film review: Solo: A Star Wars Story

Where Rogue One was a prequel, showing how the situation at the start of the events of Star Wars – A New Hope arose, Solo is an origin story, showing how the character of Han Solo became who he was. We see how Han got the name “Solo”, how he met Chewbacca, how he won the Millennium Falcon from Lando Calrissian in a dodgy card game, how he made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs (with a bit of hasty ret-conning why that even makes sense), and some things we didn’t know from previous films, such as how he joined the Imperial Army, the world and people he left behind, and how he was in at the genesis of the Rebellion.

no longer Solo

cocky kid

There is sufficient plot that this is an exciting stand-alone adventure of trust and betrayal, and also sufficient hooks to what comes later to make it a significant addition to the canon. My main gripe is that this is supposed to introduce us to the cynical Han Solo we know as an adult, by introducing him as a sort of "lovable rogue with a heart of gold"; but he’s just a bratty kid, really.

There is clearly meant to be a sequel, the “Jabba the Hut years”, maybe, since this ends well before episode IV kicks off, with a major part of the plot arc with his childhood sweetheart unresolved. We have to hope that the film does well enough not to end up with a prophetic title.

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