Star Wars

This is going to be a very special article for me. You see, the original Star Wars is by far my ALL TIME FAVORITE movie. There have been a total of three movies that have affected my life in such a way that i can't imagine  what I'd be without seeing them. The other two are The Godfather, and Rocky, but this one, this little ditty, this was the one that when I saw it for the first time it changed EVERYTHING. This is the movie that made me fall in love with cinema, that made me fall in love with writing, with mythology and storytelling, with philosophy. This movie changed my life when I saw it. I can't even tell you how many times I've seen it because to be honest I've seen it so much that i can watch it with my eyes closed. So if you don't mind l'd like to take you on a trip to "a galaxy far far away" to find out what makes Star Wars so great.

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away, the Galactic Empire is amidst civil war with a band of rebels bound to liberate the galaxy of the Emperor. Among these Rebels are two robots named R2-D2 and C-3PO who have been instructed by their Princess Leia to deliver an important disk featuring data on how to destroy a new secret weapon the Empire is developing. The duo escape just as the imperial general Darth Vader has boarded their ship. After crash landing onto a desert planet the robots find themselves in the ownership of young Luke Skywalker, a farm boy with dreams in the stars. He helps them find a man who may be able to help them named Ben Kenobi, only to learn that Ben has been watching over Luke all his life and now must help him and the robots in their cause against the empire like his father once did. Along the way, Luke will meet many strange and colorful characters as he travels through space finding an adventure far greater than he imagined, and a destiny he must fulfill. 

I'm going to get right to the point and say it; Star Wars is the greatest story ever told. Now before you roll your eyes at me, hear me through. I believe it is the greatest story because underneath all the lasers and beeps, and Chewbacca roars is the raw backbone of every story ever told. You see, when George Lucas wrote Star Wars he based it off of something called the monomyth: a concept created by anthropologist Joseph Campbell. It revealed that a majority of the world's stories whether they be theological, folkloric, or for entertainment purposes; all of them followed a specific series of steps which Campbell deem the "monomyth." It was from this template of human storytelling that Lucas was able to create the raw structure of Star Wars. Which ultimately is what Star Wars is; it's a study into the mechanics of our own storytelling. and when you really sit down and observe the elements thrown into star wars you can see that the entire thing is one big amalgamation of our mythologies, our folklore, and even our own history. Take one look at the colors and demeanor of the Empire and tell me you don't think of the Nazis. A young boy given a mythical sword by a bearded man in a cloak; just the basic description of the Arthurian legend. Men in armor saving a princess from a layer guarded by a evil black knight?  Sounds like a tale of Chivalry if you ask me. They go on from there. Everything about this film is based in some way on the stories we tell. That's why I love it. Luke is our young hopeful arthurian hero, Kenobi is our wizard,  Leia is the princess, R2 and 3PO are likes companions, and Han solo is the Swash Buckler. Everything about this film is based in our mythological history and maybe that's why this film is so beloved. It caters to our basic instincts of what a good story is and what makes a story work. 

The characters of Stars Wars almost don't seem worth even mentioning. We all know who they are, you can pretty much just look at any picture of Darth Vader and know who he is.  Luke is probably the most forgettable character in the film, but only because everyone else is so interesting in comparison. Obi-Wan is a great mentor type character. Carrie Fisher plays a really strong female character, considering she's in the damsel in distress role for the first half of the movie. Han Solo is just, well he's Han Solo, who the hell doesn't love Han Solo am I right… Han Solo. C-3PO is a character I never thought much of until i got to sit and watch it with someone who never saw star wars before she thought he was hilarious in a melancholy sort of way and it really made sense to me how this depressed butler character fits into everything. R2-D2 is the all time great side kick. He's the Maggie Simpson of Star Wars. Always silent but full of Attitude, R2- D2 is one of my all time favorites. But if we're going to talk about this movie, there is only one character we need concern ourselves with. One character who this movie could not be complete without. One character that Hollywood has constantly been trying to live up to since. Who is this character? None other than…

This Guy!

Dude! Darth Vader is the shit! The all time greatest bad guy ever, Vader just owns the camera when he's on screen everything is done with such confidence and certainty you can't help but fear this guy.  George Luca based his look on the concept of the evil knight, but wired ancient military armor into the mix as well. What makes Vader such a powerful character is the complete and utter lack of humanity built into his design. All black with an emotionless mask combined with the heavy artificial breathing there is nothing human about this guy which just helps make him more of a monster. 

So yeah, lets get to what everyone really likes about this movie: The action. The late 1970's was pretty much owned by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, who together made the three films that forever changed Hollywood. These films were Jaws, Indiana Jones, and Star Wars. And what was it these three films did? They pioneered the summer block buster. Because of their ability to reach out to a massive audience through action adventure while still holding an over all family feel. Spielberg and Lucas pretty much turned the summer into the most desired slot for film companies to release their products, and it's easy to see why. When Star Wars really gets going, which is literally within the first minute,  you feel more like you're involved in a roller coaster ride. The action is fun and the characters involvement is always enjoyable. For most of the film I feel a first timer would be on the edge of their seat as the action sequences are some of the best in the industry and have been emulated by others ever since. I think the best way to describe the action of this movie is to compare it to the first time I ever saw The Avengers. I remember bouncing up and down in my seat as if I were a seven year old kid. Just everything this movie has to throw at you is gold. 

I decided when I did this blog that I would not only review the Film itself but also its sequels. But since only the first Star wars has made the AFI Top 100 I will only review them as a small paragraph each. but since I'm doing this, I wanted to also talk about the series as a whole. A lot of people have found it difficult to figure out an appropriate viewing order for these films. Some people will watch them in numerical order, while some will watch the original first and then the prequels, and then most will just pretend the prequels never happened. I however have found a way to watch these films that not only makes sense but also makes the prequels more enjoyable I feel. Let me show you what i mean as review the movies in my viewing order.

So after Star Wars, came Empire Strikes back, which many consider to be the greatest of the Star Wars films. And I don't know. While I admit it is a masterpiece I don't quite think it's the best. I hold the first film to that standard. The film is rather slow compared to the first one, focusing more on Luke's attempts to become a Jedi Knight, while Han and Leia run from the Empire for 90 minutes. This isn't to say it's a bad movie by any means. The drama is fantastic, the character development takes the archetypical characters we were introduced to in the first one and makes them way more three dimensional and over all it's a great look into the inner struggle we all have with our darker urges. If ever there was a reason to see this movie, one scene in particular makes the whole thing worth while: The revelation at the end. You want to talk about famous last words, Darth Vader's revelation to Luke about his father at the end of the film is by far the most notorious and heart wrenching reveal in movie history. It blew people away in the theaters when they first saw it. Hell, even today it still shocks kids who haven't seen it. Take a moment to check out any video of some kid seeing that scene for the first time and you'll just see the terror on their faces as they realize the truth. It's just delightful.

This is where we switch gears for a moment. Instead of going right to return of the Jedi we're going to take a break and flash back to a time before the first film. The Phantom Menace, is considered by many to be a colossal disaster of a film. It was such a let down to many who saw. Some arguing that the acting was bad and the over all story itself. But we all know what everyone really hated.

This Guy!

Yeah Jar Jar Binks, the polar opposite of a beloved character in Star Wars terms. His Whacky antics, goofy voice, and over all presence just irked people when they saw him on the big screen. While I admit he is the worst character in the franchise, I never really thought much of him. He doesn't hold any real importance to the story line other than a quick scene towards the end of the film and he's pretty much easy to forget when he's not on screen. I guess when I was a kid, I was so enthralled with the idea of seeing a new Star War movie, I became apologetic to all the flaws because i really enjoyed this movie. I thought it was fun, I thought it was action packed, I loved the pod race scene. I get why the older fans hated it but I think Lucas was trying to reel in a younger audience who hadn't been exposed to the Star Wars yet.  Hell, I even enjoyed Luke's father: Anakin, played here by a child. Yeah, he's a bad actor but I kinda enjoyed the way he was written. Despite his innocence, you can tell there's a lot of emotion behind him which many characters say will be a major problem for him later on. Maybe not the best but it wasn't the nightmare that people say it was I'll save that title for …

for all the flack that Episode 1 received, I feel like Attack of the Clones deserved it more. This movie is just boring. I get what they were trying to do by making it formulaically like Empire Strikes Back. But what we get is a very drawn out conspiracy/ love story. On one side we have a young Obi-Wan trying to uncover the secrets of a secret army being built and its possible connection to a rebel confederacy. All the while, Anakin is pining over his childhood love. I think what makes it worse is that there really is a lot of important plot development in this film. So much so in fact that you almost have to watch it to understand certain things. It's an okay movie by film standards but it's definitely the worst of the Star Wars films. Which brings me to one of the best...

AWE YEAH! This is the star wars film we've all been waiting for. The one that answers all the questions, that brings us full circle. This is how the prequels should have been all along. There is so much I loved about this movie that I don't even know where to start. Aesthetically it's the most loyal to the original film but what aces it so perfectly is the greek tragedy feel of the whole piece. Anakin's struggle with his inner demons comes full force as he tries to save the ones he loves, only to ultimately lose himself. The reveal at the end of the film, while not shocking is definitely a crowd pleasing moment " noooooo!" aside. But man does this film hit home. The characters were great. The story is great. The look of the film itself is great. It's just an excellent piece and definitely helps lead up to the final installment perfectly. 

So here we are at the end of the road: Return of the Jedi , the final film in the franchise. Set two years after the events of Empire Strikes Back, Jedi follows Luke Skywalker as he must feel with the cataclysmic revelation of the previous film, and finally put an end to the Emperor's reign once and for all. The film is just one part of the greatness that is the original Star Wars Trilogy, and man does it deliver. Where Empire made these characters three dimensional, Jedi took those dimensions and brought them full circle. Always a good one, Jedi is the perfect conclusion to a perfect franchise.

I want to take a moment to talk about this movie from a personal perspective. I firmly believe that every person has a movie that strikes a certain chord with them. I think if you're lucky you'll find a piece from every single medium of art that will resonate some sort of personal reaction from you.  For me Star Wars was something a lot more than just a film about mythology and and big laser battles and sword fights. for me Star Wars' meaning to me was condensed into a single perfect scene.

Everything about this movie, everything I believed in was personified in a single glorious moment. A wide eyed kid staring off into the great mysterious unknown, dreaming of something more, something bigger than himself and everyone around him; constantly dreaming. To me, thats what Star Wars is all about. It's about that primal urge we all have to break free of our surroundings and to become a part of a great and wild adventure beyond our wildest dreams. In my life I'm grateful that  had the guts to pursue my dreams. Partly because of Star Wars I am who I am and I'll never forget the impact this movie had on my life.