Solo

After one of the more tumultuous productions in recent film history, Solo: A Star Wars Story makes it to screens, completed by a different director than the ones who started the gig. About a year ago, director Ron Howard took over for directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The Lego Movie, 21 Jump Street) after executive producer Kathleen Kennedy showed them the door. Howard took over when principal photography was near completion, but then wound up reshooting 70 percent of the movie. The finished film definitely feels like more than one director had their hands in the pot. It’s sloppy and tonally challenged, and scenes crash into each other at times, killing an otherwise brisk and fun pace. There are moments in this movie that feel like they were shoehorned into the plot to fix a story problem. OK, so there are some definite negatives at play here, but there are plenty of positives. The positives aren’t enough to keep Solo from being one of the weaker Star Wars films, but they are enough to keep it recommendable and a relatively good time at the movies. Diehard Star Wars fans, years from now, will probably shrug and say “Eh, it was OK” when asked to reexamine their feelings. In the end, Solo will probably fall somewhere in between The Star Wars Holiday Special and Revenge of the Sith on the favorite Star Wars film scale. Alden Ehrenreich, a likeable actor, steps into the role of Han Solo, a sacred role thanks to Harrison Ford. While Ehrenreich puts an OK spin on the character, but he’s far from remarkable. Donald Glover, however, is perfection as a young Lando Calrissian. He needs his own movie.