The 'Solo' media narrative and my bday wish for movies

It's official. Solo is a flop. Or at least that's what the insider media coverage will say after its earned only about $150 million dollars in two weeks. Forget for a moment that that total alone would represent a solid to huge hit for a normal movie -- but in this age of blockbusters that must globally dominate, it is by all means a failure in relation to its cost.

Now, I can't help but to note the apparent glee with which box office prognosticators have declared this film dead on arrival (especially since it missed bullish prediction estimates in the $130-150 million range).

It's almost as if anyone who is sick of Star Wars and/or had a bone to pick with the polarizing The Last Jedi, has decided to feel vindicated because of Solo's relative failure.

I actually quite liked Solo. It certainly has its narrative flaws. And, there is a solid, and compelling case to be made that it never needed to be made. Hopefully, that's Disney's takeaway from the relative disappointment of the movie -- that not every side story needs to be told -- and that some sacred cows are maybe best left alone (for instance, there are rumors that the company wanted to make a Leia prequel, God, I hope not).

That said, this movie was far from the disaster some people were predicting before it even opened. Sure the on set drama (firing directors Chris Lord and Phil Miller and replacing them with Ron Howard) created really bad buzz -- but similar buzz didn't derail popular hits like Rogue One and Ant-Man. At least, not much.

Personally, I think the crowded marketplace and the too much too soon issue were far more prevalent here. Yes, the reviews were not across the board stellar, but they were about on par with Rogue One and certainly no worse than some of the reviews the beloved Star Wars trilogy received. And since when did Star Wars fanatics place so much stake in reviews? The Last Jedi was the best reviewed Star Wars film in years and that didn't stop a legion of haters turning into the most hotly debated blockbuster of recent years.

I think we just peaked early this year with blockbusters -- from Black Panther to A Quiet Place to Infnity War and then Deadpool 2, people just weren't ready for this kind of movie at this particular moment. I am convinced it'd have played better in December (which is has become the new Star Wars de facto release month) but alas we'll never know.

It seems highly unlikely to me (since this movie may barely break even or turn a profit) that they'll be more Solo films -- which is a shame since I think there was real potential there for a couple more adventures. And, I wonder if the floated Lando Calrissian movie will happen now that Solo has underperformed. Disney is apparently still going forward with their Kenobi and Boba Fett projects but I'm curious if they'll be more stripped down, lowkey affairs. That wouldn't bother me.

I will say, this whole episode has exemplified what I hate about what movies have become. Box office becomes a self-fulfilling thing. Now, millions of people will skip seeing Solo in the theaters because they 'heard' it wasn't good or because it "didn't do very well."

Because we don't release movies the same way we used to, almost nothing has a chance to build an audience or be re-discovered. Basically, after two weekends, this film has shot its wad, and history will likely look unkindly on it as Disney overreaching.

Today, is my birthday. I love the movies, they're come to very much define a big part of my 36 years on this early. I sincerely wish for my bday this year that Hollywood would start pushing back on this nonsense. Both Blade Runner films are masterpieces, and both didn't make as much money as they were supposed to -- so what should matter more?

No, Solo is no masterpiece. But I really do think its a film true Star Wars fans will appreciate and have fun with, as well as more casual audiences. I'm also not entirely sure a better Han Solo backstory film could have been made.

I'm not naive. I know that cinema is a commercially driven business and at a cost of $300 million (plus marketing), Solo is going to come up way short. But with so much of what we enjoy culturally being reduced to a zero-sum game, I just wish quality over quantity was still sacred.