For the third Festival Premiere appointment, Ravenna Nightmare proposes Solo: A Star Wars Story by Ron Howard, in collaboration with Cinema City where the film preview is going to be screened Wednesday May 23 at 21. Always remember to keep your ticket to get a discount entrance at the next edition of Ravenna Nightmare Film Fest!
There is no official synopsis yet, but Bob Iger has explained that it covers six years of Han Solo’s life, between 18 and 24 years of age. Other sources, including Lucasfilm’s C.E.O. Kathleen Kennedy, said that Solo: A Star Wars Story is going to show the first encounter with Chewbecca, how he obtained Millennium Falco (that, according to The Empire Strikes Back, was won in card game sabacc from Lando Calrissian) and most of all how he got his name, which is not his birth one.
The film if screenplayed by Jon Kasdan and his father Lawrence, who had previously participated to the script of The Empire Stikes Back and The Force Awakens. Original soundtrack is signed by John Powell, known for Jason Bourne’s sensational score and for Ice Age and Dragon Trainer animated sagas, while photography is signed by Bradford Young, who engaged in sci-fi in Arrival.
According to Kathleen Kennedy, the film is halfway between a crooks’ story and a Western, and it’s clear from photography, which was inspired by Frederic Remington’s paintings’ colors. Shooting took place at Pinewood Studios before moving to Canaries and the editor is Italian Pietro Scalia, usual collaborator of Ridley Scott, who took Chris Dickens’s place.
Actually, the most sensational replacement is the one of both directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller just few weeks before end shooting. It appears that they had some disagreements with Kathleen Kennedy, who wanted takes from different angles to give editing more freedom, and also with Lawrence Kasdan, who did not appreciate actors’ excessive improvisation. Kasdan asked and got to follow shootings in London and Lord and Miller felt like there was a shadow director controlling them.
Ron Howard took over directing and reshoot several scenes. This changed the plans and one actor, Michael K. Williams, was substituted with a faithful Howard’s collaborator, Paul Bettany, whose character has been transformed from semi-animal creature into human being.
Film’s protagonist is Alden Ehrenreich, chosen for Han Solo’s role among more than 3000 candidates, but not issueless considering that at some point an acting couch was called on set because his performance was thought to be insufficient. This looks somehow unexpected considering that the 28-year-old Californian actor had already been working with directors such as Woody Allen in Blue Jasmine, Coen brothers in Ave, Cesar! And Warren Beatty in Rules don’t apply.
Young Han has a mysterious mentor named Beckett, played by Woody Harrelson, while on the women front Emilia Clark plays Kira, whose name is the only thing known, Thandie Newton has an unkown role and Phoebe Waller-Bridge plays an unspecified part in performance capture.
Inside Chewbecca’s costume there’s Joonas Suotamo, who already played its role in Episods VII and VIII.
Last but not least, young Lando Calrissian is Atlanta’s author and actor Donald Glover.
Screenplayer Jon Kasdan and directing assistant Toby Hefferman play the aspiring couple of clumsy Jedi Tag Greenley and Bink Otauna, based on Dark Horse’s comics published in 2001. Other unspecified roles are played by Warwick Davies, who previously pleayed an Ewok in The return of the Jedi, and also by the director’s younger brother, Clint Howard. And after the famous Rogue One’s scene with Darth Vader, it looks like the villain is going to have a small part also in this film. Finally, Disney has signed a contract with Alden Ehrenreich for three films and, considering that Solo ends with the character still being 24, whereas he is 29 at the beginning of Star Wars, it’s likely that other chapters on young Solo’s adventures are going to follow.
