Solo : A Star Wars Story

SOLO : A STAR WARS STORY

Director : Ron Howard

Year : 2018

Genre : Science Fiction

Rating : **

Upon it’s release late last year, Rian Johnson’s flawed yet entertaining sci-fi sequel ‘Star Wars : Episode VIII -The Last Jedi’ was met with simultaneous acclaim and derision, with some audience members labelling it as one of the best entries of the franchise while others proclaimed it to be the worst. This vast dichotomy between opinions drove a wedge between fans of the 40 year old series - a wedge which has yet to be removed -  and the damage ‘The Last Jedi’ has caused to the ‘Star Wars’ legacy was very clearly in the minds of Disney executives all throughout the production of ‘Solo : A Star Wars Story’. With the predominatly reliable Ron Howard in the directors chair (having taken over the project after previous directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller were removed due to “creative differences”) and a wealth of fine actors at his disposal including Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clare, Paul  Bettany, Donald Glover and rising star Alden Ehrenreich in the eponymous role, things were looking up for the beleaguered franchise. However there is a very distinctive air of studio compromise that permeates every second of ‘Solo’ and the end result is the most pedestrian ‘Star Wars’ movie to date as well as the most boring since the dreadful ‘Attack Of The Clones’.  

Having stolen the show in the Coen Brother’s otherwise disappointing comedy ‘Hail, Caesar!’, Ehrenreich now shines in his first starring role as the iconic Han Solo, the brave and fearless smuggler turned galaxy-saving flyboy once played by the inestimable Harrison Ford. Tracing the characters story from before he met Luke Skywalker, ‘Solo’ sees the young wannabe tasked by Paul Bettany’s evil Dryden Vos to obtain a rare and volatile element. Along the way, we meet a host of new characters including Emilia Clarke’s beautiful Q’ira and Woody Harrelson’s grizzled Tobias Beckett as well as a few familiar faces including Donald Glover’s effortlessly suave and debonair Lando Calrissian and of course, everyone’s favourite fuzz ball Chewbacca.

Production wise, ‘Solo’ looks and sounds just as good as any ‘Star Wars’ movie that has come before it, with terrific special effects, costume and set  designs and a rousing score by John Powell all on offer. However, what is missing from the film is the sense of fun and adventure that almost every other ‘Star Wars’ movie has had. Dragging on for well over 2 hours, the film is at times a desperately tiresome slog through hackneyed throwbacks and sweeping yet uninvolving action set pieces that lack any of the majesty of it’s predecessors or any sense of threat or danger to help us to become invested in the story or characters. On a positive note, Ehrenreich is a fine young actor and captures the same no-nonsense vim of Harrison Ford while Donald Glover is terrific as the scene-stealing Lando (about whom a separate spin-off is in the works) but they are the  highlights in an otherwise impressive yet underused cast. ‘Game Of Thrones’ alumni Clarke can be an exceptional actress but is barely given anything to do here as Solo’s requisite love interest while Paul Bettany’s murderous yet barely seen Dryden Vos is one of the franchise’s absolute worst villains. Topping the cake of inadequacy is the immensely irritating L3, a freedom fighting droid voiced by Phoebe Waller-Bridge who is easily the most annoying and unlikeable ‘Star Wars’ character since Jar Jar Binks. 

All in all, ‘Solo’ is a good-looking but ultimately bland and inessential film that adds little to nothing to the already dense ‘Star Wars’ mythology. There are a few choice scenes set in the iconic Millennium Falcon that certainly do look great and Howard’s direction is typically sharp and crisp but when stood alongside ‘The Force Awakens’, ‘The Last Jedi’ and even ‘Rogue One’, ‘Solo’ comes up drastically short. It may please those who didn’t like the darkness and daring nature of ‘The Last Jedi’  but as someone who greatly admired Rian Johnson’s ambitions, I found ‘Solo’ to be a disappointing and at certain points, dull cinematic experience clearly haunted by the numerous ghosts of its troubled production . Let’s hope that J.J Abrams can set things straight with next year’s ‘Star Wars : Episode IX’....