Star Wars 5: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (Movie Review)

     Every once in a while comes a movie that changes the way we look at movies, and the 1980 motion picture “Star Wars 5: The Empire Strikes Back” is one of those gems that changed the way we viewed movie sequels, which I’ll discus in more detail in just a moment. This film is widely regarded as the greatest entry in the entire Star Wars cannon, and is often labeled as one of cinemas greatest movie sequels of all time. However, I’m here to share my own personal opinion on this film, not what everyone else thinks. So, how do I feel about “The Empire Strikes Back” ... well, obviously I love this movie, and consider it a great classic. I probably wouldn't right the film off as my "absolute favorite" Star Wars movie, but it has a secure spot ranked among my "absolute favorites". That’s not to say I have any major problems with this movie, far from it ... but admittedly, it just doesn’t leave as powerful an impact on me as the something like "Return of the Jedi". Still, this is a pretty damn good movie, and the stuff of how legends are formed. 

     Here’s the set up, after Luke Skywalker destroyed the Death Star in the last film, he’s led many Rebels to take action against the Empire, and now his actions have put him on the top of Darth Vader’s hit list. 

Thus, Vader’s obsession to capture Skywalker leads him to go full force in bringing down the Rebels. Caught in the cross fire are Han Solo, Princess Leia and the rest of Luke’s friends, who just can’t escape the looming shadow of the Empire. Meanwhile, Luke is contacted by the spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi, who sends him on a mission to find a Jedi master named Yoda, who can complete his training. The film then falls into a slightly repetitive pattern, as we frequently cut back and forth from Luke in his training, to our other hero’s on the run, and Darth Vader on the hunt. It’s not a bad format, in fact the pacing is very good, and we spend just enough time with each group of characters to make it work. It’s just that the story telling here occasionally feels like it's going in loops, where as the other two original's always felt like the story was building with each scene.   

   

    Here’s another minor problem I have with this set up, sense our hero’s are separated throughout the majority of the film, they don’t get to interact with each other like they do in the other films. 

In fact, has anyone else ever noticed that Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia never talk to one another throughout the whole movie? Sure, there’s moments when their briefly seen in the same room together, but they never actually get in a conversation, or exchange dialogue with one another. Thankfully, Han and Leia’s relationship is very subtle and effective, which balances out. I do love watching our hero’s constantly on the run, because as we follow them on their adventures, they almost begin to feel like family, and the Millenium Falcon begins to feel like a home. Another ace up this movies sleeve is Darth Vader, who’s now in full command, and more badass then ever. He isn’t following under the orders of Governor Tarkin like he was in the first film, or looming in the shadow of the Emperor like in the third film. Now, Darth Vader is large, in charge and completely steels the show. This was when Vader made his transition from cool-villain, to one of the greatest bad guys in all of cinema. 

      Another highlight is the new cast of characters, who've all become celebrated Star Wars icons among fans. One of my personal favorite characters is Lando Calrissian played by Billy Dee Williams. He’s first introduced as an old friend of Han Solo, and provides for our hero’s, only to betray them to the Empire. While that was a low blow, you never get the feeling that he’s a bad guy, or that he has bad motives. You can clearly see how much his actions are ripping him up inside, and you just want to see him break free from the villains grip. Thankfully, he dose prove himself a loyal friend by aiding our hero’s in their escape. The characters story arc is good enough, but it’s the actor Billy Dee Williams who’s just made of awesome, and brings the character to life with so much wit, charisma and charm. 

    Now, let’s talk about that mysterious masked bounty hunter called Boba Fett, who’s tasked by Darth Vader to hunt down Han Solo and his allies. Well, he doesn’t do a whole lot in the film, and Gorge Lucas never meant for him to be anything more than a cool looking background character. Yet, his legacy has expanded so much through comic books, video games, TV shows, and novels that he’s become a cult icon. Yes, he’s a personal favorite of mine too, which is baffling because he does so little in the movie. Sure, he captures Han Solo, which cares over into the next film, but he doesn’t really interact with the characters, never fights anyone, doesn’t do anything particularly bad ass ... and yet he still leaves a big impression! Maybe it’s his cool design, maybe it’s that voice, or maybe it’s the fact that he’s the only stand out supporting villain in the series. Either way, Boba Fett is just plain awesome, and his story has grown so much in the expanded universe, which makes me wish he had a bigger role in the actual film series.     

      However, the absolute best character who completely steals the show with every scene he’s in, of course, is none other than Jedi master Yoda. Holly cow, I frigging love this character, and apparently a lot of people do too. He’s probably the second most marketable character in the whole series behind Darth Vader. His look and design was just perfect, and who better to supply both the voice and puppet work for the character then Frank Oz, who many probably know best as the voice of Miss Piggy. I especially love how Yoda is introduced ... first he comes off like silly comedic relief, then he starts to get a little mysterious, and maybe even a touch scary as he warns our hero of the dangers and fears he’ll face. Then, we finally see him as the wise and motivating teacher that he was built up to be. Personally, I think he might just be the greatest wise, fictional character of all time, and everything he says is so humble and honest that you just hold on to everything he says. Who can forget his classic line “NO, try not ... DO, or do not ... there is no try.” 

      Also, I love that all three acts of the film have their own distinct locations. 

For act 1 it’s the frozen world of Hoth, for act 2 it’s the swampy world of Dagobah, and for act 3 it’s the high-tech world of Cloud city. On a side note, Cloud City is personally my favorite location of the entire series, as it's an awesome design, and the sets are still very impressive to look at today. Naturally, the film was nominated at the Oscars for Best Art Direction, and won the Academy Award for Best original Sound. Also at the Oscars, this film won a Special Achievement Award in Special Effects. While the visuals are bright and colorful, this is thematically the darkest of the original three. The one scene that always stuck with me was Luke's chilling vision in which he fights "Vader", but his face is under the mask. It's moments like that which add the the films sinister atmosphere, while also giving the audience something mysterious to ponder. One very important thing to note is John Williams musical score, which has always been a strength of the series. Now, it’s even more fantastic than ever, largely thanks to all the bonus tracks he composed for the film. Personally, I think “The Empire Strikes Back” has the most classic music in the entire Star Wars series, including Han and Leia’s romantic balled, Darth Vader’s classic Imperial march theme, Yoda’s mystical overture music, the exciting asteroid chase score, Cloud Cities haunting music-tempo, and my personal favorite is the overture music that’s herd when we first see the snow speeders ... I always get so hyped when I hear that score. Once again, John Williams music for the film was nominated at the Oscars for best score. 

   Of course, the highlight of the movie by far is the battle on Hoth. 

It is so frigging cool, I never get tired of seeing this. The Imperial walkers are simply the greatest battle vehicles of all time, and I love that their actual models with moving parts, as opposed to all those CGI weapons we see now a-days. The tension is great, the buildup is great, I love that every one of our hero's is involved during the battle, and after all these years, this sequence still thrills. Unfortunately, nothing this spectacular ever happens again in the movie, which was a real problem when I was a kid. Going from a larger than life battle like this, to all the talk with Yoda was so offbeat that it just got boring. It's embracing to admit, but back then, I often found myself turning the movie off right after the scene, because I was so hyped, I just had to play with my Star Wars toys or video games. That's an issue I never had as a kid with either of the other two classics. Thankfully, now that I’m older, it’s not a problem, mostly because the story, and characters still hold-up perfectly. Actually, the rest of the action is still very exciting. The spaceship chase in the asteroid field was great ... I mean holly cow, this scene has ships dog fighting in a canyon ... in outer-space, that’s awesome! There’s also an exciting encounter with a giant space slug that Han Solo mistakes for a cave opening, and it's creative details like that which really elevate the experience.

    The climax is like-wise a big event, but it’s also really subtle, as it trades big-spectacle for engaging character interplay. Princess Leia and the group fight of storm troopers in the city, and I always loved how Han and Leia’s romantic balled was reconstructed during the escape, as it makes for an exciting music tempo. Meanwhile, we have Luke battling Darth Vader in their first light-saber duel. It’s definitely an improvement over the last films light-saber duel, as they cover more ground, and there's a lot more tension. 

The image of them both standing as silhouette's at the start of the fight is one of my favorite visuals in the whole franchise. However, it’s not the duel itself that gets us hyped, it’s the classic twist reveal of Darth Vader being Luke’s father that really gets us thrilled. Personally, it's not the initial "reveal" that gets to me, it's the scene that happens after. When Luke is lying down in the recovery room, and Darth Vader begins calling out to him through the force. This is the moment when everything changes in our main villain ... he suddenly feels sincere about reuniting with his son, and it helps the audience except the truth. Had it not been for that scene, Vader's reveal just wouldn't have carried the same impact ... at least, not for me. The movie then closes on a nail biting cliff hanger, as the hero’s have been split up, Han is missing, and the galaxy is in worse shape than ever.   

     In many respects, this is the classic middle chapter that would set the template for several franchises to come. The middle chapter is the darkest and liveliest, with everything going wrong, the villains take over, the hero’s are beaten, and it closes on an epic cliff-hanger that leaves audiences anxious for more. Even though “The Empire Strikes Back” wasn’t the first movie to create this formula, it is the film that most middle chapters from other popular series would try to duplicate. Sometimes with success, and other times they come off like pail imitations. The weakest imitation I can think of in recent years was “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest”, which followed the exact same formula down to the letter, but without any of the natural excitement, and felt like it was just going through the motions. On the opposite side of that coin, I feel some franchise have beaten “The Empire Strikes Back” at its own game. My personal favorite being the season 2 finale of the TV show “Avatar: The Last Air Bender”, which had a story, and series of events that were eerily similar to “The Empire Strikes Back”, and yet, I felt it brought things to a higher quality.   

      Before I sign off, let’s look at some of the special edition changes. I think this one has had the most favorable changes, which fans aren’t as picky about. 

Subtle touches to the battle of Hoth were great. Also, I love all the the touch-ups on cloud city, as added windows, and city shots make the location feel larger then it's original claustrophobic set-design. There's also a gougers sun-set added for a backdrop, which allows for some really nice colors. I also love that we see more of the snow beast in the opening. In the original, he was kept off screen like in “Jaws”, which is okay, except we initially saw the thing burst on screen right when it attacks Luke. Sense we got a good look at the beast, there's really no reason to keep it off-screen anymore. Besides, the scene is only two minutes long, so it just feels more satisfying to see this creature in all its glory. The most controversial change was with the hologram of the Emperor. In the original he certainly came off as more mysterious and creepy, but the actor wasn’t the same guy who would play him in the following films, and that always distracted me. So, despite some altered dialogue, I’d rather stick with the 2004 DVD edition that inserted the actor from “Return of the Jedi” into the film, which just feels more appropriate to me.     

   

      Overall, “The Empire Strikes Back” still holds up remarkably well over the years. It's still not my absolute favorite, but certainly "a favorite" of the franchise as a whole, and it does everything a good sequel should do. It ups the darkness, develops the characters further, livens the story, introduces a cast of terrific new characters, and stands apart from its predecessor. Definitely a classic sequel, and it remains one of the high points of the Star Wars legacy.      

Thanks for reading my review of the 1980 sequel "Star Wars 5: The Empire Strikes Back" ... and may the greatest adventure across the stars live forever.    

           To Be Continued...

Star Wars 4: A New Hope (1977) (Movie Review)

 If there was any one movie that needs no introduction ... it's Star Wars ... and subsequently, no other franchise has lasted as a cultural phenomenon quiet like this. So, throughout the month, I'm finally going to review every theatrical Star Wars movie. 

This is something I’ve wanted to do for years, but I’ve held back on it because the series is so popular, and so many people already talk about them. Well, even if I don’t have anything that original to say about the series, I’m still going to give my honest opinion of how I feel about these films. Having said that, I might just have some personal opinions that differ from the common consensus of both fans and critics ... but I’ll get to all that as we go along. For now, let’s look at the 1977 Star Wars classic that started it all, known today as “Star Wars 4: A New Hope”. This movie is to my love of the "Star Wars" franchise what "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is to my love of Disney animation. 

In both cases, I find myself both loving and respecting these two films for the ground they broke, what they accomplished and what they started ... but that doesn't mean I automatically like either movie more than some of the films that followed in their success. Being honest, if I'd rank all the "Star Wars" movies from least to favorite, "A New Hope" would be kicking off my top five. Make no mistake, I love “Star Wars 4: A New Hope” with all my nostalgic heart, but unlike its first two successors, it never quite peaked into the realms of my all-time favorite movies. Still, this movie was an event, and is a staple of many childhoods ... including my own. 

 The joy of seeing this film as a kid is something that I could never do justice, but then again, I probably don’t need to ... chances are, you’ve already had your own nostalgic experience's watching this movie at a young age. Obviously, I know everyone has a different childhood, so I’ll try to sum this up for anyone else. It’s basically a classic fantasy adventure that just happens to be set in outer space. When a princess is captured by an evil empire, a regular young farm boy named Luke Skywalker suddenly finds himself going on a quest to rescue her, and help a band of Rebels in their efforts to free the galaxy from the grip of the empire, and their wicked general Darth Vader. Along the way he’s guided by a wise old master who teaches him about the sacred and mystical ways of the universe ... commonly referred to as "the Force". He also makes friends with a wanted smuggler, and rounding up the team are two droids who act as the figurative herald, setting our hero on his path. That’s obviously the clip note version, and the story gets more detailed with other characters, as well as a final mission to destroy a planet killing weapon called the Death Star. 

  Explaining every detail of the plot isn’t important anyway, what matters is the substance of the experience. The overarching theme of this first Star Wars movie is faith versus secularism. We see those who believe in both technology and weapons as the dominate force in the galaxy, while those people of faith are being reduced to dying contingent. Yet, though the very subtle actions of those with faith, we see that they're truly the ones with more power than those with all the big weapons and machines. This is demonstrated best at the very end of the film when our hero has to make a choice to either rely on technology or faith, and it’s his faith in something spiritual that ultimately saves the day. The spiritual element of the film is simply referred to as “the Force”, and it’s like a combination of something magical, but also religious. Much like the “The Lord of the Rings” series, I always admired “Star Wars” for incorporating thoughtful biblical references into its storytelling, without preaching a message to the audience. 

  Those who believe in the force are called Jedi, and I really like that the force doesn’t just give them straight forward superpowers (at least not in this film). It allows them to accomplish great things, but there’s always that spiritual element that’s always in check. Their designs also complement this, as they wear heavy robs like monks, but they carry swords like Samurai, emphasizing that their spirituality comes first, but they’ll take action when needed. The light sabers of course are the coolest fictional weapons of all time, even though the actual sword duel in this film is nothing particularly special. The light-saber duel between Vader and Obi-Wan was absolutely an impressive accomplishment for its time, but things have admittedly come a long way since this.    

  Best of all are the characters themselves, who over all these years are at the center of why “Star Wars” remains so timeless. Our hero is Luke Skywalker, and he’s the classic every day person who learns that he has a greater destiny that has yet to be realized. Once his real obligation to the universe is complete, he’ll arise as a great champion, and a different person then he was at the star of his journey. 

While he may come off as slightly bland, it's necessary so that the audience can relate to him before he becomes a hero. Obi-Wan Kenobi is the classic old and wise mentor, who uses smart and quiet tactics, rather than just brute force, and it makes you respect him more. Most mentor archetypes focus on combat skills, but Obi-Wan is much deeper, and has more substance than that. Alec Guinness delivers an Oscar worthy performance in the role and brings Obi-Wan to life perfectly. On that note, he's the only actor to date to receive an Oscar nomination for a performance in a "Star Wars" movie. 

  Darth Vader of course is the franchises iconic leading villain, and obviously one of the greatest villains of all time. The look and design of his costume, combined with sharp voice acting of James Earl Jones allows him to steal every scene with ease, but as the film goes on, we learn that there’s more to him than just a threat that our heroes have to stop. This is a tragic character that fell from grace, and as the series goes on, we see just how deep and complex this character really is. At Darth Vader’s side is Governor Tarkin, who’s played by the always fantastic Peter Cushing. It’s sad that so many people ignore this character, but then again, he doesn’t do that much in the grand scheme of things. I’m just a really big fan of the actor, so seeing him play a villain in the Star Wars series is a small highlight for me, and his performance remains one of the best in the film. Lastly, the Storm Troopers don't make for intimidating shooters ... but they certainly look cool.   

 The supporting cast is also fantastic, R2-D2 and C-3PO provide exposition, as well as supply comedic relief, but they never go too far and are always a delight to have on screen. All those cute squeaks and whistles from R2, mixed with C-3PO's bedside manner is just the perfect combination. The millennium Falcon is hands down, one of the greatest spaceships in the history of cinema. The look and design is unforgettable, but the ship itself is more than just a transport for our hero's, it's absolutely a character in its own right, just like the Enterprise from "Star Trek", or Serenity from "Firefly". 

 Harrison Ford is likewise unforgettable as Han Solo, as he's the cool bad-boy I always cheered for, and he’s the perfect offset to Luke. Truthfully, while Luke is the most important character, Han Solo is the one I always wanted to be as a kid, and the guy who brings me back for repeat viewings. Princess Leia takes the classic Princess in distress trope and turns it on its head. She manages to hold her own, stick up for herself, and never lets the title of Princess keep her from taking action when needed. I admittedly never cared that much for Chewbacca, I mean he’s iconic like all the other characters, but I never felt like he added that much to the experience. Either way, I always felt that the cast of Star Wars has something to offer for everyone. If one character wasn't to your liking, there’s always another that’s bound to win you over.

 Looking back, there are some select moments that don’t hold up very well, but they certainly don’t ruin the movie either. Personally, I think the characters are just a little too excepting of tragic events. For example, there’s the scene in which Luke discovers that his aunt and uncle are horrible killed by the Empire, but that never seems to directly affect his emotions in any way, and he never even talks about them again. It's almost like they didn’t matter, even though they raised him from birth. There’s also that scene when Princess Leia’s home planet is blown up by the Death Star, but the impact of that never seems to stick with her, as she never has a moment to lament that tragedy, and she just goes on her way like it was nothing. To be perfectly honest, the destruction of that planet never really impacted me the way I felt it should have. We never saw the surface of the planet, nor saw a glimpse of the people inhabiting it, and sense Leia's reaction is so minimal, I just never felt anything from what should be a very impact-full moment. 

 The music by John Williams again needs no introduction, as it's about as classic as musical scores get, won the Academy Award for Best Original Score, and it’s still one of the most triumphant anthems of all time.  The opening is one of the greatest opening segments in film history, and that shot of the massive ship passing over the screen still gets me hyped to this day. The following shoot-out in the hallway is truthfully my favorite laser-gun shootout sequence ever put to film. 

I especially love those two scenes in both the alien bar and the robot convoy, because they're just so many creative and imaginative looking creatures, and I can just lose myself looking around at all of them. The pacing of the movie is very good, even though there’s very little action on the surface, it’s the characters and the setting that make the experience so engaging. This was one of the first franchises that really submersed you in its own uniquely creative universe, and few other films could bring its setting to life as well as this one. Best of all, I’ll always remember that scene when Luke watches that double sun-set outside his house, as that was the moment when "Star Wars" was less of a movie, and more of an experience. It's also a great example of visual storytelling, because with no spoken dialogue, this moment tells us everything about our hero, and his hopes of starting a life in that larger life beyond those sunset's. You could even view it as Luke's figurative "Somewhere over the Rainbow" moment.     

 The only scene I never really loved was the final battle, in which the Rebels mount a strike against the Death Star. While the stakes are high, the cinematography inspiring, and the trench run is classic, the battle itself always came off as so-so to me. Our heroes are barely seen throughout the whole sequence, and the majority is spent watching a number of pilots getting shot down one at a time. 

Thankfully, this all balances out with a very triumphant ending, and I still get a big cheer from that moment when Han Solo comes back to aid our heroes at the last second. However, in hindsight, I wish that for the Special Edition, it was only the cannon of the Death Star that was destroyed, leaving the station damaged. That way, when the Death Star comes back in "Return of the Jedi", it would remove the repetition of a second Death Star, it would also tie-in with the stations in-complete look, and it would feel all the more satisfying when we see it blow-up in that film. Honestly, making the Death Star the same in both films could have been an easy fix with one or two alterations, and maybe an added scene. 

 On that note, let's talk about the Special edition for a moment. Speaking personally, I saw Star Wars for the very first time in 1997 when the special edition was being released theatrically, and thus, they've always been my favorite versions to watch. Many fans hate these special edition changes, thinking that they tarnish the quality of the films, which is fair for anyone who prefers the original presentation. In fact, I did eventually see the original cuts of these movies, and while the films were still great, I couldn’t help but feel like I was missing several of my favorite moments. 

The scene that introduces us to the vile space slug Jabba the Hutt for example always felt like a pivotal part of the story, and it makes his lengthy involvement in “Return of the Jedi” more meaningful when he was someone present from the start. While the effects on Jabba were pretty bad, I still prefer it to nothing at all, and a short glimpse of Boba Fett is a nice touch. I definitely prefer the polished film quality, with less negative, and especially love that added joke with Han chasing all the troopers into a hanger full of troops. I truthfully don’t care about Han shooting Greedo first, as it's only a second long, and it's not like one little switch is going to spoil my love for the character. In fact, I think the changes to this scene helped make Greedo a house hold name among Star Wars fans in the first place. Some of the added CGI do admittedly look more dated then the original effects, but select new touches hold-up just fine. Even if they seem out of place at times, they still don’t ruin the experience for me. If you prefer the original versions, that’s fine, I just prefer the special editions myself.    

  

  At the end of the day, "Star Wars: A New Hope" is classic ... just classic. It won the Academy Awards for best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, Best Effects, Best Editing, Best Sound, and Ben Burtt was nominated special achievement in original sound design. The film was also nominated for Best Writing, and George Lucas was nominated for Best Director. At last, "Star Wars: A New Hope" remains the only film in the series to get an Oscar nomination for Best Picture. Yet, this still isn't my absolute favorite in the franchise. When I think of the original trilogy as a whole, the first and most meaningful thing that always comes to mind is a compelling story between father and son, namely Luke and Vader, which is explored the least in this film. 

Heck, Luke and Vader never even meet face to face in this movie, and without that relationship present, I just can't make as deep a connection with this film as I do with the latter two films. regardless, this is a strong start to both a solid trilogy, and an even greater launching pad to a phenomenal franchise. It’s funny that even though this movie is over 40 years old, it still has a devoted fan base and continues to excite audience with every new generation that comes to pass. This is what classics are made of ... its familiar storytelling done differently, with an unforgettable cast of characters, deep spiritual themes, and a universe that’s so easy to get wrapped up in. This is why "Star Wars: A New Hope" remains to this day, and for all time, a treasured classic that everyone deserves a chance to see.

Thanks for reading my review of the 1977 Sci-Fi classic "Star Wars 4: A New Hope" ... and continue to enjoy the movies you Love!