Yes, I know the prequels have their fans and yes I know that people can find some merit in them. I'm not one of them and am one of, I think, many who just wish they hadn't been attempted at all. However, I don't let them taint my memories of these films, oh no no.
And no, I don't let the Special Editions do that either, I actually really don't care about the edits that Lucas has made over the year...save for one, but I'll get to that.
To kick things off where it began in movie theaters in 1977, Star Wars (as it was originally titled, with no subtitle), is the epic tale of young Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill). a farmboy on a desert world who is drawn into adventure by the entrance of two droids (Anthony Daniels and Kenny Baker) into his life. Taken under the wing of now wise old man Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness), Luke begins to learn the ways of the mysterious Force, an energy field that connects all living things...
...which is not generated by microscopic bacteria in his bloodstream, because that would be beyond stupid....
...and goes on an epic quest to save Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) from the clutches of the dreaded Empire with the aid of roguish smuggler Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and his co-pilot Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew).
...but you all know that story anyway.
I have a hard time saying anything bad about this movie. It may just be after getting through the awful mess of the prequels or it may just be the rose-colored glasses, but it's just that good. I love virtually every scene of this film from the opening crawl to the minute the credits roll in the Throne Room at the end. The acting is pretty decent. The effects are, for their time, pretty awesome and a wonderful showcase of practical effects over the CGI that would be used in later (earlier?) films.
While the environments aren't so broad in scale as they are in the prequels, they're more close and intimate, giving us to focus more on the characters who are to this day still quite beloved by the fanbase - something which the prequels were sorely lacking in.
Seriously, did you really care when Aayla Secura (who I just found out has a name) was gunned down in that jungle in Revenge of the Sith?
No. No, you didn't.
Did you care seeing Obi-Wan Kenobi being cut down by Darth Vader (spoiler alert) when you see this movie for the first time?
Oh, hells yes.
As a child, I thought this film was awesome. It had epic space battles, heroic shoot outs, and the awesomeness that is the lightsaber for the first time. The scene of Darth Vader first stepping onto the Tantive IV (or the Rebel Blockade Runner, whichever you prefer) is still heavily rooted in my mind as one of the most iconic I've ever witnessed and I remember as a kid how it absolutely chilled me to the bone the first time I ever saw it.
Coming from an adult perspective, I love this movie because it avoids most of the problems of the prequels. Most of all, it doesn't bog us down with nonsense and actually has enough closeness to where we can get to know and love out characters. They can even have meaningful conversations with one another.
...but not about sand. Nobody likes sand.
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope is now available from Lucasfilms and 20th Century Fox, current rights owned by Disney.
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