The most highly anticipated sequel of all time

Rating: 10/10 (8 June 2005)

And damn if it didn't deliver the goods and a helluvalot more. It is so dark in theme it almost enters horror flick territory and that is brilliance in and of itself to go from one extreme to the other so fluidly and poetically. It worked in a way that The Temple of Doom just didn't with moviegoers. I suppose that was due in part to the cool suspenseful plot developments, particularly Yoda, Han and Leia's budding romance, but largely due to the Earth-shattering "the world is not flat it's round" surprise ending. I would bet when George Lucas wrote that scene down on paper he must have been either laughing maniacally and saying "Nobody could ever have seen that coming in two billion light years!" or crying with joy all the while with the one idea that "This will be so golden that it will be remembered til the end of time and even after that." As Hamill said so eloquently, "In the Empire Strikes Back, everyone has problems. Luke has problems, Leia has problems, they turned Han into a coffee table!" I must also include Silent Bob's quote "She says 'I love you.' and like a pimp he says 'I know'." It was the equivalent of dropping burning napalm on the audience. They must have been more stunned than people leaving the theaters after seeing the Exorcist for the first time. It was pure 100% movie magic and worthy of the original in every aspect.