To Infinity And Beyond?

As often discussed a great many times on this blog, in relation to films that have naturally proceeded another and have continued a story that many cinema-goers admired the first time around, one of the hardest feats a franchise has to uphold it terms of its continuation of attracting audiences attention is its ability to produce and exhibit sequels that are ultimately worthwhile to remember and re-watch on several occasions. Indeed, what’s arguable to perceive in a lot of sequels you all may have seen in your own lifetime are filmic continuations that display a prolongation of a story that doesn’t necessarily coincide with the adhered efforts of the first film and/or previous features. Franchises such as the 1990’s Batman series, Ridley Scott’s deplorably set of awful Alien features and even Jaws, with Joseph Sargent’s third film of the horror-thriller of the famous man-eating shark that took too much of a bit to chew and swallow, are evidence of sequels somewhat tarnishing a legacy that devotee’s immediately adhered to from the get-go. In order for a sequel to emanate success from both a critical and box-office point of view, one of the assets to uphold is to portray a story that amalgamates the necessary new aspects, while also being to able to akin familiarities that made the first film so enjoyable in the first place. This is something which Irvin Kershner’s Star Wars follow-up of The Empire Strikes Back emulates immaculately. However, as subjective as this praise may seem of an arguably influential sci-fi film by general audiences and devotees alike, is it careless of myself to overly hype Empire to the point where I’m awkwardly enveloping my devotion to the franchise itself?…

After receiving a vision from Obi-wan Kenobi and fleeing the ice world of Hoth with his friends after an Imperial attack, Luke Skywalker travels to the marsh planet of Dagobah, where he is instructed in the ways of the Force by the legendary Jedi Master Yoda. Meanwhile, Han Solo and Princess Leia make their way to planet Bespin, where they are greeted by Han’s old friend, a shifty gambler named Lando Calrissian. Ambushed by the Empire shortly after their arrival, Han and his friends are imprisoned by Darth Vader. Luke leaves Dagobah to rescue his friends, and is met by Vader and a startling revelation…

Critically agreed by most to be the shining grace to George Lucas’ initial trilogy, Empire marks enormous progression both in terms of the contexts’ mythos and the film-making quality that is still to be admired today. It subtly retains the cheerful space-opera feel of the previous and successful endeavour whilst implementing of contextual mode of means that plunges into the realms of despair and surrenders more completely to the underlying mystery of its story and characters. No longer ‘shackled’ by the obligation to establish this effervescent and pioneering universe wrapped in the arcane mysticism of the Force and a variety of bizarre looking creatures that come in all shapes and sizes, it’s a continuation from the outset that is far more sophisticated, awe-inspiring and daring than A New Hope and uses its own fantastical iconography’s to inaugurate a narrative that is far more sinister and consequential to the central characters. From Luke being told by Obi-Wan’s ghostly presence to learn more of the Jedi arts by a scheming yet melancholic Yoda to Han and Leia’s adventures taking them to one “fly-boy’s” old friends in Lando, who ultimately deceives them thanks to the omnipotence of the Empire and Darth Vader, the characters in which we were infatuated with and relatively related to in the previous filmic entry are now naturally faced with dooming cross-roads that have impacted the said individuals and this is thanks to the films healthy knack of splitting the narrative into different perspectives; one where we see Luke’s journey and one where we perceive Han and Leia’s space escapade. While it would be ignorant of me to the refute Empire’s threaded and much needed comedic segments that help levitate the malevolent tension, notably seen in the banter that Han has with Leia on numerous occasions and Yoda who’s mischievousness riles-up both Luke and R2-D2 on Dagoba, it’s equally hard to disregard Lucas’ natural right to employ needed darkness in this continuation. This is further escalated through Lucas’ exploration and dubiousness of the Force. On Dagobah, where Luke is tutored in Jedi philosophy by the rubbery icon-to-be Yoda, the notion of the Force turns from the simple good/bad divide of Star Wars into a sea of moral ambiguity in which Luke becomes dumbfounded yet infatuated in facing what appears to be Darth Vader or…himself? In the film’s (and arguably the series’) most complex and sort-after sequence, Luke descends into a metaphorical mind-trip, a representation of his unacknowledged inner fears. Here, he confronts Darth Vader and discovers his face beneath the mask. Way beyond the comical high-que’s and grandiose space-battles that are ruptured by John Williams’ sumptuous musical score, this is certainly dark contextual material and while many audiences rightly see Star Wars as a fun cinematic franchise to escape to, it’s equally a movie universe that is infernal and mysterious. This point is beautifully enveloped and somewhat resolved through Luke’s true confrontation of the famous villain that see’s us witnessing one of cinema’s greatest revelations. Masterfully choreographed, their duel culminates on a thin gantry protruding out over the vast depths that are the hollow core of the Cloud City. Visualised to a tremendous degree, the terror in which Luke ultimately faces encapsulates the said hero’s previous disorientation and horror of Vader’s truthful words. Significantly, Luke chooses death over the outstretched hand of the dark side and is eventually born again as a Jedi.

Entirely apart from the severity of the story in which these lovable characters wholeheartedly face, Empire bestows an appetising grandeur that many previous Star Wars can’t hope to even rival. While there aren’t any hurtling chases through the high walls of the Death Star in the previous venture, there’s spectacle in the said universes subtly and how much more depth there is in terms of what we seen within the futuristic mise en scène. From the addition of the elephant-esque Imperial Walkers (was ever a sci-fi weapon more impractical?), to the transcendent look of Cloud City that pitted the central characters in a distinctive utopia that had never been seen before in film and even the expressive facial expressions of Yoda whose are as convincing as Boris Johnson, there’s admiration for the many settings in which Lucas has constructed and is a significant improvement from the endeavours of the first film; which featured very little in locations. There is a generosity in the production design of Empire. There are not only the amazing sights there before us, but plenty more in the corners of the screen, or everywhere the camera turns. The whole world of this story has been devised and constructed in such a way that we’re not particularly aware of sets or effects. Consider, for example, an early scene where an Empire “probe droid” is fired upon on the ice planet Hoth. It explodes. We’ve seen that lots of time. But then hot pieces of it shower down on the snow in the foreground, in soft, wet plops. That’s the kind of detail Lucas and his team live for.

As within the story progression of A New Hope and while Empire bestows to its audiences a darker narrative that naturally challenges the characters that we respectively adore, it’s the performances of some of these individuals themselves that equally propel the film along and never feels as though it’s a slog to perceive. As strange as this may seem, the character/performance which projects Empire in an esteemed light compared to the many other Star Wars features, is the wisdom and emotion that Frank Oz permits in Yoda. Despite being this rather freakish off-spawn of The Muppets, Lucas and Oz brought to a life a creature that wasn’t only realistic through it’s puppetry, but also through the acting and the variety of emotional tones that the aforesaid Jedi brings to the narrative and Luke. In his range of wisdom and emotion, it’s arguable to suggest that Yoda actually gives the best performance of the films entirety. Much of the same can be said of Carrie Fisher’s and Harrison Ford’s chemistry as their respective characters romantically bond throughout the course of their adventure. While’s there’s no hiding the fact that the said actors did share a romantic affair with one another, as said by Carrie Fisher in her autobiography, it’s clear to see this amorous affection bloom on the silver-screen since the two bounce back-and-forth with flirtatious and quippy retorts; subsequently resulting with Han and Leia professing their love for one another once Ford’s character gets dunked to be frozen in carbonite. Like with the addition of Yoda, Empire revels in including a few characters that have adhered to the hearts of devotee’s ever since. While you have the likes of Lando who visually permits a natural swagger that no Star Wars character can match, you also have the likes of Bobba Fett; a bounty-hunter who, like the thematics of the narrative, exudes a mysticism that is desperate to be unsheathed and developed.

In the glory days of science fiction, critics wrote about the “sense of wonder.” That’s what The Empire Strikes Back creates in us. Like a lot of traditional science fiction, it isn’t psychologically complex or even very interested in personalities (aside from some obvious character traits). That’s because the characters are not themselves–they are us. We are looking out through their eyes, instead of into them, as we would in more serious drama. For sure, it would have been easy for Lucas and director Irvin Kershner to exhibit a narrative that followed too closely to the light-hearted and adventurist nature of A New Hope. However, the fact that this continuation inherently opts to delve deeply into the gritty and dark undertones of this beloved universe is more than appreciated and it’s because of this melancholia and grandeur that we get to see central characters change from what we knew them as in the first outing. It’s because of this harrowing obscurity of the Force and Luke’s un-tapped fears whilst training to become a Jedi and face Darth Vader that I personally adore Star Wars so much, and why Empire is seen as the pinnacle; since we’re in a receptive state like that of a child–our eyes and ears are open, we’re paying attention, and we are amazed…

On that note, it’s time for me to end this week’s Film Review. As always everyone, thank you for reading my latest Film Review of  The Empire Strikes Back and if anyone wants to share their thoughts on the film or review itself, then you’re more than welcome to comment down below. For next week, I’ll be discussing the next Star Wars film, Return of the Jedi, and seeing how the third and final film of the original trilogy concludes its story and whether or not the resolution is as satisfactory as other conclusions in other film franchises! With that said, thank you once again for reading my latest Film Review and I hope you’re all having a nice weekend! Adieu! 😃🚀 👾☄️🌌⚔️

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ – Alex Rabbitte