Ask twenty or so non-Star Wars fans who directed the first sequel in the popular franchise and 19 will likely get it wrong. Ask them what the major twist is at the end of the film and all of them will likely get it right. That's the effect this movie had on pop-culture. Darker and more powerful than the original, "Empire Strikes Back" doesn't rely on major special effects sequences (though it has those too), but on developing the characters created in the original.
It is a dark time for the Rebellion. Although the Death Star has been destroyed, Imperial troops have driven the Rebel forces from their hidden base and pursued them across the galaxy. Evading the dreaded Imperial Starfleet, a group of freedom fighters led by Luke Skywalker has established a new secret base on the remote ice world of Hoth. The evil lord Darth Vader, obsessed with finding young Skywalker, has dispatched thousands of remote probes into the far reaches of space.
Twenty-four years later, the opening battle in "Empire" remains one of the most spectacular, fast, and impressive fight sequences in movie history. The stop-motion animation used for the AT-AT walkers is perfect, really giving them a mechanical feel and a strong reason for why the style should still be used today. Snow Speeders fly all around these impressive metal beats, an even more impressive feat in the area of model work.
Yet, it's not the best scene in the film. Just before Han Solo becomes frozen in carbonite, Leia finally tells him she loves him. His response IS the character: "I know." According to the "Empire of Dreams" documentary, they did at least 20 takes before finally hitting it just right. Any other wording, any change of that one line, and the entire scene fails. But there it is, just two words and the entire character finally has an added layer of depth audiences can finally figure out. Not a single scene in the rest of the film comes close.
Article comments
1 - B Russ
Han pounding the ship after stalling is gone: I just watched the Empire Strikes Back DVD. Remember when, before escaping Hoth, the Millenium Falcon stalls, the lights go out? Han pounds the wall above the door, the ship restarts, and off they go. Wellll.... it's gone from the DVD. Was this gone from the recent special release too? Anyway, WHY would they cut that scene? It was funny, and really gave you a sense of how fragile the MF was. Damn it, its absence will always bug me. Just leaves me hoping for an eventual DVD release of these movies without all the new tampering.
2 - Matt Paprocki
You blinked, because it is there. I seen it. Still gets a chuckle out of me.
3 - Jim S
second that motion.. it's there. The film wouldn't be the same without that scene....
The HUGE difference that I noticed (and maybe I'm wrong) is that the conversation between Vader and the Emperor is different. I haven't gone back to my SE videos to see if it was changed there (I've only watched them twice... I mostly go back to the original editons if I'm VHSing...) but the conversation is totally different than in the original theatrical release.