The Return of the Jedi
The movie, “The Return of the Jedi,” is the third in the first trilogy of Star Wars movies. When the movie first came out it easily became one of the most popular movies ever made and has helped to spread the ever-growing Star Wars fan groups. This movie is the sixth episode of an epic story with complex characters, a frivolous plot and diverse settings.
The characters play a significant role in this movie. The depth of the characters is immense. The sheer number of different characters and their effect on the feel of the movie is incredible. In the scene in Jabba the Hutt’s dungeon, after Luke Skywalker (played by Mark Hammel) kills the monster, “the monster’s keeper, a muscle-bound jailer, who rushes forward in tears” (Ebert 1). This not only shows how even the smallest characters can have an important role in any movie but also how much detail was put into every aspect of the characters. The Ewoks, though disliked by most fans, added a sense of homeliness to the movie. Their down-to-earth tone gave the victory on the forest moon, Endor, a special flair that showed that even the technologically debilitated could still have a good chance against technology. They offered comic relief to the film, making it more enjoyable, at least for a while. The android C-3PO is comparable to a goofy sidekick, as he is always getting himself into a tight spot so someone has to get him out of trouble. He seems to not be very sure of himself since, he is always questioning things that happen. C-3PO also never stands up for what he thinks are the right way to do things.
“The Return of the Jedi” suffers from a plot that strives to reach new heights but fails to accomplish this goal. The movie tries to ride the economic tailwind of the previous two films. The plot of the movie is just a continuation of the trilogy in order to tie up loose ends and finish the story before it begins to feel like a series. “…the plot had to solve the cliffhanger from the previous film and also finish the trilogy,” (Antulov 1). “Jedi” by itself is lacking a true stand-alone plot and it needs the other two movies to improve the quality of the film. The main inspiration of the plot seems to be bigger is better. With the introduction of the Death Star II, a new villain, and as many new aliens as could be thrown in, it takes away from any luster the film might have had left. Several instances in Jedi show that this film was pieced together just to make the story run smoothly and look nice. One such instance is the love triangle that Luke, Leia and Han are placed into. As the story unfolds, Luke and Leia learn that they are siblings and thus ended the problem of the triangle (Berardinelli 2). Another such problem, though it is not in the movie, is the Ewoks. When the first movie was being produced, George Lucas did not know if he would be able to make any more movies following the original “Star Wars”. Enthralled by the Wookies, Lucas put one as the co-pilot of the Millennium Falcon. With a Wookie as a technologically savvy character, Lucas felt that they would not fit the role of a non-technological society. So Lucas cut the Wookies in half and changed the name to Ewoks (Akin 1).
The Star Wars universe is filled with planets with all kinds of alien life forms. In “Return of the Jedi” we visit only a few of these planets, but these planets give a good example of what to expect from most of the others. The story begins on Luke’s home planet of Tatooine a desert filled planet laced with gangsters, moisture farms, and scattered cities. We first find our heroes in, the gangster, Jabba the Hutt’s palace. The movie also goes to a planet very different from Tatooine, the forest moon Endor where a great battle, for the safety of all planets, takes place. Although it is not a planet, the Death Star II plays a major part in the setting of the story. This planet sized space station houses a weapon of mass destruction capable of destroying entire planets.
In conclusion, although the movie “Return of the Jedi” have received mixed reviews, it still stands out as one of the greatest movies of the twentieth century. The name alone did not bring it here, Jedi’s excellent cast of characters, memorable plot, and vast array of settings carried this movie from a B class to A class.
Works Cited
Akin, James. “Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi.” 2002: 41 pars. 2 Dec. 2002 http://www.decentfilms.com/reviews/starwars6.html
Antulov, Dragan. “Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983).” 1998: 8 pars. 30 Nov. 2002 http://us.imdb.com/Reviews/159/15929
Ebert, Roger. “Review of Return of the Jedi.” 1983: 7 pars. 14 Nov. 2002 http://apartment42.com/jedi.htm
Berardinelli, James. “Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983).” 1997: 9 pars. 30 Nov. 2002 http://us.imdb.com/Reviews/70/7065
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