Even famous smugglers and a certain "scruffy nerf herder" need an origin story to tell the tale of their early adventures, and a famous Star Wars character like Han Solo is certainly no exception to this rule. After The Walt Disney Company bought the rights to Lucasfilm and the Star Wars franchise, they set plans to not only make new movies continuing the story set in a galaxy far, far away - but also a series of "spin-offs" that would feature events set in between that main films that have come and gone through the years. The first of these was in 2016 with "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" - which came before the events of "Episode IV: A New Hope" and showed just how the Rebel Alliance got their hands on the plans to the Galactic Empire's most dangerous weapon - The Death Star.
Fast forward to 2018, and now the second spin-off film finally graces theaters. Telling the story of a younger Han just before his days as an outlaw and the self-proclaimed "best pilot in the glaxy", Solo: A Star Wars Story undewent many changes and development hiccups before it finally saw the light of day in cinemas. Originally under the helm of "The Lego Movie" directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the movie eventually came under the direction of veteran Hollywood director Ron Howard. The end result is a film, without putting too much expectation into it, very entertaining and serviceable - fitting into the Star Wars mold nicely and presenting an origin story that should please fans of Han Solo as well as his pals Chewbacca, Lando Calrissian, and their "piece of junk" ship in the Millennium Falcon.
Thanks to Walt Disney Studios PH I got to see the film early on in the week before it opened, and again during its opening day. Here's my quick review and thoughts on a pretty good spin-off, which you should definitely catch in theaters!
Set years before the events of "A New Hope" and before Obi-Wan Kenobi chattered a ship in Tatooine to take himself and Luke Skywalker to Alderaan, "Solo: A Star Wars Story" details the younger days of the man called Han Solo - how he became a smuggler, met Chewbacca, and eventually became the pilot of the ship known as the Millennium Falcon. After unlucky events separate him from his childhood friend Qi'ra, Han goes through challenging experiences to try and reunite with his love interest. Meeting a mentor figure in Tobias Beckett, he learns the outlaw and smuggler trade and eventually crosses paths with a Wookie who will become his best friend in the galaxy.
When events from his past and present converge that also have Lando Calrissian and the Millennium Falcon enter his life, Han's destiny and eventual career in life set themselves in motion to showcase the potential that's always been inside the young hotheaded pilot.
While certainly different from the days Harrison Ford owned and carried the role in the original Star Wars films, Solo: A Star Wars Story's lead actor Alden Ehrenreich completely makes the most out of his tenure as the younger and still inexperienced smuggler that everyone knows yet still wants to learn about during his early days. It's best not to compare the young actor's version with Ford's to better appreciate this origin story of a film, and for the most part it certainly does a great job of letting us root for this guy who has a lot of energy and potential in him. Once he learns the outlaw trade, meets Chewie, and gets onboard the Falcon - you get to see the bits and pieces of the Han Solo we all know and love make their first canonical appearance in Star Wars continuity. Ehrenreich may not have been everyone's first choice to play the younger Han - but he's proven himself to be a capable actor here in this spin-off.
Of course with Han around, his "old friend" Lando Calrissian is not far behind - and Donald Glover plays the part of his rival and original owner of the Millennium Falcon pretty well. Glover's portrayal of the other arrogant smuggler in the galaxy is on par with Billy Dee Williams classic performance, and he hits it off pretty well and has a lot of intense sequences with Alden's Solo. It's worth the price of admission just to see these two bicker and go at it.
Of course, you have the lovely Emilia Clarke of "Game of Thrones" fame joining the Star Wars franchise in this film - playing Han's childhood friend and sweetheart Qi'ra. She's a fellow Corellian whose destiny intertwines with the fan favorite hero - and helps shape his character for better and for worse.
And of course there's Tobias Beckett - played by the ever talented Woody Harrelson who acts as Han's mentor and the man responsible for teaching him the ways of living and surviving like an outlaw. It's a father figure relationship I didn't expect to enjoy - but I certainly did a lot
Then of course there's Chewie and Millennium Falcon - things I DO ENJOY ABOUT STAR WARS that get fleshed out more here and there are plenty of intense action moments that need to be seen to be believed. In fact, the origins of how the ship made the Kessel Run in 12 Parsecs is explained in this spin-off. That's all that needs to be said for any Han Solo fan to jump into lightspeed and see this movie. It's not perfect by any means and it certainly had a lot of expectations to live up to - but if you didn't walk in with much - it's a space adventure heist film that's a helluva lotta FUN!
Solo: A Star Wars Story is now playing in theaters!
Rating - 4/5
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