Solo: a Review

I watched this today, and I walked away with very mixed fillings.

I still much prefer the alternate title I saw suggested a few months back: "Two Rogues." Even though, honestly, that wouldn't have fit.

Ron Howard was the director who ultimately put his name on it. So of course it isn't bad. It just seemed very hit-or-miss to me. It's almost as if they'd canned the original director halfway through because his vision was completely wrong (which they totally did).

In most ways, this film is very true to the saga's origins and background.

It feels a lot like the fairly low-budget B-grade sci-fi cheese-ball fluff piece that inspired everything.

At the same time, it definitely ties in to the bigger picture Star Wars universe. And it's not like they skimped on the special effects.

If you're the sort of fan who hates what Disney's doing with the Grade-A top-level wrap-up-the-Skywalker-saga epic parts, and yearns for a return to the simpler days when men were men, wookies ripped away arms, and droids resented places that didn't serve their kind, this is a movie you'll love.

Visually, it works wonderfully well. With one grating exception, the aliens, droids, and environments were a delightful melange that worked great for me. There was a pleasant mix of familiarity and innovation.

The actor they picked to play Han didn't display Harrison Ford's silky-smooth charisma and mastodon confidence. He came across as a kid who was desperate to fill a gigantic pair of boots with bravado.

To be fair, that was perfect for this part and stage of Han's life.

Ultimately, this is the story about how he went from gutter-snipe street-rat to that arrogant self-centered, self-serving jackass from A New Hope who had enough character to grow into the general the Rebel Alliance needed for Return of the Jedi.

Well, ultimately, this was the story of the Millenium Falcon and the men who loved her. But that angle's a bit weird.

There's a lot of nostalgia in this film. That's really the draw. If you're a Han Solo fan, I think you owe it to yourself to watch this movie.

Is it worth watching in the theater?

I'm not sure about that one.

There were details that probably won't show up on something like a dinky little 60 inch screen. So, if you're a hard-core die-hard fan (I guess I qualify here), then sure.

I'm sad that I feel this way about it. This film has "sappy fan favorite" written all over it. I'm really looking forward to buying my copy from Amazon so I can sit up late trying to piece together all the details that don't make sense after my first viewing.

I don't really have any desire to try to convince Mal to sit through it (he's already proclaimed that he isn't interested, because he's only interested in Star Wars movies). I think Laura would be completely underwhelmed.

Honestly, I was *far* more excited about Deadpool 2 last weekend. If that's too gritty and bloody for your tastes (and it should be, honestly), Avengers: Infinity War is still a better movie than Solo.

Then again, Avengers is pretty gruesome. It's mostly comic book-style violence, but I still don't think Mal would be comfortable with it. And, well...everything I want to write here counts as a spoiler. I'll just say that quite a few people die on-screen, in case that sort of thing bothers you.

Solo is PG-13. It's the friendliest of the bunch, if you want to avoid serious mayhem and body counts.