Then the film takes a wild turn, toning down the colors and light as Luke fights off the temptation of the dark side. While the Emperor tries to break him down, Luke and Vader engage in a lightsaber battle, the result of countless hours in rehearsal and it shows. It's an epic fight, one that ends up a being a fine way to end the series.
But yet again, it's the all out assault on the Death Star that remains the most spectacular action sequence in the film. A quick shot from the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon showcases what seems like 100's of Tie Fighters flying directly into the camera, a shot which had to be one of the most excruciating to work on in the series. The speeder bike forest chase, as unbelievable as it is, has nothing on that one brief moment.
Like the other films in this DVD set, "Jedi" has been tweaked again. The 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. A few other effect shots have been cleaned up (especially the Rancor attack) and a brief celebration on Naboo is shown briefly after the destruction of the Death Star.
No, this isn't "Empire" and the overall mood change is a bit jarring, but "Jedi" is still a blast to watch and that's the important part. All the dangling loose ends have been cleaned up so no questions should remain, the action is some of the best in the series, and a twist towards the end likely threw audiences into another frenzy. There's not much more you could ask for from a movie. (***** out of *****)
With all of the forest scenery, "Jedi" has the potential to suffer from some serious problems on the DVD format, but this gorgeous transfer does a fine job. The flickering problems of both "New Hope" and "Empire" are much less noticeable here, though still a minor problem in the forest as expected. Again, the strong color and unbelievably deep black levels (maybe even too dark) bring out the cinematography and action better than any other print of the movie before it. The light sabers look great when contrasting with the dark backgrounds and are a great way to show off a new TV. (*****)
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