A fun film...but take it eeeasy.

Rating: Null/10 (22 March 2000)

Star Wars is a very good movie.
This is often a dangerous thing to say, as there are very few admirers of Star Wars who -- well, I suppose it must be said -- do not go off the deep end with respect to this film. And so I will proceed with caution, but also with honesty.
For those three people who have been lost on an Antarctic expedition since 1977, Star Wars is the story of how young Luke Skywalker is recruited to help fight the evil Galactic Empire and its humanoid incarnation of evil, Darth Vader.
The excitement begins within the first few seconds of the movie and almost never lets up. The characters are fun and easily accessible: a naive young boy with a talent for flying speeders and shooting, a princess, a smuggler, a friendly giant from a strange planet, a wise old man, an evil knight, and a couple of robots thrown in for comic relief. There are spaceships and shoot-outs and gigantic space stations and even a Tarzan-like move or two. The plot is clearly laid out and the ending leaves little room for confusion.
Yet, despite my admiration, I can still think of a couple dozen movies I would rather see. Many people have been lost to the brainwashing that Star Wars is the greatest film ever made and that its "mythology" is unsurpassed in all of world literature. Neither is true. Star Wars is a good fantasy and a fine film, but somehow celebrating that, for many, isn't enough. It does what it is supposed to do and does it very well, but a tremendous burden has been placed on George Lucas's shoulders by salivating fans. I will admit that I am not as well-read as I'd like to be, but I can still boldly state that, for great mythology, thousands of other works (including films) are at fans' disposal which are more intriguing, yet just as much fun as Star Wars.

Come back into the light, my children, come back into the light.