Solo A Star Wars Movie Review.

So the other day I went to go see Solo a Star Wars Movie, the latest in the growing new generation of star wars movies directed by Ron Howard(ish) and written by Lawrence Kasden who was behind the writing of Empire and Jedi along with his son. On face value then, this movie has a good pedigree behind that however it has been plagued with production problems and rumours even having to change directors and massive reshoots.

So what are the results of this?

Well for me I had low expectations and those low expectations were met, this is a “meh” movie. It wasn’t Empire but its wasn’t a Christmas special either

Without getting into spoilers it’s a simple plot that is quite literally spelled out to the audience in the opening text that might as well say “this movie is about stealing hyperfuel” and from there it keeps up a good action backed yet predictable story about our hero joining a gang of scoundrels to steal some hyperfuel for our obligatory bad guy or else face certain death.

It’s a fun ride but if you take the Star Wars out of it then it’s a bad straight to DVD movie you would find in a bargain bin.

So, what did I like about the movie?

Well the cast for the most part do a decent job and Alden Ehrenreich does a phenomenal job as Han Solo, if you had any doubts about him going into this movie they can be put to rest, Alden is Han Solo. Just like Donald Glover is Lando and Chewbacca is also perfect but don’t ask me to even try to spell the actors name. The rest of the supporting cast do a decent enough job, woody harrelson (playing becket) is as one would expect. I think this is Emelia Clarkes best performance outside of Game of Thornes playing as Hans love interest Q’ira . Paul Bettany also deserves a special mention for coming in last minute for reshoots to play our vilian Drydan Vos leader of the Crimson Dawn gang

The music is also classic star wars as one would expect given that the legend himself John Williams came in to do Hans theme and Oscar Winner John Powel steps in to compose the rest of what is over all a good score.

This movie also does a lot for fan service with some amazing callouts like finding out that Becket killed Aurra Sing or the numerous Easter eggs to be found in our bad guys super evil layer. It’s all pretty good stuff and there is one major cameo in the movie (I will discuss down below in the spoiler section) that shows Star Wars (perhapse even Kathleen Kennedy herself) is actually now taking the expanded universe stuff seriously.

Now that’s all good but what didn’t I like?

I am just going to come out and say it L3-37 just taken the mantel of worst character in Star Wars history from Jar-Jar. I knew after reading last shot I was going to hate this droid but everything about it was bad, poorly acted, poorly written, poor plot involvement and it just looked ugly. Now if your someone who doesn’t like any SJW in your Star Wars then this droid is going to be driving you nuts. No joke at one-point Lando asks what E3 wants who simply replies with “equal rights”. Even for a liberal snowflake like me it sent my eyes rolling to the back of my head.

I also hated, hated the fact that Qi’ra is Hans love interest, it would have made much more sense in my view to have made her his sister and used that as a device to further explore the characters origin.

The movie is at its best when its focusing on Chewbacca and Han yet at times it splits them up or spends time focusing on other characters that just never get properly developed to the point where I just don’t care what happens to them. It’s like the Cloud riders gang who honestly make no sense when you really think about their role in the movie at the end.

But the worst thing about this movie, the sin that makes this a “meh” movie for me that it is so boring. It’s just so bloody dull in parts where it’s just shouldn’t have been and that can only be down to poor plot execution, poor writing and just a very bland safe movie.

They take one risk and it’s a major spoiler, so you have been warned.

Spoiler.


So, Darth Maul shows up , I loved this, it was a total surprise, comes pretty much in the last 10 minutes of the movie and for me it didn’t work. The problem I had was like I said above I found this movie boring so over two hours into the movie when we get this surprise I was already thinking about walking out to avoid the crowds at the taxi rank. It felt silly when he ignited his lightsabre just because hey why not.

How this is going to work with casual movie fans though will be interesting, I got into a conversation as I was leaving with a guy and his son who were speculating as to how he could possibly be alive. It was fun explaining to them how he survived and his arc in the clone wars but unless you are totally caught up on his full story after the episode one it might leave you a little lost.

Also speaking of spoilers I did like that this was again a star wars movie that was not afraid to kill off characters it’s just that the development of those characters was so poor that their deaths impacted me about as much as stormtrooper number 37’s death

a reply to: OtherSideOfTheCoin

Hey! An honest review!

Star and flag for that

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.


Ok a few things I want to get off my chest now that we're in spoilers territory:








Becket made little sense as a character. As much as he kept telling Han never to trust anyone, he was having an affair with someone he worked with, and also had some weird reason to trust Han enough to rescue him. Like, make up your mind, you can't have it both ways.

Speaking of schizophrenic characters, Han was one of them. He kept ping-ponging back and forth between the young, inexperienced Han who didn't know what to do, and the mature Captain Solo who knew what he was doing and acted cocky about it. Again, make up your mind.

Also, why couldn't L3 be repaired? We've seen C-3PO get destroyed in practically every Star Wars movie! Oh right, we needed some pretend drama moment for the Social Justice Robot.



The whole movie felt this way, a schizophrenic mess of indecisions.

a reply to: OtherSideOfTheCoin

It wasn't the last Jedi....... But then its hard to beat that steaming pile of Gungun turd.

I thought it was a ok film.

It was not meant to be ground breaking or to further the main trilogy, just be a fun adventure and it fulfilled that goal.

It was not the best starwars movie but not the worst.


The droid L3 however......... # me with a light saber....... it like they took the criticism from the last Jedi about including SJW nonsense and doubled down on it as screw you to everyone. The droid was jarring in every scene it was in and belonged more on the college campus of some Californian liberal arts college than in a star wars film!

Personally I thought they were lightheartedly poking fun at sjw's with l3.

originally posted by: luthier
Personally I thought they were lightheartedly poking fun at sjw's with l3.

If they were I missed it but yeah, you could be correct it was just so one the nose that they might have been going for that but I would have rather they had just left it out.

Just make a bad ass droid.

K2SO was pretty cool and worked well.

It wasn't just the SJW stuff that annoyed me about the droid, I thought it was poorly written, I didn't like the acting, I hated the look of the droid and I also felt that the story arc of the droid was the worst part of the movie. It could also be because I hated the character so much in the book long shot that might also have crated a bit of personal bias against it right before the movie even started and I am aware of that.

just my opinion though, if you took away that it was poking fun at SJW then thats fine, I kind of envy you being able to take that view.

originally posted by: OtherSideOfTheCoin

originally posted by: luthier
Personally I thought they were lightheartedly poking fun at sjw's with l3.

If they were I missed it but yeah, you could be correct it was just so one the nose that they might have been going for that but I would have rather they had just left it out.

Just make a bad ass droid.

K2SO was pretty cool and worked well.

It wasn't just the SJW stuff that annoyed me about the droid, I thought it was poorly written, I didn't like the acting, I hated the look of the droid and I also felt that the story arc of the droid was the worst part of the movie. It could also be because I hated the character so much in the book long shot that might also have crated a bit of personal bias against it right before the movie even started and I am aware of that.

just my opinion though, if you took away that it was poking fun at SJW then thats fine, I kind of envy you being able to take that view.

The Droid sucked don't get me wrong. Thankfully they blew it up before it went on any longer.

But the way the cast was rolling their eyes and the dialogue about her being overzealous seemed to point that type of behaviour is over the top.

Maybe I just find it over the top and don't take it seriously.

a reply to: luthier

Actually when you put it like that I can actually see what you mean.

I am going to see it again tomorrow so I might watch it with that thought in my head and see if it changes my mind a little bit.

a reply to: OtherSideOfTheCoin

I think the last jedi left a bad taste in the mouths of many star wars fans.
The box office for solo is a great indicator of that.

Disney had so much source material to work with but for some reason they just ignored the fans. Such a shame to waste so many great characters.

a reply to: Bluntone22

I loved the last Jedi, one of the best in my view.

I do think however that the calls to boycott the movie didn't help, I also really don't think it was marketed very well and I also actually think that the predictions they had for the movie were way off. Its also probably been hit by a bunch of other factors that have dragged it down making just of $80 million, its came out not long after infinity war for one. And yes I do think that this is some fans trying to send a message to Kathleen Kennedy to step down.

Lets not forget though that a $80 million opening weekend is not a bad opening weekend, its kind of strange than anything under $100 million is considered a failure. I read someone describe this as the "ant-man" of the Star Wars universe and by that standard its done ever well considering that ant man made about $50 million opening weekend.

Personally I hope that this is a message to Kathleen Kennedy that things have to change, $80 million over a memorial weekend for this movie is not a success and they can't pretend it is, even though its still a decent ok take, but this is Star Wars and ok isn't really good enough.

I hope they put Kevin Feige in charge after this.

originally posted by: Bluntone22
a reply to: OtherSideOfTheCoin

I think the last jedi left a bad taste in the mouths of many star wars fans.
The box office for solo is a great indicator of that.

Disney had so much source material to work with but for some reason they just ignored the fans. Such a shame to waste so many great characters.

Why I like starwars rebels. The creator was a an of the old EU and has tried to repair some damage.

Same with Rogue one, Gareth Edwards incorporated a few EU plot points, at one point he actually wanted to make it a full fledged dark forces movies until that bitch Kathleen Kennedy shot it down, still ended up a good film though spite her.

a reply to: DieGloke

that bitch Kathleen Kennedy

I don't think thats really called for.....

I agree that what she is doing right now with Star Wars isn't working, but I still think that she deserves some respect for what she has achieved in the industry and some of the movies she has produced. Calling her a bitch I just don't think helps things and only contributes to the toxicity that is in the fanbase right now.

originally posted by: OtherSideOfTheCoin
a reply to: Bluntone22

I loved the last Jedi, one of the best in my view.

HOW?!?!?!?! Did you even see the same film?

Disjointed preachy plot?
Plots that went nowhere?
Under utilization of certain characters?
Destroying the legacy of luke sykwalker by making him a depressed moping looser?
Characters that do inexplainable stupid things?
Disjointed comedy?
Leia doing a Mary popping s? Most stupid scene in the entire franchise!

The film was a giant # that made episode one look watchable!

a reply to: DieGloke

I enjoyed it.

originally posted by: OtherSideOfTheCoin
a reply to: DieGloke

that bitch Kathleen Kennedy

I don't think thats really called for.....

I agree that what she is doing right now with Star Wars isn't working, but I still think that she deserves some respect for what she has achieved in the industry and some of the movies she has produced. Calling her a bitch I just don't think helps things and only contributes to the toxicity that is in the fanbase right now.

You run a franchise that I love into the ground and I will call them what I want.

I care little for her achievements only starwars.

a reply to: DieGloke

Well this thread is about a different movie......

I really liked it, loved the last Jedi, not so big on the solo movie which is the topic of this review.

If you have different views then thats fine, we all have different tastes, likes and dislikes. It doesn't make either of is right or wrong just different and it is in those differences that we can discuss but don't try to present it like I am a mad man for enjoying something you didn't like.

a reply to: DieGloke

You run a franchise that I love into the ground and I will call them what I want.

Star Wars is more than just Kathleen Kennedy.

I think you can articulate disagreements and resentment with how she is running things without calling her a bitch.

a reply to: OtherSideOfTheCoin

I found solo to be a little like it was a Netflix movie. It was good but I didn't see the depth that the other movies had.

originally posted by: luthier
a reply to: OtherSideOfTheCoin

I found solo to be a little like it was a Netflix movie. It was good but I didn't see the depth that the other movies had.

yeah I would agree, lacked depth.

originally posted by: OtherSideOfTheCoin
a reply to: DieGloke

You run a franchise that I love into the ground and I will call them what I want.

Star Wars is more than just Kathleen Kennedy.

I think you can articulate disagreements and resentment with how she is running things without calling her a bitch.

Nope. She a bitch. No point being articulate when one word sums it up! Anyway the trial of sacked writers and producers she has left behind would likely concur with me

a reply to: DieGloke

Its actually mostly been directors that she has had replaced. Josh Trank was sacked because of the debacle after fan4tastic, phill lord and Chris miller were replaced because they were butchering the scripts and by all accounts were making a bad film that Ron Howard had to save. That really just lave Collin Tervago (however you spell it) who left for as yet largely unknown reason but I personally am happy that its back in the hands of JJ.

It was Kathleen Kennedy who got Garath Edwards to work with Tony Gillroy to change and reshot Rogue one aswell.

Now don't get me wrong, I don't think she is doing a good job because I think she isn't listening to fans, is ignoring the EU and I don't believe she is a Star Wars fan, thats why I think Kevin Feigie should take over.

I don't think she is a bitch though because I don't know her personally.