A Generation's Favorite Movie

Rating: Null/10 (12 March 2001)

Star Wars is so embedded in pop culture that reviewing it like any other movie would be to undermine its impact. It's a science fiction spectacular in the tradition of old Saturday morning serials, but with amazing special effects that revolutionized film as we know it. It's character list reads like a pop cultural glossary: Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, Obi-Wan Kenobi... These aren't just characters, they're institutions. We hear these names and immediately remember the magic that Star Wars brought to an entire generation. It's bigger than creator George Lucas and star Harrison Ford combined; and it has spawned the largest fan base since Elvis or the Beatles. The film's qualities, the wonderfully imaginative people and places, the lightsaber duels, starfights and cryptic "force", all contribute to a movie and a phenomenon so popular that it can never really live up to its own hype, but comes darn close.