SOLO is a solid movie but a blockbuster franchise it did not launch. Still, it’s a great adventure flick and it’s flying into home release starting today.
It’s an odd conundrum because the movie itself is pretty good and yet it didn’t really gain much traction with fans. It had a high-profile directorial change pretty late in the game which didn’t help the buzz and then remnant backlash to the mixed-reception of THE LAST JEDI could have also contributed to cautiously wary audiences. Still, now that you can own the film in home release, it comes with a slew of great extras to dive you deeper into the expanded galaxy far, far away.
Join us now for a look at what makes this release worthy of a Kessel run to the store…
The Extras
The premiere feature on this release is probably the Solo: The Director & Cast Roundtable which seems to be quickly becoming the premiere replacement for Audio Commentary tracks. We sit down with director Ron Howard and the stars for an intimate and entertaining discussion of the film’s making. Interesting tidbits and anedotes here but nothing into the real juicy bits you might really be craving.
The meat of the release is made up in a section bundled as “Documentaries” on Movies Anywhere. In essence, they are standalone pieces that basically assemble together into one big making-of documentary for the film. There’s great insights from cast and crew here, easily accessible to get an a-la-carte deep dive into the movie that’s custom tailored to your preferences. No self-proclaimed fan will find themselves skipping out on the Remaking the Millennium Falcon piece which is so so so great to see the living-breathing ship come to life. Below is a complete recap of the mini documentaries included as per Disney:
- Kasdan on Kasdan: Iconic Star Wars screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan and son Jonathan share what it was like to write the movie’s script together.
- Escape from Corellia: Get behind the wheel for the making of this high-octane chase through the streets of Corellia.
- Remaking the Millennium Falcon: Track the transformation of the most famous ship in the galaxy, from Lando’s swank and impeccable pride and joy to Han’s stripped-down hot-rod freighter with “special modifications.”
- The Train Heist: Explore the challenges and thrills of creating this action-packed sequence, including its remote location and spectacular effects.
- Team Chewie: See what it takes to bring your favorite Wookiee to life in this lighthearted look behind the scenes.
- Becoming a Droid: L3-37: Meet the newest droid—and the talented actor who helps bring her to life.
- Scoundrels, Droids, Creatures and Cards: Welcome to Fort Ypso: Take an in-depth tour of the rough-and-tumble bar where strangers mix and gamblers risk all in the legendary card game, Sabaac.
- Into the Maelstrom: The Kessel Run: Join Han and Chewie at the controls of the Millennium Falcon to see how this legendary moment in Star Wars history unfolds.
Then there’s a few miscellaneous bonus materials to enjoy, bundled on Movies Anywhere under a heading of “Discover.”
- Solo Cast Reveals Their Must-Have Movies is one of the first features accessible on Movies Anywhere and includes press junket footage of the cast talking about the original films.
- Creating the Escape from Corellia is my favorite type of feature going into the movie-magic making for the film. For Han’s escape from the planet. It’s so funny seeing the hover vehicles driving around on janky-looking wheels, it’s great to see the amount of practical effects used to realize this world and ground it in some believable reality.
- Becoming Solo is another great feature with director Ron Howard, actors from the film, and others talking about bringing to life a character we already know and setting up that back-story.
- MTV Cribs eat your heart out, Donald Glove takes us on a Tour of the Millennium Falcon in this great piece. It’s a piece released as part of promotional marketing in the theatrical release but it’s great to have it saved here for posterity.
Deleted Scenes provided expected level of behind-the-scenes story-crafting sorcery. I wish there was a clear commentary here providing how and why director Ron Howard ventured through getting the film across the finish line, especially in light of taking over a film he did not start. But what we do get here are three extended scenes (The Battle of Mimban, Han Vs. Chewie, and Meet Dryden) plus additional scenes cut for pacing or other story-related issues (Proxima’s Den, Corellian Foot Chase, Han Solo: Imperial Cadet, Snowball Fight!, and Coaxium Double-Cross).
See it for Yourself
Despite hopes of launching a new trilogy franchise it would be a safe bet to assume that this movie will be flying solo. If you’re ready to bring home the action and adventure for yourself it’s available now on digital, Blu-ray 4K Ultra HD™, Blu-ray™, DVD and On-Demand.
Same thing happened with Clue and that’s considered a classic now