Welcome to my Return of the Jedi review, where I attempt to inform and educate you on a movie that you've probably already seen countless times and had more nerds than the 501st Legion tell you all about it. But I'm going to give it a shot

Picking up nine months later after The Empire Strikes Back, Han has been stuffed and mounted over the mantel of gangster Jabba the Hutt. Luke, Leia, Lando and Chewie (and the droids) plan to pust him out with the most relentless, swashbuckling action scenes since they put a gigantic yawning chasm in the Death Star for no good reason other than to swing over it.

After rescuing Solo, Luke heads back to Dagobah to become a Jedi Knight (mostly), and the rebels set in motion their plans to attack the Empire at Endor where a new Death Star had been (mostly) constructed. This could be the big break the Rebels desperately need for a decisive victory in the galactic civil war, as the Emperor himself is on board - but the Emperor and his fleet of Star Destroyers lying in wait have other ideas in mind. . . .

Honestly, it's impossible to explain the impact that Star Wars (and its follow-up movies) to someone who wasn’t actually there. Oh sure, I can go on about how important it was to filmmaking, how it revolutionized special effects, laid the groundwork for science fiction movies for the next 20 years, how without Lucas and ILM's influence we wouldn’t have Terminator 2, Jurassic Park and Lord of the Rings, that without the jump start to science fiction that Spielberg may have become a one hit wonder director - but trying to explain Star Wars to someone who wasn’t part of the Star Wars Generation wont work. Intellectually, they'll understand but emotionally they just wont get it.

You see, to those of us who grew up with Star Wars, who endured the insufferable three year long wait between installments, Star Wars is much more than simply a movie that broke new ground and pushed the envelope. Star Wars was - and is - a cultural phenomenon that is very much a cornerstone of our culture.

Jaws, Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes Back, E.T., The Return of the Jedi, and The Temple of Doom - for those of us of the Star Wars Generation, these aren’t just some of the top grossing movies of all time. These are the movies that set the gold standard for films, the ones that all other movies must live up to - and without a doubt, Star Wars is king of that hill.

So it was with a certain sadness that I watched Jedi back in 83. Star Wars had been part of my life as long as I can remember, and when you grow up with such a phenomenon it becomes a part of you. I didn’t want it to end.

And while I totally understand why Jedi gets such a bad rap, at the same time I just want to tell people to just relax. Sure it has Ewoks and Muppets in Jabba's palace, but it's still an amazing film. The final duel between Luke and Vader, with the Emperor laughing in the background, is a tense and thrilling climax to the franchise. Jedi also delves into some introspective ground when Luke confronts his father, refusing to outright kill him when everyone else in the galaxy has given up on him, that there's' still something worth redeeming in even the worst of men. Luke's struggle between vengeance versus faith is some really powerful stuff.

And the battles in Jedi are truly awesome, which helps make up for the film's camp factor and the marketing-mandated presence of the Ewoks. Even 15 years on, Jedi sports the best space battle ever committed to film. Even with all the advances in computer generated imagery and special effects work, nothing has touched the level of seeing a big space fleet caught between a moon-sized space station and a bigger fleet. It's pacing and energy and dynamic still astounds me.

And then there's the Emperor, the only man in the universe badass enough to be Darth Vader's boss. Played deliciously to the mustache twirling hilt by Ian McDiarmid, Emperor Palpatine is a fantastic bad guy and manages to balance a whole lot of the kiddie aspect of the movies with his sinister presence. And he shoots freaking lightning bolts from his fingertips! LIGHTNING BOLTS!

If that’s not the coolest thing ever, I don't know what is.

THE DVD -
Like Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back, Jedi has been remastered frame by frame from the ground up - and the result looks jawdroppingly good. It's not quite perfect - the lightsabers look weird in places - but for the most part, it's glorious. Matte lines gone, colors touched up giving us a final product that's light years ahead of anything we've seen before.

THE EXTRAS -
Again the only extra on the disc - depending on what version you get, mind you - is the commentary. The bulk of the extras lie on the bonus disc over on DVD number 4.

THE BOTTOM :LINE -
As much as it makes me sound like a geek, Star Wars is an important part of my childhood growing up. I remember the Christmas when I got the kenner Death Star playset that was nearly as big as I was. I remember sitting in outside the now long-gone UA-150 with my best friend reading the novelization (and accidentally exclaiming in a very loud voice "My god! Leia is Luke's sister?!?"). I'll always treasure the memory of the time I was in a safeway looking to buy my first action figure ever - either R2 or 3P0 - only having enough money for one, and torn with angst over which one to get, and my mom coming to bat for me and saying "Get them both. We can't break up the pair, after all."

I may watch Return of the Jedi with a older, more mature set of eyes now, but I somewhere deep inside my inner seven year old can't help but grinning with glee when I do.

And isn't that the reason why we loved these films?

THE STAR WARS REVIEWS:
* THE PHANTOM MENACE
* ATTACK OF THE CLONES
* REVENGE OF THE SITH
* A NEW HOPE
* THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK
* RETURN OF THE JEDI


Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children up Ages 8