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

User Rating:

8.8/10   

Director:

Irvin Kershner

Writers:

Leigh Brackett (screenplay) and
Lawrence Kasdan (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

21 May 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The Adventure Continues...

Plot:

While Luke takes advanced Jedi training from Yoda, his friends are relentlessly pursued by Darth Vader as part of his plan to capture Luke.

Plot Keywords:

Princess | Empire | Rebel | Training | Rescue

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 10 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Mark Hamill	...	Luke Skywalker
Harrison Ford	...	Han Solo
Carrie Fisher	...	Princess Leia
Billy Dee Williams	...	Lando Calrissian
Anthony Daniels	...	C-3PO
David Prowse	...	Darth Vader
Peter Mayhew	...	Chewbacca
Kenny Baker	...	R2-D2
Frank Oz	...	Yoda (voice)
Alec Guinness	...	Ben 'Obi-wan' Kenobi
Jeremy Bulloch	...	Boba Fett
John Hollis	...	Lando's Aide
Jack Purvis	...	Chief Ugnaught
Des Webb	...	Snow Creature
Clive Revill	...	Emperor (voice)

Also Known As:

Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back (USA) (video box title)
The Empire Strikes Back (USA) (short title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for sci-fi action violence. (special edition, DVD version)

Runtime:

124 min | USA:127 min (special edition)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | DTS (special edition) | Dolby Digital (special edition) | SDDS (special edition) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

USA:PG (certificate #26034) | Iceland:12 (original rating) (theatrical release) | Iceland:12 (special edition) | Iceland:LH (original rating) (video release) | Germany:6 (video rating) | Malaysia:U | Canada:G (British Columbia/Quebec) | South Korea:All | Brazil:Livre | South Africa:PG | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Canada:G (Manitoba/Nova Scotia) (original rating) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Nova Scotia) (special edition) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Chile:TE | Denmark:11 (special edition) | Denmark:12 (original rating) | Finland:K-10 (special edition) | Finland:K-12 (original rating) | France:U | Hong Kong:I | Ireland:G | Netherlands:AL (video rating) (special edition) (1990s) | New Zealand:PG | Norway:11 (re-rating) | Norway:12 (original rating) | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG (special edition) | Spain:T (special edition) | Sweden:11 (special edition) | Sweden:15 (original rating) | UK:U | West Germany:12 | Mexico:AA

Filming Locations:

Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, California, USA

Company:

Lucasfilm

Trivia:

One of the bounty hunters that Darth Vader hires to find Han Solo, IG-88, can be seen in the Cloud City. IG-88 is a droid, and his dead body is sitting next to a furnace in the room where C-3PO is dismantled.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Luke is running out of the beast's cave you can hear the sound of his lightsaber being turned off. However, his lightsaber is on in his hand.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Luke: Echo Three to Echo Seven. Han, old buddy, do you read me?
Han Solo: Loud and clear, kid. What's up?
Luke: Well, I finished my circle. I don't pick up any life readings.
Han Solo: There isn't enough life on this ice cube to fill a space cruiser. Sensors are placed. I'm going back.
Luke: Right. I'll see you shortly. There's a meteorite that hit the ground near here. I want to check it out. It won't take long.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Jesse: The Cheese Ship (#1.8)" (1998)

Big Improvement Over The First Star Wars

Although called "Episode V," this was second movie in the Star Wars 6-part installment and I've always thought one of the better entries in the series.

If you watch the first Star Wars and then this one, you'll immediately see a vast improvement in the special-effects department. There is a much more polished look to this one, and improved sound In fact, the DVD transfer is outstanding considering the age of this film.

While the first Star Wars was a bit subdued, this one picks up the action right from the start, although lulls are really appreciated because the first 40 minutes are pretty hectic. The most notable of those scenes are the gigantic robots which were awesome when this film first came out, and are still pretty good. The movie calms down after that opening land war but retains the viewer's interest with other things.

The second half of the movie features two stories going on at once: the battle in space with most of the cast involved, and "Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) in a swampland involved in his training sessions with the Master Yoda.

Some of the movie's dialog is still corny, especially between Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) with their love-hate relationship, but it's not overdone. What is overdone is constant bleating noises emanating from "Chewbacca," the wookie. That sheep-in-heat noise can get annoying after awhile. The "Rambo" action continues as it did in the first film, with the villains firing everything at our heroes and never hitting them. Ludicrous, but part of the deal. Those things you just put up with as the film, overall, delivers another interesting adventure, far more than the first Star Wars and leading up to the next one, which was even better.