A Great story, well-told

Rating: 10/10 (31 May 2005)

It is impossible for me to comment on this movie without looking at the series as a whole. With this movie, all the pieces fall in to place and the story comes full circle. Despite the fact that pieces of some of the movies didn't work and other pieces were fluff seemingly added to sell toys to little kids, I left the theater after viewing this movie thinking, 'wow, what a great classic story!'. Much like a Greek epic or a Shakesperean tragedy, the underlying story grabs us and transcends the time and place where the story unfolds.
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, a boy lives in slavery on a remote planet. He is destined for great things and legends say, he might even be the chosen one that will free the galaxy of evil and bring the force into balance. The boy falls in love with the girl who helped free him from slavery but because of their commitments to others, their love is forbidden. They fall in love and get married anyway. The man that the boy becomes is well on his way to becoming the chosen one that is spoken of in the legends but because of his fatal character flaw, his lust for power, he turns to evil. In doing so, he unwittingly betrays and destroys both the woman he loves and all his ideals. The woman dies because of his betrayal but not before she gives birth to his two children. Both children grow up and are destined to fight against the evil that their father has become. The son battles against the father and is about to be destroyed but the father's love for his son leads to the father's redemption. The father fulfills the legends at last by defeating evil and bringing balance to the force.
Without the details, the story could be the outline for any classic epic. Much has been said about how Lucas ushered in the era of the blockbuster where movies resemble thrill rides more than story-telling but the final installment shows us that thrilling as they might sometimes be, it was all about the story all along. It's old-fashioned, camp-fire, oral tradition, myth-making story-telling at its best which is what all the great movies, plays, literature are all about. Do yourself a favor and watch the two prequels before seeing this movie and then try to watch the originals after seeing it. The parts are often spectacular but the sum is much greater.