For once in my life, I was excited for a Star Wars film. Even if it was just a prequel revolving around a supporting character, there was something about the premise that drew me in. Or perhaps it was Donald Glover appearing as a young Lando. That sounds more my speed. Besides that, Solo: A Star Wars Story is a solid entry into the franchise that helped solidify this legendary character's background before his entry into the rebellion.
Since I am not a Star Wars fan, I do not have very high expectations when I see another of these films. However, one of the elements of this one that I enjoyed so much was the fact that it felt more like a smaller, standalone, production than the massive films that built the world around it (even though this movie still has every money-making tactic of a blockbuster). Not being enthusiastic about this franchise makes me appreciate how much detail and quality filmmaking this movie actually contains. I feel that a large part of this is due to the incredible directing of Ron Howard, as this entire film is very smooth and paced well. It definitely did not feel like more than two hours and the story went along nicely. While I would have enjoyed a bit more exposition about Han's life towards the beginning, I was able to easily jump in and understand the events occurring. I also believe that Howard's expertise was needed to give this film a fresh feel from the rest of the franchise. He was able to make us care about (most of) the characters and provide an entertaining and original plot. One of my favorite relationships in the film was between Han and Chewbacca. Seeing how they met and developed their friendship was very sweet to see. And I'm sure it brought out a lot of nostalgia for hardcore Star Wars fans, given that, y'know... Han is dead and all. One last detail of this movie that I loved was the score and how much it reminded me of the original films' scores. John Powell and John Williams are once again getting that Disney money while still creating an excellent soundtrack for a memorable film.
My absolute favorite part of this film, and the main reason I was attracted to it, was Donald Glover's performance as a young Lando Calrissian. He was able to embody that charming and seductive personality that Billy Dee Williams did so very well decades ago. Glover honestly stole every scene that he was in and blended humor with his own minor subplot beautifully. A performance that I did not enjoy as much, however, was the titular character of Han Solo, played by Alden Ehrenreich. While he is a great actor and fit the look very well, he just simply did not have the same energy and charisma as Harrison Ford's portrayal. This was especially seen in Han's scenes with Qi'ra, his love interest played by Emilia Clarke. Clarke is another fantastic artist that handles her role very well, but the two did not have any chemistry between them in the slightest; their scenes together were painful to watch because of their lack of any decent emotion. Woody Harrelson, on the other hand, was great in his role as Tobias Beckett. Harrelson seems to play the same type of rugged but weird character in every movie, but there is no denying that he does it well, even though he was quite predictable in this film. Little things that also irked me in this movie included a writing detail and the introductory design. For the first thirty minutes or so, this movie looked quite disgusting. Even though it was set against the industrial backdrop of Corellia, the color grading was disgusting. It got better into the second and third act, but I was worried that this movie would be an eyesore. I also did not enjoy how they explained how Han got his last name Solo. Him being the "only one of his kind" and therefore calling him "Solo" was very lazy writing in my opinion.
Solo: A Star Wars Story is a great addition to the franchise and excellently builds the origin story of one of the most beloved characters in film history. While there is a lack of engaging characters and plot, the directing and movement of the film help to make it stand out from the rest. Die-hard fans of this franchise will either love or hate this movie, but I personally enjoyed it very much.
My Rating: ★★½
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