The one that started it all

Rating: 9/10 (10 April 2020)

This was it, or introduction to the Star Wars universe, where we met one of the greatest villains of all time. I'm still on the fence of whether I find Darth Vader or Joker to be the better villain though. But this was it, the movie that was so groundbreaking that it changed the movie industry completely. The movie that Disney Studios initially turned down, only to buy the series for six billion dollars decades later. Bet they're still kicking themselves for that. Like most fans, I prefer the original version with the practical effects before George Lucas went back and added all those unnecessary and pointless graphics and scenes, like that horrible addition of Jabba, and the same goes for the rest of the trilogy. Han shot first by the way.
I had a rather unique experience when watching A New Hope for the first time. I watched it a few years before I saw Empire for the first time, so I was much younger than I was then. I don't remember why, but my father showed it to me in segments rather than a whole movie, so I initially thought it was a TV series like Star Trek until I was older. I still enjoyed it immensely though, even if I wasn't really sure what was happening throughout it plot-wise, and it will always hold a special place in my heart for introducing me to this world.
Of course, the movie has its flaws, just as all movies do, and some scenes haven't exactly aged well, such as the fight between Obi-Wan and Darth Vader, while seemingly really awesome when I first saw it, is basically just two old guys tapping sticks together. It really doesn't hold up well, especially when you compare it to the light saber fights in the later movies, particularly the prequel trilogy. And speaking of flaws, it seemed that so many people had a problem with the flaw in the Death Star, even going so far as to call it a plot hole. Apparently, it was such a big deal that Disney made an entire movie centering around it, but to me, it was never a problem. The flaw, while having big consequences, was so small and so outlandishly impossible to use against it that it took a space wizard to pull it off. Really, there's not much else I can say about the movie that hasn't already been said. It's just a great movie, and no matter which version of it I watch, I'll always find enjoyment in it.