This third chapter of the Star Wars trilogy opens
on a dark note. Han Solo is sealed in carbonite and serves as a
wall hanging for the evil crime lord Jabba the Hutt. Soon Princess
Leia, Chewbacca and the droids also fall into Jabba's clutches.
Meanwhile, the Empire has nearly completed a bigger, badder Death
Star with which to crush the Rebel Alliance forever.
The big change is in Luke Skywalker. No longer a whiny,
insecure boy, Luke has traded his farmer's smock for the black
vestments of a Jedi Knight. Rippling with the Force, he comes to
Jabba's palace, makes light-sabre mincemeat of that nest of
depravity, and rescues his friends.
Returning to Dagobah, Luke's tutor Yoda tells him that his
training will only be complete after he challenges his father,
Darth Vader. Luke disagrees, feeling that it's not too late to
save Vader from the dark side of the Force.
Meanwhile, his cohorts launch a daring plan: to destroy the
under-construction Death Star orbiting Endor with the Emperor on
board. Along the way they enlist the aid of Endor's plump and
primitive natives, the Ewoks. Luke surrenders in order to
confront Vader, and becomes embroiled in a battle with the
Emperor to save himself and his father from the dark side. And
both the Death Star and Endor turn out to be better protected
than supposed, giving the rebels quite a hot reception. . . .
Still cool, but still cute
Although bursting with spectacular effects, The Return
of the Jedi is arguably the weakest film in the trilogy. Unlike
the first two, this movie radiates an awareness that it's part of
a pop culture sensation, and the actors likewise exude a smarmy
complacency. There's also an obvious effort to cute it up, as
evidenced by the teddy-bear Ewoks, a far cry from the raw, alien
feel of the Mos Eisley bar scene in Star Wars.
New footage in this Special Edition Jedi includes
a brand new musical number by a set of singers (some live,
some digital) at Jabba's palace. This scene is quite well
integrated with the original film, but also on the cute side.
The other big addition is at the end when viewers are shown, on a
variety of worlds, the newly-freed inhabitants of the galaxy
dancing and singing in the streets in joyful celebration. These
scenes give a good sense of the far-reaching repercussions of the
victory, and they look great.
Much of the original Jedi is still terrific. It's wonderful
to see Luke get his act together and start kicking butt. The
vile Emperor oozes treachery and malice. And the space battle
around Endor is a breathtaking ride; seeing it on the big screen
alone is worth the price of admission. These features and others
are more than enough to counterbalance the mistakes, and they make this
an excellent movie.
