This is an assignment for my English II Class believe it or not. Hope you enjoy!

Rating: 10/10 (2 November 2013)

Star War's Episode IV-A New Hope, holds a special place in my heart. I spent many days fantasizing and pretending to be the central hero of this film in the 1990's, and from the very first time I saw it I was hooked. Though this American classic was released in 1977, it can still be thoroughly enjoyed to this day by children and adults of all ages. Directed and written by George Lucas, A New Hope contains groundbreaking special effects and fantasy storytelling for its time. Believe it or not, these beautiful special effects that received so much praise in the space battles were done almost exclusively with small models attached to strings. It took Lucas Four years to complete this movie, from beginning the writing process, to seeing it on the big screen. The Star War's series was filmed and released out of order, this one being the first filmed, but being the fourth in chronology. The series continued in this fashion releasing the fifth, sixth, first, second, and finally the third. The all-star cast includes some of Hollywood's greats, including Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and the one and only, Harrison Ford. The movie and these actors received many awards including six Oscars, and earned a total of $220 million at the box office ($848 million in today's terms). However, this was no easy task. Director George Lucas and Cinematographer Gilbert Taylor did not see eye to eye. Constant arguments and differences plagued the entire production of this film, causing the production to fall two weeks behind schedule. Another big problem was the arrival of two large sandstorms destroying one of his sets. At one point, Lucas was even diagnosed with hypertension and exhaustion from the stress of it all.
The story follows Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), along with a couple of robot droids named R2D2 and CP3O, as well as a crew of friends that he makes along the way, on an adventure to save the rebel leader Princess Leia(Carrie Fisher) from the grips of the Imperial forces led by Darth Vader. After she is retrieved safely by Luke and his newly found pilot, Han Solo (Harrison Ford), the rebels proceed to plan a counter attack against the Imperialists and their partially completed space station, The Death Star. The Rebels suffer heavy losses in this attack, but thanks to Han's help, Luke is able to deal the finishing blow to the Death Star by firing two photon torpedoes down a vulnerable exhaust port leading to the station's main reactor. This is the climax of the movie, not to mention the most intense and over dramatic scene of the film. It is safe to say that you will be on the edge of your seat as Luke takes the final shot. At the completion of this first installment of the Star Wars series, Luke and Han are awarded for their heroism with medals of recognition from the Princess, and the credits roll, leaving the next big adventure for the following movie.
The main theme of this movie is the timeless struggle between good and evil, light and dark. Throughout the story, Luke is warned not to give into "the dark side", because with great power also comes great temptation. The dark side is referred to as being the easy way to gain power. Alternatively, the Light side is recognized as being able to become just as powerful, if not more so, but more difficult to attain and harder to achieve. Overall, the main moral of this story is inspirational; good will always win over the dark, but the path the good side has to take is often much more of a struggle.