Solo: A Star Wars Story

Less than six months after the divisive The Last Jedi, Disney finally released Solo: A Star Wars Story that had been hit with a troubled production and failed to truly set the box office on fire as previous entries in the Star Wars series managed to do. TLJ represented a shift in the series from what fans expected/wanted to see and this didn't go down all too well, so was Solo's performance at the box office a retaliation or was the idea of exploring Han Solo's background something the audience really wanted to see?

Stepping in take to take over as director early in early production, Ron Howard seemed like an ideal choice and a safe one for Disney. While his most recent films haven't been his best, his experience with special effects and race-against-time global adventure flicks (I'm looking at you, Inferno) still offered plenty of entertainment and Solo was going to need this approach. Before he became the cynical smuggler, we're introduced to a younger, Indiana Jones-esque streetwise kid trying to escape the Empire's control with Emilia Clarke but they get separated and so he has to use his wits to get back to her.

And, typical of any origin story, we see how Han gets his blaster, his introduction to Lando and also where he finds the fan-favourite Chewie. Yes, this does seem like the studio ticking a checklist but Ron Howard makes it fun to watch in an old-fashioned way, befitting of the western sc-fi tone. The set-pieces are also exciting with nice visuals but the film does weaken towards the end with some of the most blatant sequel-baiting, which would be acceptable had it not derailed what this film's purpose was meant to be.

The focus should have been seeing Solo grow into the man we see in the original series through an actual character arc, and while there are hints of that, the studio seem intent on pausing his development to make more films, which is disappointing as leading man Alden Ehrenreich deserved better having undergone such scrutiny. However, he comes out well with a charismatic portrayal and I still enjoyed it all but, like the misplaced humour in TLJ, it was distracting and a surprise twist didn't gel with the rest of the film.

Solo: A Star Wars Story is overall an entertaining experience that will please many but it still can't escape a shaky third act towards the end. Had Howard aimed for a 'solo' one-off outing as Spielberg once did with Raiders of the Lost Ark, with the intention of making more, this would have been a stronger and more memorable addition to the series.