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Han Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

Started by CrazyFoxMachine, 22 October, 2016, 12:26:47 AM

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CrazyFoxMachine

...or whatever it's going to be called. Thought it was about time this had its own thread!

Directed by Phil Lord & Christopher Miller and written by father & son Jon & Lawrence Kasdan

Lord & Miller are best known for directing "21 & 22 Jump Street", "The Lego Movie" and "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs".
Lawrence Kasdan obviously wrote "Empire", "Jedi", "Force Awakens"," Raiders of the Lost Ark" as well as "The Bodyguard", "Dreamcatcher", ""Grand Canyon" and some other stuff
Jon Kasdan wrote and directed "In the Land of Women" and "The First Time".

Only confirmed cast so far is...



Alden Ehrenreich as Han Solo who has been in Beautiful Creatures, Hail Ceasar, Stoker & Blue Jasmine only really



Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian - announced just a few hours ago Glover has made big waves on telly in Community and in his own show Atlanta. He was in The Martian also and may play a significant part in Spider-Man Homecoming.

Some good names - looking interesting!

TordelBack

I don't doubt the ability of anyone involved, but I still seriously question the whole idea of a Han Solo movie.

That said, the events of TFA recast Han's life in a fairly bleak mould: a man who failed as an amoral smuggler, changed his ways but failed to do more than interrupt an evil Empire, failed his son to the point that he became a twisted murderer, lost his relationship with his wife, failed as a smuggler again, and was ultimately killed by his own son, having failed to bring him back from the Dark Side... even accidentally killing Boba Fett didn't seem to stick, if rumours are to be believed.

So maybe one last chance to see a carefree Solo might be a good thing, even knowing the crushing future that awaits him once he actually decides to do the right thing

matty_ae

Hydraulic doors gags aside is Han solo's future that "crushing"?

I didnt think TFA painted quite that picture. leia and Han were ill prepared to raised a Jedi powered child cos Luke wasn't around and then Snoke filled that gap.

So I think it's Luke who is looking in need of redemption.

Frank

Quote from: matty_ae on 22 October, 2016, 08:08:02 AM
Quote from: TordelBack on 22 October, 2016, 07:30:58 AM
... the events of TFA recast Han's life in a fairly bleak mould ... failed his son to the point that he became a twisted murderer, lost his relationship with his wife, failed as a smuggler again, and was ultimately killed by his own son, having failed to bring him back from the Dark Side ...

I didnt think TFA painted quite that picture. leia and Han were ill prepared to raised a Jedi powered child ...

All of which explains why The Farsi Wiccans plays more like a fan film or a video game cut scene than proper 'Wars. It completely misses the tone of the character and misunderstands his function in the story.

Han's the fun guy who comes in, introduces a bit of chaos, and lightens the mood - like Hudson in Aliens, Burt Gummer in Tremors, or Amon Göth in Schindler's List.

As Ford understood, Han Solo is essentially the comic relief. You can't pin dramatic* weight on Han without losing the essence of the character, which is why the bit in Jedi where he has to be jealous of Luke & Leia is shite.

Hiring Lord & Miller suggests someone at Lucasfilm understands that. Hiring Alden Ehrenreich off the back of his charming supporting comic turn in Hail Caesar does too. Han Solo's a fun guy who enjoys getting up to fun things and does them in a fun way that's fun to watch.


* I'm making a distinction here between dramatic weight and narrative focus. Indiana Jones is an extension of Ford's Han Solo dramatic persona; he's the narrative focus of Raiders - all the action revolves around him, and his getting the thing he wants is what drives the story - but Indy isn't asked to carry any dramatic weight - he doesn't have to react to Diane Keaton screaming that she had an abortion or kiss his brother and tell him he always knew he had betrayed him to Hyman Roth

IAMTHESYSTEM

'Amoral smuggler?' You mean Entrepreneur. Looks very good so far and I must admit I'm looking forward to see how Han met Chewbacca.   
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TordelBack

#5
Quote...completely misses the tone of the character and misunderstands his function in the story.

Which story, though? The OT story wrapped up neatly, although as you point out Han's part of it drifted badly off-message at the end. The ST is a different story, or rather the same story with different characters in familiar roles: Han's function here is deliberately changed to the Ben Kenobi/Qui-Gon role - it's not a misunderstanding. FWIW I thought Ford/Han was the best thing in TFA, and while I regret that my all-time greatest movie hero was retrospectively denied even a semblance of a happy ending and would rather they'd left well alone,, I think his character and its changed tone carried 'dramatic weight very successfully.

As to Luke not being around to help with Ben, Leia's regret in the movie is that she did send Ben away to train with Luke.

Frank

Quote from: IAMTHESYSTEM on 22 October, 2016, 09:08:18 AM
'Amoral smuggler?' You mean Entrepreneur. Looks very good so far and I must admit I'm looking forward to see how Han met Chewbacca.

If you want to bet against them initially being rivals, who are forced to work together to defeat a common foe, I'm happy to take your money.

Like TordelBack, I enjoyed seeing Ford reprise the role of Han Solo (mainly his interaction with Chewie), it's just that for a lot of TFA he isn't playing Han Solo. As correctly stated, he's playing Ben Kenobi.

That's not why or how Han Solo dies; everybody has to die, but Han Solo would find a way to make that fun and exciting too*.

The death of Ford's character works dramatically in the context of the film's garbled back story, but it's not the death of the guy who blasted Greedo, the comms panel of HMP Death Star, and Darth Vader's TIE fighter because he got bored and thought it would make the film more exciting.


* Hell, Randy Quaid's death in Independence Day does a better job of being dramatically significant, consistent with the established character, and great fun. I can't believe I'm arguing that anything about Independence Day is better than Star Wars. I can't believe I'm arguing anything about Independence Day is any good ...

TordelBack

See, I disagree. At the end, Han is stripped of all bluster and guile, he's betrayed to his death by love while trying to fix his mistakes. This is at least one way the arc of the character could end:  initially cynical, selfish, loner, becomes trusting, selfless, loving... and pays for it.  I don't care to see him brought low for doing the right thing, especially at Leia's insistence, but I do believe it.

Although as I think we'll see, Han's efforts in TFA will ultimately undermine Ben's commitment to the dark side: as Lor San Teka foretells at the opening of the movie "this will begin to make things right".

Frank

Quote from: TordelBack on 22 October, 2016, 11:13:50 AM
At the end, Han is stripped of all bluster and guile, he's betrayed to his death by love while trying to fix his mistakes

Yeah, but none of that was fun or exciting*. Han Solo's fun and exciting.

Hopefully the Solo film will be fun Han exciting, like Raiders Of The Lost Ark and the bits of Butch Cassidy where they aren't cornered by Bolivian federales.


* We agree it worked dramatically, and I welled up as soon as Han headed onto that generic Star Wars walkway, but I would have got a bit teary if Han Solo ignored his doctor's advice about reducing his sodium intake, or died because he bought a Samsung phone.

JOE SOAP

#9
Quote from: Frank on 22 October, 2016, 09:02:52 AM
...The Farsi Wiccans plays more like a fan film or a video game cut scene than proper 'Wars. It completely misses the tone of the character and misunderstands his function in the story.


As Ford understood, Han Solo is essentially the comic relief. You can't pin dramatic* weight on Han without losing the essence of the character,

* I'm making a distinction here between dramatic weight and narrative focus. Indiana Jones is an extension of Ford's Han Solo dramatic persona; he's the narrative focus of Raiders - all the action revolves around him, and his getting the thing he wants is what drives the story - but Indy isn't asked to carry any dramatic weight - he doesn't have to react to Diane Keaton screaming that she had an abortion or kiss his brother and tell him he always knew he had betrayed him to Hyman Roth

Quote from: Frank on 22 October, 2016, 09:47:24 AM...I enjoyed seeing Ford reprise the role of Han Solo (mainly his interaction with Chewie), it's just that for a lot of TFA he isn't playing Han Solo. As correctly stated, he's playing Ben Kenobi.

That's not why or how Han Solo dies; everybody has to die, but Han Solo would find a way to make that fun and exciting too*.

For years we lapped-up Dredd being the sardonic bollix who has a great time shooting and throwing perps or poor unfortunate souls in the pokey without much internal fall-out but if we enforced those narrative confines of 'function' on our beloved Joe, we wouldn't have The Dead Man/Tale of The Dead Man/Necropolis where significantly, for the first time, Dredd essentially is the story and carries both its dramatic weight and narrative focus. If Dredd had died at the end of that story it would've been a fitting end if not the end we might, with hindsight, we might ultimately want.


Personally I find the balance of elder Han's mirth and pathos worked well in his reluctant mentor/torch-carrying role and the idea of Han & Leia being great rebels but shitty parents rings true. For me these aren't TFA's glaring issues but more that Rey's search for Luke - the outlines of his myth - and Han's search for Kylo - their relationship - both get distracted by Death Stars before getting to that sacrificial end.


Professor Bear

I just wonder why Joe Schmoe is supposed to care about the old loser from The Force Awakens who doesn't even make it to the end credits.

auxlen

To me the need to make a young Han solo movie means that nobody can come up with an original character/actor combo with chemistry/dynamics of something conceived in 1977. which is a bit sad...or that nobody is prepared to go out on a limb and try (which i suspect is closer to the truth)

Frank

Quote from: JOE SOAP on 22 October, 2016, 12:18:37 PM
Quote from: Frank on 22 October, 2016, 09:02:52 AM
Han's the fun guy who comes in, introduces a bit of chaos, and lightens the mood ... everybody has to die, but Han Solo would find a way to make that fun and exciting too

... if we enforced those narrative confines of 'function' on (Judge Dredd), we wouldn't have The Dead Man/Tale of The Dead Man/Necropolis

Those stories were fun and exciting. Like Han Solo.



Goaty


Goaty