# 10
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
1980
Directed by: Irvin Kershner
Written by: Lawrence Kasdan and Leigh Brackett
Story by: George Lucas
Cinematography by: Peter Suschitzky
Edited by: Paul Hirsch
Music by: John Williams
Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams and Frank Oz
I hope nobody is upset that this classic blockbuster only made it to number ten on my list. It probably seems like more of an insult than praise to many people. Don't get me wrong, I love this movie. It has been a part of my life longer than any other movie on this list. Those who see any of the original Star Wars movie as kids know that the movies stay with you forever. And you can probably quote every scene without too much trouble. As much as I love it though, I could not justify placing it higher than number ten. Maybe the other movies don't match the scope and popularity of The Empire Strikes Back but they are all a lot more thought provoking and deserving of a higher ranking. I owe an explanation.
The whole Star Wars saga is a pastiche. It is an imitation or a copy of other stories, whether they be in movies, television or comics. Think about it in the university setting. George Lucas is just copying and pasting pieces of articles and essays by renowned academics in order to write his own paper. That would be considered plagiarism at university. This is essentially what he did when writing Star Wars. George Lucas is very open about paying tribute to his influences, but I think there is a bit of a problem when you copy something so closely, and the similarities are startling. For example, the basic characters of the movies are all taken from the Flash Gordon comic series. Also, of my favourite things about The Empire Strikes Back is Cloud City. As a child, the city floating in the clouds fascinated me and was one of my favourite things about the movie. What an imagination Lucas must have had. Or so I thought. Unfortunately, that idea too came from Flash Gordon. I can't help but think that there's something sleazy about pretty much taking credit for someone else's work. All of the influences are listed on Wikipedia if you want to look at them for yourself: . Now you may say it's homage, which of course is completely acceptable. It's possible to pay homage though without copying story lines and re-shooting famous scenes shot for shot though - see Tarantino.
Anyway, I didn't put The Empire Strikes Back on my list to rant about how much I hate Star Wars. I love Star Wars and this is definitely the finest of all of the installments. Notice that Lucas is only credited with the story too. Like the other Star Wars movies, this one has amazing interstellar scenes coupled with the amazing score by John Williams. Together they take you to a place that really feels like a galaxy far, far away. This asteroid field scene is a great example of this:
More than A New Hope in The Empire Strikes Back I think you really begin to identify with the characters a lot more too. The movie has a powerful emotional punch to go along with it. In particular as Han Solo and Princess Leia, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fischer do a great job of showing their budding romance throughout the movie. It's really fun to watch them go through all of the stages from hate to love. And this makes it all the more heartbreaking when they are separated after their first kiss in another classic scene:
Apparently the script had Han Solo replying with, "I love you too." So the story goes, Harrison Ford thought it was too cheesy and ad libbed on the spot with, "I know." Much more memorable.
Another reason why many people (including me) think this is the best of the trilogy is that it ends on such s down note - see Kevin Smith. Han's frozen in carbonite, Darth Vader is Luke's father, Luke lost his hand, the rebels are on the run, etc. When the movie first came out in 1980 it received mixed reviews. I imagine that many people were upset with the cliffhanger sad ending. Nowadays though, that is one of the main reason's that it's considered the best of the trilogy. The Empire Strikes Back may be pastiche but it's still a fantastic movie and will always have a special place in my heart. Whoops, sorry, I forgot to include the spoiler alert. If you haven't seen this movie though, you are not reading my blog. No worries. Here's that great final scene to end this installment:
The whole Star Wars saga is a pastiche. It is an imitation or a copy of other stories, whether they be in movies, television or comics. Think about it in the university setting. George Lucas is just copying and pasting pieces of articles and essays by renowned academics in order to write his own paper. That would be considered plagiarism at university. This is essentially what he did when writing Star Wars. George Lucas is very open about paying tribute to his influences, but I think there is a bit of a problem when you copy something so closely, and the similarities are startling. For example, the basic characters of the movies are all taken from the Flash Gordon comic series. Also, of my favourite things about The Empire Strikes Back is Cloud City. As a child, the city floating in the clouds fascinated me and was one of my favourite things about the movie. What an imagination Lucas must have had. Or so I thought. Unfortunately, that idea too came from Flash Gordon. I can't help but think that there's something sleazy about pretty much taking credit for someone else's work. All of the influences are listed on Wikipedia if you want to look at them for yourself: . Now you may say it's homage, which of course is completely acceptable. It's possible to pay homage though without copying story lines and re-shooting famous scenes shot for shot though - see Tarantino.
Anyway, I didn't put The Empire Strikes Back on my list to rant about how much I hate Star Wars. I love Star Wars and this is definitely the finest of all of the installments. Notice that Lucas is only credited with the story too. Like the other Star Wars movies, this one has amazing interstellar scenes coupled with the amazing score by John Williams. Together they take you to a place that really feels like a galaxy far, far away. This asteroid field scene is a great example of this:
More than A New Hope in The Empire Strikes Back I think you really begin to identify with the characters a lot more too. The movie has a powerful emotional punch to go along with it. In particular as Han Solo and Princess Leia, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fischer do a great job of showing their budding romance throughout the movie. It's really fun to watch them go through all of the stages from hate to love. And this makes it all the more heartbreaking when they are separated after their first kiss in another classic scene:
Apparently the script had Han Solo replying with, "I love you too." So the story goes, Harrison Ford thought it was too cheesy and ad libbed on the spot with, "I know." Much more memorable.
Another reason why many people (including me) think this is the best of the trilogy is that it ends on such s down note - see Kevin Smith. Han's frozen in carbonite, Darth Vader is Luke's father, Luke lost his hand, the rebels are on the run, etc. When the movie first came out in 1980 it received mixed reviews. I imagine that many people were upset with the cliffhanger sad ending. Nowadays though, that is one of the main reason's that it's considered the best of the trilogy. The Empire Strikes Back may be pastiche but it's still a fantastic movie and will always have a special place in my heart. Whoops, sorry, I forgot to include the spoiler alert. If you haven't seen this movie though, you are not reading my blog. No worries. Here's that great final scene to end this installment:
For being the best of an amazing trilogy and a great sci-fi ride, Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back is in my opinion the 10th greatest movie of the 1980s.
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