The Empire Strikes Back Review by Thom (5 Stars)

The Empire Strikes Back Review by Thom (5 Stars) | MatchFlick

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Movie Details

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Starring:
Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Billy Dee Williams, Alec Guinness, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Frank Oz, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, Clive Revill, Julian Glover, John Ratzenberger, Jeremy Bulloch

Directed By:
Irvin Kershner

Written By:
Leigh Brackett, Lawrence Kasdan

The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

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Movie Review by Thom
May 6th, 2008

The Height of Lucas' Empire

Favorite Movie Quote: "He's a card-player... gambler... scoundrel; you'd like him."

Like The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars was released with the hope that the audience would demand an encore performance. Fortunately for Lucas and those who love the Star Wars universe, we did, and while we enjoyed The Empire Strikes Back in the reel-world, Lucas built his own empire in the real world.

Empire Strikes Back (Episode V) picks up an indeterminate amount of time after its predecessor (Star Wars, later referred to as Episode IV: A New Hope), though no more than a few years. During that time Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) has become a Commander in the Rebel Alliance and, unbeknownst to him, is being hunted by Darth Vader (voiced by James Earl Jones) as Vader simultaneously hunts the Alliance. The tension between Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher, who just gets hotter as the trilogy progresses) has evolved into something more that neither of the two pig-headed independents wants to acknowledge.

This particular chapter of the Star Wars Saga was, and remains without any question in my mind, the high point of the entire Star Wars collective, including books, graphic novels, video games, toys, television shows, or prequels and sequels, as well as the high point of Lucas' career; while Lucas wasn't eating Spam from the can for years before this, it was the self-funded Empire Strikes Back that financed the creation of Lucas' many companies and gave him the freedom that he still enjoys today to make whatever the hell he wants.

I credit the original success of Empire to simply coming off the heels of the Star Wars giant, but I attribute the continued success and staying power of The Empire Strikes Back to Lawrence Kasdan and Irvin Kershner who wrote and directed it, respectively. Empire exceeds the original is every possible way - story, acting, character, action, romance, special effects, dialog - everything is better in this second installment, and every emotional payoff in Return of the Jedi owes its original investment to the groundwork laid in Empire Strikes Back, not the original Star Wars.

Furthermore, the evil Galactic Empire wins! This pays a number of dividends for the entire series - a lesson that was not heeded in the new trilogy - in that every on-screen victory for our villain, in this case Darth Vader, makes him that much bigger a mountain for our heroes to climb. If Vader was some poser like General Grievous, always running away and never killing anyone where the audience can see, would he be considered the number one movie villain of all time? You better bet your bloody ass not.

The Empire Strikes Back legitimizes as a threat to our heroes Darth Vader, as well as the Empire for which he fights, the Emperor whom he serves, the Jedi who he helped vanquish, Leia, Han, and the Rebellion that has the cojones to stand up to him, and Luke Skywalker from not only defeating him but eventually igniting the tiny spark of humanity that Vader has left. You want to know how to make an effective movie villain? Study Darth Vader. You want to know what happens when you don't have a movie villain bearing on-screen certificates of his/her bad-assness? Watch the new trilogy.

This also humanizes our heroes; they are mortal. Luke got his ass whipped, Han gets frozen in carbonite, and Leia almost ends up serving as Vader's goodness knows what; I assume Chewie would've made a swell throw-rug. All this pays off in Return of the Jedi, and Empire is to thank for it.

Is there a better chase sequence in movie history than the asteroid chase? Is there a better movie kiss than Han and Leia's smooch? For that matter, when's the last time you saw such a believable love story in the midst of an action film that worked so seamlessly? And back before twists were to film today much like anal is to porn, was there a bigger or better reveal than Vader being Luke's father?

The Empire Strikes Back isn't one of the best science fiction or fantasy movies of all time; The Empire Strikes Back is one of the best FILMS of all time, period, regardless of genre.

Search your feelings; you know it to be true.

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	Tim May 6, 2008 9:20 PM also wrote a review of The Empire Strikes Back
lol....awesome review man...this does make me want to go watch it. I dont have to search my feelings....the original 3 Star Wars films will always be some of the best films ever made. I hate Lucas with a passion but he did make some damn fine films. Darth Vader makes me want to be bad.....one of the greatest villians in movie history.....

	Xavier May 7, 2008 4:20 AM
Despite all the critisisms about the way Lucas surveys his world I feel one of the most genius things he ever did was handing over the direction of this movie over to Kershner.

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