Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

The Great Movie Re-Watch

Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Director:

Irvin Kershner

Writers:

Leigh Brackett

Lawrence Kasdan

George Lucas

Starring:

Mark Hamill

Harrison Ford

Carrie Fisher

Billy Dee Williams

Blurb:

After the Rebels are brutally overpowered by the Empire on the ice planet Hoth, Luke Skywalker begins Jedi training with Yoda, while his friends are pursued by Darth Vader and a bounty hunter named Boba Fett all over the galaxy.

Thoughts:

There is nothing new I can say about Star Wars. Everything that can be said has been said over and over. I have multiple making of books to prove it. At this point, each of the first six Star Wars movies should have the most extensive Wikipedia entries out there.

During this re-watch, I flipped through my copy of The Making of Empires Strikes Back the Definitive Story by J. W. Rinzler. It’s a massive book with tons of information. For example, did you know that Leigh Brackett wrote the first draft of the movie? She was the first woman to be shortlisted for a Hugo award. She was called the queen of Space Opera. So it makes sense that Lucas would hire her to work on the script. Unfortunately, after submitting the first draft, she was admitted into the hospital and shortly died from cancer. Unlike Lucas’ wife’s involvement in A New Hope, I’d heard of Brackett before, but she was always mentioned with derision. Yeah, sure, she wrote the first draft, but Lucas hated it and rewrote everything.

Since I’d just written my A New Hope blog post, my mind was on the women behind the scenes, so I decided to flip through the making of book and see what they had to say about Brackett. Thankfully, there’s an index, and I ended up finding seven mentions of her. It was quick enough to read them, and I was immediately disappointed. It says that she had a long meeting with Lucas and there was mentioned a 51-page typed transcript of their initial plot conversation, but that only Lucas’ side was recorded. Next, there was a quoted conversation from Kasdan that talked about how Brackett had missed what it was to be George in her draft. The book says that her draft was faithful to everything Lucas and she had talked about. However, the dialogue and action weren’t right.

That’s fair. It was the first draft, and Lucas is notorious for being shit at direction. He tells you vaguely what he wants, expects you to do your thing, then he tells you what he liked. Except that Brackett never got to that point because she was hospitalized. That’s when Lucas jumped in to write it. Even though he hates writing scripts, he seems to complain about that a lot, actually. Yet, he’d done that for every movie up till that point.

The last mention of Brackett is Lucas saying that she should be given credit for writing the story.

“I didn’t like the first script, but I gave Leigh credit because I liked her a lot,” Lucas says. “She was sick at the time she wrote it and she really tried her best.”

It’s fascinating how much I can enjoy something that someone has created, yet know that if I were ever to meet the creator, I would absolutely hate them.

Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope

The Great Movie Re-Watch

Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope

Director:

George Lucas

Writer:

George Lucas

Starring:

Mark Hamill

Carrie Fisher

Harrison Ford

Peter Cushing

Alec Guinness

Blurb:

Luke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi Knight, a cocky pilot, a Wookiee and two droids to save the galaxy from the Empire’s world-destroying battle station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the mysterious Darth Vader.

Thoughts:

I remember the first time I watched A New Hope. I was ten. My dad bought me and my sister the Star Wars Trilogy box set on VHS for Christmas that year. It was one of those gifts that parents give their kids, but they’re really for the parents. I’d never heard of Star Wars and hadn’t experienced much, if any sci-fi, at that point. I was ambivalent about the gift, but my dad was so excited about it he put it in the VCR, and we watched.

Star Wars became a huge part of my life at that point. I re-watched those VHS tapes, so many times it was a miracle they weren’t destroyed. I scrimped and saved my birthday and Christmas money to buy the entire Young Jedi Knights series. I was ten, keep in mind, so I didn’t read many of the typical expanded universe novels. I loved The Courtship of Princess Leia. I would check out Star Wars DK books from the library and pour over them. I talked with my girlfriends about Star Wars all the time too. I had other obsessions and interests, but Star Wars was one that has stuck with me my entire life.

I no longer have those VHS copies, I no longer have a VCR for that matter, so I watched my Blu-ray copy. All of the Star Wars movies are available on Disney+, though if anyone wants to watch them. I love the visual quality with the Blu-ray, but I hateeeeeee so many of the added things. Since I watched my original copies so often, every time a new addition pops up, it’s jarring. I do like the sharpening of the lightsaber colors and a few other things. Why did Lucas have to add all those creatures, though? That Jabba scene? Also, Han shot first. It’s ridiculous that it was changed. I hope Disney decides to release the trilogy I watched because I will be there day one to purchase.

Relatively recently, when I was listening to the Forgotten Women of Genre podcast, I learned just how significant a role that George Lucas’s wife at the time, Marcia Lucas, had in A New Hope. I truly believe, after reading more into it, the film would not have been nearly as good or have the cultural impact it has today without her contribution. Yet, I’d only ever heard about her in passing. It says a lot about George Lucas that he didn’t do more to showcase just how much she’d contributed. She edited the film. She made sure that Han Solo’s appearance at the end was perfect. She contributed to the emotional impact of the movie. She deserves so much recognition for her work.

By the way, Forgotten Women of Genre by Syfy Wire is such a fantastic podcast. All the episodes are well researched, and if it doesn’t make you angry about the treatment of women in genre, then you have no empathy at all.

I have a theory that when a lot of men become successful, they aren’t argued with and told no often enough. They get too big for their britches, basically. George Lucas had people arguing with him over stuff in the original trilogy all the time. Especially A New Hope, but I doubt he had that kind of push back on any movies following them. I enjoyed the prequels, but if he’d been told no and had more push back, they could have been better. It’s just a theory, though. *Cough* James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, Quinton Tarrantino*Cough*

Darth Vader and Obi Wan’s fight scene is such a huge contrast to the prequel fights that it’s almost funny. Two old men fighting, except that in Rogue One, Vader destroyed people like they were bugs. The original thought behind lightsabers was that they were like a two-handed broadsword. This sounds fun, but when you can make sword fights like what’s in the prequels, it just hinders you. I don’t know if there’s ever been a good in-world explanation of the change, but it’s easy enough to overlook. After all, Star Wars is a space opera. It’s about space wizards, which we definitely need more of in entertainment.

Great Movie Re-Watch Update!

A quick recap, I compiled a list of all of my movies organized by release year. Using that list, I’m re-watching every movie I own.

I knocked out the 30s through the 60s relatively quickly. I was reminded why I own several of these movies and particularly enjoyed re-watching It’s a Wonderful Life and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Which has me thinking I should look into more Frank Capra movies. I’ve seen several Jimmy Stewart movies, though I don’t own many. However, I can’t say the same about Capra. I love the themes of those two movies, so I’m curious to look into his catalog.

I’ve only got one more movie in the 70s, Star Wars: A New Hope. Then the real meaty decades begin. I have roughly forty movies from the 80s, and the list grows with each further decade. Some of my favorite movies are coming up in this next decade. Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Man From Snowy River, Back to the Future, and Clue the Movie, to name a few.

When I can, I’ve been trying to stream movies with my friends. That’s not always possible because of DRM, but also, not many friends are fans of musicals like I am. Watching movies alone is fun, but watching them with friends, even from a distance, really adds to the enjoyment.

Anyone reading my posts may have noticed that I’m not posting reviews of the movies. I’m trying to limit it to my thoughts, which have become tidbits that I find interesting about the history. I’m also going to try and add more of a personal commentary. Even after all these years, I find it difficult to explain why I love something, but maybe by focusing more on my thoughts on the films instead of a “review,” it will be clearer.

A Princess for Christmas

A Princess for Christmas

By: Jenny Holiday

Blurb:

Leo Ricci’s already handling all he can, between taking care of his little sister Gabby, driving a cab, and being the super of his apartment building in the Bronx. But when Gabby spots a “princess” in a gown outside of the UN trying to hail a cab, she begs her brother to stop and help. Before he knows it, he’s got a real-life damsel in distress in the backseat of his car. 

Princess Marie of Eldovia shouldn’t be hailing a cab, or even be out and about. But after her mother’s death, her father has plunged into a devastating depression and the fate of her small Alpine country has fallen on Marie’s shoulders. She’s taken aback by the gruff but devastatingly handsome driver who shows her more kindness than she’s seen in a long time. 

When Marie asks Leo to be her driver for the rest of her trip, he agrees, thinking he’ll squire a rich miss around for a while and make more money than he has in months. He doesn’t expect to like and start longing for the unpredictable Marie. And when he and Gabby end up in Eldovia for Christmas, he discovers the princess who is all wrong for him is also the woman who is his perfect match.

Review:

I love watching Hallmark like Christmas movies. They aren’t “good” movies, and I don’t actually like them, but I love watching them. A Princess for Christmas is a Hallmark Christmas movie in book form. Which means it’s so much better than a movie. All my usual complaints with the holiday films are completely alleviated in this format. It was everything I could have asked for.

Princess Marie is a lovely person, inside and out. Even though she is the heir to the throne of Eldovia, she’s not a snob. She can be a bit nervous and compares herself to her mother a lot, but that’s where our hero comes into play.

Leo is just as lovely as Marie. He’s a bit gruff and very proud, but he’s an honorable man. He’s raising his sister after their parent’s death and has devoted himself to her. He quickly sees beyond Marie’s royal façade to the woman she is beneath and falls for her.

Like any good Hallmark Christmas movie, the issues that will arrive after the happily ever after are, at best, glossed over, which I like. The couple has a happily everything will be alright because we’re in love and together ending. Perfect.

Another trope that’s present is the child that warms the cold hearts of those around her. It’s a good trope, and Gabby played her role well. Leo and Marie also had their best friends who aided in the couple’s romance to a small degree. I’m looking forward to their inevitable romance.

All in all, I’m delighted that Ms. Holiday’s father is a huge Hallmark movie fan and inspired her to write this book. Now, if Netflix or another streaming service could bring it to movie form…

5/5

Murder on Cold Street (Lady Sherlock #5)

Murder on Cold Street (Lady Sherlock #5)

By: Sherry Thomas

Blurb:

Inspector Treadles, Charlotte Holmes’s friend and collaborator, has been found locked in a room with two dead men, both of whom worked with his wife at the great manufacturing enterprise she has recently inherited.

Rumors fly. Had Inspector Treadles killed the men because they had opposed his wife’s initiatives at every turn? Had he killed in a fit of jealous rage, because he suspected Mrs. Treadles of harboring deeper feelings for one of the men? To make matters worse, he refuses to speak on his own behalf, despite the overwhelming evidence against him.

Charlotte finds herself in a case strewn with lies and secrets. But which lies are to cover up small sins, and which secrets would flay open a past better left forgotten? Not to mention, how can she concentrate on these murders, when Lord Ingram, her oldest friend and sometime lover, at last dangles before her the one thing she has always wanted?

Review:

Out of all the Sherlock spinoffs I’ve read, admittedly, there haven’t been many, the Lady Sherlock series is my favorite. So far, I’ve enjoyed each book, and after five books, the series has not dipped at all in quality.

Murder on Cold Street picks up right after the previous book. Charlotte and her crew have had next to no time to recover from everything that happened in France when they learn that their old inspector friend has been arrested and will be charged with two murders. It’s all very dramatic and mysterious, precisely what you want in this type of story.

Charlotte doesn’t waste any time starting her investigation. You know that he didn’t do it, but the question is will she be able to solve the mystery in time. This is always a fun story, though, it was also used in a previous book.

Inspector Treadles is sort of on the outs with Charlotte and co. He found out that she was, in fact, the great detective and not her make-believe brother. Treadles has very firm ideas about what women can and cannot do, which has also hurt his marriage. It’s actually his marriage that pushes him to reevaluate how he thinks, and I love that about him. One of my favorite parts of previous books was seeing the brief glimpses into his relationship with his wife. They were the one couple that seemed like they were in a happy relationship.

Treadles’ relationship with his wife was a central focus of the story, but Charlotte’s relationship with Lord Ingram was also progressed. This has been developing throughout the series, but it looks like things are starting to happen now. No more dancing around. Reading the couple’s reactions to each other made me smile.

I appreciated Thomas’ inclusion of Lord Ingram, realizing the amount of privilege he has as a man of power. He could see how much harder Charlotte and Mrs. Treadles had it. However, I appreciated even more Charlotte’s realization of the privilege she had as a white woman when compared to a character that was a biracial woman. Those conversations and insights pushed Murder on Cold Street to be one of my favorites of the series.

5/5