"STAR WARS: EPISODE V - THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" (1980) Review

"STAR WARS: EPISODE V - THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" (1980) Review

From a certain point of view, I find it hard to believe that the 1980 film, "STAR WARS: EPISODE V - THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" has become the most critically acclaimed STAR WARS movie by the franchise's fans. And I find it hard to believe, due to the film's original box office performance. 

I was also surprised that "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" was released in the first place. Despite the ambiguous nature of villain Darth Vader's fate in the 1977 film, "STAR WARS: EPISODE IV - A NEW HOPE", I had assumed that film's happy ending meant the story of Luke Skywalker and his friends was over. But my assumption proved to be wrong three years later. Many other filmgoers and critics also expressed surprise at the release of a second STAR WARS movie. More importantly, a surprising revelation and an ending with a cliffhanger resulted in a smaller box office for "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" than either "A NEW HOPE" or the 1983 film, "STAR WARS: EPISODE VI - RETURN OF THE JEDI". Yet, thirty-three years later, the movie is now viewed as the most critically acclaimed - not just among the first three movies, but also among those released between 1999 and 2005.

"THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" begins three years following the events of " A NEW HOPE". Despite the Rebel Alliance's major victory above the planet of Yavin and the destruction of the Galactic Empire's Death Star, the rebellion continues to rage on. Luke Skywalker, now a wing commander at the Rebels' base on Hoth, patrols beyond the base's perimenter with close friend and former smuggler Han Solo. After the latter returns to base, Luke is attacked by a wampa and dragged into the latter's cave. Meanwhile, Han receives word from Princess Leia, one of the Rebel leaders and a friend of both men, that Luke has not returned. He leaves the base to find Luke, while the latter manages to escape from the wampa's lair. Luke stumbles into a snowstorm and before losing consciousness, receives a message from the Force spirit of his late mentor, Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, to seek out another Jedi named Yoda on Dagobah for further training. Han eventually finds Luke before a Rebel patrol finds them both. 

While Luke recovers from his ordeal, Leia and General Rieekan learn from Han and his Wookie companion Chewbacca have discovered an Imperial probe. They surmise that Imperial forces know the location of their base and might be on their way. The Rebel Alliance forces prepare to evacuate Hoth. But an Imperial presence on the planet served as a bigger problem for the heroes. Unbeknownst to them, Darth Vader seeks out Luke, following his discovery of the young man's connection to the Force three years ago. Although the three friends will separate for a period of time and experience adventures of their own, Lord Vader's hunt for Luke will result in great danger and a surprising revelation in the end.

I once came across a post on the TheForce.net - Jedi Council Forums message board that complained of the lack of a main narrative for "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK". A part of me could understand why this person reached such an opinion. Despite the circumstances on Hoth and the finale on the Bespin mining colony, our heroes barely spent any time together. Following the Rebel Alliance's defeat on Hoth, Luke and R2-D2 traveled to Dagobah, where the former continued his Jedi training under Master Yoda. Meanwhile, Han and Chewbacca helped Leia and C3-P0 evade Darth Vader and Imperial forces on Hoth and in space before seeking refuge on Bespin. I believe this person failed to realize that other than Luke's Jedi training with Yoda, most of the movie's narrative centered on Vader's attempts to capture Luke - the Imperial invasion of Hoth, his pursuit of the Millennium Falcon with Leia and Han aboard, and their subsequent capture on Bespin. Even Luke's Jedi training was interrupted by visions of his friends in danger and journeyed into the trap set by Vader. And this is why I found it hard to accept this complaint about "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK".

Most fans tend to regard the movie as perfect or near perfect. Despite my feelings for "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK", I cannot agree with this view. I believe that the movie has its flaws. One could find cheesy dialogue in the movie, especially from Darth Vader. He possessed an annoying penchant for constantly using the phrase "It is your destiny" in the movie's last half hour. Some of Leia and Han's "romantic dialogue" in the movie's first half struck me as a bit childish and pedantic. Speaking of those two - how did they end up attracted to each other in the first place? "A NEW HOPE" ended with Han making a brief pass at Leia during the medal ceremony. But she seemed to regard him as a mere annoyance and nothing else. Three years later, both are exchanging longing glances and engaging in verbal foreplay at least ten to fifteen minutes into the story. I would have allowed this to slide if a novel or comic story had explained this sudden shift toward romance between them. But no such publication exists, as far as I know. This little romance seemed to have developed out of the blue.

There were other problems. The movie never explained the reason behind Leia's presence at the Rebels' Hoth base. She was, after all, a political leader; not a military one. The base already possessed a more than competent military leader in the form of General Rieekan. Watching Leia give orders to the pilots during the base's evacuation made me realize that she really had no business interfering in the Rebels' military command structure. It would have been a lot easier if she had been a military officer or a spy for the Alliance. "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" also failed to explain why Han was being hunted by Jabba the Hutt after three years. I thought the payment he had received for delivering Leia and the Death Star plans to Yavin was enough to settle his debt to the Tattooine gangster. Apparently not. And the movie failed to explain why. Perhaps there is a STAR WARS novel or comic book story that offered an explanation. I hope so. For years, I never understood the symbolism behind Luke's experiences inside the Dagobah cave during his Jedi training. And I am not sure if I still do. Finally, how long did Luke's training on Dagobah last? And how long did it take the Millennium Falcon to reach Bespin with a broken hyperdrive? LucasFilm eventually revealed that both incidents took at least three months. If so, why did the movie failed to convey this particular time span?

Thankfully, "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" more than rose above its flaws. For me, it is still one of the best science-fiction adventure films I have ever seen. I am amazed that such a complex tale arose from two simple premises - Darth Vader's hunt for Luke Skywalker and the continuation of the latter's Jedi training. From these simple premises, audiences were exposed to a richly detailed and action-filled narrative, thanks to George Lucas' story, Lawrence Kasdan's screenplay (which was also credited to Leigh Brackett) and Irvin Kershner's direction. The movie featured many exciting sequences and dramatic moments that simply enthralled me. Among my favorite action sequences were the Millennium Falcon's escape from Hoth, Yoda's introduction, Han's seduction of Leia inside the giant asteroid worm, the Falcon's escape from the worm. For me, the movie's best sequence proved to be the last - namely those scenes on the mining colony of Bespin. I would compare this last act in "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" to the Death Star sequence in "A NEW HOPE" or the Mos Espa podrace sequence in "STAR WARS: EPISODE I - THE PHANTOM MENACE". The Bespin sequence featured a few truly iconic moments. Well . . . if I must be honest, I would say that it featured two iconic moments - Han's response to Leia's declaration of love and Darth Vader's revelation of his true identity.

Naturally, one cannot discuss a STAR WARS movie without mentioning its technical aspects. In my review of "A NEW HOPE", I had failed to mention Ben Burtt's outstanding sound effects. I will add that his work in "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" proved to be equally outstanding. I could also say the same for the movie's sound mixing, which earned Academy Awards for Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Greg Landaker, and Peter Sutton. Composer John Williams' additions to his famous STAR WARS score were not only outstanding, but earned him an Academy Award nomination. Those additions included a love theme for the Leia/Han romance and the memorable "Imperial March", which is also known as"Darth Vader's Theme" As far as I am concerned, the tune might as well be known as the Sith Order's theme song. The team of Brian Johnson, Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren, and Bruce Nicholson did an outstanding job with the movie's visual effects - especially for the Battle of Hoth sequence. I can also say the same for Peter Suschitzky's photography. However, my favorite cinematic moment turned out to be Luke's initial encounter with Darth Vader on Bespin. Even to this day, I experience a chill whenever I see that moment when they meet face-to-face for the first time. Although John Mollo's costumes caught Hollywood's attention after "A NEW HOPE" was first released (he won an Oscar for his effort), his costumes for "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" seemed like a continuation of the same. In fact, I found the costumes somewhat on the conservative side, even if they blended well with the story.

It is interesting that the performances of both Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher garnered most of the attention when "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" first came out. The Leia/Han romance was very popular with fans. Mind you, both gave very good performances. But I believe that Mark Hamill acted circles around them. And not surprising, he won a Saturn Award for his performance as Luke Skywalker in this film. Billy Dee Williams also gave a first-rate performance as the roguish smuggler-turned-colony administrator, whose charming persona hid a desperation to do anything to save the inhabitants of Bespin from Imperial annihilation. James Earl Jones and David Prowse continued their outstanding portrayal of Darth Vader aka Anakin Skywalker, with one serving as the voice and the other, the physical embodiment of the Sith Lord. Julian Glover, who later appeared in "INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE" made a brief appearance as the commander of the Imperial walkers, General Veers. Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker and Peter Mayhew continued their excellent work as C3-P0, R2-D2 and Chewbacca. But I was particularly impressed by Frank Oz's voice work as the veteran Jedi Master Yoda, and Kenneth Colley as the Imperial Admiral Piett, whose caution and competency led him to rise in the ranks and avoid Vader's wrath for any incompetence.

Is "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK" my favorite STAR WARS movie of all time? Almost. Not quite. For me, it is tied in first place with one other movie from the franchise. But after thirty-three years and in spite of its flaws, I still love it, despite its flaws. And I have give credit to not only the talented cast and crew, but also director Irwin Kershner, screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan and especially the man behind all of this talent, George Lucas.