Review of The Empire Strikes Back (1980) by Griff C — 17 Dec 2017

As much as I love A New Hope, it can't be said enough how great and important The Empire Strikes Back is. I say important because it changed and ultimately defined how we view the Star Wars saga. Before Episode V, Star Wars was "just" a really well crafted, fun space adventure, and there's nothing wrong with that.

It would have been so easy to merely recreate that for the sequel (not that this isn't a fun movie). However, George Lucas and Irvin Kershner gambled and crafted something different. The Rebellion's winning streak runs out here, as they royally lose this round against the Empire.

We spend a lot of time with Yoda learning about the Force, deepening our knowledge of it rather than coasting on what little we learned about it back in Episode IV. One of our main heroes' future is left in question by the end of the film when Han Solo is frozen in carbonite and taken away by Boba Fett.

Perhaps most importantly, everything we thought we knew beforehand is turned upside down when it is revealed that Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker's father (sorry if I spoiled a movie that's been out since 1980, but come on).

All of these elements could have blown up in Lucasfilm's face, but it paid off incredibly well. As with its predecessor, this is a lovingly crafted film. The story is great and fast-paced, if maybe not quite as quickly-moving as A New Hope.

The effects improve here, and still hold up today. The cast, again, is great, and give grounded performances that help us relate to characters that reside in a galaxy far, far away. The newcomers to the series are great, too, and though I normally wouldn't specifically address certain performances so my reviews wouldn't be too long, I would like to address Frank Oz's debut as Yoda.

If his puppeteering and voice work hadn't worked here, it would have taken viewers out of the movie and made it a lot less special. However, you believe Yoda is a living, breathing character, and he only adds to the film.

At the end of the day, The Empire Strikes Back was a huge risk as a sequel, but it was a risk that overwhelmingly paid off.