Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

After the unprecedented success of A New Hope it would be a surprise if Lucas DIDN’T make a sequel. This was not an idea he had because the first movie made him some money, though. Star Wars was meant to have multiple chapters, and the initial success made possible what was already designed.

Empire expands the Star Wars story; it’s more like reading the next chapter rather than a whole new book - with the understanding that there will be a third chapter. Thank goodness. If the story had stopped here, Star Wars would have fizzled. In fact, there is no real end. It’s like Lord of the Rings or a TV show with “To be continued” at the end, no resolution, just a cliffhanger.

In a number of ways this is my favorite of the original trilogy. Part of my love as a child was the AT-AT’s (the huge, 4-legged Imperial walkers attacking the snow base). They were so enormous on the screen, so naturally animalistic, and so formidable that I was forever awed. It was probably the biggest Star Wars toy I ever got and one of the clearest images in my memory from that age. As I grew I began to appreciate Empire for additional reasons, a key one being that it breaks the mold of the common movie formulas.

I like seeing the bad guys whipped in the end with good things happening for the heroes. I have seen several movies I didn’t like for no other reason than because bad beats the good. It’s true that in life bad things happen to good people, but I believe that all things work together towards a good end even though we might not be able to see it happening. Good will ultimately overcome evil, and God will one day make his earthly creation perfect again. But I think that regardless of religious beliefs, most people like good, heroic endings – it’s part of why the blockbuster action genre continues to be so popular. There’s a clear evil, a clear hero, and the good guy comes out on top. Seeing that gives many of us hope in a world where good people are beaten down by corrupted power, where innocent civilians are savagely beheaded by monsters passing themselves off as human, where brave soldiers are blown up by some misguided fool who thinks he’s going to get his own harem in the afterlife. That doesn’t happen to Chuck Norris, Arnold Schwarzenneger, or Jackie Chan. We like seeing that triumph.

Something that sets Star Wars above the average action movie, though, is that the heroes aren’t untouchable. Luke loses a hand, Han is imprisoned in solitary confinement taken to the extreme, and by the end of the movie the heroes are at the lowest point of the entire story. There is no triumph like the end of New Hope, but there is clear determination. Luke and the others have not given up hope, they will press on to victory in the next movie. It is that hope and determination in the face of despair that make it different from the typical everything-is-perfectly-fine-at-the-end type movie but without being dismal.

Empire adds a depth to the trilogy that a single action-adventure movie could not have. It adds a touch of the way things really work (meaning bad things happening to the good people) while everything is still ultimately working towards a good, heroic ending. If Empire had been the final movie there would have been great disappointment amongst the fans, but knowing there is more to come creates a cliffhanger rather than a sense of dissatisfaction. It is my favorite of the trilogy for what it does for the overall story rather than because it’s the best ending or anything like that.

Another plus is director Irvin Kershner’s focus on characters. There’s a great duel between Luke and Vader, space battles, and ground attacks, but a lot of the movie deals with Luke in Jedi training and having to make difficult decisions, Leia and Han slowly developing a relationship, Vader and Boba Fett conspiring to capture the heroes, and Lando gambling with his friend’s life as he tries to out maneuver the Empire. So maybe Mark Hamill overdoes it towards the end with the whole “Nooooooo!!!” bit, but I think for the most part the performances and developments are believable.

The stop motion and blue screen shots are not flawless. Compared to Attack of the Clones the effects are dated. However, they are still good enough that with a little imagination they are realistic and miles ahead of other movies from that time. Certainly if you stare at each frame of the Tauntaun running the magic begins to break down so keep your focus on what’s happening as far as story, not on the illusions.

John Williams’ score does every bit as much for Empire as it did for New Hope. It adds a majestic quality that even the best visuals could not have on their own. Existing themes are revisited and new ones expand the repertoire. The Imperial March plays for the first time, one of my favorite pieces of music ever.

Plot Summary:
Darth Vader is obsessed with finding the Rebels, particularly the ones that directly thwarted him at the battle of Yavin. He discovers them on Hoth. Though the battle is intense many of the Rebels narrowly escape. Han and Leia are separated from Luke who has a secret mission given to him by Obi Wan. He is seeking out the last Jedi master, Yoda, who will intensify his Force training.

The others, meanwhile, are chased relentlessly by the Empire. Because the Falcon is damaged they cannot escape into hyperspace. They manage to sneak away to a floating city on Bespin, a mining operation overseen by Han’s old friend Lando. Unfortunately Vader, with a little help from Boba Fett, has outsmarted them putting a trap in place. Vader does not plan to let them go but has his focus set on Luke. Lando thinks he can help Vader get his prize while helping Han out of trouble, but he soon learns that the word of a Sith lord isn’t worth the air used to speak it. Only his skills as a master gambler save Leia, Chewbacca, and 3PO.

With that group trying desperately to save Han who has been encased in carbonite and take by Fett, Luke is left to face Vader alone. Vader has no intention of killing Luke, he’s too important. Instead, he hopes to win the fledgling Jedi’s aid in overthrowing the Emperor. The Emperor hopes to replace Vader with younger blood.

Luke proves to be powerful, he holds his own despite his relative lack of training (of course, part of that could be Vader holding back because of who Luke is). Ultimately, though, Vader is too much for him. With the boy cornered Vader reveals to him the truth of his father’s fate and Obi Wan’s apparent deception. Luke chooses death rather than acceptance, but a small measure of good fortune and his connection to Leia through the Force save him. The Rebels retreat into hiding to heal and plan their rescue mission.

Content:
There is a little violence though mostly tame by even the stricter standards of days gone by. There is one, at most 2, bad words. Though there is romance, none of it is sexual in any way.

DVD:
The only currently available DVD is in the Trilogy box set, Widescreen (silver) and Full Screen (bronze) versions. There are multiple VHS versions. The thing to keep in mind is that in most versions the movie has been modified from the original release. It was released a second time in the 90’s with a few changes: the Wampa scene is extended, and all the Cloud City scenes were given a facelift to make the place look bigger and more active. The DVD version offers a few more small changes. The original version featured a different actor as Palpatine. Clive Revill (forgive me if I misspelled his name) has been replaced with Ian McDiarmid (Palpatine in every other appearance) with a few extra lines. Boba Fett’s lines have been redubbed by Temura (I won’t even attempt to remember how to spell his last name) who was Jango Fett. The audio mix has been tweaked slightly to make some of the lines more audible. There may be some other minor changes I can’t recall.

The Widecreen version offers 2.35 Anamorphic ratio, extended 5.1, and optional 2.0, surround sound, and high quality of both. There is very little else on the disc (other than the interfaces, of course) so that more room is allocated to video quality. It looks and sounds terrific.

I love the continuity between all the Star Wars DVD’s, spanning both trilogies. The opening animation is the same, and each movie features 3 different interfaces with unique animation including entering and exiting the main menu, chapter selection, and options. This one has Dagobah, Hoth, and Cloud City.

So that I’m not just copying pages of information between every movie in the trilogy I will talk about the specifics of the box set in a review of the set. If this disc were not part of a set here’s what you would have: a commentary, a THX optimizer, and some web links.

The commentary includes George, Irvin Kershner, Carrie Fisher, Ben Burtt, and Dennis Muren. It’s informative and interesting. George and Irvin talk the most, but everyone gets to chime in. I would love to have heard from other cast members as well, but I’m glad to have at least one.

One of the links is to the standard starwars.com web site. The other is supposedly to an “exclusive” page for DVD owners. Maybe they’ve added to it by now, but when I checked it there was virtually nothing I couldn’t get on the regular site. Several of the links didn’t even work. In other words, don’t get excited about any kind of special content.

That doesn’t really sound like much does it? Keep in mind, though, that this is part of a Trilogy box set with a bonus disc full of stuff. I’ve written a review of the set as a whole if you want to know about the other extras. This disc is about quality rather than content. A strong 5* for The Empire Strikes Back.



Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 9 - 12