It's a shame this one failed at the Box Office because it's a really good film. I think the failure really did come down to bad timing. Coming out so shortly after the bomb that was TLJ, many Star Wars fans were just so soured by another Disney cash grab that diluted the once good name of Star Wars.
But those who missed it should give this one a chance. Ron Howard is a much more capable director than Ryan Johnson and the script for this film was also quite good. I must admit that I am enjoying these side stories in the Star Wars universe much more than the actual mainline sequel episodes. Rogue One I enjoyed more than TFA, and Solo was way better than TLJ. Indeed I think I enjoyed it more than all of the recent Star Wars movies I've seen, and that includes the prequels ... although perhaps not episode III.
There were a lot of things about this film that made me feel like I was watching a classic Original Trilogy Star Wars film for the first time. Probably the biggest is that the characters in this movie were, for the most part, all very like-able. There were a few, like Lando's droid, who was a little annoying at times, but her arc was interesting and she was definitely a memorable character.
Woody Harrelson's character was probably my favorite of the bunch. It's been a long time since we got a character this charismatic and well portrayed in a Star Wars film and it was refreshing. It may seem odd to say, but he was sort of the "Han Solo" character of this film, whereas Han himself was the more innocent Luke-type protagonist. You can see how Han adopted the more cynical bad boy attitude after the experiences he went through in this film.
The actor who played the young Han, Alden Ehrenreich, did a fine job, but he's no Harrison Ford. That was probably the only real problem I had with this film. but honestly I can't blame him or anyone involved for that. I probably would have liked it less if he attempted to do an exact impression of Ford's Han Solo. He did it his own way, which was admirable ... but still will never be able to compare to the original I grew up with. Donald Glover played a young Lando Calrissian, and his impression was more spot on to the way Billy Dee Williams originally portrayed it. I think a closer impression worked better for Lando, a supporting character, because he had less screen time.
So good characters, good script, great action and special effects means you should definitely check this one out. I know a lot of people were complaining about the lighting in this film, but I saw it on bluray and didn't see any problems with it. It could be that they fixed it for the bluray release ... or maybe I just don't notice those things. I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case.
Regardless, definitely give this one a shot, and I hope the low box office numbers doesn't discourage Disney from making more Star Wars side stories like this. TBH I don't really care too much about the Episode VII and VIII setting. But stories that take place in the Prequel or Original Trilogy setting still do interest me and would love to see more of them.
But those who missed it should give this one a chance. Ron Howard is a much more capable director than Ryan Johnson and the script for this film was also quite good. I must admit that I am enjoying these side stories in the Star Wars universe much more than the actual mainline sequel episodes. Rogue One I enjoyed more than TFA, and Solo was way better than TLJ. Indeed I think I enjoyed it more than all of the recent Star Wars movies I've seen, and that includes the prequels ... although perhaps not episode III.
There were a lot of things about this film that made me feel like I was watching a classic Original Trilogy Star Wars film for the first time. Probably the biggest is that the characters in this movie were, for the most part, all very like-able. There were a few, like Lando's droid, who was a little annoying at times, but her arc was interesting and she was definitely a memorable character.
Woody Harrelson's character was probably my favorite of the bunch. It's been a long time since we got a character this charismatic and well portrayed in a Star Wars film and it was refreshing. It may seem odd to say, but he was sort of the "Han Solo" character of this film, whereas Han himself was the more innocent Luke-type protagonist. You can see how Han adopted the more cynical bad boy attitude after the experiences he went through in this film.
The actor who played the young Han, Alden Ehrenreich, did a fine job, but he's no Harrison Ford. That was probably the only real problem I had with this film. but honestly I can't blame him or anyone involved for that. I probably would have liked it less if he attempted to do an exact impression of Ford's Han Solo. He did it his own way, which was admirable ... but still will never be able to compare to the original I grew up with. Donald Glover played a young Lando Calrissian, and his impression was more spot on to the way Billy Dee Williams originally portrayed it. I think a closer impression worked better for Lando, a supporting character, because he had less screen time.
So good characters, good script, great action and special effects means you should definitely check this one out. I know a lot of people were complaining about the lighting in this film, but I saw it on bluray and didn't see any problems with it. It could be that they fixed it for the bluray release ... or maybe I just don't notice those things. I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case.
Regardless, definitely give this one a shot, and I hope the low box office numbers doesn't discourage Disney from making more Star Wars side stories like this. TBH I don't really care too much about the Episode VII and VIII setting. But stories that take place in the Prequel or Original Trilogy setting still do interest me and would love to see more of them.