Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi Review

The Case

Okay, we're all familiar with the legendary, and sometimes infamous, Star Wars films.  We've all seen the movies - and if you haven't, I demand you stop reading and go watch them NOW! - we've all heard the quotes, we've all used the phrase "May the Force be with you."  Wait - doesn't everyone use that phrase in everyday conversation...? 

Uh, anyway, what I'd like to do here is rank the six SW movies in order from "The Best Flick of all Time That Makes Me Weep With Joy Every Time I Watch It" to "Oh My God, What The Heck Is This Abominable Monstrosity of a Thing and Why Does It Have The Name 'Star Wars' Attached To It?!"  For simplicity's sake, I'll refer to my ranking system on a numerical scale for the rest of this review.

Star Wars Movies - From Best to Worst:

#1 - Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
#2 - Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
#3 - Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
#4 - Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
#5 - Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
#6 - Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Episode VI: Return of the Jedi

Regarding the original Star Wars trilogy (Episodes IV, V, and VI): I love them.  I have watched them all too many times to count, beginning at the age of 3 and continuing on until the present.  They're so enjoyable, and they deserve to be viewed as often as possible!  In my mind, the prequel trilogy is blasphemous and doesn't live up to the Star Wars name, so skip it if you haven't already been exposed to its depravity.  Just watch the originals.  And by that I mean the REAL originals, not the Special Editions.  Han shot first, man.  It's a fact of life!)

The Good

This is the end of the road for our plucky heroes and their courageous adventures.  Unless you read the novels.  Then the story continues for another 40+ years.  But, in cinematic terms, it's the last installment of our favorite space saga in that galaxy far, far away.  And thankfully, Return of the Jedi holds true to the legacy and retains that awesome Star Wars feel.

I particularly enjoy the redemption factor in Jedi.  The final climactic skirmishes - both the space battle at the second Death Star and the jungle war on Endor - deliver great special effects and heroic moments, but the real ending is the change in Anakin Skywalker.  He renounces the evil that has consumed him for most of his life and saves his son, dying in the process.  Yeah - Vader gives good redemption!

And, of course, Ian McDiarmid as Emperor Palpatine is exceptionally wonderful - his character in Jedi exudes evilness in a way he never quite manages to do in any of the prequels.  The Force lightning is sweet, too, one of the many great special effects.  The speeder bikes were my favorite.  For some reason, I just love that high-speed chase!

The Bad

Unfortunately, though Jedi did deliver on a wide variety of fronts, it didn't quite hold up to the likes of A New Hope and Empire.  The main reason for this is Ewoks.  You know, they're cute, but they're not at all good for this movie.  They're basically primitive teddy bears.  And yet, they manage to defeat - and I quote - "an entire legion of [the Emperor's] best troops."  Really?  Wow.  Teddy bears?  These little guys were a big mistake.  C'mon, George, these aren't the characters you're looking for...

Another thing that doesn't quite float my sail barge is the illustrious Jabba The Hutt.  Oh, don't get me wrong, I love to hate Jabba.  Honest.  And I liked a lot of the action scenes revolving around Jabba.  The rancor, the Sarlacc, the scary torture droids and the thermal detonator - all great stuff.  I guess the whole opening just felt really separate from the rest of the movie to me.  Like filler or something.  It's good on its own, but viewed in the big picture, it doesn't quite jive with the rest of the film.

I don't know.  Seems like a weak argument now that I wrote it...I'll just fall back on the horridness of the Ewoks to justify my rating!  Let's face it, they get the job done all on their own.  Yub-yub!

The Verdict

Four stars!  Episode VI: Return of the Jedi is a satisfying conclusion to a spectacular series!