Anthony's Film Review - Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

Another side Star Wars movie that delivers new thrills while further exploring old characters...

Like Rogue One two years prior, Solo is a movie that is subtitled "A Star Wars Story" and not directly part of the main Star Wars saga (with each film having episode numbers attached and a slanted narrative intro crawl to start the film), yet is closely connected to the main saga. If you enjoyed Rogue One for providing a backstory to the original Star Wars movie, now called Episode IV: A New Hope, you will likely feel the same way with Solo. After all, Han Solo was a major supporting character in the original trilogy from 1977 to 1983 plus Episode VII: The Force Awakens in 2015. Now, you might wonder if it's necessary to have a movie providing more detailed background information on the character since he's interesting enough without one. But even if you feel that way, I can honestly say that the backstory the writers ultimately created here is quite an engaging one.

This movie is mainly set in parts of the galaxy far, far away where multiple crime syndicates operate and vie for power. Han is first seen as a young man who has no choice but to live as a thief for survival. That doesn't mean he is resigned to this way of life. He is someone who wants to escape it forever, and his dream is to become a pilot. It is this motivation that leads him to enlist as a soldier for the Empire, as a way of escaping his old way of life and perhaps learning flight skills. From there, he winds up with a band of thieves who are looking to make a big score. Han sees this as his one and only chance to be free, not to mention buy his own spaceship.

This is a good time to talk about the cast, which I think is great here. Alden Ehrenreich is a great choice to play Han Solo, especially as he captures the charm that Harrison Ford originally brought to the character. Joonas Suotamo replaces the late Peter Mayhew as the Wookiee named Chewbacca, while Donald Glover plays Lando Calrissian and seems to channel Billy Dee Williams in the role. As for the characters who are new to the Star Wars universe, they are equally memorable, whether it's Woody Harrelson as a thief named Tobias Beckett, Thandie Newton as another fellow thief named Val, Emilia Clarke as Han's love interest Qi'ra, Phoebe Waller-Bridge as a female droid named L3-37, and Paul Bettany as crime boss Dryden Vos. Overall, I found myself enjoying the performances of each almost equally.

Another great thing about this movie is the script. It's written so that the plot moves along smoothly and logically and the characters have interesting dialogue. Speaking of the plot, it's one that has high stakes for certain characters. Han and the gang are seeking to steal a large amount of coaxium, an explosive substance with high-energy properties, for Dryden Vos. Coaxium is considered a valuable resource, perhaps for industrial or military purposes, and is certainly worth a lot of money. Han agrees to this job in hopes of buying his freedom, while Beckett needs to pay off a debt to Vos without paying it with his life. The core plot is actually quite interesting even if it doesn't involve fighting the Empire like in other Star Wars movies.

The script also deserves credit for enhancing the action. It is not surprising that all of the action scenes in this movie are fun to watch. What is surprising, however, is that some of the action also has suspense thrown in. There are moments during the action where unexpected complications occur, and that in turn leads to not only more action but also more frantic action. The growing excitement is then accompanied by a small sense of fear when the characters might not make it out of their current predicament alive. To sum it up, the action is not standard action where two sides are fighting aimlessly until one side loses. Rather, the action has moments where the balance instantly tilts against one side and that side has to respond accordingly.

I'll give you one quick example as an illustration. There is a scene that involves an attempt to rob a train, which requires different tasks by different characters timed just right. Han, Chewbacca, and Beckett are the ones who physically get on top of the train to do their jobs. The first thing that goes wrong is that Imperial officers spot them, leading to a laser gun battle on top of the train. Then a little bit later, another thing happens. Because the cars of the train surround the track, not merely sit on top of them, they can rotate around the track as the train makes some sharp turns. So imagine being on top of that train when it rotates 90 degrees or so. That's what I'm talking about when I say that the action also has suspense.

Because this movie provides a backstory, it's natural to wonder how often this movie makes references to previous Star Wars movies. I can tell you that it does that sometimes, but usually not blatantly. For me, I did notice certain lines of dialogue in this movie that are a variation to certain lines in the older movies, but I never really found myself annoyed by them. That recognition was mainly in the back of my mind as I was still focused on the current story. There were really just two times where I noticed the references to other Star Wars movies was quite obvious, but they actually made me smile. Remember in the very first Star Wars movie when Han Solo states that the Millennium Falcon made the Kessell Run in less than 12 parsecs? Well, you will finally get to see that happen in this movie. And also recall Lando saying to Han in The Empire Strikes Back, "You've got a lot of guts coming here, after what you pulled." In Solo: A Star Wars Story, you will finally get to see what it was that Han pulled on Lando.

With that, I was very satisfied with this movie. It's now clear that, after this movie and Rogue One, the events of the cinematic Star Wars universe can be told in two series of movies: the main episodic saga and the anthology series telling side stories to enhance appreciation of the main saga. (Speaking of which, I forgot to mention that Solo: A Star Wars Story has one really surprising and unexpected cameo appearance by a familiar Star Wars character that leaves the door wide open for another Star Wars movie.) I can now imagine going back to the original Star Wars trilogy with a greater appreciation of Han Solo. With his backstory presented here, he is now a character who is just as important as members of the Skywalker family.

Anthony's Rating:

For more information about Solo: A Star Wars Story, visit the Internet Movie Database.

In addition, check out my reviews of the following:

The Main Star Wars Saga

The Star Wars Anthology Series

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Solo: A Star Wars Story

Other Star Wars Films