40 years since Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Well, in lieu of the December Star Wars release that was a constant the last few years, I've decided to take a look back at the one that became what the series since would measure it against. The actual anniversary was earlier this year, but with everyone else going nuts over the new Mandalorian season, which I can't currently watch right now, I thought I might as well do something related. And hey, last year I did a retrospective of an infamous Star Wars film, so why not. I'll also take a moment to mark the sad passing of the man in the Darth Vader suit himself, David Prowse--and it's fitting, as this is the one where he truly came into focus. Without further ado, it's my take on The Empire Strikes Back. 

I think we all know the story. 1977, the cinematic landscape changed forever. Through luck or canniness, depending how you want to look at it, a young George Lucas signed just the right merchandise agreement to set himself up for life. He may have also signed off on a contested Holiday Special, but I've debunked the mere existence of that. Still, another film was inevitable, and with Lucasfilm bolstered with moneybanks, they could go bigger and better. Lucas, who didn't have the easiest time filming the first one, handed direction duties to Irvin Kershner, a former mentor of his, who certainly was keen to build on what had already been done. In his own words, he wanted things to be darker, but not overbearing; humorous, but not corny--in other words, bigger, better, and balanced just the right way. 

With the new piles of cash and resources now at hand, free from the financial straining of the first film, Lucasfilm outdid itself with the already top-notch mise-en-scene and effects of that one. From the very opening shot, the attention to detail in the models (which remain amazing, and I've been lucky enough to witness just how so in exhibitions close up) is already several levels higher, and that's before we get into the sets, mattes, and costumes. The shiny gunmetal of the Star Destroyers, the claustrophobic confines of Echo base (even down to the suspicious stains on the Tauntaun stable walls!), the foreboding carbonite chamber...it's honestly hard to think of a motion picture that offered more in the way of iconic setpieces crammed into one. Consider even the Dagobah swamp, built entirely within the sets of Elstree Studios, and how that still looks. 

All of this becomes apparent if, as I've been lucky enough to do even recently, you watch this on the big screen as intended--there really is nothing like taking a Star Destroyer coming right at you, taking in the magnitude of Vader's not at all compensating flagship, feeling the roar of Slave I's engines, or actually getting into the still incredibly shot Hoth battle. You'll even spot the tiniest details ILM put in, like the pilots actually ejecting from the stricken TIEs in the asteroids. It's still all fun to watch on a smaller medium, but whether it's good ol' DVD or Disney Plus, it just doesn't compare. 

But now that we've established the massive technical step up Empire was, that still leaves the all important matters of story and character, doesn't it? Once again, like a masterful sequel should, that is also taken up to a next level. Of course, we see the next step in Luke's classic Hero's Journey--with Mark Hamill now more confident and with Kershner's direction, we see a somewhat more cynical Luke, who while still keen to fight for good, is held back by his own doubts and impulses. The other characters get their due fleshing out--Harrison Ford once again steals his scenes (note the hilarious befuddled expression Han makes while being chewed out by Leia), and in what was actually a bit of controversial move at the time, its him and Carrie Fisher getting hitched in this one. The romance between princess and smuggler isn't done quite as it would be now, but it's probably aged a bit better than the one in Blade Runner. 

"Make me smaller and everyone loves me, eh? Adoring you shall be not, when the diapers you must change."

Even beyond the main cast, though, new characters and even minor ones got their memorable shares of the spotlights. Of course, we had Yoda introduced here, played by master of puppets Frank Oz--and it's still remarkable how much was gotten out of a rubber muppet. Between playful joking and serious stoicism, all the gestures great and small made this funny green goblin another icon himself. The way he moves his eyes, hands, it all just feels real--and it makes for some of my favorite scenes in the whole film, like when he reveals himself in a rather effective swing of mood, or when Yoda explains the Force itself in a way easily equalling the gravitas Alec Guinness bought to things prior. Still funny to think I can say all this of a character speaking in funky grammar, but forty-odd years later, the power of puppetry was proven again with a very similar certain critter in The Mandalorian! 

This is also the one where Darth Vader himself, who in the previous film was, funnily enough, nearly a secondary character next to Peter Cushing's Tarkin--but here, he's upfront left and center. James Earl Jones gives a far more level-headed and icy voice performance compared to Vader's bombast before--and this was the image that stuck for this titan of cinematic bad guys. This was put into practice by David Prowse, who recently departed us--and when he strides onto screen, he gives all the physical presence to make the anxiety of his underlings all too relatable. 

Another favorite scene of mine is Vader standing silhouetted atop a staircase at the onset of the climactic duel, which still gives me shivers--and barely moving his wrist to light his blade as Luke strikes a pose. He barely seems to regard anyone as a threat, because they damn well aren't--and it's Prowse who delivered that chilling body language. 

Nothing more to be said besides "Oh, shit." 

And there's also that twist. Everyone knows what I mean. At the time, it really was an absolute shock--and still works, as the trilogy's pivotal main twist, that completely changes the stakes and goals for the next act. Seeing Luke go from a confident knight to distraught and scarred still hits things home, as does him more willing to fall to his doom than embrace what his father seems to have become.

Even the tertiary characters get their own little snippets of story--like the Imperial officers, be it Admiral Piett's very nervous ascent through the ranks as Vader chokes incompetents left and right. Or Captain Needa facing the music stoically as he ends up as one of those getting his windpipe turned into a cheese string. Not everyone gets such upfront characterization--here we saw the real introduction of Boba Fett, whose action figure became legendarily rare immediately, but his appearance and implications of renown, like getting to talk back to Vader, still made him a favorite even if he's barely on screen. Once again, decades later, that's what made the basis for a certain streaming show. 

We also can't forget Billy Dee Williams as Lando, who also gets his little arc done efficiently even if he's introduced a little over halfway through--but his cool rivals or even exceeds Ford's itself. When Vader is arbitrarily changing conditions--much like a certain company owning the series would do to writers and artists years later sadly--that's enough for you to emphasize with this character, who's in a bit of a grey spot through the film. It all pays off with the next one, though, where Lando's arc completes with him making his own heroic mark as much as Luke or Han. 

All of these put together make Empire Strikes Back easily among the top scifi sequels, alongside Aliens, Wrath of Khan, or Terminator 2. But believe it or not, it wasn't seen that way immediately--the darker tone put some people off in 1980, and Han and Leia being the romantic couple was...divisive. It's hard to compare these reactions to, say, the furor over The Last Jedi, since the only real fan community outlets were magazines back then, with none of the internet bubbles we know today. But what is certain is that it took some time for Empire to be rightly recognized for what it did for the series. It's also telling that it's the one from the trilogy that was least changed by the future special editions, and what significant changes there are (like changing the Emperor's initially murky appearance to match the next instalments) I don't actually mind. 

As with anything, it has its flaws--not everyone even now like the way it splits up the characters and story into their own forks, and C-3P0's complaining can get a little grating. But I can say with confidence, even removing my fanboy nostalgia goggles, that Episode V is still great. Return of the Jedi, while still having some outstanding scenes, was a step down, losing some of that same tone--in many respects, back then, it was sort of a reaction to some of the criticisms Empire had faced. Years later, the end to another trilogy arguably faced a similarly slightly misguided direction, but amplified even greater. 

But Kershner, the cast, and all involved, simply focused on making their sequel better, bigger, with more stakes, more character, and a step up all around. What Lucas started in '77 made for a step to, as Obi-Wan would put it, a bigger world. The galaxy felt more fleshed out, its denizens more distinct, and its emotions more real, be they Luke's fears, Han and Leia saying goodbye in the freezing chambers, and the battles more spectacular, be they on icy plains or in the asteroids. That drive, that vision, is one many still try to take to heart, but don't always pull off. Maybe they're trying to do too much at once, or focusing too much on the spectacle, but somehow, here, forty years on, it still feels done right.

Whatever people think of the prequels, sequels, series, or whatnot, everyone still feels the Force with Episode V, and in my view, justly so. Whether you feel your hair stand up when the Imperial march kicks in, or Yoda raising the fighter--there's something in this one for everyone. Long live Empire.