You know something special is happening when people give a standing ovation to the opening of a movie. For those who have never experienced it, rabid fans of the "Star Wars" series tend to go crazy when the Lucasfilm logo appears on the theater screen, stop for a brief second, and then let loose a second time when the flawless John Williams' theme signals the beginning. It's an experience only matched by the films themselves.
Luke Skywalker has returned to his home planet of Tatooine in an attempt to rescue his friend Han Solo from the clutches of the vile gangster Jabba the Hutt. Little does Luke know that the GALACTIC EMPIRE has secretly begun construction on a new armored space station even more powerful than the first dreaded Death Star. When completed, this ultimate weapon will spell certain doom for the small band of Rebels struggling to restore freedom to the galaxy.
"Return of the Jedi" is the weakest entry in the original set of films, but that doesn't really make it any less enjoyable. Too much is recycled here from the previous films to make it a wholly original experience, particularly the Death Star once again begin built for the Empire's purpose (why would they think it would succeed this time?). It is also a bit uneven, switching in tone more than just a few times.
With the re-edit of "A New Hope," Jabba the Hut's big reveal doesn't quite have the impact it once did even though it still builds towards it. Another edit, a newly inserted musical number, is without a doubt the most cringe-worthy sequence out of the current set of five films. This adds up to a rough start, but once Luke manages to conquer the Rancor and slice up guards on the sail barge (including fan favorite Boba Fett), things move up to the usual level the previous films attained.
This is obviously a movie created to cater to the core toy audience, all the wandering 8-year old minds running up and down the theater aisles. The introduction of the Ewoks is a decision criticized over the years, but when they finally get their moment to shine, these little fuzzballs take out just about anything the Empire could throw at them. The light layer of comedy they provide makes the film a bit more appealing to all audiences and surely kept multiple generations of kids glued to their seats.
Article comments
1 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
great st of reviews Matt, as ever. hopefully, tonight or tomorow, i will own these wonders on shiny disc. i can't wait, is what.
2 - Vic
I have to wait for Christmas... :-(
Vic
3 - Pappy
"he most controversial is the removal of Sebastian Shaw from brief shot at the end showing the three deceased Jedi as ghosts. Replacing him is Hayden Christensen to make the film gel better with the prequels. It's a logical switch and makes sense."
Yes, but along those same lines, shouldn't Ewan McGregor have made an appearance in this trilogy? Wouldn't that also make the film gel better? Isn't that also a logical switch that makes sense?
Or is it somehow ok to throw out Sebastian Shaw but not okay to throw out Alec Guinness?
4 - Matt Paprocki
No, Obi-Wan is older now and audiences have seen him as Alec Guiness. You never really see Sebastian Shaw anywhere in the Trilogy (except for the very end) and once Episode III hits, people can associate Vader with Hayden. I can see your point as well (If hayden is shown younger, why not Obi), but I can still rememeber seeig Jedi for the first, second and third time while asking "Who the hell is that guy?" At least now you can see that's supposed to be Vader.
5 - Brett Warren
no, according to the commentary by George Lucas Hayden was put into the film because when anakin died he ceased to be anakin and was reborn as vader. So putting Hayden at the end of ROTJ is meant to show him as he was when he "really" died.
6 - Jim S
Fantastic reviews, Matt.
I never really agreed 100% with the people who whined about the Ewoks and how this movie sucked.. it was always part of the "whole" experience for me (and I grew up on SW), so I always liked it just slightly less than the first two... I liked Ep I & II, though, so what judge of it am I?
I haven't seen the changed end-scene yet (haven't watched the full film yet, but will in the next night or two..), but I agree with you... it makes sense, even if it pisses off the "purists".
7 - Matt S
The explanation that Lucas gives totally satisfies me, and it also gives the continuity. The scene still retains its impact. The very minor changes to the film does not effect the movie as a whole. If you liked the movie in 1983, your still gonna love it on DVD.
And for the ewoks, I thought they were awesome. Not only did they add comedy to the movie (the C-3P0 flying scene was funny), but they were the natives of Endor and I thought it was neat how they used their knowledge of their own land to their benefit which enabled them to help the Rebels. The scene at Jabba's palace was amazing (we see Luke emerge as a Jedi hero) and the Emperor was terrific. I've always been very partial to this movie and never understood why it's considered any less than the other two.
8 - Ayana
I am a 29 year old female Star Wars Fan and just saw Return of the Jedi on DVD - as always, I really enjoy watching it - I was also pleased to see Hayden Christensen playing the part of Aniken Skywalker at the end of the movie. It make perfect sense to me.
9 - 4meonly
i agree with ayana i saw both the video and dvd and i never noticed that because i watched it today