SOLO: A Star Wars Story Review
Much like Rogue One, SOLO was not a movie that I wanted to see. To me, Harrison Ford was Han Solo and anyone else that attempted the role would fail miserably. I loved Harrison Ford’s performance so much that I just did not want to watch anyone else play that character. I don’t think I was alone in feeling like that. SOLO had a serious uphill battle right from the start due to fans love for Harrison Ford but there was also a change in directors midway through which usually spells disaster for a film. Then when you take the massive budget into consideration, SOLO was in for a tough road to be profitable and the box office was a significant step down from all other Star wars movies. This was also the first Star Wars movie to be released after The Last Jedi, a movie that was so awful it caused a majority of Star Wars fans that would normally see any Star Wars film to stay home for SOLO. But despite all that negativity, Ron Howard was able to deliver a Star Wars movie that was a breath of fresh air after TLJ.
After multiple viewings, I am confident in saying that SOLO is a great, fun movie that feels like Star Wars. I enjoyed it more the second time I watched it so it def has a high re-watchability factor to it. Such a shame that the stink of TLJ kept people home bc the cast and crew really deserved better box office and Star Wars fans would have really enjoyed it. I have seen a lot of comments from fans regretting not seeing this in theatres bc of how much they enjoyed it. I was also very disillusioned with Star Wars after TLJ but I love Ron Howard so I made the decision to go see it in theatres and I’m so glad that I did. The SOLO team surprised me in delivering a movie that was not only good on its own but one that made me want to see more movies telling this story. The box office may not allow that but I really hope it doesn’t scare them from making more. Now that the world building stuff is out of the way, they can really get into some good storytelling with these characters. The next movie wouldn’t have the same storm clouds that this one had plus a good story can conquer any resistance to making it. Making money is never easy. So let’s get into the actual movie..
I loved the opening sequence on Corellia, it establishes Han as a smuggler immediately and makes it easy to see why he was the tough guy scoundrel he was when we meet him in A New Hope. Han is working with his girlfriend Qi’Ra for a crime boss named Lady Proxima who uses vulnerable youth to work for her in exchange for protection and shelter but Han is trying to flee after a delivery job went bad. Han and Qi’Ra are eventually caught by Lady Proxima’s goons and brought to her underwater lair where we learn Lady Proxima is a giant worm-like creature. Proxima is furious when Han tells her the other criminals stole the money and coaxium fuel he was supposed to bring to her. One of her goons tries to beat Han with a stick but Han grabs it and says he will beat anyone that tries to beat him. Another goon points his blaster at Han but Qi’Ra stops him and is admonished by Lady Proxima. Han tries to pretend he has a thermal detonator but it’s clear that it is just a rock lol but Han uses the rock to smash the window in the ceiling which causes sunlight to beam through severely burning Lady Proxima who retreats underwater.
Han and Qi’Ra try to escape in the speeder he stole. Loved the conversation they have with Han saying he wants to be a pilot and see the galaxy while Qi’Ra hopes they get their own starship and don’t have to be told what to do anymore. Provides some depth to their characters. Han shows how skilled he is as a pilot by staying ahead of the goons chasing them but eventually gets the speeder stuck in a narrow alley. They make their way on foot to the Coronet space port which is their only way off Corellia but there is a strong Imperial presence and they even see a family being arrested. Thought the ‘escape’ in the speeder was fun and the bribe scene was well executed with Han using the coaxium fuel to buy passage on a transport for himself and Qi’Ra, who is played by Emilia Clarke in a great performance that helps with the heavy lifting for Alden Ehrenreich’s Han. Qi’Ra is afraid of being caught and trafficked by the Crimson Dawn crime syndicate but Han vows to protect her and gives her his famous dice for good luck. Really caught me off guard when Qi’Ra is grabbed and prevented from leaving with Han, thought for sure they were getting off Corellia together. Before escaping Han declares, “I’ll come back for you,” famous last words so to speak. Since he has no money or ID, Han has no choice but to join the Empire in order to avoid being re-captured. Thought that was an interesting piece of his puzzle and something I didn’t expect. They assign Han to the Imperial Navy to train as a pilot. We learn that the Empire actually gave Han the last name of Solo which def surprised me as I always thought Solo was a family name. I wasn’t really a fan of that until I started thinking that could be the reason that Han dropped the shipment that got him in trouble with Jabba. If the Empire ran his name through their computers he would be in the system and done for sure.
There is a time skip of about 3 years and in the next scene, we are dropped right into the heart of chaos and damn what a scene that warzone was. Han’s plan to be a pilot is clearly not going well as he is a regular ground trooper in the middle of trench warfare. I would absolutely love to see an entire movie like that brief scene, it shows some of the ugliness of the war between the Empire and the Rebellion. I know we will never get a Gladiator/300 style movie of Star Wars movie and I’m fine with that bc these movies still need to be ok for families. The best way to deliver that kind of crazy, intense action but still appeal to families is to not use blood. The Expendables 3 taught me that, it was prob my fav of the 3 they did bc I was able to enjoy the action a bit more. Blood really does change the tone of the movie, makes it more real I guess. If blood is used sparingly only to enhance the important moments then I really feel it can help strengthen the story and emotional connection to the characters. So yeah give me a no blood, gritty, intense Empire vs Rebellion war movie. I mean, it is Star WARS. Han is barely able to escape the battlefield alive and decides it is time to find a way to escape.
From there we meet Woody Harrelson’s Tobias Beckett and man it was awesome to see Woody Harrelson in a Star Wars movie. Tobias and his crew Val and Rio Durant would eventually lead Han into his smuggling life but not before showing Han he isn’t as smart as he thinks he is. Han wants to join them as a pilot but Rio is skeptical asking why a flyboy pilot would be stuck in a mud pit and Han tells them he was kicked out of the Imperial Navy for having a mind of his own. Han tries to blackmail Tobias who is posing as an Imperial Officer into letting Han join their crew and escape with them by blowing his cover but Tobias has his bases covered. He knows the Imperial Officer that Han was going to expose him to and has Han arrested and thrown into a mud pit to be fed to a Wookie prisoner. In a Han Solo movie that Wookie prisoner could only be 1 Wookie, the mighty Chewbacca! The introduction of Han and Chewie was obviously gonna be a major moment and I was nervous about how they would tell this part of the story but I thought they nailed it. After getting tossed around by Chewbacca, Han saves his life by showing that he can speak Wookie and saying he is a friend and can help him escape. Hearing Han talk Wookie was funny and now we know why Han can understand Chewie.
Han and Chewie form a plan and are able to successfully escape the pit but they are still in danger of being seen and re-captured. There were times I saw Harrison Ford in Alden Ehrenreich’s performance and the first was when Han and Chewie are trying to escape, Chewie wants to go one way but Han sets him straight. Thought that was so close to Harrison Ford’s Han Solo and it proved that they picked the right actor for this role. Han and Chewie get to the platform just as Beckett and his crew are taking off in a stolen transport. Beckett see’s them and wants to leave them but Rio Durant is impressed with Han’s determination and thinks having a Wookie as muscle would be very beneficial so Beckett agrees to pick them up and they all head off to what we would learn is a very important job. Hilarious scene when Han goes to shower to get the mud off and Chewie joins him lol after their shower, they are looking out at the scenery and Han thanks him for saving him and says that the plan is to do 1 job for Beckett in exchange for their freedom. Chewie agrees to the plan. This scene is where I have my biggest criticism of the movie. They clearly had an obsession with explaining every single line of dialogue Han ever had, the most glaring being “Chewie.” I think it was universally understood that Han calls him Chewie bc it’s short for Chewbacca…his name lol no explanation needed but they still gave us one.
The crew head towards train tracks and Beckett outlines their plan to steal a transport container full of coaxium. Beckett, Han and Chewie will be dropped on the transport to separate the container with the coaxium and hook it up to their ship, Rio will jam the communications and Val will blow the bridge so they can escape. We learn that Val and Beckett are lovers while Rio prefers not to be tied to anyone. Val isn’t happy about using Han and Chewie bc she thinks they are amateurs. The night before the heist by a campfire, Beckett questions Han and Chewie about their motives. Han tells him that he wants to become a pilot so he can go back to Corellia and rescue Qi’ra and Chewie says he is searching for his family. Beckett promises them they will have more than enough to buy their own ship if they follow his instructions and pull this off. He also warns them there may be trouble from a person named Enfys Nest and the Cloud Riders.
Next we move to the train heist and this is an all-time great Star Wars scene. It’s a really fun sequence but proves to be very costly for the 5 of them. Beckett, Han and Chewie are lowered onto the transport just like they had planned but are almost immediately discovered by Imperial troopers and a shoot out starts. Han and Chewie are able to successfully detach the rear coaxium transport car from the rest of the train while Beckett has Rio lower the cables to attach to the coaxium transport. Everything is going according to plan but then just as Beckett feared, Enfys Nest and the Cloud Riders show up. 2 of the Cloud Riders board the train and take a shot at the crews ship which hits Rio. Enfys Nest also gets on the transport car and starts fighting with Beckett. Han knows Rio is hurt bad so he tells Chewie to unhook the front of the transport from the rest of the train while he goes to help Rio fly their ship. He barely makes it back onto the ship and takes over from Rio showing that he actually does have skills as a pilot. Unfortunately he trips a sensor as he is flying which releases Viper droids that start attacking them making a difficult situation even worse.
Rio apologizes to Han about mocking his abilities as a pilot and says he agrees with Val that nobody should die alone. Those would end up being Rio’s last words as he dies from his wounds and I was so shocked that I let out an audible ‘NOOOOOOOO’ a bit louder than I intended bc people around me noticed lol from the 1st second Rio was on screen, I became a big fan. Rio was the pilot so I knew something was gonna happen to give Han a chance to be the pilot but damn I did not expect my boy Rio to die esp that early. He was only on screen for a short time but Rio made a big impact, gonna pour one out for a great character gone too soon. The hits keep coming as Val is pinned down on the bridge by the Viper droids and realizes she doesn’t have enough time to get to safety and blow the bridge so she makes the choice to give her life for the crew. Val in her own way tells Beckett she loves him and then detonates the explosive, blowing up the bridge but killing herself in the process. Another huge shock, I thought Val was a great character and I was looking forward to seeing her dynamic with Han and Beckett. Val was def the definition of a ride or die chick lol gotta pour one out for her as well.
The train is rapidly approaching the destroyed section of the bridge and Chewbacca is able to detach the front of the transport in the nick of time. But the Cloud Riders have attached their own grappling hooks to the transport dragging it down and causing big problems for Han. The struggle is going to cost everyone their lives, esp Beckett and Chewie who are still on the transport so Han makes the decisions to release the transport and it falls to the ground causing a huge explosion that looked awesome. Chewie grabs Beckett and hangs on to one of the cables as Han pulls them back onto the ship. Really great sequence but also very frustrating bc I really wanted to see this plan succeed so I was pissed when Enfys Nest and the Cloud Riders showed up. Then we lose Rio and Val bc of them, safe to say I wasn’t a fan of Enfys Nest lol Han proving that he is actually a great pilot was one of the highlights for sure. We find out just how important this job was when Beckett punches Han in the face and explains this was a job for Dryden Vos a member of the Crimson Dawn crime syndicate and they do not tolerate failure. Han suggests they run but Beckett says they will hire bounty hunters to kill them and eventually they will succeed. The only option is to go see Dryden Vos and try to make amends. Beckett wants to go alone but Han insists that they go together and Beckett warns Han that if he does this, he is in the game for life. Han and Chewie both agree and they all go to see Dryden Vos.
Beckett: Sorry I punched your face.
Han: Happens more often than you think.
Lol When they arrive at the meeting, Han is stunned when he sees Qi’ra and reunites with her. “I’ll come back for you” doesn’t apply anymore as Han learns Qi’ra had to make her own plan to survive and serving Dryden Vos is her life now. She can’t just leave with him like Han wants. The meeting with Dryden Vos goes as expected, he is ready to kill them for not delivering the coaxium until Han suggests stealing unrefined coaxium from Kessel and then bringing it to a neutral planet to be refined. Crimson Dawn has dealings with the group that Han would be stealing the unrefined coaxium from so Dryden doesn’t want to jeopardize that but Han says they have no connections to Crimson Dawn so if they are caught it won’t lead back to Crimson Dawn. It’s a very risky, almost impossible plan but it’s their only shot. Vos agrees but sends Qi-Ra along to keep an eye on them so they don’t try to pull a fast one. Beckett says he will get the equipment they need while Qi-Ra says she can find them a ship fast enough to get this done. Here we go.
This leads us to the other major moment that this movie had to deliver, Han meeting Lando and the Millenium Falcon and I thought once again they nailed it. Lando is played by Donald Glover who delivered a perfect performance. Their relationship was always interesting, they were friends but there was def some real tension there. Lando sold Han out to survive but then risked his life to save him from Jabba and you can’t say it didn’t work out. Qi-ra introduces them to Lando as he is playing Sabacc, the card game that Lando won the Millenium Falcon playing. Han thinks he see’s an opportunity to acquire the Millenium Falcon so Han challenges Lando to game of Sabacc against the advice of Qi-ra and Chewie. Han thinks he can’t be beat and the cockiness is flowing after winning the first round but Lando has the ace up his sleeve so he is taking Han for a ride. Lando wins the game while Han knows he has been cheated and makes a mental note that would help him later. That is actually a theme I saw throughout the movie, you can get Han once but not twice. Bit of a nitpicky comment but I think Lando let Han off the hook too easy considering they were playing for pinks but it’s not a big deal.
After the game, Qi-ra and Beckett manage to convince Lando to join the mission for 25% of the profits so now they have a ship. Thought it was funny to see Han have almost the same reaction as Luke to the Millenium Falcon saying “I bet he doesn’t even have a ship, prob a piece of junk” lol we finally meet the Millenium Falcon in all its glory and they head out to establish one of Han’s greatest boasts, making the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs. I knew seeing this play out was gonna be a tough sell but I thought they did a good job bringing it to the big screen. We meet Lando’s droid L3 and I have mixed feelings on her. L3 was funny but got on my nerves too, kind of like a sister lol L3 is a big proponent of Droid rights and is about to choke out a guy that is running droid fighting pits, played by the legend Clint Howard!, until Lando stops her. The Millenium Falcon has been impounded so L3 works to open a hole in the lot so they can get to the Falcon. Lando needs Beckett to remove the gravity lock so they can escape but it costs Lando 5% of his cut. The Falcon takes off but we see that Enfys Nest had one of the Cloud Riders plant a homing beacon on the ship so they can track it. Man I really did not like Enfys Nest and was more than ready to see them get their asses kicked.
As they are making their way to Kessel, Beckett defeats Chewie at the game we saw Chewie playing in A New Hope and Chewie is pissed. Han finds Qi’Ra trying on capes lol and tries to learn more about her experiences since they were separated but she doesn’t want to talk about it. Han kisses her as Beckett walks in on them. Beckett talks to Han in private saying he shouldn’t trust Qi-Ra and that Han and Chewie would make a good crew but not her. “Let me give you some advice. Assume everyone will betray you. And you will never be disappointed.” Han says that’s a lonely way to live but Beckett says it’s the only way. Then we get a pretty good exchange between Qi-Ra and L3,
“L3: So what are you gonna do about your little problem?
Qi’Ra: Problem? I, er… uh…
L3: Well, that brand on your wrist tells me that you’re committed. And that young male’s heart fluctuations tell me he’s in love with you.
Qi’Ra: Han is not in love with me!
L3: Oh, please. It’s just us. You don’t have to pretend. I’m in the same situation.
Qi’Ra: You are?
L3: I’m sure you’ve noticed that Lando has feelings for me. Which makes working together difficult because I do not feel the same way about him.
Qi’Ra: Right….Yes, Yeah. Yeah, I see that.
L3: Sometimes, I think… maybe. But, no. We’re just not compatible.
Qi’Ra:….How would that work?
L3: It works.”
Lol when they get to Kessel they have to go undercover to get the coaxium from the Pyke Syndicate so Qi-Ra poses as a slaver with Han and Chewie as the slaves she is going to trade with the Pykes, L3 as her servant droid and Beckett as her security. Before Han and Chewie are taken away, Qi’Ra punches Han in the gut but this is a cover to give Han back the dice that he gave her 3 years ago on Corellia. Qi’Ra watches on a video feed as Han and Chewie are beaten but when the Pyke General is not looking, Han and Chewie get the upper hand with Chewie pulling the arms off his captor lol and they cut the camera feed. Beckett tricks the guards in the control room into holding his Pyke so he can pull out his blaster and kill all the guards. Qi’Ra uses the martial arts training Dryden Vos gave her to kill the Pyke General which impresses L3. To give them a distraction to steal the coaxium and escape, L3 frees one of the droids and directs it to free the other droids and slaves causing a droid/slave uprising.
As Han and Chewie approach the vaults where the coaxium is being kept, Chewie sees a Wookie slave being beaten and wants to help but would have to abandon their plan. Han isn’t happy and thinks this is goodbye but he gives Chewie his Pyke and Chewie kills the guards to free the Wookie slave. L3 unlocks the vault and Han is able to steal 12 coaxium cannisters but isn’t able to push the sled holding the cannisters and is about to be killed by Pyke soldiers when Chewie and the Wookie slave show up to take out the soldiers and help Han push the sled to the Falcon. But with the droid/slave uprising and the Pyke Syndicate realizing they are being robbed, an all out battle starts raging. Lando leaves the Falcon to join the fight returning fire with Han and Beckett as the Pyke soldiers try to stop them from leaving with the coaxium. They successfully get the coaxium onto the Falcon but L3 is hit with a blaster and is in big trouble. Lando goes to her aid as L3 falls into system failure and Lando is also hit by a blaster. Chewie embraces the Wookie slave in a goodbye and leaves to go help Han and carry Lando and L3 back to the Falcon. The Pykes have a sonic cannon which will cause big problems for them but Qi’Ra takes it out with a grenade causing a massive fire. Lando is emotional watching L3 disintegrate in his arms. Man they did a good job of making you care about L3’s death but esp Donald Glover as that is not an easy scene to pull off considering L3 is mostly CGI but he kept you invested in the scene.
Things are getting rough on the surface of Kessel so Beckett tells Han to get them outta there. Now Han and the Millenium Falcon have to walk the walk and make the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs. A powerful Maelstrom that contains big asteroids and huge monsters have ruined any previous attempts by other pilots to do it but the best pilot In the galaxy in the best ship in the galaxy is a different story. As they head into the Maelstrom, Han says, “I’ve got a really good feeling about this.” Lol it’s usually ‘I’ve got a bad feeling about this’ so I love the little change. Lando is mourning the death of L3 so Qi’Ra volunteers to be Han’s co-pilot. Han has no choice but to fly the Millenium Falcon into the Maelstrom bc the unrefined coaxium will explode if they aren’t able to get it to a refinery and they are running out of time. An Imperial Star Destroyer exits hyperspace and is heading towards Kessel in response to the uprising and man what an incredible visual it is of the Star Destroyer in the dark storm cloud lit up by lightning. It is mesmerizing, great job by their CGI team. Lando thinks they should drop the shipment but Qi’Ra reminds them that Dryden Vos will kill them if they don’t deliver the coaxium. A handful of TIE Fighters are dispatched from the Star Destroyer which further complicates an already impossible situation.
Lando says they don’t have enough time to complete the Kessel Run by taking the natural route before the coaxium explodes so Han suggests a shortcut through the Maelstrom which Lando deems suicidal. In a desperate move, Han convinces Lando to L3’s neural cords into the Falcon’s systems to help him navigate. Thought it was so great that they linked L3 to the Millenium Falcon’s system which explains why the Falcon always had a bit more luck than other ships and why C3PO thought the ship had a peculiar dialect. Han is really showing his skills navigating the storm clouds of the Maelstrom and avoiding the TIE Fighters and Beckett lends a hand by using the Falcon’s laser cannons to take out some TIE Fighters. Chewie steps in to help Han fly the ship which gives us another great exchange:
“Han Solo: Since when do you know how to fly?
Chewie: *ROARS*
Han Solo: 190 years old?
Chewie: *ROARS*
Han Solo: You look great!”
A shot from the TIE Fighter caused Lando to fall so Qi’Ra checks on him and puts out a fire with one of his capes much to his chagrin lol another shot from a TIE Fighter destroys the laser cannon so the Falcon is in trouble as Han heads deeper into the Maelstrom. Han reaches deep into his bag of tricks to finally get the TIE Fighters off his tail,
“Han: Drop the landing gear! When I tell you, flood the intake and sweep to the bi-lats. A little something I picked up from my pal, Needles, best street racer in all of Corellia…till he crashed… and died… doing THIS!”
The landing gear kicks up big rocks from the asteroid that smash through the TIE Fighters cockpit taking it out. Qi’Ra and Lando successfully connect L3’s processor into the Falcon’s systems as Beckett observes the coaxium becoming more unstable. With L3 now connected to the Falcon’s systems, she produces a model of the Maelstrom to help navigate but it shows they are about to run into a huge monster. They are trying to evade the monster but have come into a large gravity well called The Maw that is making it impossible to get out of there. Han has them eject the escape pod as a decoy for the monster to follow and it works but they are still stuck in the Maw while the monster is ripped apart by the Maw. Qi’Ra and Lando have an idea to inject a drop of coaxium into the fusion core to give them a boost to get out of the Maw. They do it and it works, Han gets the Falcon into lightspeed just before the Maelstrom closes in around them. And there it is, Han with some help was able to make the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs. The uprising on Kessel and then the Kessel Run itself are really great scenes that provide a lot of fun and action. The previous deaths in the movie keep you on the edge of your seat about who will survive despite knowing that Han, Chewie and Lando definitely don’t die.
Despite the greatness of both Han and the Millenium Falcon, if it wasn’t for the coaxium boost they don’t make it. I love this little detail bc it really does make Han a scoundrel for the way he brags about it. Kinda like bragging that you hit the most home runs while juiced on steroids. It’s def an accomplishment but considering how you did it, you gotta be humble about it lol but they made the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs(if you round down lol) and they get the coaxium to the refinery just in time. Han is in a great mood after what they accomplished but Lando not so much, he is mourning L3 and pissed about the damage to the Falcon. Lando wants to get paid and then never see Han again. Han finds Qi’Ra at a bar and asks about her servitude to Dryden Vos to which she replies that everyone, even Dryden Vos serves someone and Han would be smart not to make an enemy out of Vos. Han says that he isn’t the same kid that she knew on Corellia and that he is an outlaw. Qi’Ra tells Han she knows he is a good guy but Han disagrees and says he is a terrible person. Beckett shows up to remind them that they need to get the refined coaxium.
Han, Qi’Ra and Beckett walk through the village and see how destitute the inhabitants are meaning they are probably slaves and don’t receive much benefit from the refining. They are standing at a bar when Enfys Nest and the Cloud Riders show up to surround them and demand the coaxium. They are significantly outnumbered but Han immediately unclicks his holster and I fn love little details like that bc it is something you would expect Han Solo to do. Beckett tells Han to calm down and keep his blaster in the holster. Han tries to bluff saying that there are 30 mercenaries waiting on the Millenium Falcon for his signal but as he says this, Lando takes off in the Falcon obviously done with all the trouble. Beckett tells them Crimson Dawn will be here by the time the coaxium is refined so they should just kill them. Qi’Ra wants to deal with Enfys Nest but Beckett says they are just marauders that only know how to kill. Enfys Nest takes off the mask to reveal young woman which shocks Beckett so there is obviously a lot more to Enfys Nest and the Cloud Riders than anyone thought.
Enfys Nest and the Cloud Riders are actually victims of the Empire’s cruelty and are trying to acquire resources to help the Rebellion fight back. They head into the bar to have a drink and Enfys Nest tells them that Crimson Dawn originated from a band of mercenaries who plundered a planet. When the inhabitants of the planet tried to fight back, the mercenaries cut out the tongues of every man, woman and child. Enfys explains that her and the Cloud Riders are from planets that have been terrorized by Crimson Dawn and the other crime syndicates and that Crimson Dawn will use the coaxium to plunder more planets. Han is moved by what Enfys has said and wants to help them so he tells Beckett they can’t give the coaxium to Dryden Vos. Beckett couldn’t care less bc he knows how dangerous Dryden Vos in and that he has a small army at his disposal. Han has a plan to trick Vos into giving them the money without giving him the coaxium. Beckett wants no part and says he is leaving. Before they part, Beckett tells Han about a job on Tatooine for a big shot gangster that he is going to use to pay off his debts and tells Han to find him there if he gets out of this alive. Like I said before I love little details like this.
Qi’Ra, Han and Chewie board Vos’s ship to meet with him to give him the coaxium and when he asks where Beckett is, they tell Vos that Beckett died trying to save Han on Kessel. Vos is pleased that Qi’ra survived and asks to see the coaxium. Han shows him a sample vial but Vos insists in seeing the processed coaxium which Han shows him. But Vos announces that it is fake and he knows about the plan to give him fake coaxium and sell the real stuff to the Cloud Riders. Han thinks that Qi’Ra double crossed them but Vos reveals that it was actually Beckett who turned on them and revealed their plan. Vos asks Qi’Ra what they should do with Han and she says they should find out why he did it and should prove their loyalty by sacrificing something they love. Beckett tells Han he tried to warn him about her but Han says he was listening to his advice, esp about people being predictable. We then see that the Enforcers Vos sent to collect the coaxium containers from the Cloud Riders discover them empty and the ‘Cloud Riders’ are actually villagers. The real Cloud Riders and Enfys Nest emerge and take out all the enforcers.
Back on Vos’s ship, Beckett realizes that the real coaxium is actually there with Han so he kills the remaining guards turning on Vos and forces Han to load up the real coaxium. Then Beckett forces Chewie at gunpoint to carry the coaxium off the ship as Vos tells Beckett he is making a big mistake. Once Beckett and Chewie are gone Han grabs his blaster and fires at Vos who grabs his knives and they begin fighting all over the room. During the fight, Qi’Ra grabs a sword and pins Han to the ground while Vos tells Han that Qi’Ra is loyal to Crimson Dawn. But Qi’Ra was just trying to get Vos to let his guard down and she attacks him. They start fighting but Qi’Ra is able to defeat and kill Vos by catching his knife with her sword and then driving it into his chest. This was a great climax to the movie with all the double crossing and the fights. Qi’Ra tells Han that he should go after Chewie and Beckett to get the coaxium they’ll need to buy a new ship. Qi’Ra and Han embrace one more time and Qi’Ra says she’ll be right behind him. More famous last words.
Han catches up to Beckett to confront him about turning on them and tells him that Qi’Ra killed Dryden Vos. Beckett says Qi’Ra is a survivor implying she has no loyalty to anyone but herself but Han says Beckett’s mistake is thinking everyone is like him. As they are talking, Beckett starts to slowly reach for his blaster but in an awesome moment, Han shoots first fatally wounding Beckett. So fn great. Beckett gives Han credit for doing that saying he would have killed Han if he hadn’t. In his final moments, Beckett praises Han for his courage and then dies. What a great character Woody Harrelson delivered in this movie, kind of sucked to lose him going forward but it made sense for the story. We see Qi’Ra leave in Vis’s ship as Han and Chewie watch. Def sad to see but she was doing what she thought she had to do to keep Han and Chewie from harm. Han and Chewie deliver to coaxium to Enfys Nest who plans to use it help the Rebellion and asks Han to join them but he declines. Enfys says that Han might change his mind someday but he responds, “Don’t hold your breath kid.” That was another Harrison Ford moment. Enfys gives Han a vial of coaxium so he can buy his own ship. Warwick Davis was one of Enfys Nests’ Cloud Riders and gotta say it was awesome to see him in a Star Wars movie.
Qi’Ra had no intentions of waiting for Han but before she leaves, she contacts Crimson Dawn to inform them of what happened and this is the part of the movie I didn’t like. We see that the leader of Crimson Dawn Qi’Ra is talking to is Darth Maul who we last saw chopped in half by Obi-Wan in The Phantom Menace. This moment actually drew laughs and confused comments in the theatre where I watched it bc it seemed like such a far fetched twist. Apparently the explanation for Darth Maul being alive and the details behind Crimson Dawn are in the animated series they did and that really grinds my gears. Star Wars started as live action movies and that is where I feel the story should be told. The Clone Wars would be awesome to see play out in live action but they only did it in the animated shows. I honestly have no interest in watching the animated shows and I shouldn’t have to watch them to be able to understand the movies. That’s just my little rant I had to get off my chest lol but with Darth Maul, Qi’Ra goes from the frying pan and into the fire. She blames everything on Beckett and doesn’t mention Han or Chewie. Def interested to see the rest of her story play out.
Before the movie ends, Han and Chewie track Lando down for 1 more game to even the score for him bailing on them.
Lando: Han! You’re alive!
Han: Yeah, no thanks to you. I should have Chewie rip your arms off. In fact, Chewie, do it.
Chewie: *ROARS*
Lando: Hey, Han! We are friends. You know that. We’re friends. All right?
*Han hugs Lando*
Han: Oh, look at you. You thought he was gonna rip your arms off.
Lando: I knew you were kidding
Han: No, you didn’t.
Lol Han spots the card up Lando’s sleeve, figures out how Lando beat him the first time and steals the card when they hug. With an eye on the Millenium Falcon, Han challenges Lando to one more game with the Falcon on the line. Lando agrees not knowing that the card up his sleeve is gone and when he finally realizes it’s gone it is too late, Han wins straight up and takes ownership of the Millenium Falcon. As the movie ends we see Han and Chewie in the cockpit of the Falcon, Han tells Chewie they are going to Tatooine to take a job from a big shot gangster and the Falcon heads off into hyperspace. Awesome ending that works as either a one off or leading into more movies.
When you add it all up, SOLO is a great Star Wars movie that defied expectations. Telling a Han Solo story without Harrison Ford was always gonna be a tough road but I really think they nailed it. SOLO delivered so many fun action sequences. Escape from Corellia, Train heist, coaxium heist from Kessel, the Kessel Run and finally the climax on the coaxium refining planet. So much awesome action. They delivered on the big moments they needed to hit like Han/Chewie meeting, Han meeting Lando, Han acquiring the Millenium Falcon and how Han becomes a smuggler for Jabba. Alden Ehrenreich did a great job becoming Han Solo and staying true to Harrison Ford’s performance. Emilia Clarke was so good as a strong female lead holding her own with Han and not becoming a damsel in distress. Donald Glover crushed it as Lando. Woody Harrelson was the perfect choice for Tobias Beckett and really helped lend credibility to the story. The CGI was great, the score and cinematography were off the charts good. I’m a big fan of Ron Howard and I’m so happy that he stepped in to direct SOLO bc he gave us a really fun addition to the Star Wars legacy. For a story that didn’t need to be told, they hit a home run.
Coming in I didn’t even fathom the idea that they would be telling this story over multiple movies but when they didn’t even get to Han working for Jabba, I realized they were and got excited for more. When you think about it, despite how good SOLO was, these other 2 movies could blow it away. Forget the underwhelming box office, the foundation they built and story they set up is good enough to see it through to conclusion. Before I end this review, I want to write about my ideas for 2 more movies to make this a trilogy.
If they make more movies, there a few points you have to keep in mind:
1-Han cannot interact with someone successfully using the Force. No Sith, no Jedi, nothing.
2-Something has to happen to create his ‘I only help for money’ mentality
3-Qi’Ra has to die but not in a way that destroys Han, so to speak
4-Need to see more of the scoundrel in Han
To me the climax of this story is Han dropping his shipment which pisses off Jabba for the last time and that is where I would be building my movies to. Boba Fett is another key figure in Han’s story that I actually thought would be in SOLO. I would make the 2nd movie more focused on Boba Fett and then focus the 3rd movie on Jabba The Hut.
Despite never really seeing them interact, I always saw the Han/Jabba dynamic as an up/down, love/hate relationship, Han was a great smuggler for Jabba but would always piss him off. Then Jabba would put a bounty on him but Han would always make it right at the last second. Jabba even says in Return of the Jedi, “no way out of it this time.”
I would have the 2nd movie show Han and Chewie becoming Jabba’s go to guys very quickly. Then I would establish that Han and Boba Fett hated each other and were at odds from day one constantly having confrontations with each other. I would really want to establish Jabba as a villain, not a cool one but an actual bad guy. So I’d have Jabba dropping entire families, slaves, anyone I could think of into the Rancor pit to make people not like Jabba. Han sees who they’re dealing with and tells Chewie, only the 1 job and then they’re done. But once they get paid, the big money is something Han can’t walk away from, esp after what happens to Qi’Ra.
I would have Qi’Ra playing both sides, pretending to be down with Crimson Dawn/Darth Maul but also working with Enfys Nest to use the information she has to help the people and the Rebellion. Qi’Ra is still in contact with Han and asks him to do something for her to help a planet and their people in a desperate situation. Han questions why saying “you won’t even get paid.” To which Qi’Ra responds, “some things are worth more than money.” Doing this will cause delay’s in Han’s smuggling but he figures he’ll make it up to Jabba later, 1 of the many times he does this. While Han is gone, Darth Maul figures out Qi’Ra’s betrayal and goes to her ship to kill her. After a significantly heated confrontation with Han, Boba Fett has started tracking Qi’Ra and his spies inform him of Qi’Ra’s betrayal so Boba knows that Crimson Dawn would be blamed for any attack on her ship. Boba Fett arrives at Qi’Ra’s ship just before Darth Maul arrives and blows the ship away killing Qi’Ra. I originally wrote it with Darth Maul being on the ship in a fight with Qi’Ra when Boba Fett destroys it but I don’t think that would mesh with the animated show.
Chewie breaks the news to Han who blames himself for not being there. Han vows to never do anything for anyone ever again unless he gets a big, fat reward. Only the audience will know that Boba Fett was responsible, Han never does. This gives Boba Fett something to really establish himself as a force to be reckoned with esp if you had Darth Maul on the ship but it still works with just Qi’Ra. I feel Qi’Ra can’t survive bc that would hurt the Han/Leia romance. But she also can’t die in a way that would require revenge esp with Darth Maul involved bc that wouldn’t work with his story of being very skeptical of the Force. I think my idea works to get rid of Qi’Ra in a way that hardens Han but doesn’t destroy him. Also makes Boba Fett more of a villain.
I also think we have to see more of Han becoming skeptical of the Force, Maybe Han meets someone like Chirrut from Rogue One and see’s them die proving to Han that it’s all bullshit smoke and mirrors. Qi’Ra’s death would be the climax of the 2nd movie.
Then the 3rd movie would move the focus from Boba Fett to Jabba The Hut but still have some intense Han/Boba confrontations. I’d really want to establish how evil Jabba really is. Han would also be dealing with the aftermath of Qi’Ra’s death and eventually decide he wants to get away from working for Jabba. His head isn’t in the game during a big run and he makes dumb mistakes that lead to getting stopped and boarded. Knowing that if they find anything, they will run his name and he would be executed immediately for desertion. Han makes the tough decision to drop the shipment and deal with Jabba later. It works, Han and Chewie are free to go after the Imperial Officers find nothing out of order. But now Han and Chewie are out big money to repay this shipment and they def don’t have it. Han has pissed Jabba off before and avoided bounties from being carried out but nothing close to as big as this loss. Jabba may not even hear them out this time.
Han thinks about what Beckett said about living with a price on your head but eventually decides that it’s better to live with a price on your head than to work for the guy that puts prices on people’s heads. After talking with Chewie, they decide not to go back to Jabba and just find some planet that helps outlaws semi-retire in peace. Chewie has a line on a couple small jobs but not worth enough to make what they need, which is still less than what they owe Jabba. Han says they will take those 2 small jobs then head to Mos Eisley space port to find one more big job. Movie ends. I think that would be a good lead in to A New Hope when Obi-Wan makes such a big offer to Han, that is enough to pay Jabba, and Han changes his mind about going back.
I feel like this idea establishes everything you need/want to about Han’s story, gives focus to 2 bad guys that have prominent presences in the Original Trilogy, ends Qi’Ra’s story in a way that justifies what a great character she was and doesn’t hurt the other movies. I think this trilogy would enhance the Original Trilogy by having you already despise Boba Fett and Jabba The Hut when they show up making their demise much more enjoyable. It will also mean more when Han gets to be the one to cause Boba Fett’s death. Obviously this is just a general outline of where the next 2 movies would go but it would be awesome to sit down with a team and fill this idea out.
So that brings me to the end of this piece and I’m glad I finally posted a review for this awesome movie. SOLO doesn’t get near the respect it deserves and hopefully this can help more people appreciate it. I enjoyed the story so much that it immediately lit a creative fire under me and got me brainstorming potential ideas. I appreciate everyone that read through my idea, I really hope they make more movies that tell the rest of this story. Like I said earlier, the hard work is done and the story they have set up is one that is worth telling. And I believe that fans will show up for the rest of this story as many people that didn’t see it in theatres eventually watched it and loved it. Han Solo is one of the most iconic characters in movie history and it was an uphill battle but I feel SOLO adds to his legacy, not hurts it. SOLO is one of those movies you watch on Saturday afternoon that puts you in a great mood for the rest of the night. It felt like a Star Wars movie and stayed true to one of the greatest movie characters. Can’t ask for much more than that.
