The best sequel I've ever seen!

Rating: 9/10 (28 May 2004)

Movie sequels do not often improve the original film. In the science-fiction genre, there are however some exceptions. Movies like Aliens, X-men 2 and Bride of Frankenstein improved their already great predecessors (Many would add Terminator 2, but I won't, because I prefer small budget action-cyber-thrillers to big-budget bonanzas). The greatest sequel (I haven't seen Godfather II and I do not count Return of the King as a sequel) of all time is none other than the Empire Strikes Back.
As Star Wars was just an amusing little adventure flick with one-dimensional characters and a simple story, however well made and funny, ESB is a lot deeper in comparison. The characters have real emotions now and the universe is a lot more dangerous place than before. Just look at the Luke in the first film, who is sadder for the death of Ben, who he knew only two days, than he is after his aunt and uncle, who have raised him as their own son, die. Now, compare him to the Luke in the sequel, and his despair as Vader tells him his secret in the very famous scene. It's a shame Mark Hamill's career went only downhill from here, because he could've done some great "serious" acting (Oh, come on. He's playing the Trickster as Harrison Ford makes billions with each of his movies).
Fortunately, the humor has survived from the original film. Chewie, C3PO and Han vs. Leia tongue lashings still create giggles, but the funniest character is of course Jedi Master Yoda. It's brilliant how they could make a demented old muppet, who can't speak sentences with the right word order, a respectable icon of wisdom.
Although the humor, the story is a lot darker than in the previous film. Deception, death and war are constantly present, and come together in one of the best climaxes I've ever seen.
The Empire Strikes Back has almost everything that one could wish for; strange creatures, romance, humor, darkness (not the band you twit!) and epic fights both in space and on the ground. The only downside is, that the story is left unfinished in the end, but one could always see the next episode of the Star Wars saga, The Return of the Jedi right after finishing this movie. This one should be shown to cynics, who loathe science fiction. If this doesn't turn them into fans of the genre, nothing will.
10/10
The Best Part (SPOILERS):
Oh, there's so many to choose from! Some of my favorites are; the climatic lightsaber fight, Han Solo being dipped into carbonite, Millennium Falcon getting lost inside a giant space worm, the rebels succeeding in stopping the Walkers in Hoth with tying their legs together with rope and Luke fighting bogus Vader inside the tree of knowledge, killing him and seeing that the face behind the mask is really himself.