"Star Wars" is one of those rare events that
hardly ever happens; a cultural phenomenon that swept across the
film, earning the title 'most popular film ever made'. But even
aside from all that, this is just a perfect film where everything
works. You don't get magic captured like that too often. Even if
you're not in to sci-fi you'll probably like it. The genre is more
of a dressing for an age-old morality tale of good guys versus bad
guys, but jazzed up with some spectacular images and sound that at
the time no one had ever seen. Even now, after becoming de-sensitised
to excessive amounts of CGI and special effects work, there's
something about the way "Star Wars" did it that still packs a hell
of a punch.The opening shot of the
film just grabs you instantly; set to John Williams oscar winning
score, we are given an introductory title sequence setting the
scene of a fight between a rebel force and the evil Empire ruling
the galaxy. And then we get the first big shot which will still
knock you back in your seat; a pan down from the stars revealing
one big ship being chased by another planet-sized space ship.
Remastered now in 5.1 surround sound, they feel like they're
flying straight over your head and there's no wonder that when
audiences first saw that scene they started cheering. And it just
follows after that, scene after scene that will keep your eyes
glued to the screen for the two hour running time, including a
final twenty minutes that must go down as one of the most exciting
battle sequences every put to film.
For all its high-tech special effects
wizardry, which is spectacular on its own and worth the price of
admission, "Star Wars" has at its core an incredibly strong story
told through some very likeable and strong characters. George
Lucas spent six months getting the right combination of casting it
paid off in spades. Mark Hamill is perfect as the young, innocent
farm boy wanting to do his part against the evil Empire, Harrison
Ford is spot on as the smart-ass space pilot, and Carrie Fisher is
the perfect foil between the two as the bright, smart and
beautiful Princess Leia who won't be pushed over. But even the
supporting cast are great, some of whom make characters all on
their own despite never seeing their faces. Darth Vader, the
film's villain is one of the most famous in history, and yet his
performance was driven by two men, David Prowse (in the infamous
black suit) and James Earl Jones who provided the voice. Then
there's the droids, C3PO and R2D2, two bickering robots with a
heart of gold. It's a testament to Lucas that he was able to give
those characters such a strong presence on screen when they
probably shouldn't have worked at all.
"Star Wars" brought together two different
mediums and fused them together to make the "space opera". The
first is an old-fashioned coming of age tale and the second is a
sci-fi extravaganza. Lucas was able to bring both together, keep
all the best parts, and create something fresh and original even
though the core components have been called by some as elements
we've all seen before. But as Mark Hamill put it in one interview,
"sure we've seen this before... but not like this!"
"Star Wars" is spectacular entertainment. A
must see.
