Star Wars: Episódio IV - Uma Nova Esperança

"A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..."

Pre review:

Its writing started in January 1973, "eight hours a day, five days a week", George Lucas said by taking small notes, inventing odd names and assigning them possible characterization... After many drafts, he finally came to a satisfactory conclusion.

Then, Lucas presented Star Wars to the United Artists, but they refused to budget the film, so he went to Universal Pictures, the studio that financed American Graffiti; however, it was rejected, as the film concept was "too strange".

Suddenly, Alan Ladd Jr -head of 20th Century Fox- appeared, a man that trusted in Lucas' genius. And that's how Star Wars became a reality.

The shooting of the movie was full of mishaps, problems with practical effects never done before, a bad first edit of the movie, but that didn't stop George from fulfilling his Space Opera. Due to those setbacks, Fox Studios began to put pressure on Lucas to finish the movie. Finally, the movie was done. On the eve of Star Wars release, 20th Century Fox, George Lucas and his cast and crew braced themselves for the worse. One way or another, May 25, 1977 would be a day they would never forget...

Review:

Star Wars is a modern tale of mythic adventure. It follows the journey and growth of the protagonist: Luke Skywalker. His journey of discovery is set amidst a larger struggle between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance; both parties are embroiled in a civil war. The Empire is comprised of corrupted power within a small group of leaders. These sullied leaders abuse their power over the masses with impunity. It is oppression and repression of the masses. The Empire wants to destroy the hope of the rebellion to ensure the small group of leaders can keep their power...

One of the most important features of the movie are the special effects. The use motion control was even superior to Stanley Kubrick's revolutionary masterpiece: "2001: A Space Odyssey" thanks to the creation of The Dykstraflex, the first digital motion control photography camera system developed for Star Wars on 1976. Along with an incredibly iconographic character and production design, the movie became stylistically unique.

The story and the characters are original and relatable. R2-D2 and C-3PO: the astromech as the optimistic adventurer's desiring to move forward. In direct opposition C-3PO, the protocol droid filled with doubt and reservations. Luke Skywalker, the brave hero, often haunted by doubts and hopes about his future journey. Obi-Wan Kenobi, the wise master and moral guidance of our hero. Han Solo, the rebellious smuggler whose personality represents tenacity. Leia, the damsel "in distress", a fearsome princess and general. Finally, Darth Vader, the most iconic character in the franchise, the merciless tyrant in a black suit, representing evil and final conflict of the journey.

The film score presents an emotional resonance trough a romantic 1930s Hollywood orchestral score that was commissioned for composer John Williams, who succeeded to create a haunting constellation of operatic leitmotifs.

The visual composition is authentic, as Lucas wanted a nostalgic "filtered look" so he kept changing key lights for a "flashing" effect. He used a loose, "nervous" frame, as in newsreels. The dramatic center was displaced, deflecting the eye to background activity, which in later films would include poetically changing weather. This first film gradually turned darker, following a symbolic color scheme where organic brown and warm gold yielded to high-tech black, white, and steely gray." This is authenticity is reflected in it's most iconic shot: the 'Binary Sunset' sequence, which establishes the narrative through-line of the story and the world it takes place in, the main value of the scene lies in how powerfully and economically it develops Luke's character: As the suns begin to slowly sink in the evening sky, he gazes towards the horizon, his sense of longing for something more is palpable. Taking things further, he goes on to squint into the distance as if he could see his new future just out of reach, and for the first time we get to see him not as a kid, but for as a new hope.

Books such as "The hero with a thousand faces" by Joseph Campbell structured the story, The War of Vietnam inspired the battle between the Rebels and the Empire, the lifestyle of buddhist monks characterized the Jedi, real shots of warplanes made the space battles real, Kendo foreshadowed the epic lightsaber duel, Akira Kurosawa's storytelling influenced the focus on minor characters, Fritz Lang's it's iconic protocol droid and John Ford westerns determined it's soul.The fascination with filmmaking and anthropology are the components that allowed Star Wars to be compelling and human, besides being located on a galaxy far, far away.

10/10

Star Wars is simply a fantastic film, on every level this film is amazing.

Each of the characters in this film are so well developed and so interesting that you just cannot wait for the next scene with them in it, the interactions between the characters us at times tense and at times downright hilarious, leaving no room for boring or lacking dialogue. The particular stand outs in this respect I feel are: Han Solo, the wise cracking bounty hunter with a tendency for arrogance that makes every scene as entertaining as possible. Secondly there is Darth Vader, who is the optometry of cool, scathing evil who poses as the ultimate villain.

Surprising to me, the cinematography and special effects have held up all this time. Although there are some minor issues, one particularly notable one is during the scene where Luke is training with the training droid aboard the Millennium Falcon there are a few frame skips where Luke extends and contracts his lightsaber. Other than this though, the cinematography and special effects are amazing to have held up, particularly the shots of the Empire's space fleet moving through space which are absolutely stunning.

One of the things that absolutely makes this film for me is the magnificent score, composed by John Williams. This score, while being one of the most iconic scores of all time, manages to make every single scene, fitting the mood of the scene perfectly.

The story as well is fantastic, there is never a dull moment; every second of it an absolute thrill ride. Whether its the attack on the Death Star or the Cantina of Mos Eisley the story takes you through the twists and turns of this classic space opera.

If I could recommend one sci-fi adventure film to someone, it would be this, it's an absolute must see.

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One of my all time favorite movies comes with lots of baggage and unappreciative friends. The fairytale wrapped up as SciFi rewrote the cinema handbook for this type of movie. > The sequels lived up to the promise but will the prequels still catch the imagination 20 years later?

The Empire look set to continue their relentless war effort, new technology means they are pretty much unopposed, but a small band including Like Skywalker, Princess Leia and Han Solo, look to fight back.

I'm not sure what I can add that hasn't already been said, instead I'll try and imagine what it must have been like for someone, someone young perhaps, heading to the cinema in 1977, seeing this film for the first time.

Consider what had gone before, people had Star Trek, and various other shows, but this film must have left audiences speechless, as there was quite literally nothing else like it.

This film changed not just sci fi, but film making in general, the sheer scale and imaginative of it shame many of today's mediocre offerings.

You have to admire the sheer bravery and audacity to get this film made, you wonder what doubts George Lucas had, he must have been elated when audiences turned round and fell in love with it.

It's funny, entertaining, exciting, jaw dropping, moving, it's everything you want from a movie, years on, it's still a masterpiece.

10/10.

Star wars made epic fantasy real. For a generation of people it has defined what the cinema experience is meant to be. Today it is probable that pc games will offer a deeper and more satisfying entertainment solution, but for pure visual and aural pleasure, mixed with basic emotional manipulation, there has never and will never be a better example of cinema than when star wars appeared over 25 years ago. When you think of star wars, you must remember what else was happening at the time. In America, the war in Vietnam had been lost. In the U.K economic disaster was occurring(a 3 day working week, and the army collecting rubbish). It was almost like the two most technically advanced countries in the world were going backwards. Star wars let everybody escape from that reality and reach for a future that was uncertain but ultimately good.