Movie of the Week: Solo: A Star Wars Story

I saw the Solo movie yesterday. It wasn't horrible, but I confess to being underwhelmed. It was actually a little boring. It's a simple heist story showing Solo's origins in the underworld of Corellia and his progress through and out of the Imperial military before latching on to a criminal gang trying to steal coaxium (very valuable hyper-fuel). It shows how Han meets Chewbacca and Lando, and in the closing scene shows a cameo appearance by Darth Maul indicating that there's more to come from that direction.

Unfortunately Alden Ehrenreich isn't a good choice of lead. It sadly misses Harrison Ford's charisma. There's no real sparkle. For someone brought up in the underworld, young Solo is terminally naive. I just can't see him growing into the streetwise Han from Episode Four.  I think it's probably a movie that should never have been made, given that turning back the clock and having Ford play the character is not an option, despite it being science fiction. Unfortunately it seems as though Ehrenreich is signed up for three Solo movies.

I'm not saying the performances are bad. Emilia Clarke's Qi'ra is decent and she's set to return, I think. Donald Glover is a good Lando Calrissian, but the best thing about the movie is Paul Bettany's Dryden Vos, a slimy, but believable villain.

Is it just me or is the star of the show actually the Milennium Falcon?