The Star Wars franchise does a great deal of work to make its galaxy far away feel impossibly big, varied, and interesting. Unfortunately, on the rare occasions that the franchise does try something with characters outside the all-important Skywalker bloodline, the fanbase is less than eager to reward them.
Solo: A Star Wars Story dropped at an unusual moment in the franchise. Immediately after the difficult mess of Rogue One, its failure allowed the change in direction that gave fans The Mandalorian. Even though the result was a net positive, it's still tragic to see an interesting idea hit a brick wall and go down in history as a failure.
Most who saw Solo heard some of the unfortunate details of its production. Most know that the film was originally set to be directed by beloved comedy duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller, and featuresd a script by Empire Strikes Back screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan. The duo supposedly misunderstood what Disney wanted from them, crafting the film as a rollicking comedy and often deviating from Lawrence Kasdan's script. Lord and Miller came to see Kasdan as an overly controlling force and had disagreements with the studio. The duo left the project, leaving Ron Howard to take over. Howard reportedly reshot over two-thirds of the film, resulting in the version that made it to the big screen. With that troubled production, it's shocking that the film came out in any way decent.
There are plenty of good things about Solo. Several of the performances are excellent, a few of the chase scenes are great, and much of the Han and Chewie buddy stuff is fun. The film's weaknesses are fairly common in franchise media. Where it tries to be a Star Wars film, it falls flat. There are still a few weak references that are only present to advertise theoretical future properties. Han's justification for his surname is needless and flimsy. The comedy mostly falls flat, but that's par for the course in Star Wars. Overall, the film is a marked improvement on Rogue One's embarrassing fanservice mess and a solid action fantasy in its own right. Parts of it are weak, the visuals are often unpleasant, and the world lacks levity, but there's plenty of good stuff on display. One question hangs over the project: would the Lord and Miller version have saved it?
Most of the problems that the film has might have been the exact issues that saw Lord and Miller leave. The script is fine, but a little levity would have helped the proceedings. Especially in the case of performers like Donald Glover, a little bit of comedic improv could have gone a long way. So much of Solo feels confused, torn between comedy, action, romance, and sci-fi, and only succeeding in a few cases. One is reminded of the notes given to Lord and Miller, insisting that the studio didn't want a comedy, but wanted a bit of comedy in the final cut. That indecision speaks to a studio that doesn't know what it wants, and just needs its output to appeal to every kind of fan. Lord and Miller aren't exactly experimental filmmakers, but they are directors and screenwriters with a vision that shows through, even in their adaptations. Though this is all just speculation, it's tough not to wonder whether the version that made it to the screen was weakened by studio meddling.
The biggest problem with Solo is that it's generic. There's not much going on that fans haven't seen elsewhere — and not necessarily in Star Wars. The ideas mostly boil down to coats of paint on old ideas. The thing that makes Solo even more disappointing is the Star Wars project that rose from its ashes. In The Mandalorian, Jon Favreau finds a semi-original story, set in the Star Wars universe, without being shackled to previous canon or franchise regulations. Solo, meanwhile, is saddled with so much baggage. It forces itself to answer a bunch of questions that very few people care about, and anyone could simply look up. The big names are simply too important to the brand to be allowed to go on a silly, self-contained adventure. It's more of a problem with the franchise's nature than it is in filmmaking.
The death of the Star Wars Stories brand is probably a good thing for the franchise overall. Most of the other ideas labeled with that name had the feel of grim holding patterns while the franchise sought out a better direction. An adventure in the dark underbelly of the galaxy far away would have been a great concept. Han, Chewie, and Lando are perfect characters to lead that adventure. All the pieces were there, but thanks to cowardice, uncertainty, or both, fans won't get to see that film. There are plenty of abandoned projects in the franchise that could have been interesting, and fans have no way of knowing how much missed potential sits on the cutting room floor.