BEWARE POTENTIAL SPOILERS:
Before I jump into things, let me get out the one semi-spoiler I’m including for the six other people on the planet who were hoping that Solo, the latest stand-alone Star Wars movie from the Lucasfilm monolith, would right a great wrong in a galaxy far, far away. Following this paragraph, no more spoilers, I promise. That being said, I am greatly saddened to report that even though there are call-backs to “Eight from Aduba-3,” Ron Howard, et al decided NOT to include everyone’s favorite Lepi smuggler in the action. I stayed through the very end credits just to make sure. That’s right, kids, even though he was canonized in Star Wars Adventure Annual 2018, Jaxxon does not make his big screen debut during Alden Ehrenreich’s assumption of the mantle of the galaxy’s most notorious scoundrel.
The good news, however, is that Solo is a worthy addition to the Star Wars catalogue. While the movie takes a while to find its footing, it ends strong. AE may or may not be the Solo you’ve grown to love already, but he does create a lovable scamp with a magnetic smile that draws you into the action and has you rooting for more than fan nostalgia by the closing credits. While we’re not in original trilogy territory by a few parsecs, we’re nowhere near the prequel abominations, so we end up somewhere on the “better-than-average” spectrum. To paraphrase our favorite scruffy looking nerf herder, “Everything’s perfectly alright now. We’re fine. The movie’s fine. How are you?”
Assuming you feel a burning need to know Han’s backstory, the one provided here is as good as any. If you were curious, pretty much all of the “biggies” are here: first meeting and teaming up with Chewbacca, where Han got his pistol, being introduced to Lando, how he won the Falcon—check, check, check and check. Keeping that spoiler-free promise above, consider all that covered. I would point out that even though we learn why Chewie and Han become lifelong partners, they never once go into the whole “life debt” concept, which probably will only disappoint the hardest core nerds, but I count myself among that lot.
There are a handful of call-backs that seem pandering, for the most part, this is more than just fan service. Again, Ehrenreich will eventually win over most fans once the beginning trudge is completed. Whether it was the CGI or Joonas Suotamo’s acting chops, Chewbacca is both lovable and funny, making him far more than simple window dressing. For all the talk of L3-37 stealing the show, I didn’t see it. While Lando’s droid does have a few cute lines, she came across as K-2S0 light to me. And even though Donald Glover seemingly has been able to do no wrong of late, this could be one of his most mailed in performances to date. Atlanta and “This Is America” might be some of his highwater marks, but here DG opted to go with the simple Billy Dee Williams impression and not really do anything whatsoever to make the character his own. Following that recent New Yorker interview, one has to wonder if he was bored of this project the minute he signed to do it. I’m fairly confident it was a scripting issue versus acting, but Emilia Clarke’s Qi’ra might just be the most forgettable lead female character in Star Wars history, which is all the more a shame in light of how many strong female Star Wars leads they’ve written and cast of late.
On the far more positive side, Woody Harrelson does a fine job as Beckett, Han’s “mentor.” That space train scene you’ve seen in virtually all the trailers is one of the movie’s high points, and Harrelson and his crew (with a powerful turn by Thandie Newton as Val that almost makes up for the utter lack of personality exuded by Qi’ra) make the most of their screen time. The majority of the tongue-in-cheek humor feels more like Star Wars than anything in the new trilogy (I’m looking at you, Poe Dameron in the opening of The Last Jedi). There’s ample use of practical effects to balance the still jarring CGI, and most importantly of all, the movie is fun and entertaining, full stop. Whereas Rogue One went for the darker tone, Disney clearly is aiming for the pre-teen crowd and successfully hits the marks and achieves its goals. Even if you’d just as soon kiss a Wookiee, Solo is worth the price of admission.