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Veronica Pena (690 KP) rated The Lion King (2019) in Movies
Mar 1, 2020
Listen. This might be controversial, but I LOVED this film. I remember when it first came out and I was unsure about whether or not I wanted to see it in theaters because critics were all over it and so upset - it seemed like a letdown.
So it finally came out on Disney+ and I have kind of been putting it off - along with the live-action Aladdin. I am so happy that I waited, but I really did love this film. The main comment I saw from critics was the lack of emotion or animation in the faces of the animals and truthfully I didn't mind it, nor was it something I was actively searching for. I thought that the lines were so powerfully delivered that the emotion was there, regardless.
The one downside of this film were some of the lines. I felt like they were unnecessary or just bad. Like when Simba confronts the hyenas and Scar attacks him and Nala says, "Lions, attack!" I just felt like that was bad. I feel like a roar would've done it or no line at all and just the action. That's the example that is most prominent in my head after finishing the film but I know I felt it in other spots too. The other downside, I felt, was this disconnect in chemistry between Donald Glover and Beyonce. It felt obvious - to me at least - that they recorded separately. I didn't feel like that love I know it's supposed to be.
I promise as much as I'm talking about things I didn't like, I really did love this film. Seth Rogan and Billy Eichner were the best throughout the whole film. They always made me laugh and when they started singing Be Our Guest? I died. I thought that was great.
I loved this cast. I love Jon Favreau as a creator. I love this story. I love Disney. I love this film. I don't think anyone will ever change my mind.
So it finally came out on Disney+ and I have kind of been putting it off - along with the live-action Aladdin. I am so happy that I waited, but I really did love this film. The main comment I saw from critics was the lack of emotion or animation in the faces of the animals and truthfully I didn't mind it, nor was it something I was actively searching for. I thought that the lines were so powerfully delivered that the emotion was there, regardless.
The one downside of this film were some of the lines. I felt like they were unnecessary or just bad. Like when Simba confronts the hyenas and Scar attacks him and Nala says, "Lions, attack!" I just felt like that was bad. I feel like a roar would've done it or no line at all and just the action. That's the example that is most prominent in my head after finishing the film but I know I felt it in other spots too. The other downside, I felt, was this disconnect in chemistry between Donald Glover and Beyonce. It felt obvious - to me at least - that they recorded separately. I didn't feel like that love I know it's supposed to be.
I promise as much as I'm talking about things I didn't like, I really did love this film. Seth Rogan and Billy Eichner were the best throughout the whole film. They always made me laugh and when they started singing Be Our Guest? I died. I thought that was great.
I loved this cast. I love Jon Favreau as a creator. I love this story. I love Disney. I love this film. I don't think anyone will ever change my mind.
BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) in Movies
May 29, 2018
Surprised by how much I enjoyed this film
I have a confession to make - I was surprised by how much I enjoyed SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY.
Going into this film, I felt that this film had a few things going against it:
1). Trying to replace Harrison Ford with another actor in the title role.
2). Bringing in Ron Howard to "rescue" the film.
3). Overcoming Star Wars "fatigue" from the less than enthusiastic response to THE LAST JEDI.
And you know what? It has overcome these things - and more!
Set sometime between Episode 3 and Episode 4 (and before ROGUE ONE), SOLO is, in essence, the origin story of everyone's favorite rascal, but is told in an interesting way - as a heist/caper film.
Credit must be given to writers Lawrence Kasdan (THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK) and his son Jonathan Kasdan. They have developed a fast paced, twisty, back and forth con-man film disguised as a sci-fi film set long ago in a galaxy far, far away.
Bringing in Howard was a good, competent move, for he moves the plot along sprightly and the special effects-laden chase sequences are tightly paced - if unspectacular - but they help move the action along - and doesn't get in the way. There is no "special effects for special effects-sake" sequences and Howard's workmanlike approach works well. He lets his strong cast strut on the screen with their strong characters which is wise of him for he inherited a film sprinkled with very good talent who looked like they were having fun with their characters.
Start with Woody Harrelson as Solo's mentor. He provides a solid anchor to the proceedings. As does Emilia Clarke as Solo's best friend/love interest. She more than holds her own with Solo and Harrelson - and is as much a "rascal" as the other two.. Also providing a good turn is Paul Bettany as the main villain.
As with most Star Wars films, the "non-human" continue to be interesting. Starting with Lady Proxima (voiced by Linda Hunt), followed by Rio Durant (voiced by Jon Favreau) and the robot L3 (voiced by Phoebe Waller-Bridge), all were interesting characters, rendered well.
And...of course...there is Chewbacca (performed by Joonas Suotamo). I was thrilled to revisit the friendship between "Chewie" and Han. It was really easy to forget that you were watching a person in a Wookie costume. There is a rumor of a Chewbacca movie - and I'm all for it.
Speaking of "friendships" - this film also explores the beginnings of the HAN SOLO/LANDO CALRISSIAN friendships - and Donald Glover almost steals the movie in his portrayal of Lando. He has the swagger, debonair (and slightly feminine) attitude of the character down.
Which leads me to Alden Ehrenreich's performance as Solo. I have mentioned Harrelson...and Clarke...and Glover...and Bettany...and the CG characters...and Chewbacca...and this leaves Ehreneich's portrayal somewhat in the background. Don't get me wrong, he does a GOOD job as Solo, but - I feel - he just lacks the charisma and screen presence of the rest of them, and, of course, of Harrison Ford. He grew on me as the film progressed, but I felt he faded into the background at times - where he should have been up front.
But...this is a quibble...in a film who's energy, pace and characters really worked for me - more than I thought it would.
Letter Grade: A-
8 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)
Going into this film, I felt that this film had a few things going against it:
1). Trying to replace Harrison Ford with another actor in the title role.
2). Bringing in Ron Howard to "rescue" the film.
3). Overcoming Star Wars "fatigue" from the less than enthusiastic response to THE LAST JEDI.
And you know what? It has overcome these things - and more!
Set sometime between Episode 3 and Episode 4 (and before ROGUE ONE), SOLO is, in essence, the origin story of everyone's favorite rascal, but is told in an interesting way - as a heist/caper film.
Credit must be given to writers Lawrence Kasdan (THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK) and his son Jonathan Kasdan. They have developed a fast paced, twisty, back and forth con-man film disguised as a sci-fi film set long ago in a galaxy far, far away.
Bringing in Howard was a good, competent move, for he moves the plot along sprightly and the special effects-laden chase sequences are tightly paced - if unspectacular - but they help move the action along - and doesn't get in the way. There is no "special effects for special effects-sake" sequences and Howard's workmanlike approach works well. He lets his strong cast strut on the screen with their strong characters which is wise of him for he inherited a film sprinkled with very good talent who looked like they were having fun with their characters.
Start with Woody Harrelson as Solo's mentor. He provides a solid anchor to the proceedings. As does Emilia Clarke as Solo's best friend/love interest. She more than holds her own with Solo and Harrelson - and is as much a "rascal" as the other two.. Also providing a good turn is Paul Bettany as the main villain.
As with most Star Wars films, the "non-human" continue to be interesting. Starting with Lady Proxima (voiced by Linda Hunt), followed by Rio Durant (voiced by Jon Favreau) and the robot L3 (voiced by Phoebe Waller-Bridge), all were interesting characters, rendered well.
And...of course...there is Chewbacca (performed by Joonas Suotamo). I was thrilled to revisit the friendship between "Chewie" and Han. It was really easy to forget that you were watching a person in a Wookie costume. There is a rumor of a Chewbacca movie - and I'm all for it.
Speaking of "friendships" - this film also explores the beginnings of the HAN SOLO/LANDO CALRISSIAN friendships - and Donald Glover almost steals the movie in his portrayal of Lando. He has the swagger, debonair (and slightly feminine) attitude of the character down.
Which leads me to Alden Ehrenreich's performance as Solo. I have mentioned Harrelson...and Clarke...and Glover...and Bettany...and the CG characters...and Chewbacca...and this leaves Ehreneich's portrayal somewhat in the background. Don't get me wrong, he does a GOOD job as Solo, but - I feel - he just lacks the charisma and screen presence of the rest of them, and, of course, of Harrison Ford. He grew on me as the film progressed, but I felt he faded into the background at times - where he should have been up front.
But...this is a quibble...in a film who's energy, pace and characters really worked for me - more than I thought it would.
Letter Grade: A-
8 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)
Movie Metropolis (309 KP) rated Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) in Movies
Jun 10, 2019
Star Wars goes western
Star Wars has had somewhat of a chequered history since turning over to the dark side, sorry, I mean Disney. You see, since LucasFilm was acquired by the House of Mouse there has been one Star Wars movie each year. The Force Awakens was good, if a little safe and The Last Jedi was brilliant, but incredibly divisive.
What’s been more exciting to see evolve however, is the Star Wars Story movies. Rogue One became my 2nd favourite film in the series after Empire with Godzilla director, Gareth Edwards proving to be a force to be reckoned with. Then, LEGO Movie directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller were hired to direct a Han Solo origins story and that got people very excited indeed.Fast forward a few months and they were unceremoniously dumped from the project during filming with veteran director Ron Howard brought in as their replacements. Howard’s name is a concerning one. He’s become something of a director-for-hire over the last decade: competent but not exemplary. Phew! Keeping up? Good.
The resulting film has been plagued by ballooning costs, expensive reshoots and rumours of on-set acting classes for some of the stars. It’s finally here, but are we looking at the first new generation Star Wars failure?
Young Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) finds adventure when he joins a gang of galactic smugglers, including a 196-year-old Wookie named Chewbacca. Indebted to the gangster Dryden Vos (Paul Bettany), the crew devises a daring plan to travel to the mining planet Kessel to steal a batch of valuable coaxium. In need of a fast ship, Solo meets Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover), the suave owner of the perfect vessel for the dangerous mission — the Millennium Falcon.
Thankfully, and by nothing short of a miracle, Solo: A Star Wars Story is engaging, packed full of nostalgia and features an incredible ensemble cast. It’s not perfect by any means, but we’ll get on to that later.
Billed as a heist meets western kinda movie, Solo hits all the right beats to carefully straddle the line between those two genres. The writing is snappy, genuinely funny and engaging with all the cast members doing their fair share of the heavy lifting. Emilia Clarke is great as Solo’s love interest Qi’Ra and Woody Harrelson is as charming as ever in a role that could’ve been serviced by many 50-something actors who could do fancy stuff with a blaster.
It is in Donald Glover however that the film truly belongs. His Lando Calrissian is absolutely, unequivocally sublime. He channels his counterpart from Empire beautifully and you do feel like you’re watching a young Billy Dee Williams in action.
There is some striking imagery throughout the film with the western-style finale being absolutely superb
In fact, there are only two of the main cast members that fail to register in the way that they had clearly intended to do. One is Paul Bettany’s Dryden Vos; the Star Wars universe’s first real villain failure. Alas, it’s not the fault of Bettany. The part was originally written for a CGI motion capture performance but was changed at the last minute with reshoots being added for Bettany’s scenes.
The other, unfortunately, is Han Solo himself. Alden Ehrenreich definitely makes all the right noises. He’s cocky, arrogant, self-assured, just like Harrison Ford, but, for all of his effort, he just isn’t doing a Harrison Ford in this film. Now, that doesn’t ruin the movie as much as you might think it does, as it’s easy to just go along for the ride, but at no point in Solo’s run time did I think we were watching a young Harrison Ford in action. Ehrenreich is good, he’s just not that good.
Thankfully, what is that good is the cinematography. The action is staged beautifully, though I’m unsure as to whether this is Howard’s influence or the previous directors. There is some striking imagery throughout the film with the western-style finale being absolutely superb. The CGI is nicely integrated with animatronics and props, just like a Star Wars movie should be, and each of the set pieces is brimming with excitement.
One sequence in particular, involving the liberation of some slaves is really nicely filmed with a great colour palate and the much-marketed monorail heist is edge-of-your-seat stuff with cracking CGI.
Pacing is generally good, and at 135 minutes that is no easy win though things do drag a little about half way through. What is pleasing however, is how the bromance between Chewbacca and Han takes a backseat up until about 40 minutes before the end in which a familiar theme plays over the action: it’s spine-tingling in its simplicity. In fact, John Powell’s score is rousing when it needs to be and beautifully put together. A real match for John Williams’ classic orchestral soundtrack.
Overall, Solo: A Star Wars Story is better than it had any right to be. Whenever a film goes through such a turbulent production process, it’s always concerning that the final product will be somehow lesser in quality, but this isn’t the case here. It’s not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but as a continuation of the new Star Wars mantra under Disney, it’s a fitting entry and a great addition to the series.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2018/05/24/solo-a-star-wars-story-review-stars-wars-goes-western/
What’s been more exciting to see evolve however, is the Star Wars Story movies. Rogue One became my 2nd favourite film in the series after Empire with Godzilla director, Gareth Edwards proving to be a force to be reckoned with. Then, LEGO Movie directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller were hired to direct a Han Solo origins story and that got people very excited indeed.Fast forward a few months and they were unceremoniously dumped from the project during filming with veteran director Ron Howard brought in as their replacements. Howard’s name is a concerning one. He’s become something of a director-for-hire over the last decade: competent but not exemplary. Phew! Keeping up? Good.
The resulting film has been plagued by ballooning costs, expensive reshoots and rumours of on-set acting classes for some of the stars. It’s finally here, but are we looking at the first new generation Star Wars failure?
Young Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) finds adventure when he joins a gang of galactic smugglers, including a 196-year-old Wookie named Chewbacca. Indebted to the gangster Dryden Vos (Paul Bettany), the crew devises a daring plan to travel to the mining planet Kessel to steal a batch of valuable coaxium. In need of a fast ship, Solo meets Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover), the suave owner of the perfect vessel for the dangerous mission — the Millennium Falcon.
Thankfully, and by nothing short of a miracle, Solo: A Star Wars Story is engaging, packed full of nostalgia and features an incredible ensemble cast. It’s not perfect by any means, but we’ll get on to that later.
Billed as a heist meets western kinda movie, Solo hits all the right beats to carefully straddle the line between those two genres. The writing is snappy, genuinely funny and engaging with all the cast members doing their fair share of the heavy lifting. Emilia Clarke is great as Solo’s love interest Qi’Ra and Woody Harrelson is as charming as ever in a role that could’ve been serviced by many 50-something actors who could do fancy stuff with a blaster.
It is in Donald Glover however that the film truly belongs. His Lando Calrissian is absolutely, unequivocally sublime. He channels his counterpart from Empire beautifully and you do feel like you’re watching a young Billy Dee Williams in action.
There is some striking imagery throughout the film with the western-style finale being absolutely superb
In fact, there are only two of the main cast members that fail to register in the way that they had clearly intended to do. One is Paul Bettany’s Dryden Vos; the Star Wars universe’s first real villain failure. Alas, it’s not the fault of Bettany. The part was originally written for a CGI motion capture performance but was changed at the last minute with reshoots being added for Bettany’s scenes.
The other, unfortunately, is Han Solo himself. Alden Ehrenreich definitely makes all the right noises. He’s cocky, arrogant, self-assured, just like Harrison Ford, but, for all of his effort, he just isn’t doing a Harrison Ford in this film. Now, that doesn’t ruin the movie as much as you might think it does, as it’s easy to just go along for the ride, but at no point in Solo’s run time did I think we were watching a young Harrison Ford in action. Ehrenreich is good, he’s just not that good.
Thankfully, what is that good is the cinematography. The action is staged beautifully, though I’m unsure as to whether this is Howard’s influence or the previous directors. There is some striking imagery throughout the film with the western-style finale being absolutely superb. The CGI is nicely integrated with animatronics and props, just like a Star Wars movie should be, and each of the set pieces is brimming with excitement.
One sequence in particular, involving the liberation of some slaves is really nicely filmed with a great colour palate and the much-marketed monorail heist is edge-of-your-seat stuff with cracking CGI.
Pacing is generally good, and at 135 minutes that is no easy win though things do drag a little about half way through. What is pleasing however, is how the bromance between Chewbacca and Han takes a backseat up until about 40 minutes before the end in which a familiar theme plays over the action: it’s spine-tingling in its simplicity. In fact, John Powell’s score is rousing when it needs to be and beautifully put together. A real match for John Williams’ classic orchestral soundtrack.
Overall, Solo: A Star Wars Story is better than it had any right to be. Whenever a film goes through such a turbulent production process, it’s always concerning that the final product will be somehow lesser in quality, but this isn’t the case here. It’s not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but as a continuation of the new Star Wars mantra under Disney, it’s a fitting entry and a great addition to the series.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2018/05/24/solo-a-star-wars-story-review-stars-wars-goes-western/
Ryan Hill (152 KP) rated Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) in Movies
May 11, 2019
"if you are nothing without the suit then you shouldn't have it."
A John Hughes-esque coming-of-age movie, disguised as a friendly neighborhood adventure from the MCU; Spider-Man: Homecoming is more about growing up, and less about saving the world.
Tom Holland is great as Spider-man. His Spidey is different, and in a way, refreshing. I like how the origin story is skipped, and instead, we dive head into the day-to-day adventures of a semi-awkward, fifteen-year-old. I'm more interested in the growth of Peter Parker, than the development of Holland's Spider-Man Spidey-Powers. I'm still undecided about the way Spidey looks in his costume. To me, he looks more like a CGI goofnut, than an Avenger. But, how many kids get to have Jennifer Connelly on standby, whenever they need a helpful voice?
Homecoming might not feel and act like your typical MCU movie, but it does prove we still need Tony Stark, Happy Hogan and Pepper Potts in our lives. I smiled with all the screen time Happy has. He's truly an underrated character in the MCU. Plus, Tony plays the "cool uncle" spot-on.
One of the biggest criticisms with the MCU people have is the boring villain. Not in this case. Michael Keaton plays reverse-Batman, and his character actually has depth, an interesting storyline and a surprise twist. Bookem Woodbine plays a fun henchman, and all movies benefit from the presence of Donald Glover. The bad guys are not a snore nor a bore at this Homecoming Dance with the Devil.
I hope I wasn't the only one laughing at the casting of Tony Revolori as Flash the Bully. He's about as intimidating as a can of ravioli. Zendaya is way underused, but she shines in her scenes. I wish Ned was my best friend, but the poor fella will probably be typecast for life. However, he's a hilarious guy. How can you not like him?
Did you think I forgot about Aunt May? Of course not! Marisa Tomei is smokin' and brings honest energy to her supporting role.
The final boss battle is fun. So are the scenes on a ferry and a national monument. There's action, and there's a lot of growing up for Peter Parker and his friends. I'm not MCU fatigued after watching, but I do have a sudden urge to revisit Pretty in Pink.
Tom Holland is great as Spider-man. His Spidey is different, and in a way, refreshing. I like how the origin story is skipped, and instead, we dive head into the day-to-day adventures of a semi-awkward, fifteen-year-old. I'm more interested in the growth of Peter Parker, than the development of Holland's Spider-Man Spidey-Powers. I'm still undecided about the way Spidey looks in his costume. To me, he looks more like a CGI goofnut, than an Avenger. But, how many kids get to have Jennifer Connelly on standby, whenever they need a helpful voice?
Homecoming might not feel and act like your typical MCU movie, but it does prove we still need Tony Stark, Happy Hogan and Pepper Potts in our lives. I smiled with all the screen time Happy has. He's truly an underrated character in the MCU. Plus, Tony plays the "cool uncle" spot-on.
One of the biggest criticisms with the MCU people have is the boring villain. Not in this case. Michael Keaton plays reverse-Batman, and his character actually has depth, an interesting storyline and a surprise twist. Bookem Woodbine plays a fun henchman, and all movies benefit from the presence of Donald Glover. The bad guys are not a snore nor a bore at this Homecoming Dance with the Devil.
I hope I wasn't the only one laughing at the casting of Tony Revolori as Flash the Bully. He's about as intimidating as a can of ravioli. Zendaya is way underused, but she shines in her scenes. I wish Ned was my best friend, but the poor fella will probably be typecast for life. However, he's a hilarious guy. How can you not like him?
Did you think I forgot about Aunt May? Of course not! Marisa Tomei is smokin' and brings honest energy to her supporting role.
The final boss battle is fun. So are the scenes on a ferry and a national monument. There's action, and there's a lot of growing up for Peter Parker and his friends. I'm not MCU fatigued after watching, but I do have a sudden urge to revisit Pretty in Pink.
theVman (16 KP) rated Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) in Movies
Jun 1, 2018 (Updated Jun 1, 2018)
Supporting Actors (1 more)
Director manged to pull together a watchable film
The two leads actors (1 more)
Clunky Script
A Good Lead Casting is Far Far Away
Its not The Last Jedi bad, but it nowhere close to being The Force Awakens good. Its main problem being that its leading actors struggle to bring a shred of charisma to the screen. Luckily the supporting cast did their job brilliantly and its the support that the film so desperately needed. Much like Rouge One did, Solo director Ron Howard delivers a very different looking Star Wars story and that is made very clear from the first shot. Visually, Solo invokes it inner Ridley Scott, and uses a very mixed bag in the use of it colour and lighting palettes that in any other movie might feel as if its been jigsawed together by three different directors. Somehow Solo has made this work to its advantage and by offering us answers to the key questions we might have about Hans Solo past “How did he meet Chewy?” and “How did he get the Millennium Falcon?” we can get through a very clunky and disjointed script with the end result being something watchable – just.
I cant shake the fact that i thought Alden Ehrenreich, facially, looks alot more like a young Jack Back than Harrison Ford. In fairness every now and again Alden captures a small something that made Star Wars fans fall in love with Hans Solo in the first place, but he mainly offers an uneven performance that made me forget that i was supposed to be watching a younger version of the charming rouge. Emilia Clarkes portrayal as the love interest, was as emotional barren as the plot offered through out the entire first act of the film, and combined, almost destroys the audiences ability to invest in the rest of the film at all.
However, the second act brings the arrival of Donald Glover pretty much nailing his role as a younger Lando Carlrissian, unfortunately the script makes this Lando feel like a bit of a character of obligation as oppose to a character of substance and necessity. The action scenes pick up, the usual special effects and musical score make things a little more “Star Wars-y” and the film becomes way more enjoyable. Knowing that these are its strengths, the film over indulges in them way to much, leading to lengthy action scenes over staying their welcome and forgetting to develop the subplots.
After an action heavy middle, the script tries do too much in the final act to reclaim its grasp on a story leading to a very laborious and tedious climax.
I cant shake the fact that i thought Alden Ehrenreich, facially, looks alot more like a young Jack Back than Harrison Ford. In fairness every now and again Alden captures a small something that made Star Wars fans fall in love with Hans Solo in the first place, but he mainly offers an uneven performance that made me forget that i was supposed to be watching a younger version of the charming rouge. Emilia Clarkes portrayal as the love interest, was as emotional barren as the plot offered through out the entire first act of the film, and combined, almost destroys the audiences ability to invest in the rest of the film at all.
However, the second act brings the arrival of Donald Glover pretty much nailing his role as a younger Lando Carlrissian, unfortunately the script makes this Lando feel like a bit of a character of obligation as oppose to a character of substance and necessity. The action scenes pick up, the usual special effects and musical score make things a little more “Star Wars-y” and the film becomes way more enjoyable. Knowing that these are its strengths, the film over indulges in them way to much, leading to lengthy action scenes over staying their welcome and forgetting to develop the subplots.
After an action heavy middle, the script tries do too much in the final act to reclaim its grasp on a story leading to a very laborious and tedious climax.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) in Movies
Mar 26, 2020
Let's be honest, Solo was getting un-earnt hate from the minute it was announced. "No one asked for this" was thrown around often. "It's not Harrison Ford" was another one, and as a result, it was met in release with a fair amount of vitriol, and underperformed at the box office (apparently, still made shit tons of money...)
This is a great shame in my opinion. Solo isn't a perfect film by any means but it's still a fun and enjoyable sci-fi adventure.
Seeming as the plot revolves mainly around Han Solo, who of course is a huge staple character in the original trilogy, set after this one, the stakes are relatively low, and this gives the film room to relax a present us with what is essentially a heist movie, just one thats set in the Star Wars universe.
Alden Ehrenreich is fine as the titular Solo. He isn't trying to just copy Harrison Ford, but still provides something that feels familiar, whilst giving his own take on the character.
Donald Glover is pitch perfect as a young Lando Calrissian, and is arguably the highlight cast member.
It's great to have the likes of Thandie Newton and Woody Harrelson involved as well.
As I've said in my GoT reviews, I've always struggled to full get on board with Emilia Clarke, and it's no different here. She's just kind of there, and I honestly feel that the film wouldn't have suffered to greatly without her character.
My main gripe with Solo is the constant need to over explain everything - ever wondered how Han got his blaster and jacket? No? Well tough shit because we're going to tell you! Ever wondered where he got those dice that hang in the Millennium Falcon for like two seconds in one of the films? No? Shut up and watch dammit. Ever wondered why Han's second name is Solo? No? Well fuck you, because you're about to find out (and it's horribly cringey) Ever wanted to see what the Kessel Run is that Han spoke about once in the history of Star Wars? Well, maybe, kind of, but surprise, ITS A BIG CGI SQUID HAHAHA.
Any mystery and intrigue that you may have about Han Solo is explained away in incessant detail to the point where it becomes quickly tiresome. Not everything needs a back story dammit.
Honestly though, Solo could have been soooo much worse, but as it happens, it actually decent. It's not perfect as I mentioned, but I would happily take it over episodes 8 and 9. If you're one is those fans who have just straight up refused to watch it for some reason, stop being a silly goose and give it a go.
This is a great shame in my opinion. Solo isn't a perfect film by any means but it's still a fun and enjoyable sci-fi adventure.
Seeming as the plot revolves mainly around Han Solo, who of course is a huge staple character in the original trilogy, set after this one, the stakes are relatively low, and this gives the film room to relax a present us with what is essentially a heist movie, just one thats set in the Star Wars universe.
Alden Ehrenreich is fine as the titular Solo. He isn't trying to just copy Harrison Ford, but still provides something that feels familiar, whilst giving his own take on the character.
Donald Glover is pitch perfect as a young Lando Calrissian, and is arguably the highlight cast member.
It's great to have the likes of Thandie Newton and Woody Harrelson involved as well.
As I've said in my GoT reviews, I've always struggled to full get on board with Emilia Clarke, and it's no different here. She's just kind of there, and I honestly feel that the film wouldn't have suffered to greatly without her character.
My main gripe with Solo is the constant need to over explain everything - ever wondered how Han got his blaster and jacket? No? Well tough shit because we're going to tell you! Ever wondered where he got those dice that hang in the Millennium Falcon for like two seconds in one of the films? No? Shut up and watch dammit. Ever wondered why Han's second name is Solo? No? Well fuck you, because you're about to find out (and it's horribly cringey) Ever wanted to see what the Kessel Run is that Han spoke about once in the history of Star Wars? Well, maybe, kind of, but surprise, ITS A BIG CGI SQUID HAHAHA.
Any mystery and intrigue that you may have about Han Solo is explained away in incessant detail to the point where it becomes quickly tiresome. Not everything needs a back story dammit.
Honestly though, Solo could have been soooo much worse, but as it happens, it actually decent. It's not perfect as I mentioned, but I would happily take it over episodes 8 and 9. If you're one is those fans who have just straight up refused to watch it for some reason, stop being a silly goose and give it a go.
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) in Movies
Sep 29, 2021
Solo? So-so.
When the whole Disney “broaden out the Star Wars universe” thing was first mooted I was NOT enthusiastic about the prospect. Then, in Christmas 2016 “Rogue One” burst onto our screens as a breath of fresh air, and I thought “OK, I can be wrong!”. But even jolted by that pleasant surprise, I always thought that the second proposed diversion off the main hyperspace highway into “Radiator Springs” – a Han Solo back-story flick – might fall short. It just didn’t float my boat.
Add into that proposition the decision to give the film initially to “The Lego Movie” directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (why Disney? why?); them trying to forge it as a ‘comedy’; them falling horribly short and being fired by Disney; Disney bringing Ron Howard (“Inferno“, “Rush“) in to try to salvage the project; and Howard reportedly re-shooting 75% of the film and you have the makings of a turkey of galactic proportions.
With all that being said, I was surprised I enjoyed it as much as I did. But that’s off a very low base of expectation.
As you might guess, we go back to see Han… just Han… as a delinquent youth trying to keep his head above water under the thrall of the Fagin-like Lady Proxima (who – no pun intended – keeps her head under the water for most of the time). He is desperate to pull off a con that’s lucrative enough that it will get him and his girlfriend Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke, “Me Before You“; “Terminator: Genisys“; “Game of Thrones”) off-planet and into a free life. Things don’t go to plan though and Han – now Han Solo – finds himself a trooper of the Galactic Empire. He links up with fellow rogues Beckett (Woody Harrelson, “War for the Planet of the Apes“; “Three Billboards in Ebbing, Missouri“), Val (Thandie Newton, “Westworld”, “2012”), Rio (voiced by Jon Favreau, “Spider-Man: Homecoming“; “Iron Man Three“) and their assertive and rebellious droid L3-37 (voiced by Phoebe Waller-Bridge) in a get-rich-or-die mission for vicious gang-boss Dryden Vos (Paul Bettany, “Avengers: Infinity War“).
The film has its moments for sure:
There are some nice background touches: an army recruitment video plays to the sound of John William’s empire march (played I am assured by my more musical wife in a major key to sound more uplifting and positive!);
Han’s first meeting with that famous walking carpet (played by Joonas Suotamo) is memorable, as is the introduction to that “card player, gambler and scoundrel” Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover, “The Martian“, “Spider-Man: Homecoming“): all flamboyance, self-regard and well-dressed ego;
solo2
Never count your money while you’re sitting at the table. Lando Calrissian played by Donald Glover putting his ship (you probably haven’t heard of it) on the line. (Source: Lucasfilm).
the character of L3-37 is an excellent addition to the saga, forcefully demanding equality for droids: I would have liked to have seen much more of her;
there is a nice twist on the Greedo/Han “who shot first” debate;
production design and special effects are up to standard for a Star Wars film, and I enjoyed John Powell’s score, incorporating a new ‘young Han’ theme from John Williams himself;
and Erin Kellyman (in here movie debut) is just breathtaking and strikingly brilliant as the be-freckled renegade Enfys Nest.
But overall it’s all a bit disjointed and jumbled, probably as befits its growing pains. We are introduced to Solo within five seconds of the film’s opening….. BAM! No exquisite ‘reveal’ as we saw with River Phoenix in “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”. I found this disconcerting and it took me ten minutes to get into the film as a result.
When it gets going it rather tries too hard to join up more Star Wars dots than it needs to. “Rogue One” did that exceedingly well, but that was because it needed to as ‘Episode 3.5’. Here there are visual and verbal references everywhere as the screenwriters (Lawrence and Jonathan Kasdan) desperately try to knit their story into the canon. As an example, the action moves to the mines of Kessel at one point. Kessel? Kessel? Wasn’t that a throwaway C3PO line from the “A New Hope” about being “smashed to who knows what” in said mines?. So obviously, in the WHOLE GALAXY that’s where the story leads us, with the local lingo for the hyperspace fuel McGuffin at the heart of the plot being “spice”! It’s all a bit too trite for my liking.
And while a key protagonist appearing near the end of the film (no spoilers) is both a startling surprise and great fun, don’t get me started on the timeline implications…. (see the spoiler section below the trailer for more).
Alden Ehrenreich, who was just brilliant in “Hail Caesar” (“Was that it t’WERRRE so simple“) for me barely makes it past bland in the lead role. One of the defining characteristics of Harrison Ford’s Solo was his swagger and bravado and unfortunately Ehrenreich barely rates a three out of ten on the scale. I also found the chemistry with Emelia Clarke to be lukewarm. Clarke still seems to be struggling to make a significant breakthrough to the big screen…. “Me Before You” still seems to be her high water mark so far. Here she has a key and complex role, but comes over as just plain unconvincing and “meh”.
Ron Howard has clearly done a good job in buffing up a poisoned chalice so it can at least share space on the Star Wars shelf without being laughed out of the Cantina. Perhaps with a more coordinated and thought-through run-up to a Solo sequel (more Enfys Nest please!) this offshoot might have legs.
Add into that proposition the decision to give the film initially to “The Lego Movie” directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (why Disney? why?); them trying to forge it as a ‘comedy’; them falling horribly short and being fired by Disney; Disney bringing Ron Howard (“Inferno“, “Rush“) in to try to salvage the project; and Howard reportedly re-shooting 75% of the film and you have the makings of a turkey of galactic proportions.
With all that being said, I was surprised I enjoyed it as much as I did. But that’s off a very low base of expectation.
As you might guess, we go back to see Han… just Han… as a delinquent youth trying to keep his head above water under the thrall of the Fagin-like Lady Proxima (who – no pun intended – keeps her head under the water for most of the time). He is desperate to pull off a con that’s lucrative enough that it will get him and his girlfriend Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke, “Me Before You“; “Terminator: Genisys“; “Game of Thrones”) off-planet and into a free life. Things don’t go to plan though and Han – now Han Solo – finds himself a trooper of the Galactic Empire. He links up with fellow rogues Beckett (Woody Harrelson, “War for the Planet of the Apes“; “Three Billboards in Ebbing, Missouri“), Val (Thandie Newton, “Westworld”, “2012”), Rio (voiced by Jon Favreau, “Spider-Man: Homecoming“; “Iron Man Three“) and their assertive and rebellious droid L3-37 (voiced by Phoebe Waller-Bridge) in a get-rich-or-die mission for vicious gang-boss Dryden Vos (Paul Bettany, “Avengers: Infinity War“).
The film has its moments for sure:
There are some nice background touches: an army recruitment video plays to the sound of John William’s empire march (played I am assured by my more musical wife in a major key to sound more uplifting and positive!);
Han’s first meeting with that famous walking carpet (played by Joonas Suotamo) is memorable, as is the introduction to that “card player, gambler and scoundrel” Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover, “The Martian“, “Spider-Man: Homecoming“): all flamboyance, self-regard and well-dressed ego;
solo2
Never count your money while you’re sitting at the table. Lando Calrissian played by Donald Glover putting his ship (you probably haven’t heard of it) on the line. (Source: Lucasfilm).
the character of L3-37 is an excellent addition to the saga, forcefully demanding equality for droids: I would have liked to have seen much more of her;
there is a nice twist on the Greedo/Han “who shot first” debate;
production design and special effects are up to standard for a Star Wars film, and I enjoyed John Powell’s score, incorporating a new ‘young Han’ theme from John Williams himself;
and Erin Kellyman (in here movie debut) is just breathtaking and strikingly brilliant as the be-freckled renegade Enfys Nest.
But overall it’s all a bit disjointed and jumbled, probably as befits its growing pains. We are introduced to Solo within five seconds of the film’s opening….. BAM! No exquisite ‘reveal’ as we saw with River Phoenix in “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”. I found this disconcerting and it took me ten minutes to get into the film as a result.
When it gets going it rather tries too hard to join up more Star Wars dots than it needs to. “Rogue One” did that exceedingly well, but that was because it needed to as ‘Episode 3.5’. Here there are visual and verbal references everywhere as the screenwriters (Lawrence and Jonathan Kasdan) desperately try to knit their story into the canon. As an example, the action moves to the mines of Kessel at one point. Kessel? Kessel? Wasn’t that a throwaway C3PO line from the “A New Hope” about being “smashed to who knows what” in said mines?. So obviously, in the WHOLE GALAXY that’s where the story leads us, with the local lingo for the hyperspace fuel McGuffin at the heart of the plot being “spice”! It’s all a bit too trite for my liking.
And while a key protagonist appearing near the end of the film (no spoilers) is both a startling surprise and great fun, don’t get me started on the timeline implications…. (see the spoiler section below the trailer for more).
Alden Ehrenreich, who was just brilliant in “Hail Caesar” (“Was that it t’WERRRE so simple“) for me barely makes it past bland in the lead role. One of the defining characteristics of Harrison Ford’s Solo was his swagger and bravado and unfortunately Ehrenreich barely rates a three out of ten on the scale. I also found the chemistry with Emelia Clarke to be lukewarm. Clarke still seems to be struggling to make a significant breakthrough to the big screen…. “Me Before You” still seems to be her high water mark so far. Here she has a key and complex role, but comes over as just plain unconvincing and “meh”.
Ron Howard has clearly done a good job in buffing up a poisoned chalice so it can at least share space on the Star Wars shelf without being laughed out of the Cantina. Perhaps with a more coordinated and thought-through run-up to a Solo sequel (more Enfys Nest please!) this offshoot might have legs.
Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated The Lion King (2019) in Movies
Jul 7, 2020
Return of The King
The Lion King is a 2019 computer-animated musical movie directed and produced by Jon Favreau. It was written by Jeff Nathanson, and produced by Fairview Entertainment and Walt Disney Pictures and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The film stars Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Beyonce and James Earl Jones.
King Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and Queen Sarabi rule over the animal kingdom with their pride of lions from Pride Rock, in the African Pride Lands. Things change with the birth of their son, Simba, the new Prince. Mufasa's younger brother, and former heir to the throne, Scar, covets the throne and plots to eliminate Mufasa and Simba, so he may become king. The battle for Pride Rock is filled with betrayal, tragedy and drama and circumstances are forever changed after the events of the stampede.
This movie was really good, but of course it was. The original Lion King was one of Disney's best animated films to date. There was a lot of build up to the release of this movie, with fans every anticipating when they could finally see this story on the big screen again. Jon Favreau did not disappoint, but there was a lot of negativity and bad review scores when it first released. I think the big problem was that in all the previews/trailers leading up to the movie coming out showed how realistic the animals looked and how they were able to recreate iconic scenes in stunning state of the art CGI, but they never showed the animals talking or singing. This for me made it difficult to get fully immersed in the film when the very realistic animals began talking and singing, but eventually it went away or I got used to it a couple minutes into the movie. Also they changed very little in this remake and it was almost literally a shot for shot or scene for scene recreation of the original Lion King, which I think bothered the critics. I personally liked little changes they made that I felt made the movie just a little bit better, like the dialogue between Mufasa's and Scar implying Mufasa's gave him the scar, Zimbabwe catching up with Nala for the journey back to Pride Rock, and Nala leading the female lions in the fight against the hyenas. I also thought it was cool how they made it more clear that one of the hyenas was the leader and it was the female and the scene where Scar makes the deal with them. Overall though I feel like they could have shown more emotion in the animals if they had chosen a style that was so detailed to look so realistic. I give this movie a 7/10. It is worth watching for nostalgia and to see it in theaters is a treat, especially when getting children or younger family members to see it for the first time, but the original is still the better film.
King Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and Queen Sarabi rule over the animal kingdom with their pride of lions from Pride Rock, in the African Pride Lands. Things change with the birth of their son, Simba, the new Prince. Mufasa's younger brother, and former heir to the throne, Scar, covets the throne and plots to eliminate Mufasa and Simba, so he may become king. The battle for Pride Rock is filled with betrayal, tragedy and drama and circumstances are forever changed after the events of the stampede.
This movie was really good, but of course it was. The original Lion King was one of Disney's best animated films to date. There was a lot of build up to the release of this movie, with fans every anticipating when they could finally see this story on the big screen again. Jon Favreau did not disappoint, but there was a lot of negativity and bad review scores when it first released. I think the big problem was that in all the previews/trailers leading up to the movie coming out showed how realistic the animals looked and how they were able to recreate iconic scenes in stunning state of the art CGI, but they never showed the animals talking or singing. This for me made it difficult to get fully immersed in the film when the very realistic animals began talking and singing, but eventually it went away or I got used to it a couple minutes into the movie. Also they changed very little in this remake and it was almost literally a shot for shot or scene for scene recreation of the original Lion King, which I think bothered the critics. I personally liked little changes they made that I felt made the movie just a little bit better, like the dialogue between Mufasa's and Scar implying Mufasa's gave him the scar, Zimbabwe catching up with Nala for the journey back to Pride Rock, and Nala leading the female lions in the fight against the hyenas. I also thought it was cool how they made it more clear that one of the hyenas was the leader and it was the female and the scene where Scar makes the deal with them. Overall though I feel like they could have shown more emotion in the animals if they had chosen a style that was so detailed to look so realistic. I give this movie a 7/10. It is worth watching for nostalgia and to see it in theaters is a treat, especially when getting children or younger family members to see it for the first time, but the original is still the better film.
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) in Movies
Oct 27, 2020
Fun Ride
Solo: A Star Wars Story is the origin story of Han Solo before his life with the Rebel Alliance. What I expected to be a cheesy and lame attempt to cash in on a successful series actually turned out to be a pretty fun romp.
Acting: 10
Solid cast here with Alden Ehrenreich playing the leading man Han. He captures the vibe and feel of the character perfectly and has a charisma perfect for the screen. The rest of the cast carries their weight as well. I especially loved the voice performance of Phoebe Waller-Bridge lending her voice to the awesome droid L3-37. Her comedic timing is spot-on.
Beginning: 10
The story jumps in with a harrowing escape from the sewers of an alien planet. You are quickly thrown into the adventure at a moment’s notice and things continue to ramp up from there. My worry of this being a bad movie started to dissipate after the first ten minutes.
Characters: 10
L3-37 aside, other great characters help carry the movie as well. Paul Bettany’s Dryden Vos is a dashing antagonist, a madman who definitely puts off infinite creepy vibes. He adds flare to the story for sure. It’s also refreshing to meet a young Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover) who seems to be just as suave now as he is in the future. The creative characters fill the story with more depth than I was expecting.
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Conflict: 10
The action is nonstop and very entertaining, never letting up for longer than a few moments. Between the numerous chase scenes and blaster battles there is always something to keep you entertained. I especially loved the train heist, so fun and heartracing at the same time.
Entertainment Value: 9
Memorability: 5
Pace: 10
Plot: 7
Outside of a couple twists and turns, the story is pretty straightforward. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a fun ride, there was just nothing storywise that blew my mind. I do appreciate Han’s journey and his maturation as the story progresses. It makes the story worth telling. My biggest gripe was with one major coincidence in the story thrown in for the sake of advancing the plot. I won’t give anything away, I’ll just say there were better ways they could have made that connection.
Resolution: 7
Decent ending. Not in love with how it ended, but I knew things had to transpire this way in order to pave the way for future happenings in other movies. Still, I was hoping for a bit more.
Overall: 88
If you’re facing Star Wars overload and still wondering as to whether or not you want to add more movies into the mix, Solo: A Star Wars Story is a blast. I was pleasantly surprised by how well done it was done. A fun adventure from beginning to end.
Acting: 10
Solid cast here with Alden Ehrenreich playing the leading man Han. He captures the vibe and feel of the character perfectly and has a charisma perfect for the screen. The rest of the cast carries their weight as well. I especially loved the voice performance of Phoebe Waller-Bridge lending her voice to the awesome droid L3-37. Her comedic timing is spot-on.
Beginning: 10
The story jumps in with a harrowing escape from the sewers of an alien planet. You are quickly thrown into the adventure at a moment’s notice and things continue to ramp up from there. My worry of this being a bad movie started to dissipate after the first ten minutes.
Characters: 10
L3-37 aside, other great characters help carry the movie as well. Paul Bettany’s Dryden Vos is a dashing antagonist, a madman who definitely puts off infinite creepy vibes. He adds flare to the story for sure. It’s also refreshing to meet a young Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover) who seems to be just as suave now as he is in the future. The creative characters fill the story with more depth than I was expecting.
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Conflict: 10
The action is nonstop and very entertaining, never letting up for longer than a few moments. Between the numerous chase scenes and blaster battles there is always something to keep you entertained. I especially loved the train heist, so fun and heartracing at the same time.
Entertainment Value: 9
Memorability: 5
Pace: 10
Plot: 7
Outside of a couple twists and turns, the story is pretty straightforward. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a fun ride, there was just nothing storywise that blew my mind. I do appreciate Han’s journey and his maturation as the story progresses. It makes the story worth telling. My biggest gripe was with one major coincidence in the story thrown in for the sake of advancing the plot. I won’t give anything away, I’ll just say there were better ways they could have made that connection.
Resolution: 7
Decent ending. Not in love with how it ended, but I knew things had to transpire this way in order to pave the way for future happenings in other movies. Still, I was hoping for a bit more.
Overall: 88
If you’re facing Star Wars overload and still wondering as to whether or not you want to add more movies into the mix, Solo: A Star Wars Story is a blast. I was pleasantly surprised by how well done it was done. A fun adventure from beginning to end.
RəX Regent (349 KP) rated Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) in Movies
Feb 18, 2019
The Star Wars Story that nobody asked for, but was is a story worth telling?
In short, NO.
Where to start? Indeed, where to start with a background prequel focusing on one of the most iconic Star Wars characters ever, taking the ageing Harrison Ford’s characters to, well not so far beyond the age that we first met him back in 1977.
Recast with actor who brings very little Ford with him, apart from a few well practice smiles and other expressions here and there, this is a reinterpretation of the character, in this case as a naive and wimpy version, maybe even soft, is not the part for Alden Ehrenreich.
The Character arch of Han Solo in the original trilogy was his redemption from a selfish, self-assured space pirate to a man who could recognise and fight for a cause bigger than himself. But according this haphazard prequel, he was already a big softy before her learns the harsh realities of life, only he doesn’t, not really.
He just learns to be a little more cynical and to smirk his way through every situation with his lucky die and everything turns out okay for him. Ehrenrieich done not bring an ounce of the gravitas or charisma of Harrison Ford, as this film, which had to be almost entirely re-shot with Ron Howard taking the helm after The Lego Movie directing due Chris Miller and Phil Lord where unceremoniously fired after “not getting it”, apparently, shoe horns as much of the token events of Solo’s pre-rebellion life into its two and bit hour run time.
Ron Howard; A few hits and plenty of misses. Willow (1988) springs to mind. Not only was Willow Lucas’ attempt to begin and new fantasy trilogy after the Star Wars Saga was completed, it was micro directed by George Lucas as Ron Howard took the credit. And this has a lot of the hallmarks of Willow.
In short; A poor mans Star Wars. Hammy scripting and at times acting, the story is all over the place, with shallow characterisations, poor exposition, haphazard pacing and the action is actually quite hard to follow. Just please, give us ONE decent shot of the Millennium Falcon that we can keep up with and actually see, especially as it has been altered so much from the icon version that we all love. Maybe we’re getting bored of the same ship after 40 years? Maybe we all need to go out and by a new version?
Toyetic… anyone?
Instead everything of interest is speeding across the screen and the boring stuff is left to linger. And there was a level of boredom here. Incredibly predictable plotting, simply going through the motions of a no stakes story. But it does feel as if they shoehorned a larger narrative in there, with introduction in the final act of the rebellion and an old villain returns with a new legs, but by the time what should have been an earth shattering twist appeared, it wasn’t really interested, especially if you know the The Clone Wars or Rebels.
One major plus note though, Donald Glover aced Lando Calrissian, to such an extant that I wish this movie was actually called Lando: A Star War Story rather than Solo, because there’s no doubt that Glover brought so much more Billy Dee Williams and built on it, than Ehrenreich did for Ford’s.
As well as the subtle and well conceived plotting around Lando’s female droid, L3-37 (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) who may well be the ‘Old girl’ referred to by both Han and Lando during in the original trilogy when they speak to the Falcon, whilst shining a light on the deliberately ambiguous nature of droids in the Star Wars universe. In short; are they sentient or not? But this is not Star Trek so we do not really need an answer to that… do we?
Overall, I want to say that this was missed opportunity but in truth, it was not. It was waste of time. A story that did not need to be told with script that did not know what say. Clearly, they were aiming for a Guardians Of The Galaxy (2015), unaware that the secret of that surprise success was that it tapped in to the retro Star Wars vibe by NOT being Star Wars. And with little expectations.
Here they were playing with one of the biggest guns in modern film history and in my opinion, it blew up in there faces.
Where to start? Indeed, where to start with a background prequel focusing on one of the most iconic Star Wars characters ever, taking the ageing Harrison Ford’s characters to, well not so far beyond the age that we first met him back in 1977.
Recast with actor who brings very little Ford with him, apart from a few well practice smiles and other expressions here and there, this is a reinterpretation of the character, in this case as a naive and wimpy version, maybe even soft, is not the part for Alden Ehrenreich.
The Character arch of Han Solo in the original trilogy was his redemption from a selfish, self-assured space pirate to a man who could recognise and fight for a cause bigger than himself. But according this haphazard prequel, he was already a big softy before her learns the harsh realities of life, only he doesn’t, not really.
He just learns to be a little more cynical and to smirk his way through every situation with his lucky die and everything turns out okay for him. Ehrenrieich done not bring an ounce of the gravitas or charisma of Harrison Ford, as this film, which had to be almost entirely re-shot with Ron Howard taking the helm after The Lego Movie directing due Chris Miller and Phil Lord where unceremoniously fired after “not getting it”, apparently, shoe horns as much of the token events of Solo’s pre-rebellion life into its two and bit hour run time.
Ron Howard; A few hits and plenty of misses. Willow (1988) springs to mind. Not only was Willow Lucas’ attempt to begin and new fantasy trilogy after the Star Wars Saga was completed, it was micro directed by George Lucas as Ron Howard took the credit. And this has a lot of the hallmarks of Willow.
In short; A poor mans Star Wars. Hammy scripting and at times acting, the story is all over the place, with shallow characterisations, poor exposition, haphazard pacing and the action is actually quite hard to follow. Just please, give us ONE decent shot of the Millennium Falcon that we can keep up with and actually see, especially as it has been altered so much from the icon version that we all love. Maybe we’re getting bored of the same ship after 40 years? Maybe we all need to go out and by a new version?
Toyetic… anyone?
Instead everything of interest is speeding across the screen and the boring stuff is left to linger. And there was a level of boredom here. Incredibly predictable plotting, simply going through the motions of a no stakes story. But it does feel as if they shoehorned a larger narrative in there, with introduction in the final act of the rebellion and an old villain returns with a new legs, but by the time what should have been an earth shattering twist appeared, it wasn’t really interested, especially if you know the The Clone Wars or Rebels.
One major plus note though, Donald Glover aced Lando Calrissian, to such an extant that I wish this movie was actually called Lando: A Star War Story rather than Solo, because there’s no doubt that Glover brought so much more Billy Dee Williams and built on it, than Ehrenreich did for Ford’s.
As well as the subtle and well conceived plotting around Lando’s female droid, L3-37 (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) who may well be the ‘Old girl’ referred to by both Han and Lando during in the original trilogy when they speak to the Falcon, whilst shining a light on the deliberately ambiguous nature of droids in the Star Wars universe. In short; are they sentient or not? But this is not Star Trek so we do not really need an answer to that… do we?
Overall, I want to say that this was missed opportunity but in truth, it was not. It was waste of time. A story that did not need to be told with script that did not know what say. Clearly, they were aiming for a Guardians Of The Galaxy (2015), unaware that the secret of that surprise success was that it tapped in to the retro Star Wars vibe by NOT being Star Wars. And with little expectations.
Here they were playing with one of the biggest guns in modern film history and in my opinion, it blew up in there faces.