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Awards
Academy Award Visual Effects 2019 · Nominated
2019 Winner Clio Entertainment Award. GOLD AWARD - 61 seconds and over; Adam Cooper (Producer)
Solo: A Star Wars Story is a 2018 American space Western film [15] [16] centering on the Star Wars character Han Solo. Directed by Ron Howard, produced by Lucasfilm, and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the second Star Wars anthology film, following Rogue One (2016).
May 25, 2018 · Solo: A Star Wars Story: Directed by Ron Howard. With Alden Ehrenreich, Joonas Suotamo, Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke. During an adventure in the criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his future co-pilot Chewbacca and Lando Calrissian years before joining the Rebel Alliance.
- (384K)
- Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
- Ron Howard
- 2018-05-25
- Overview
- Official description
- Synopsis
- Development
- Marketing and release
- Reception
- Credits
"You know, he's younger in this movie and that's fun because you have to imagine him 10 years earlier in his early 20s. What was he like before he hardened up? Before he had some setbacks? Before he put on this cynical coat? What got him there?"
―Lawrence Kasdan
is a stand-alone Star Wars film directed by Ron Howard from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and Jon Kasdan, released worldwide on May 25, 2018. It is the second installment of the Star Wars Anthology Series. It stars Alden Ehrenreich as Han Solo in the years prior to Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. Donald Glover portrays Lando Calrissian and Joonas Suotamo portrays the Wookiee Chewbacca. Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Thandiwe Newton, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge also star.
The film was first announced as a Han Solo picture in 2015, along with the news that Phil Lord and Christopher Miller would be the film's directors. Principal photography began in January 2017, after which creative differences arose between the two directors and the studio. They were replaced by Ron Howard, who was tasked with completing principal photography along with what was reported to be extensive re-shoots.
held its world premiere on May 10, 2018 in Los Angeles, and it was screened at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival on May 15. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the performances, music, and visuals, although some felt that the story was weak. Solo received a nomination for Best Visual Effects at the 91st Academy Awards.
is the first and only live-action, cinematic-release Star Wars film to not involve space in the title card nor in the first shot other than in the "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away" or preface cards.
Millennium Falcon and journey to a galaxy far, far away in Solo: A Star Wars Story, an all-new adventure with the most beloved scoundrel in the galaxy. Through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his mighty future copilot Chewbacca and encounters the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian, i...
Defying Lady Proxima
Six years after the formation of the Galactic Empire, on the shipbuilding world of Corellia, a human "scrumrat" and aspiring pilot named Han and his love interest Qi'ra long to escape the clutches of the Grindalid crime boss Lady Proxima's White Worms crime syndicate. Following a delivery job that went awry, Han flees some criminals on his M-68 landspeeder through the streets of Coronet City. He drives through a bridge and hangs his dice on the windscreen. Arriving at the Den of the White Worms, he and the other Scrumrats are herded by Lady Proxima's enforcers into her underground chamber. Three children fight over stolen items they had pick-pocketed. Han and Qi'ra embrace each other in a tunnel. He tells Qi'ra that he managed to steal a vial of hyperfuel coaxium and plans to use it as their ticket offworld. Moloch, Syke, and Rebolt soon catch up with them and bring Han before Lady Proxima, who lives underwater. In the Scrumrats and her enforcers, she asks Han for a progress report. He claims that the other criminals kept his money and coaxium but that he learned a "very valuable lesson": that we cannot trust those "guys." Lady Proxima is furious that Han came back with nothing from his errand. Rebolt beats Han with a stick. A defiant Han grabs Rebolt's stick and says that he will beat those who beat him. Moloch raises his blaster at Han but Qi'ra stops him. Lady Proxima warns Qi'ra not to disobey her. Han pulls out a rock and claims to have a thermal detonator but Proxima is not fooled. Han reveals that it was a bluff and hurls the rock through the ceiling, letting in a beam of sunlight. Exposed to the beam, Proxima is badly burned in the face and dives beneath the pool. Han and Qi'ra escape in Han's stolen M-68 landspeeder and race out of the White Worms' den into the streets of Coronet. Han's plan is to drive to Coronet Spaceport with the stolen coaxium and use it to bribe their way offworld. Han vows to be a pilot and see the galaxy. Qi'ra hopes they will get their own starship and no longer be told what to do.
Escaping Corellia
They are soon pursued by Moloch's A-A4B truckspeeder, which is also carrying two Corellian hounds. Moloch rams his truckspeeder against Han's landspeeder. After narrowly avoiding a truck, Han drives through an Imperial checkpoint. An RA-7 protocol droid objects to their intrusion but is rolled over and decapitated by Moloch's truckspeeder. When Qi'ra says that Moloch is fast, Han reassures her that they are faster. Han's landspeeder and Moloch's truckspeeder is pursued by an Imperial patrol trooper on riding a C-PH patrol speeder bike. However, the rider crashes into a barrier. Han and Qi'ra drive through a factory with Moloch hot on their tail. Han manages to escape Moloch's truck by driving the landspeeder through a tight corner. With the landspeeder stuck, Moloch dispatches Rebolt and the Corellian hounds after them. Han and Qi'ra managed to reach the Coronet spaceport on foot. There is a strong Imperial military presence at the spaceport, where there are long queues offworld. They witness several people including a family being arrested by stormtroopers. Han and Qi'ra join a queue. Qi'ra is worried about being trafficked by the Crimson Dawn but Han vows to protect her. Since they don't have identification, Han and Qi'ra use the coaxium vial to bribe the Imperial Emigration Officer Falthina Sharest into letting them through the customs booth. After depositing the coaxium, Han manages to cross through. Before Qi'ra can cross into the other side of the terminal, she is apprehended by the White Worms enforcers. Qi'ra tells Han to flee and he vows to return for her. Han manages to evade Imperial forces and the White Worms by donning a stolen hat and hiding behind several crates. He witnesses more people being arrested by stormtroopers. Lacking sufficient funds to travel offworld, Han finds an Imperial Military recruiting post. Han speaks to the Imperial recruitment officer Drawd Munbrin and volunteers to join the Imperial Navy as a pilot. Since Han lacks a surname and family, he dubs him "Han Solo" in absence of a surname. Approving Han's application, he tells Han to proceed to Transport ID-83 to the Imperial Flight Academy on Carida, promising Han that he will be flying in no time.
Ordeals on Mimban
"Well, this ain't a quick job, it's a war!" ―Rio Durant to Tobias Beckett Three years later, Han has been expelled from the Carida Flight Academy for insubordination, and is serving as a Mudtrooper Corporal during a battle on the planet Mimban. Solo's 224th Imperial Armored Division is locked in trench warfare against the Mimbanese Liberation Army, enduring heavy casualties in the torrid, muddy weather. Han takes part in a ground assault led by Major Staz to capture a ridge. After Han is thrown to the ground, Staz helps him to the ground and tells him they are almost there. Solo is confused but Staz tells him to head to the last ridge. Staz is soon killed by an explosion. Han and some surviving troops including Private Collum Woslo, Corporal Sharlu Greslin, Corporal Danith Nodar, and Corporal Wesger Odry gather in a trench with "Captain" Tobias Beckett, who takes command as the most senior officer in the group. Beckett leads the soldiers into action and they take out the last resistance in the ridge. Following the skirmish, Han speaks with "Captain" Beckett, thanking him for his help. Beckett advises him to get away from here as fast as he can. Solo soon encounters Beckett's companions Val and the Ardennian Rio Durant, who are disguised as Imperial Army troopers. They tell him not to follow them. Lieutenant Alayus Bolandin tells Han and his comrades that they will be moving out to the Southern Marshlands in three hours. When Bolandin requests an advance party, Solo questions why the Empire is destroying and occupying Mimban, earning the enmity of his commanding officer. Disenchanted with the Empire, Han seeks out Beckett and his gang, who are planning a heist. Han recognizes them as thieves who are posing as Imperial Army personnel. Val and Beckett want to kill Han but he offers his services as a pilot. When Rio asks what is a fancy "fly boy" doing in the mud, he claims he was kicked out for having a mind of his own. Han points out that Rio is an Ardennian. Desperate to escape offworld, Solo tries to blackmail them into allow him to join their gang by threatening to expose them as infiltrators. However, Beckett turns the tables on him and convinces Lieutenant Bolandin that Solo is trying to desert.
Origins
The earliest incarnation of a live-action depiction of young Han Solo came during the pre-production of Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith. Writer and director George Lucas conceived an idea of Solo as a child on Kashyyyk, with Chewbacca raising the young boy like a son. Solo would have been present during the Battle of Kashyyyk and would have encountered Yoda, helping the Jedi Master discover scraps of a droid that could have aided Yoda in determining the whereabouts of General Grievous. Concept art from Iain McCaig showed the young Solo as a slob, a juxtaposition of the character in his later years. "He's such a persnickety guy later — he always has to have the best of everything," McCaig said in The Art of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, "so I thought it'd be great if when he was a kid, he was an absolute slob." These concepts never made it out of pre-production, and Solo did not appear in Revenge of the Sith—though Chewbacca ultimately did make a cameo appearance during the battle. After the release of Revenge of the Sith, Lucas began planning a live-action television series called Star Wars: Underworld, set between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. The unproduced series, dealing with elements of the criminal underworld, could have included some of Solo's backstory. According to Stephen Scaia, the show's writers came up with a story for how Solo met Chewbacca. Another story would have dealt with how Solo first met Lando Calrissian, who first appeared in Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back.
Pre-production
"…George had sort of roughed-out many movies—not just the new trilogy but other movies, the spinoffs and things. I wasn't sure I wanted to do anything, but I said, "I could do the Han Solo movie"—because he's my favorite character." ―Lawrence Kasdan Ideas for a young Han Solo film began to percolate in the lead up to The Walt Disney Company's acquisition of Lucasfilm. In October 2012, as Lucas was preparing to sell his company, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy contacted Lawrence Kasdan, writer of The Empire Strikes Back and co-writer of Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi, and asked him to meet her and Lucas to discuss new films in the franchise. Kasdan recounted that Lucas had already come up with some basic ideas for the sequel trilogy and had also come up with the concept of stand-alone films. One of those movies was about young Han Solo, before the events of A New Hope. Kasdan was initially hesitant on being part of the new films, but he decided he could do the Han Solo movie as Solo was his favorite character. He pitched his idea to Bob Iger by telling him about the scene where Han gets his last name. After agreeing to the job, Kasdan was also asked to help develop what would become Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens. Once he had completed work on that film, Kasdan felt creatively drained, so he asked his son Jon to assist in developing the Han Solo film. The Kasdans worked on the script for nine months, during which they were inspired by Treasure Island, Heat, Unforgiven, and various films by the Coen brothers. At the urging of the elder Kasdan, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller were hired to direct. Lord and Miller tested several thousand actors for the part, including Harrison Ford impressionist Anthony Ingruber. They ultimately chose Alden Ehrenreich, who had been the first person to audition. According to Miller, they didn't want an impersonation of Ford, but "someone who could evoke the spirit of the iconic performance we all remember while bringing something new and fresh." Ehrenreich was officially announced during Celebration Europe. He (and later, Ron Howard) met with Harrison Ford to discuss the character, and Lucasfilm sent Ford a copy of the script for his approval. Once Ehrenreich was cast, certain parts of the script were revised to be tailored to his voice; the final script also incorporated contributions from Lord, Miller and Howard. As Jon Kasdan told SFX magazine, "I think ultimately the movie that you'll see is truly a product of the five of us all coming together in this weird way to tell this story."
Production
"I think in terms of us leaving the project, I think everybody went in with really good intentions and our approach to making the movie was different than theirs. That was a really big gap to bridge, and it proved to be too big." ―Phil Lord Principal photography began in January 2017, with a working title of Star Wars: Red Cup. In addition to Pinewood Studios, the film shot at Fuerteventura, Spain, the Dolomites in Italy and at an undisclosed location near London. One of the three rewards in the 2017 Force for Change fundraiser was a role in the film. On June 20, 2017, Lucasfilm announced that directors Lord and Miller were departing from the project due to creative differences and that a new director would be announced soon. Entertainment Weekly reported that Lord and Miller encouraged an improvisational style on set, which Lucasfilm insiders believed was moving the film away from the vision crafted by the Kasdans in their script and ended up significantly changing the story. Lucasfilm believed that these apparent issues could be fixed during reshoots, but Lord and Miller were reportedly reluctant to significantly alter their approach to the film. As a result, Kennedy made the decision to remove Lord and Miller from the production. Co-writer Lawrence Kasadan later attributed it to tone: "You can have fun with the tone but you never make fun of the tone, in my world." On June 22, Lucasfilm announced that Ron Howard would take over directorial duties for the film. Howard had worked on three previous Lucasfilm projects: 1973's American Graffiti, 1979's More American Graffiti, and 1988's Willow (which starred Star Wars veteran Warwick Davis, who also appeared in Solo.) After the announcement, Howard said that he had been a fan of Star Wars since the beginning and that he found it "gratifying to be asked to lend my voice to the [Star Wars] universe." Michael Kenneth Williams was originally cast in the film but was unavailable for the reshoots, so he was replaced by Paul Bettany. George Lucas visited the set at one point, and helped direct a scene. On October 17, Howard confirmed that production had wrapped up, and he officially announced the title of the film would be Solo: A Star Wars Story. By March 30, 2018, the editing and score were finished, and post-production had ended by April 22. John Powell composed the film's musical score, and John Williams contributed a new theme.
A TV spot aired during Super Bowl LII, followed by a full teaser trailer the next day and the release of a series of character-themed teaser posters. A theatrical trailer and poster were released on April 8, with the former debuting during American Idol. Tickets became available for pre-sale beginning on May 3, and sold second to Infinity War among 2018 releases. The film had its world premiere on May 10, and appeared at the Cannes Film Festival on May 15. It received its wide release on May 25 (the 41st anniversary of the release of A New Hope, in which Harrison Ford first appeared as Han Solo).
The film was spotlighted in the February and April 2018 issues of Entertainment Weekly, the 300th issue of SFX and the June 2018 issue of Empire. The cast and crew made various media appearances to promote the film, including The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Good Morning America, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Ellen DeGeneres Show and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Donald Glover hosted the May 5 episode of Saturday Night Live. Various cast and crew members participated in Q&A sessions on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr.
Box office
opened substantially below industry projections, with $103 million in North America and $68.2 million in foreign markets. Financial analysts estimated that Disney would lose $50 to $80 million on the film. Disney Chairman Alan Horn reflected on the film's performance: "It's always a challenge because — and I say this with love and respect for media — the thing about these big movies is they get a lot of attention, whether positive or negative. So when they don't work, like Solo, the media says it's a failure. I think it was a pretty good movie. It didn't resonate as much as we'd hoped it would, but the press writes it up in a more negative way than I would."
Critical reception
The film holds a 71% rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 325 reviews. reviewer Scott Mendelson described the film as a Star Wars story that played like an Indiana Jones movie. While opining that the film had no "artistic" reason to exist, Mendelson praised Solo for its decent cast, fine action sequences, and references to the animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels. He also described Solo as the first live-action Star Wars that felt like a random adventure rather than the usual "Empire versus Rebellion" struggle. 's reviewer Michael Rechtshaffen described the film as "an origins story that represented a return to the saga's more humble, original space Western roots which emphasized character development over kinetic, adrenaline-fueled action sequences." He also praised Alden Ehrenreich's performance as Han Solo and Ron Howard's directorship. The Guardian's reviewer Peter Bradshaw described Solo as a "boisterous bromance," awarding the film four out of five stars. Besides praising Ron Howard's directorship and Ehrenreich's performance as the titular character, Bradshaw credited Lawrence Kasdan and his son Jon for "channeling the spirits" of the original trilogy into the film. The BBC reviewer Nicholas Barber gave Solo a mixed review, awarding the film three out of five stars. He wrote that Solo was a "Disney-fied, sub-Guardians of the Galaxy adventure: a lightly comic, family-friendly, action-packed, nigglingly sexist popcorn movie." Barber described Ehrenreich's depiction of Solo as a "likeably goofy hero with an irresistible grin and an air of boyish decency," and compared him favorably to Jake Lloyd and Hayden Christensen, who played Anakin Skywalker in the prequel trilogy. CNN reviewer Brian Lowry wrote that the film had a "messy, flat opening half before rallying and picking up speed down the stretch," which he attributed to the fraught production process. Lowry praised Ehrenreich and Donald Glover's performances as Han Solo and Lando Calrissian, respectively, opining that they captured the spirit of the original-trilogy characters. The New Yorker's Joshua Rothman wrote that "'Solo' is an entertaining movie, with engaging performances, vivid production design, and enthralling action sequences. It's also distressingly forgettable—it's about nothing, an episode of 'Seinfeld' with hyperdrive." also received several critical reviews. Vox reviewer Alissa Wilkinson described Solo as the "safest, most forgettable Star Wars movie" and criticized what she termed as the "box-ticking approach to filling Solo's story as distinctly unimaginative." Similarly, National Review critic Kyle Smith dismissed Solo as a "soulless intergalactic freeway pile-up" and criticized the fast-paced nature of the plot. The film received an Oscar nomination for "Best Visual Effects," and a Saturn nomination for "Best Science Fiction Film Release."
By type
Cast
•Alden Ehrenreich as Han Solo
•Woody Harrelson as Tobias Beckett
•Emilia Clarke as Qi'ra
•Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian
Major award nominations and wins for Solo: A Star Wars Story, as compiled by The Los Angeles Times.
May 25, 2018 · Solo: A Star Wars Story, a movie that has no reason to exist, is a fun lovable escapade that gives us a new introduction to the most famous non-Skywalker in the galaxy.
- (484)
- Sci-Fi, Adventure, Action, Fantasy
- PG-13
May 15, 2018 · ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’: Film Review. Alden Ehrenreich engaging conveys young Harrison Ford in the retro 'Solo: A Star Wars Story.'