What Made The Empire Strikes Back So Special?

Beware! There are some spoilers in this review!

(UPDATE: 17/10/21 - I had to change this article from having seven factors that made EMPIRE great to just nine.)

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away. There came a time when THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK didn't yet exist before George Lucas began pre-production after the original Star Wars movie came out on May 25 1977. He had his sights on doing the next chapter of the series, which continues the space adventures of Luke, Han, Leia, C-3PO, R2-D2 and Chewbacca in their struggle to fight against the tyranny of the Galactic Empire. During its theatrical run in May 1980, EMPIRE, while a smash hit, had a mixed reception from critics as some dismissed it while others applauded it. It then changed when THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK proved to be the best science-fiction film and the best not only in the original Star Wars trilogy but out of all the movies.

It is an analysis of my all-time favourite movie. I am coinciding with Star Wars Day. It's an appreciation day for Star Wars fans, and celebrations include cosplay, movie viewings, social media and other ceremonies. We'll look at nine factors that made EMPIRE so innovative and appealing to the present generation of fresh moviegoers. Forget what Lucas did to the original trilogy in these updated versions, not by changing the scenes like when Greedo shoots first instead of Han and adding new ones like the "Jedi Rocks" number. Since Lucas is no longer in control of his ultimate movie franchise, perhaps there is hope that the original versions will be released on Blu-ray before Disney can release Episode VII, whatever the date is.

Believe me, what you've just heard, I used to think EMPIRE was the weakest of the bunch. Because it was a dark movie with a bleak ending, I preferred Return of the Jedi as a lighthearted addition because I was too young to appreciate it. I didn't realise until now that I first learned that many fans considered it the best of the series. I've grown to watch EMPIRE through the years and now have a different opinion than when I first watched the film. I also realised that EMPIRE was the first Star Wars movie I ever saw and had brought me to the universe where there are Jedi, Sith, Ewoks, Wookies, droids, stormtroopers and lightsabers. I know by now that the movie is how it got me into the series.

A few characters like Yoda or the interplanetary worlds, such as the winter landscapes of Hoth, the swamps of Dagobah and even the floating Cloud City of Bespin, would not have existed if it weren't for EMPIRE. Then Darth Vader certainly wouldn't be Luke's father if it weren't for this scene that surprised audiences with this shocking plot twist.

#9. Han + Leia

Let us now take a look at the first factor of the feature, which is the romance between Han and Leia. Sure, this would be a better love story in EMPIRE. It beats the misguided attempt in the Attack of the Clones prequel, which, by far, has less experience in romantic chemistry. Even the line Anakin said to Padme, "I don't like sand," will not stop it from going unmoving.

This love/hate relationship works without the mediocre dialogue from George Lucas; it flows terrifically, and both characters are a perfect match for each other. Even in their moments, they argue and up to the scene where they profess their love. It is there that Han and Leia are in their last moments together, in which Leia says, "I love you," and Han replies, "I know," before being separated. That line wasn't in the original script but was suggested by Harrison Ford to the director as he believes his character Han should be the one to say it. I was about to mention that Luke should have been the one to fall in love with Leia if she weren't related to him.

#8. The Action

For moments of the film, we've seen the Battle of Hoth, the chase on the asteroid belt, and the first-ever lightsaber duel between Luke and Vader. These are all part of the action that keeps EMPIRE loaded with thrills to give us the edge of our seats. The Hoth battle scene is one of the most memorable pieces ever brought to the screen. It shows that instead of being an outer space battle like the original, where it took place on the Death Star, the visual effects team from ILM has taken measures to create a large-scale assault with hovering snow-speeders and giant AT-AT walkers.

#7. Yoda

In THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, we have characters that prove essential to the story, like Lando Calrissian and Boba Fett. Who can remember the little fellow who gives us wisdom and says the more important things like Yoda? Although creating characters in a live-action backdrop through CGI was not introduced until 1985, Yoda's creation was an extensive puppetry process. He serves as a seemingly odd but wise mentor figure to Luke. He often imparts his profound sentences to the protagonist when he teaches him his skills as a Jedi, for example, "Do. Or do not. There is no try."

Yoda remains one of the best iconic characters created for the Star Wars saga, and even in EMPIRE, he served as a plot device to Luke when learning the ways of the Force. Frank Oz did an outstanding job bringing the character to life through puppeteering and voice acting. It impressed George Lucas that, at one point, he tried to get Oz an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor through an advertising campaign that he spent thousands of dollars on, which was unsuccessful. The character's popularity ensured that Frank Oz would reprise his role in the later Star Wars movies.

#6. Boba Fett

One character I've already mentioned in the previous factor that's also added in EMPIRE is the Mandalorian bounty hunter known as Boba Fett. After being introduced in an animated segment of The Star Wars Holiday Special, the character would not make his screen debut until 1980. Despite being in a supporting role, Boba is a mercenary who is more of a silent and mysterious type in EMPIRE. Besides working for a notorious crime lord like Jabba the Hutt, part of his job description was that the Empire had hired him to track down the Millennium Falcon, which leads to the Cloud City of Bespin.

Like Yoda, Boba proved a fan favourite in the Star Wars series. The character also appeared in Return of the Jedi, where he met his unwitting defeat at the hands of Han Solo before being brought back into the expanded universe. He's even appeared in the Droids cartoon, comics, books, the prequel Attack of the Clones (which explains his origins), The Clone Wars series, and a few episodes of The Mandalorian got rid of the character's mystery.

#5. The Music

For every composition, John Williams is always a viable asset and is a necessity in Star Wars. Nobody will forget his memorable musical pieces on the official soundtrack that became a top-standard and sensational score with such standouts as the iconic "Imperial March" theme. The former was a brooding anthem to the Imperials. It represented their oppressive dictatorship and served as a character theme for Darth Vader. The rest of the instrumentals, like "The Asteroid Field", "Yoda's Theme", "The Clash of the Lightsabers", and "Han Solo and the Princess", were enough to create the tempos of a fantasy sci-fi feeling. The rapidity and the action-packed atmosphere are similar to what he had done in his work with its predecessor.

This one is in debate for the best of the Star Wars soundtracks. It depends on how you listen to the instrumentals of EMPIRE, A New Hope, or The Phantom Menace. It doesn't matter if you listen to all six of them as they are brilliant.

#4. Dark Tone

One of the factors that made EMPIRE intriguing was its moody atmosphere. It brings a feeling of danger and suspense that was not there in its predecessor. You'll be surprised to see the film's dark scenes, like when Darth Vader cuts off Luke's right hand when he bests him in the lightsaber duel before the unsettling plot twist, which we'll get on to number one later. Or when a hideous-looking snow bear called a Wampa attacks Luke and drags him back to its cave in the opening act. Or when Luke enters a mysterious cave and confronts a hallucination of Vader, which, in the aftermath, he sees himself behind the mask. These moments may be traumatic for younger viewers who have not seen THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. However, no exception includes the scene where Han suffers a fate far worse than death when he gets frozen in Carbonite to be a wall decoration for a crime boss to whom he owes money.

No wonder this film started a trend of sequels that took a dark turn, such as Back to the Future: Part II, Lethal Weapon 2 and George Lucas' own Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Nowadays, it feels tame compared to the other dark and mature Star Wars films like Revenge of the Sith, The Force Awakens, Rogue One and The Last Jedi.

#3. The Ending

Instead of ending happily, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK ends so differently from the rest of the Star Wars films that it concludes on a tragic note. It's one of the reasons I never liked it as a child. It doesn't help that the protagonists are left broken and defeated by the Empire, and the film is left open on a cliffhanger, which leaves viewers questioning whether there will be a next instalment that will soon resolve the conflict on both sides.

Some die-hard fans like writer/director Joss Whedon may not want to watch it win if they couldn't find the perseverance to recover from this depressing conclusion. I disagreed with what Joss said about the ending ruining the film. It's a very emotional and thought-provoking conclusion to a stunning movie.

#2. Direction & Writing

One of the reasons EMPIRE

is always the greatest of all the Star Wars movies is the direction by the late Irvin Kershner. And also the writing by the late Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan. Kershner agreed to direct the sequel when it became clear that George Lucas, overwhelmed by the production problems of the first film, didn't want to. While not known for many of his movies, even later ones like the non-Eon Bond outing Never Say Never Again and the Robocop 2 sequel. Whereas Lucas was more of a technological whiz and was not exactly an actor's director, Kershner did a significant enhancement and an exceptional job of turning the Star Wars film series from a pulp science fiction adventure into a character-based story. He even had a better impression of the acting by making the actors more comfortable and letting them deliver most of their lines straight from the script or improvised.

While George was the executive producer and heavily involved in the film's conceptual stage, he did write the story for the sequel (albeit uncredited for the scriptwriting). Leigh Brackett wrote the screenplay (until her death after completing the first draft). Lucas took over from her in re-writing the original script until he hired Lawrence Kasdan to revise it. Kasdan is more accomplished in making the narrative more character-driven and improving the character dialogue, which suits the film better to balance the humanity and sense of humour in certain scenes like these.

#1. "No, I Am Your Father"

Kicking off this top spot in the EMPIRE tribute is the father of all plot twists. This line said by the film's main antagonist, Darth Vader, was often misquoted as "Luke, I am your father" when it was actually "No, I am your father." Two years before the release of EMPIRE, rumours began to circulate that Darth Vader is Luke's supposedly deceased father. Eventually, the audience didn't see it until the next two years when they started watching EMPIRE and were unexpectedly shocked by this horrifying revelation. Nobody knew at the start that Luke was the offspring of the most feared Sith Lord in the universe. Some people who first watched the movie thought Darth Vader was lying to Luke in an attempt to join him on the dark side until the following chapter proves that he was telling the truth.

This rumour came from Dave Prowse, who was then playing the body of Vader, who thought it was a lucky guess in 1978 when they had barely written the screenplay for EMPIRE. It is during shooting that Prowse didn't use the scripted line. Instead, the script had a different line spoken by Vader to Luke that Obi-Wan killed his father to keep the big reveal a secret from everyone by the time they were filming the scene. It is changed in post-production when James Earl Jones (the then voice of Darth Vader) dubs over that scene of performing the actual line that's added to the film. Only three people knew about it, including Lucas, Kershner and Mark Hamill. This trivial fact has ended.

I can relate to the experience of this plot twist. It's one of these pivotal moments that catapulted EMPIRE to iconic status. Since then, other films and TV shows have parodied, referenced and paid homage to this twist, like Spaceballs, Toy Story 2, Austin Powers, The Simpsons, Family Guy, etc.

Conclusion

We may get this belief that THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK is the crown jewel of the enthralling action-packed science fiction saga that we grew up in endearment. It doesn't matter which version of EMPIRE I'm watching. I've got the altered version on DVD and Blu-ray and watched the original online. Anyway, this concludes my tribute to the fifth Star Wars chapter, and I hope to be back again to post my review for all of you. Stay tuned for further updates.

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