Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)

Rating: 7/10 (27 November 2015)

I've finally come to the finale of the original trilogy, and although I still can't say I'm a huge fan of the franchise, I've really enjoyed all three of the original Star Wars films, even if there are glaring flaws that no one seems to talk about. Of the original trilogy, Return of the Jedi definitely has the most noticeable problems, but it does end the series in a suitably ambitious and entertaining fashion. In Return of the Jedi, the Galactic Empire is building a second Death Star to finally destroy the Rebel Alliance, and Emperor Palpatine is personally overseeing the project. The Rebel Fleet launches a full-scale attack onto the Death Star in order to prevent its completion and kill Palpatine. Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker attempts to bring Darth Vader out of the Dark Side of the Force. The action scenes in Episode VI are a bit more inconsistent than in the other movies, but I have to mention the speeder bike chase scenes. It's without a doubt my favorite scene in the series so far because it's so fast-paced, well shot and intense. It was definitely the highlight of the movie. One of the weaker action scenes was a bizarre set piece with the Ewoks. The entire scene was just awkward; I find it hard to believe that a primitive race of small hairy creatures armed with sticks could defeat the Imperial stormtroopers. Return of the Jedi also didn't improve on the cheesy father-son plot from The Empire Strikes Back. Watching Luke pitifully try to convince Darth Vader to step away from the Dark Side was groan-inducing. Nevertheless, the strengths of the Star Wars series are still on full display here. The utter imagination and detail put into the universe is incredible, and the film is just as exciting as its predecessors. Return of the Jedi isn't as competent as the previous films, but it is a satisfying and sporadically rousing conclusion.