|
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
The special effects are
stupendous; three worlds are populated with a mélange of
creatures, flora, and horizons rendered in absolute detail. The action
and battle scenes are breathtaking in their complexity. And one
particular sequence of the film--the adrenaline-infused pod race
through the Tatooine desert makes the chariot race in Ben-Hur look like
a Sunday stroll through the park.
|
|
The Star
Wars Trilogy had the rare distinction of becoming a cultural
phenomenon, a defining event for its generation. On its surface, George
Lucas's story is a rollicking and humorous space fantasy that owes
debts to more influences than one can count on two hands, but filmgoers
became entranced by its basic struggle of good vs. evil "a long time
ago, in a galaxy far, far away," its dazzling special effects, and a
mythology of Jedi knights, the Force, and droids. Over the course of
three films--A New Hope (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and
Return of the Jedi (1983)--Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Princess Leia
(Carrie Fisher), and the roguish Han Solo (Harrison Ford) join the
Rebel alliance in a galactic war against the Empire, the menacing Darth
Vader (David Prowse, voiced by James Earl Jones), and eventually the
all-powerful Emperor (Ian McDiarmid). Empire is generally considered
the best of the films and Jedi the most uneven, but all three are
vastly superior to the more technologically impressive prequels that
followed, Episode I, The Phantom Menace (1999) and Episode II, Attack
of the Clones (2002).
|
|
|
 |
