Its one of those classics I never got around to watching. I started with episode V, which I kept in mind is the equivalent of starting with The Two Towers for LOTR. I tried starting properly with A New Hope before but never managed to get through twenty minutes.
The comparison with other sci-fi can't be helped. It does bear similarities to Star Trek, from the lightspeed travel (warp mode in Trek) to the charismatic all-American lead (though Kirk easily embodies both Han and Luke). Though its science is not as well thought out or as captivating. At their cores the two stories are about different themes, so the comparison is not apt. Star Wars is a very traditionally American underdog story (the Death Star is basically British, the allegory is pretty obvious), whereas Star Trek is really Utopian sci-fi, all about exploration and curiosity. I daresay Star Trek is much more universally appealing, especially to the female gender.
So Star Wars is not about fantastic new worlds or mind blowing technology. But its politics are not nearly as intricate as in say, Dune. Its a straight-forward story of a rebel force overcoming all odds and defeating the big evil dictatorship. And honestly its a bit of a mess between the explosions, unconvincing shoot-outs and Luke's inner struggle.
The biggest plot points have long been spoiled for me and for pretty much everyone not living under a rock, so the main 'twists' were no surprise at all, making the movie lose all suspense. I blame that for not even wanting to pay attention to the sixth and most exciting installment of this universally acclaimed series.
Filmography-wise Star Wars gives off that pirate-y feeling. The Jabba the Hut sequence was fantastic. The designs made some memorable characters, from Vader to Yoda to R2D2. The Ewokese really left something to be desired though, looking like furbies and speaking like racists mock-imitating Asians.
The almighty Empire, brought down by these furbies.
Why do most sci-fi favor either icy freeze-your-arse-off planets or scorched barren desert planets? Are there no in-betweens? Like moderately-weathered pine forest planets or all manners of climate Earth-like planets?
Also I know its an old movie,, but I don't recall seeing acting this stilted way into the 80s.
The sidekicks are not as endearing as the film makers think. Chewbacca's gurgle got repetitive and annoying real fast. Not to mention it never added anything to the film, only wasting time as Han second-hand interpreted the gurgle for the audience. The two robots were less so but getting there at the end of two hours.
kindly STFU
Vader's theme is absolutely kickass, no arguments there.
So all in all, this franchise never delivered the enchantment it promised. Maybe its because I watched them out of order (1, 3, 5, 6), or because I never finished the entire series, but at this point I have no intention to.
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