Disney: The current state of the Star Wars standalone films

Photo Credit: [Rogue One: A Star Wars Story]Lucasfilm

It’s a Rebellion, isn’t it?

Does that mean Rogue One is twice as good as Solo? Certainly not! There’s a multitude of factors that led to the box office struggles of the second Disney standalone Star Wars film, and Solo’s quality is not one of them.

First, we need to establish that I absolutely loved Solo. I was pleasantly surprised by how well Alden Ehrenreich portrayed the famous smuggler. The rest of the cast, particularly Donald Glover, were also tremendous in their respective roles.

I thought the film had good pacing, strong action sequences, and maintained a serious personality while still being fun (something The Last Jedi seriously failed at).

I place Solo just behind Rogue One and ahead of The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi in my unofficial ranking of the Disney era Star Wars films.

So if Solo is such a solid entry in the franchise, why is it receiving lukewarm reception and performing relatively poorly at the box office?

The first reason is likely that Solo is a movie that no one asked for, and no one particularly wanted. In fact, many fans were deathly afraid when a film about a young Han Solo not starring Harrison Ford was announced.