Disappointing, overrated but still good

Rating: Null/10 (15 August 2003)

After the deep impact of Star Wars and the greatest in the genre that I have seen in Empire, Return of the Jedi is a major disappoinment but hardly a bad film. The opener in Jabba's palace is excellent but the middle act is rather boring. I won't beat up the poor Ewoks anymore then they already have been beaten up but I must also be counted in the "this was a big mistake" department. Seeing Wookies (the original idea) throwing Stormtroopers around would have been the battle to end them all but we don't get it. Indeed the presence of the Ewoks symbolize the major problem of the movie, it's utter lack of seriousness in many places. After the near apocalyptic feel of Empire, this is just too much of a letdown. On the positive side, the battle between Luke and Vader is great, symbolic and intense and the space battle is still the coolest and best overall space fight sequence I have ever seen. It's the major joy of this film and it delivers BIG TIME. Overall a major let down because the Endor sequence is just too hokey. The rest is largely overblown because the Endor sequence occupies too much of the middle. Still beats Episode One and Two by a mile.