The music soared through the air, pinning audience members
to their chairs. The soon-to-be famous words appeared on screen. “A long time
ago, in a galaxy, far, far away…” No one had ever seen anything like it. And
perhaps they never will again. It’s no surprise that I’m a Star Wars fan. Not
even a fan really, more of a complete nerd. While I’m most definitely a guy,
when it comes to Star Wars, I identify as a fan-girl trapped inside a calm,
rational man’s body. I’m wasting time again. Moving on to the review, before a
million voices cry out in terror and are suddenly silenced because they can’t
read it.
Star Wars opens in spectacular fashion, with the glorious
music of John Williams surging through the air, and the audience being
immediately engulfed in a galaxy far, far away. We are told the story that, at
this point, nearly everyone knows. The evil Empire has taken over the galaxy,
and the Rebellion is fighting to restore the Republic to power. At its heart,
Star Wars is a timeless tale. A seemingly insignificant person rises to the
occasion and saves everyone. It is a story that we’ve all heard over and over
again, but Star Wars executes it in such spectacular and original fashion that
we can’t help but be enthralled by it.
The greatest strength of this movie is not its thrilling
story, its perfect cast, or even John Williams’ utterly phenomenal score. It is
its overall feeling of a thrilling adventure that was unlike anything the world
had ever seen. Another great strength of this movie is the characters. All of
them feel perfectly crafted, and not a single person feels out of place. All of
the actors do excellent jobs, but it’s Harrison Ford who really shines here. His portrayal of Han Solo is simply perfect. Furthermore, the sheer scope, imagination, and inventiveness of this movie
propel it beyond simply being good, and into the realm of greatness. Star Wars
is not a movie that particularly has emotional depth, or the most thrilling
action sequences in cinematic history. What it does, however, is entertain in
spectacular fashion. This was the first real blockbuster that the world had
ever seen, and it is not hard to see why nearly every blockbuster since has in
many ways imitated it.
It would also be a crime for me to not mention the
groundbreaking score of John Williams. A score is always half of a movie.
Without a good score, the movie will usually fail. Williams’ score is beyond
good. It’s simply brilliant. It takes the whole movie to the next level, making
it an absolutely unforgettable sci-fi adventure. Nearly every theme presented
here is famous, and with good reason. In many ways, his scores for Star Wars
and The Empire Strikes Back are perhaps the greatest of all time. And so, in
conclusion, I am forced to give Star Wars a perfect score of 5 out of 5 stars.
It is, without question, one of the greatest and most influential films of all
time.
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