Don't Underestimate The Force

Rating: Null/10 (18 December 2011)

What can I say about George Lucas's 'Star Wars' that hasn't already been said? It's one of the most authentically shot films, whether we're talking about visual effects, cinematography, sound, music, art direction and of course Lucas's direction. Perhaps this was the movie that tagged Lucas as one of the all-time greatest directors. Revisiting this movie more than twenty years later brought back a lot of memories. Obviously it has a lot of nostalgic value.
More than two decades after its release, Lucas attempts to make its prequels and the consequences are disastrous. With CGI dominating sci-fi films since the late 90s, the look of Lucas's later Starwar films (movies 1,2 and 3 made in the 90's and 2000's) could not match up to the early classics. They lacked the authentic look and atmosphere and suffered from poor editing. Most of all they were so boring (lacking in energy, lacklustre story, dreadful performances etc) that they failed to engage the viewer.
Coming back to the movie at hand, it is easily sci-fi action adventure at its best. It's rich in dialogue. The level of energy and tension is excellently maintained. Even the quieter scenes have you engaged with beautiful visuals and what's also amazing is how simple they are, no complex or intricate designing but at the same time very detailed.
The characters are a delight. The casting is solid. Harrison Ford is charming and funny as the laidback and slightly self-centered Han. Carrie Fisher redefines bring a princess in films. Before that, princesses were cast as damsels in distress. Mark Hamill captures Luke's innocence and essence very well. Peter Mayhew, James Earl Jones, and Alec Guiness are great. Aside from the human cast who portray the characters so well, who could forget C-3PO and R2-D2 (voiced brilliantly by Anthony Daniels and Kenny Baker)?
I could keep going on and on but I'll leave it here to watch 'Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back'. So long...