I had always planned on writing about The Empire Strikes Back for my 250th review. I just had the luck (good or bad - I may not get as many hits simply because people are sick of reading Star Wars reviews) to have this fall so soon after seeing Attack of the Clones. My impression I came away with after seeing these two films is something I wrote in a comment to someone else: Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should do it. What am I talking about? In the original release of The Empire Strikes Back, George Lucas was held back a bit on showing some things because of the technology of the times. The video I was watched was of the Special Edition where he went back and "fixed" things that he felt were problems with the original release. One of the first additions we see is a better glimpse of the Wampa - the creature which attacks Luke Skywalker while out on patrol and drags him back to the cave. In the original release, we were only given a few glances at it while now it is clearly shown. To me, the creature looks like The Abominable Snowman from the Rudolph the Red-Nose-Reindeer Christmas special. This was something that I felt was much better left to the imagination. This is one of the problems which carries through to the current movies, I believe. There is no room anymore for using our imagination to fill in the blanks - everything needs to be "shown". While I have no problems with many of the enhancements which Lucas talks about in the introduction to the Special Edition, this is something I felt could've been left out, but was a sign of things to come. Other enhancements are removing the matte lines from around the cockpit windows during the battle scenes. This was something not crucial, but the lines were a peeve of mine in the release of the original Battlestar Galactica DVD since it was very obvious and could have been taken out. There also were enhancements made to Cloud City which make it seem more like a real, operating mining city. These also are good and don't really detract from the imagination. The opening sequence with the Wampa was added after actor Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) was nearly killed in an accident with his corvette which caused facial damage. Apparently, George Lucas though the difference in his facial features between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back were significant enough to need explanation. How the movie would have begun otherwise, I do not know. Another hidden gem in this film is John Ratzenberger (Cliff Claven of Cheers fame) appearing briefly as one of the Rebel commanders. The relationship between the characters is really what makes this film work so well, and credit must be given to the actors for that. Harrison Ford's Han Solo is believable both in his almost brotherly protection of Luke as well as his increasing interest in Leia romantically. Luke's brooding and impatience are played perfectly to really show how far he still has to go. I see a lot of the same characteristics between Luke here and Anakin in Attack of the Clones, I just feel that Mark Hamill was better able to pull it off. Leia is also strong and vulnerable at the same time. Again, I see similarities between Leia here and Amidala in the most recent film. Yoda is first introduced in this film, and is somehow believable as a old Jedi Master, despite his side and stature. The puppetry used here is wonderful and the expressions on his face are perfect, making him as believable as the rest of the cast. Thankfully, this movie was released way before the advent of the Internet the way we know it today. Why do I say that? There was no greater impact than when we heard Darth Vader utter the words: I am your father... for the first time. I can remember hearing hints about it from friends before I saw the movie, but I was sure it wasn't true. It was a joke; they were lying to me. After I actually heard it, I spent at least one lunch hour a week debating whether it was true or a trick by Vader. Only now I can look back and realize what a cop-out and disappointment it would have been on Lucas' part to not have Vader really be Luke's father. The effects are good, but not overpowering. I like the use of miniatures and stop-action animation much better than CGI effects. The battle scene on Hoth is well done, and though it occupies a great deal of time, it doesn't seem to drag on. The lightsaber duel between Vader and Luke is also effected and choreographed well. There is not a thing wrong with this film. While most fans consider this to be the best of the Star Wars movies, I liked Return of the Jedi just a bit better.
When I was a young lass of 11, Star Wars was released to the world. Those of you who know me and have read my reviews probably are figuring that I am a sci-fi geek-ette anyway so of course I headed out to see it. You are wrong. For months my parents bribed, begged, cajoled and practically stood on their heads to get me to see this movie. I wouldn't budge. You see, a friend at school had told me it was a scary movie and I refused to see it. At 11 I already believed my friends more than my parents. Finally round about the end of August it ended up at the $1.50 movie theater about a mile from my home. A friend and I finally walked down to see it. And I went back the next six nights. The Star Wars: Special Edition was released to theaters several years ago. George Lucas took the opportunity of the movie's 20th anniversary of release to jazz it up a bit. On VHS, the movie includes a documentary of Lucas talking about the original film versus this version. It is interesting to hear him talk about all that he wanted to do back then, but was impossible from a technical aspect. The crew was already inventing technology to do things in this movie that had never been done before. One part of the documentary showed how Lucas and crew created the scenes of the X-Wing and TIE Fighter battle around the Death Star. Using various pieces from the model kits of the time, Lucas created a huge set-up in a parking lot. He then put the camera on the back of a pick-up truck and drove by it to capture the illusion of space flight. The documentary also includes interviews with other members of the crew, as well as Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford. The movie itself in the Special Edition form has been tweaked as well as having scenes added to it. Lucas cleaned up the original print of the film which had deteriorated very badly at the point they went back to look at it. The scene as Luke Skywalker and Ben Kenobi look over Mos Eisley Spaceport has been jazzed up - ads well as their entrance into Mos Eisley. What looked like a hole-in-the-wall in the original film now looks like a fairly bustling place. Lucas mentions his affinity for "whimsy" in the documentary, and I believe this is largely his motivation in the additions. There are more scenes that bring a smile or smirk to the face as we watch computer-generated creatures carry on in the background. This is why this movie is ripe for watching several times; there is always some nuance that you didn't catch the first time that will give you a chuckle.Another scene that was greatly improved was the scene of the X-Wing fighters going into battle. We can now actually see the heads of the pilots in the cockpits as they make their way to attack the Death Star. A scene of Han Solo with Jabba the Hut was filmed back in the seventies, but was deleted from the movie since Lucas couldn't figure out how to do what he wanted with the character of Jabba. It has now been added in, and gives some support to Jabba's relentless pursuit of Han Solo. It is also funny to watch Han walk around Jabba and step on his tail. One scene that was revamped that I don't think needed it was the scene of Han Solo with Greedo in the Cantina. The point is made in the new film that Greedo shoots at Han first and misses, while in the original Han takes him out before he has a chance to get off a shot. Supposedly people objected to this, but I think the scene speaks to Han's instincts as a smuggler and as a not-so-nice guy at this point. He is a character we are supposed to see transform between the first film and the third film. The scene as it is in the Special Edition really weakens the character for me. But Star Wars was, is, and always will be one of the greatest film I ever had the privilege to see. It is a classic story of good versus evil; of people rising up against an oppressive government; of how a farm boy on a desert planet can save the universe. The story is wonderfully simple and makes it easy for children of just about any age to comprehend. This is one reason why this movie is one the whole family can enjoy. Because it is set in space with battles that are more fantasy than any reality we will know for many lifetimes, it is not a violent movie the way Die Hard or Terminator is. It is pure fantasy, and at the end of this one, the good guys win. The Special Edition comes in widescreen format - and that's how I like my movies. I know Lucas is reluctant to release these three original movies on DVD, and I think it is because the DVD format is a much less forgiving one. The technology used to create the original movie was not computer generated imaging, but mostly models and bluescreen. This means in any scene not set in space, you will see a black outline around the ships. I have noticed this on quite a few of the DVDs of movies made before the age of CGI. What Lucas has managed to clean up with the special edition probably isn't to his satisfaction to release the movies on DVD, but I hope one day he will. The music and THX sound from this deserves to be heard in theater-like quality. I would hope that people can understand just how ground-breaking this movie was, and look at it with a less critical eye and a more appreciative one.
