Han Solo takes his cues from the classics. He’s one-part John Wayne, two parts Captain Blood, and a drop of James Cagney. Rather than solve his problems in a calm, rational manner, he’d rather whip out his blaster or crack a (somewhat cornball) one-liner about not understanding Princess Leia. His heart of gold, however, refuses to leave a lost cause alone.
More than that, he likes to improvise. Han revels in breaking the rules, going outside the box, and manages to work things out despite not hitting all the checkboxes when they’re supposed to be hit. This freewheeling essence, in theory, should be at heart of Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Instead, Solo operates like a car (or spaceship) fresh off the assembly line. The engine runs smooth, the different mechanical parts work in the way they are supposed to, and there are no hiccups in the latest technology to ruin the experience. No problem, right? For a vehicle, sure. A movie, however, needs a little nuance and narrative invention.
That is nowhere to be found.
The Kasdans’ screenplay feels rote rather than robust. Ron Howard’s direction is distinctly uninspired. Given what appears to be his most well-remembered movie, A Beautiful Mind – which borrowed heavily from the film noir aesthetic and other Hollywood tropes – it should come as no surprise that he does the same with Solo and shamelessly.
The movie takes the worst quality of the Star Wars franchise – the strict adherence to the Joseph Campbell formula and the rehashing of plot points seen in old sci-fi films and westerns – and makes that the foundation. How many times have we seen the “destroy the Death Star” plot? At least four, perhaps more.
To be fair, Solo has its brighter moments. Almost all of them come from the cast. Alden Ehrenreich is not Harrison Ford, and it shows. He may not have the same charm, but he has enough to make him a passable Han Solo. Emilia Clarke, who plays Qi’ra, Solo’s love interest, puts in a solid performance. Woody Harrelson almost makes you forget that his character resembles every other on-screen bandit nearing their career’s end.
Donald Glover’s Lando Calrissian puts them both to shame. The man possesses a particular set of skills; skills that make him and his abundant charisma an enjoyable watch whenever he appears on the screen.
Following another common theme in the Star Wars universe, the most colorful and interesting character is not a human. It’s a robot. L3-37 (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) commands every scene she is in. She provides much-needed humor, energy, and personality. She could also teach Korg a thing or two about starting a revolution. Without her, the movie would be flatter than a tabletop.
The cast makes the movie watchable.
At the end of the day, Solo is what the Old Hollywood studios would call “harmless entertainment.” No attempts to convey a deeper message beyond the tale. A one-dimensional good-guy, bad-guy plot.
Pure escapism.
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