Solo: A Star Wars Story Review - 7 Ups And 4 Downs

5. The Action Set-Pieces Are Great

Solo A Star Wars Story Millennium Falcon
Lucasfilm

When Ron Howard took over direction duties, he was mostly seen as a safe pair of hands. He wasn't thought of as an exciting pick, but a solid choice for the turbulent production.

Howard's track record is rather hit and miss, but the director has proved himself as someone with an eye for flair before now. Rush proved he can do vehicular based action, and he brings those stylish tricks and then some to Solo's big set pieces.

The train mission does go on too long, but there's no denying that it looks impressive, while the opening car chase sequence is the moment where the film really does live up to its American Graffiti in space billing.

Best of all, though, is the Kessel Run. An iconic and infamous part of Star Wars lore, in part thanks to the kerfuffle over the meaning of parsecs, we get to see exactly how Han and the Falcon achieved it, and thankfully it doesn't disappoint. There are some classic Falcon vs TIE sequences, and above all else it really shows just how incredible a pilot Han Solo is.

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Contributor
Contributor

NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.