Looking past all the behind-the-scenes drama surrounding the film, the big question about “Solo: A Star Wars Story” concerned whether or not the prequel was even necessary. No, we don’t mean that films, in general, are “necessary” to a human’s quality of life, but “necessary” in terms of whether or not the film justifies its own existence and adds something special to the mythology. Whether or not the film answered that question is up to the viewer, but it’s definitely a valid question. So much so, that even one of the writers of the film asked himself that before joining the film.
READ MORE: ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ & The Inherent Problem With Prequels
In the recent book “The Art of Solo: A Star Wars Story” (via Screen Rant), co-writer Jonathan Kasdan (who wrote the script alongside his father, Lawrence) says:
“I was ambivalent about doing it with him [Lawrence Kasdan] because I was skeptical there was a good movie in the story of Han’s youth. I don’t tend to like prequels because there’s little to no suspense about whether the hero will survive; of course he will. We see him later.”
Again, YMMV with how you feel about the film justifying its own existence, but it is heartening to know that one of the writers was at least concerned about the issue beforehand. As many critics have pointed out, ‘Solo’ has always had the stench of a Disney/Lucasfilm cash grab. Of course, like with any “Star Wars” film nowadays, the fanbase is divided about the film. So, we’ll leave the hot takes out of this article.
READ MORE: ‘Solo’ Crash Lands For Second Weekend In A Row With Dismal Box Office Showing
However, as we mentioned over the weekend, the general audiences seem to be answering the question of the film’s necessity with their dollars. In two weekends, ‘Solo’ has been underperforming, leading many critics to say that the general audience thinks this film wasn’t a good idea to begin with, and are skipping it.
Now, before you move on, and focus your “Star Wars” energy on the upcoming ‘Episode IX,’ here’s a quick dive into the world of ‘Solo,’ specifically with the crime syndicates that are mentioned in the film. Even if you think that ‘Solo’ was largely inconsequential to the overall franchise, at least it did use a different type of villain than just the evil Empire.
And finally, we’ve added a few more new images from ‘Solo’ below, if you’re into that sort of thing.
For tons more pictures, head over to Fantha Tracks.
