Fox
Home Video | Review by Dan Taylor
What can you say about a film
that shaped a generation, virtually invented
the world of movie tie-ins, launched the
career of Harrison Ford and changed
the way science fiction was cinematically
played out for the rest of time? Have the
years treated one of the true classic blockbusters
of the 1970s well? Or, have the evolution
of special effects -- brought about by this
very film -- made us jaded to the melodramatic,
cliffhanger-like soap opera from space?
To tell the truth, I wasn't
sure going in. We avoided the Friday night
opening crowds, correctly predicting sold-out
shows and scary STAR WARS nerds that would
turn the thing into the second coming of
THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. As it was,
we still waited in line (with tickets
no less) for nearly an hour, and endured
insufferable "boos," applause,
and whispers of "hey, is that new footage?"
from the wiry geeks to our rear. (Frankly,
they were more welcome than the portly parents
that sat directly in front of us, pinning
my friend and me into our seats like farm-raised
veal. But, I digress.)
It goes without saying that
STAR WARS remains a great piece of manipulative
filmmaking courtesy
of George Lucas. Despite a personal mark
of 20+ viewings, I still marvel at the film's
pacing, and ability to create fairly one-dimensional
characters that we care about nonetheless.
Hell, you know the Death Star battle by
heart, but it still gives me a jingoistic
rush every time the Millenium Falcon darts
from the skies above and paves the way for
victory. (Han Solo was my boyhood idol,
and my fascination with the character marked
my first attempt at self-publishing in the
form of a rather crude, 11-year old fanzine/love
letter to the character... a recent perusal
scared me more than a little.)
But the big question at hand
is the "Special Edition" handle
tacked onto the flick. Had Lucas truly improved
the look and feel of the film -- without
disrupting its innate qualities -- or, had
we been subjected to cheap chicanery designed
to pry $8.00 from our wallet to finance
the next spate of SW flicks? I think it
depends on who you talk to.
Personally, I welcomed the
opportunity to see the flick on the relatively
big screen again, complete with digital
sound, enhanced explosions (certainly more
nuclear-looking than the 1977 effects allowed),
and some long-rumored footage. Though the
scene between Han Solo and a computer-enhanced
Jabba the Hut has a certain trivia value,
it adds little more than an opportunity
to show bounty-hunter Boba Fett before his
appearance in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. And,
while other scenes appeared lengthened or
fleshed out, I'd have to check out my laserdisc
of the original before commenting.
What I did find troubling
was Lucas's use of digital technology to
add "eye candy" to various scenes,
such as the Mos Eisley spaceport, and the
sands of Tattooine as the Imperial Stormtroopers
search for C3PO and R2-D2. The added background
creatures had a disturbing tendancy to move
constantly, almost throwing up their
arms/tentacles/tails while saying, "Look
at me! Did you notice me?! HEY! I move!!
LOOK! I'm moving...you've never seen ME
before!" Distracting? Yes. Annoying?
Yes. Did they take anything away from the
film itself? Certainly not.
One wonders what tampering
will be evident during EMPIRE and JEDI,
though I doubt I'll be in as much of a rush
to see them. While EMPIRE remains my favorite
of the three as a "film," I know
that I can always watch the laserdisc. As
for JEDI...that's one glorified Muppet movie
I can miss.
