One of the first great 'epic' movies

Rating: 10/10 (7 March 2007)

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning
An unbelievable thirty years after it was first released, George Lucas's epic fantasy Star Wars still looks amazingly fresh and fantastical and has left an indelible impression on sci-fi fans and movie lovers, young and old, across the world.
I can't recite every name and thing about the film like your most ardent sci-fi nerd the film's inspired over the years, but the basic sketch of the plot can be described like this. Basically, the universe has been taken over by the Galactic Empire, lead by a treacherous Jedi Knight called Darth Vader (David Prowse- voiced by James Earl Jones) and his commander, a wicked emperor. Worse, they have built a devastating new weapon called The Death Star which could kill many people. The Rebel Alliance, lead by plucky Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) have been fighting back and she has stored some information in an android named R2-D2 (played by Kenny Baker?) which is actually a distress signal that must reach the reclusive warrior Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guiness.) Instead, the first to find out about it is a young man named Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill.) He becomes determined to bring the Empire down when they murder his family and eventually finds mercenary Han Solo (Harrison Ford) who, for a price, takes them on board to lead a battle against the Empire.
Whooo, that was quite a complicated plot summary for such a film. But it's detailed plot is probably what's spawned all the madcap fans over the years, who can recite every character and group of characters and moreorless everything to do with this film. It may be 30, but Star Wars can still be regarded as one of the biggest blockbusters of all time, a film that could even put some of today's modern blockbusters to shame. It's one of the biggest sort of 'epic' films ever, massive on spectacle and style, spawning some unforgettable characters including Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Obi Wan Kenobi, Darth Vader and, of course, the non-human characters Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2. While Ford's career blossomed after this, his co stars Hamill and Fisher weren't so lucky and mostly got work in low budget films, usually straight to video.
I can't make out I'm a Star Wars fanatic (as my rubbish plot summary should have proved) but I can still appreciate it for the classic action film it is and how it changed the face of the modern sci-fi film forever. Thirtieth anniversary fever starts here. *****