TheJabbaWookie
Sith Lord
You old romantic Lars :lol:
Why do most SW fans say ESB is the best film in the OT?
- Thread starter TheJabbaWookie
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If pushed I would probably say ESB is my favourite, but that doesn't mean I think the other two (yes there are only three Star Wars films) are inferior. All three are masterpieces, and very different. ESB has the best sabre fight IMO - not the most technical, but that old saying "less is more." It has a perfect balance of action and suspense without being choreographed like a music video, something modern films don't seem to get. I also like the fact it ends in stalemate.
TheJabbaWookie
Sith Lord
I was listening to the VR podcast and they had someone discussing this, saying that the older kids thought it was awesome because they could get their heads around the stalemate and the cliffhanger, but he was a younger kid and just didn't get the concept of good not winning or the film not concluding. I guess as a younger kid at the time when I watched the movies, this rings true and I just didn't get it either at the time and that has influenced the way I feel about it today.edd_jedi said:
TheJabbaWookie said:
Yeah, I get that too.
I watched the double bill of star wars and empire at the thatre when I was about 7.
When I was a kid I think ROTJ was my favourite, mainly down to the Jabba scenes.
Star Wars fascinated me too as it was an introduction to the characters and the Tatooine sets were great along with all the droids and creatures.
As I got older, star wars still gives me the biggest thrills especially the first two thirds of the film. It's pure nostalgia when I watch it.
However, I began to get Empire when watched again in my teens.
These days it is my favourite.
It doesn't have the creature scenes like the other two which I loved as a kid.
It's obviously darker and grimmer. Throughout the film it seems like our heroes are always on the back foot, forever in peril, and that's exactly how it plays out.
It doesn't feel like a complete film, rather the link between 4 and 6.
The development between Han and Leia is great and the opening sequence and final fight are brilliant.
TheJabbaWookie
Sith Lord
You must unlearn what you have learnedTony jedi said:
ESB has always been my favourite. I am old enough to have seen all three OT films in the cinema on their first release, and I dearly love the original Star Wars. It was love at first sight, with action, adventure, a terrific story and fabulous characters... And toys! ;-) However, after a three year wait ESB came along and it looked even better in my young eyes! All my favourite characters were back, but this time with added Yoda and Lando! Plus the brilliant spectacle of the AT-ATs, Dagobah, bounty hunters, asteroids, space slugs, and Cloud City! Not to mention John Williams who managed to surpass himself by composing Vader's Imperial March! What a piece of music that is! The film wasn't a retread of the original Star Wars, but instead took our characters and the story in exciting new directions. The film had drama, suspense, humour, excitement, danger, shocks, even a little romance. The lighting and cinematography were flawless, the special effects dazzling (and years ahead of their time), the acting and dialogue perfect, and the astonishing revelation that the ultimate evil dark lord Darth Vader was really Luke's father!
It was certainly more than enough to make me fall in love with the franchise all over again (not that I had ever fallen out of love with it), as it elevated the story to new heights in the most exciting and spectacular ways possible. And as an 8 year old in 1980, I completely understood the ending; there was no confusion for me. I hated the fact that the story ended when it did as I simply didn't want the story to ever end, plus I knew I'd have to wait 3 years to find out the fate of Han Solo, but I was never confused about it.
When ROJ came out I loved that too of course, but I was slightly disappointed that another Death Star needed destroying, as we'd already seen that, plus whilst I've never been an ewok hater, I've never truly loved them either, and the fight on Endor remains the least convincing part of the OT for me. I forgive that of course as it's still a brilliant film and also the rescue of Han Solo is my favourite part of the entire Star Wars saga. Overall however, looking at each film as a whole, for me Empire rules. It's a film that's really stood the test of time too, with precious few films since coming anywhere near it in my eyes. Perhaps it's unfair to compare the prequels or the sequels to the OT, as George and the amazingly creative team of talented individuals he had around him at the time helped capture lightning in a bottle, and repeating that feat was never going to be an easy task. Rogue One has come the closest to doing that for me (and I actually just prefer it to ROJ), but my heart will always belong to Empire.
It was certainly more than enough to make me fall in love with the franchise all over again (not that I had ever fallen out of love with it), as it elevated the story to new heights in the most exciting and spectacular ways possible. And as an 8 year old in 1980, I completely understood the ending; there was no confusion for me. I hated the fact that the story ended when it did as I simply didn't want the story to ever end, plus I knew I'd have to wait 3 years to find out the fate of Han Solo, but I was never confused about it.
When ROJ came out I loved that too of course, but I was slightly disappointed that another Death Star needed destroying, as we'd already seen that, plus whilst I've never been an ewok hater, I've never truly loved them either, and the fight on Endor remains the least convincing part of the OT for me. I forgive that of course as it's still a brilliant film and also the rescue of Han Solo is my favourite part of the entire Star Wars saga. Overall however, looking at each film as a whole, for me Empire rules. It's a film that's really stood the test of time too, with precious few films since coming anywhere near it in my eyes. Perhaps it's unfair to compare the prequels or the sequels to the OT, as George and the amazingly creative team of talented individuals he had around him at the time helped capture lightning in a bottle, and repeating that feat was never going to be an easy task. Rogue One has come the closest to doing that for me (and I actually just prefer it to ROJ), but my heart will always belong to Empire.
Mr. Tie
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Although I like the complete OT, I prefer TESB and it's still my favourite movie. After seeing ANH I had the feeling that, while watching TESB, it was more like a rollercoaster. It had a certain pace and I liked the different stories because our heroes got split (Luke & R2 Dagobah and Han, Chewie, Leia and 3PO Bespin). Many interesting characters were introduced, like Yoda and the Emperor. The difference between good and evil was more present and I remember the shock after revealing Darth as Luke's father. It made me more obsessed by the man behind the mask. More characters meant more toys, it was almost a joy forever to me. Although ANH and ROTJ have a clear ending, I liked the fact that TESB gave me some space for imagination. Do we meet Han again? Will Luke confront Vader? It became all dark and sinister and I had this feeling that the dark intentions of the Empire became more clear to me. I don't know if this makes any sense, but it's how I experience this movie, even years and years later.
TheJabbaWookie
Sith Lord
I like your reasonings. Yes splitting up the characters is an interesting ploy. They did it in the Lord of the Rings, though there it was for whole swathes of the book and by the end I was itching to get back to Frodo and Samwise, and vice verse.Mr. Tie said:
