"Reviews, ratings... a Jedi craves none of these things."
To truly appreciate Star Wars, you really need to take a time machine back to 1977.Back when the best that computer animation could do was Space Invaders. Back before toy companies did all-out marketing blitzes to capitalize on hit films. Back when Industrial Light & Magic was run out of George Lucas's garage. Back then, on that weekend in May, Star Wars really did blow the majority of American minds out there.
If anything, Star Wars ushered in the realistic-looking sci-fi production. Before, everything in futuristic space movies looked too squeaky-clean, as if dust and grime became extinct in the future. Now, we have the battle-scarred R2-D2, a sandy Land Speeder, and a Millennium Falcon with a few bugs in the system. And all the props and scenery were high-dollar stuff. You could actually believe that this took place in some faraway galaxy.
The story was well thought out, too. In the middle of a rebellion against the evil Galactic Empire, Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) sends R2 and C3P0 to Tatooine to find Jedi veteran Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness). She needs help in defeating the Empire's new ultimate weapon, the Death Star. Obi-Wan brings along Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and trains him in the ways of the Force. Also along for the ride is Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew). After a little run-in with the Death Star and Darth Vader (David Prowse, voice by James "This Is CNN" Earl Jones), they escape (sans Kenobi) to the Rebel base to plot their assault against the humongous battle station.
Yes, time and technological progress has taken some luster off this milestone in filmmaking history. But Star Wars (Episode IV - A New Hope) will always remain a classic and a legend. (The Special Edition ain't bad, either.)And just think... if there were no Star Wars, we wouldn't have those memorable dialogues in Clerks and so on.
eFilmCritic.com: Australia's Largest Movie Review Database. Privacy Policy | HBS Inc. | | All data and site design copyright 1997-2017, HBS Entertainment, Inc.