the least problematic: the recasting of Han Solo. I was not familiar with Alden Ehrenreich’s previous work, but he manages to capture all the cocksure swagger we need to see in a young Han (who is given his last name by an Imperial recruiter when Han tells him he has no family) with enough of an echo of Harrison Ford to be convincing, but no so much as to come off like parody. The interaction between Han and Chewbacca (particularly an early conversation in Shyiiwook) is a delight throughout. Ehrenreich and Joonas Suotamo (who steps into Peter Mayew’s enormous shoes) bring their characters to life wonderfully, and I never doubted this was Han and Chewie, right down to the replicated scar on Alden's chin. 
Donald Glover also does a very credible job giving us a legacy role, and he’s just one Colt 45 away from being a young Billy Dee Williams; suave, shifty, and notorious, Lando is also a pleasure.
New characters also get their best feet forward, particularly with Woody Harrelson’s Tobias Beckett and Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s L3-37. Both help us expand the Star Wars universe a little further. There’s nothing wrong with Emilia Clarke’s performance; Qi’ra was just hard to connect with for me, though that is entirely in line with the character (and the eventual reveal of her true loyalties), and in no way Ms. Clarke’s fault. 
The big surprise character moment for me was actually Enfys Nest. Initially presented as a marauding pirate with her “Cloud Riders,” the Mad Max influence is evident (which in my mind called me back to the “Phasma” novel and her home world of Parnassas…will there be a connection?), when the warrior removes her mask to reveal a woman who can’t be more than 20 I gasped audibly. When it turns out she is actually intending to fund a nascent Rebellion against the Imperial system (further evidenced by the appearance of one of the Two-Tubes brothers who will later work with Saw Gerrera in Rogue One) I cheered. Sure, a Glover as Lando sequel would be great: but I will take Enfys Nest: A Star Wars Storyany day of the week. The unmasked Erin Kellyman completely holds her own on screen, and given her character’s surprise connection to the early Rebels, I would be quite curious to see how Enfys relates to Bail Organa, Mon Mothma, or even later Saw Gerrera. She is now on top of my spin off wishlists.
The plot moves at a good clip with plenty of action, and the type of theme resonance we should get in a Star Wars film. It’s a good look at the underbelly of the Empire that has been the purview of the cartoon and ancillary materials until now, and it was nice to see on the big screen. As much as I lamented not treating Star Wars like the big winter event it has been the last three years, this is a summer movie, and came out right when I needed it.
So, what’s wrong with it? Some of the cuts for me felt odd from a technical standpoint, almost like Ron Howard had to work with footage from the previous directors and try to make it fit. There are a couple of scenes that jarred me when the camera switched angles and forced me to reorient to see what I was looking at. A less minor quibble I have though is the waste of three great characters.
Early on we meet Thandie Newton’s Val, and John Favreau’s Rio who are part of Beckett’s crew, and Val is romantically involved with Tobias. More importantly, she’s a fantastically competent character both charming and dangerous who we get comfortable with rather quickly…and then has to blow herself up. Rio is very well written, providing some good comedic timing while every line reveals a trait about his character…so he can be shot in the back after about 10 minutes of screen time.
It doesn’t stop there, the delightfully liberated L3-37, who is a champion of droid rights and quirky as well dies sadly in Lando’s arms after about 20 minutes of screen time. She has this great scene with Qi’ra where the droid says life with Lando is awkward because he’s in love with her, and we chalk that up to her odd personality, but when she’s in danger, it really does seem Lando has romantic feelings toward her. That’s something I want to see explored, I wanted to see all of these characters explored some more, but alas they are gone. I am not saying we need a deathless movie, but it was jarring to lose them before they were fully explored, and it left me with the wrong kind of “wanting more.”
Beyond all of that however, this is a really entertaining piece of Star Wars that I would like to think will not be subject to the “Not What I Wanted” gripes of those who disliked The Last Jedi. This one is ripped right out of the lore, steeped in Lucas EU, and by the Force even features a reference to Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu. I felt like we were about to be treated to Jaxxon from Marvel Comics any minute. |
| You say his name, he appears. |
So, a really fun addition, though by no means a melodramatic blockbuster. Very interested though to see where some ideas brought to the fore here (Maul and Qi’ra???) are going. I’ll definitely hit the theater at least once more to take this in and look forward to seeing it at home on blu-ray.
Hopefully right around the time they announce Enfys Nest: A Star Wars Story.
(all images property of Disney and Lucasfilm)
1 comment:
I just watched it today and there were 3 things I liked:
1) Ron Howard saved this film. There were so many times where I felt it could have gone off the rails and instead the scene turned out much better than the set up. I felt that same feeling of having to keep something from 2 different directors and every time I felt 2nd time around was better.
2) Donald Glover captured all the great tones and nuance of Lando's voice and made the swagger even better. I loved him in the role. Every time I see him recently I become more of a fan. Seeing him in this after watching "This is America" about a hundred times made me really appreciate his skill.
3) My 2 favorite nods to fans: Woody from Cheers and Aurra Sing! My favorite side referrence!And is it me or is Darth Maul, credited only as Maul, somehow seem Prince Xizor-like?
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