Return of the Jedi (1983)

Rating: 8/10 (13 December 2019)

Directed by Richard Marquand. Starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, Ian McDiarmid, David Prowse, Frank Oz, Alec Guinness, Caroline Blakiston, Warwick Davis, Kenneth Colley, Michael Carter, (voices) James Earl Jones, Larry Ward. (PG)
Third and final film in the original "Star Wars" trilogy opens with an effort to free Han Solo from the clutches of gangster Jabba the Hutt, then sends the heroes on a mission to confront Darth Vader and destroy the newly rebuilt Death Star. Visually spectacular outing has oodles of creativity, sensational special effects, child-like wonder, technical credits to put most other crews/films to shame, but it lacks the dramatic fireworks it strives for and mishandles its own priorities by stranding most of the main characters on a forest moon for half the film, far from the "real action" in the stars above. Performances lack zip (clunky dialogue does them no favors) and, cute as they may be, far too much time is spent with those furry little woodland teddy bears called Ewoks. The climactic lightsaber duel is underwhelming compared to the one in "The Empire Strikes Back," but the space station assault, despite having a familiar ring to the climax of "Star Wars," is still the most exciting and well-staged space battle the franchise has yet produced. A comedown after the heights of the first two episodes; nevertheless, a sporadically-frustrating-yet-generally-satisfying wrap-up.
77/100