Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

*Originally published November 2015*

‘Return of the Jedi’ isn’t flawless, no film is. It tends to deviate from the main plotline quite a bit and even the first half hour isn’t entirely necessary. However many deviations are fun and action packed. Good thing too because this film can be a dark film at times. We can’t be sure that Luke won’t turn to The Sith, Yoda’s death is highly poignant and The Emperor is just pure evil. He absolutely radiates hatred. Even the Ewoks can be a tad sadistic, i mean they just turn. This makes the film even better in my eyes and one of the greatest conclusions of all time

AUTHORS NOTE

At the time this was written, we were on the cusp of ‘The Force Awakens’ which meant ‘Return of the Jedi’ was still the end of the Star Wars saga. Now here we are, months away from ‘Rise of Skywalker’ and this film still acts as a perfect bookend. The fate of our characters are wrapped up in a neat little bow and we get the happy ending that they deserve.

There is much I could say about the unnecessary additions from Lucas but one stands out the most- Force Ghost Anakin. Would I rather that Sebastian Shaw get the on-screen credit that he deserves? of course, but i understand why, for the sake of continuity, they would digitally replace him with Hayden Christiansen. To many people, everything started with the Original Trilogy but there is a generation who is growing up and watching them in chronological order, starting with ‘The Phantom Menace.’ Everybody has a different Star Wars experience, but if there is one constant opinion it’s this- ‘Return of the Jedi’ is a great conclusion for the saga. I would highly recommend picking up the 2004 DVD’s to experience the Original Trilogy in it’s original form.

Until Next Time…