Star Wars - Episode IV - A New Hope

 SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

Of course most of us have seen the original Star Wars film written and directed by George Lucas. We know it was a pop-culture milestone. I attempted to see it when it first came out in 1977 when it was only playing in one theater in Philadelphia’s downtown district. It was incredibly difficult to buy a ticket. The lines were extremely long. On my third weekend journey to the center part of the city, I finally was able to see the movie. Why did this motion picture become so famous that it spawned so many films and even a TV show (The Mandalorian) along with its own theme park in Walt Disney World? Besides its innovative special effects and fast-paced editing that left audiences energized, the initial story contains archetypal character and has a mythic tale that all human beings can relate to. But, Lucas reinvents the characters and adds individual personality traits that widen their appeal.

 

 A huge influence on Lucas was Joseph Campbell, the famous scholar who studied and wrote about the world’s myths. This story, like ancient epics, and even Christian ones (such as John Milton’s Paradise Lost) begins “in media res,” that is in the middle of a lengthy tale. Subsequent parts of an epic go backward in time to show what led up to the middle part, and the whole tale concludes with sections that carry the story forward. That is the way the central nine Star Wars movies are structured. The first film introduces us to the opening words, “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away,” which reminds the audience of the standard fairy tale opening, “Once upon a time.” The initial words evoke a feeling that we are to be presented with a very old story that is important enough that it has endured for a long time. As the movie progresses it presents technology that is advanced for us, but for the inhabitants it many times looks battered and in need of repair, as we would have to replace an aging washing machine. Through this manner Lucas is able to make science fiction relatable, and adds to the longevity of a timeless tale. As Roger Ebert notes in The Great Movies, this technique (and I believe along with beginning in the middle of the story) “gave the saga the aura of an ancient tale and an ongoing one.”

                                         

The movie throws us right into that central area with what becomes a signature orientation message that scrolls into the distance, as if written in the stars. The film begins with the universal struggle between good and bad forces, as the notes tell us that there is a battle between the “evil Galactic Empire” and “Rebel” forces. An empire communicates the accepted understanding that there is no freedom under that type of rule, and the opening remarks note that liberty is what the rebels want to restore. The words “destroy,” “sinister,” and “Death Star,” are all used to refer to the Empire, so we know who the villains are. That this is a type of Biblical David versus Goliath story is implied by the small Rebel blockade runner pursued by the huge Imperial ship. The planet-destroying Death Star is the size of a small moon, another image that stresses the against-all-odds struggle of the Rebellion.

 

Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) is trying to get the stolen schematics of the Death Star to the Rebel forces in order to find a way to eliminate this powerful ship. Her craft is damaged by the Imperial vessel and boarded by the Empire’s storm troopers (the name is an obvious reference to Hitler’s Nazi troops). She is able to program a droid (a nice abbreviation of the word “android” which is a robot that has human characteristics) with the specifications. She adds a holographic message to Obi-Wan Kenobi (esteemed Oscar-winning actor Alec Guinness) who she believes is on the sand planet Tatooine, which the two ships are orbiting. The droid is R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) who pals around with another piece of artificial intelligence, C-3PO (Anthony Daniels). The droids are the technological equivalents of movie sidekicks that are found in cowboy and adventure films. Lucas is able to successfully display the human aspects of these machines as R2-D2 is loyal and devoted, and his beeps, whistles, and shrieks mirror upset and exhilaration. C-3PO is fussy, pessimistic (“We’re doomed!” is one of the first things he says), and humorous. He, being a piece of technology, is ironic when he says he hates it when R2 spouts high tech concepts at him. He also at one point says how he hates “space travel” even though he is in a story about star wars. (The movie wouldn’t be anywhere near as appealing without the comic element involving the droids and later the character of Han Solo). 3PO’s cautious, almost off-balance walk with hands out makes him look precarious, like he is trying to navigate a tightrope between the two warring factions. The droids exhibit basic human qualities that those serving the fascistic Empire no longer have and which make the latter’s lack of individuality seem more robotic than the robots. 

 

The Empire’s second in command is Darth Vader (David Prowse, but it’s James Earl Jones’s deep voice and obscene phone caller heavy breathing that penetrates into our consciousness). His name sounds like “dark” and “invader.” He wears a black outfit, including a cape and a Nazi-like helmet which, according to Ebert, has a scary “fanged face.” The primal color of evil is black, an unfortunate fact, probably because it absorbs all light. White light, in practically all religious scriptures, represents the revealing of truth since it contains all the colors in its inclusivity. Someone who is masked appears more powerful, and scarier, since the abstract mystery displayed seems less understandable and more invulnerable. Vader is especially frightening because he has extrasensory abilities that can detect the presence of some others and is able to use his thoughts to control matter, including power over objects and an individual’s ability to breathe. This aspect of the supernatural is another element that resides in all mythological and spiritual stories, lending universality to the story.

 

R2 and 3PO are able to escape to Tatooine but Vader imprisons and interrogates Leia to find out the location of the secret Rebel base. Since the two droids left in an escape pod, and the plans for the Death Star are not on board, Vader assumes the details about the Death Star are now on the planet, and sends soldiers to investigate. The droids are captured by Jawas (whose language sounds like early versions of Despicable Me Minions). They are short technological junk scavengers that wear what look like monk’s robes. Their more mischievous nature contrasts with the similarly cloaked religious-like figure of Ben Kenobi who appears later. 

 

We now meet our hero, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), whose last name suggests that he is destined for a life that transcends that with his Uncle Owen (Phil Brown) and Aunt Beru (Shelagh Fraser) who are moisture farmers in this arid climate. We already see that he would rather leave the domestic setting to do activities with friends away from home. Perhaps the setting symbolizes that, for Luke, it is a desert not only in fact by also figuratively which he must leave in order to grow. His uncle buys 3PO and R2. The connections between Leia, Ben, and Vader to Luke are already starting to form, which will lead to cosmic consequences. 

 

In cleaning up the droids, Luke releases a part of Leia’s message to Obi Wan-Kenobi, who Luke knows as Ben Kenobi. 3PO translates that R2 says he belongs to Obi Wan-Kenobi and wants to protect the complete message from being heard so only Obi Wan can hear it.  3PO calls his new master “Sir Luke,” which adds a sense of chivalry to Luke, as if he is part of a history of knights, which we eventually learn he is. Luke’s disenchantment with his boring life is evident, and he is excited when 3PO mentions that the droids were involved in Rebel action against the Empire. 

 

At dinner, Luke says that R2 said that he belongs to Obi-Wan Kenobi. Knowing, furtive glances are exchanged between the uncle and aunt, and we get the hint that there is more to Luke’s story than the bland surface of his life suggests. Owen wants Luke to erase the droid's memory so there will not be any indication that it was stolen. He calls Ben a “wizard,” which hints at special powers, but says the man is crazy, and warns Luke to forget about him. Owen says he thinks that Ben died about the same time as Luke’s father. Luke, wanting to know more, asks if Ben knew his father. Owen dodges the question, not wanting to reveal the truth of Luke’s heritage. Luke wants to go to the Academy earlier, another example of wanting more out of life. But Owen says he needs him now, which shows his hidden agenda of wanting to prevent Luke from putting himself in danger. After Luke wanders off, Aunt Beru says Luke has too much of his father in him so he will not be restrained, which is what Owen is worried about. Of course we don’t learn why Owen is so afraid until the second film.

 

The next shot is one of the most memorable in film history. Luke, on the cusp of setting out on a life of greatness, stares into a beautiful binary sunset on a hill, symbolizing his desire to ascend to his heroic role. The John Williams score is perfect as it swells and the cinematography is stunning, so we get an emotional surge that opens up the story by bringing an epic taste of what is to occur. 

 

R2 escapes to complete his mission and Luke and 3PO look for him. When they find him, the dangerous Sand People attack Luke and he is rendered unconscious. But a howling sound wails and scares the Sand People. It is the robed and hooded Ben Kenobi who scared them away. His attire makes him look like a member of a religious order, which he is as we learn. He puts his hand on Luke’s forehead and is able to revive him, so we see he has special powers. 

 When Luke says R2 says he belongs to Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ben shows awareness and concern. He admits that he is Obi Wan, and decides to tell Luke that the young man’s father was a Jedi Knight, like Ben, and that they both fought in wars. The “knight” reference is another instance of adding a sense of ancient history to a modern tale, again making the story feel like a timeless rendering of heroic deeds. Ben praises Luke’s father for being a “cunning warrior,” and a great pilot. Ben acknowledges he has heard of Luke’s ability as a pilot of a landspeeder, cementing the father-son heritage. He says that Owen didn’t want Luke to know about his father for fear Luke would go on some quests, putting himself in danger. But, that is what a crusading knight does. 

 

Ben gives Luke his father’s lightsaber, one of Lucas’s most well-known creations. It combines future technology with the medieval version of a sword, again nicely welding the old and the new into one uniting object. Ben calls the lightsaber, “An elegant weapon for a more civilized age.” Many times science fiction shows a future that comments on the shortcomings of the present by metaphorically placing events in the future and suggesting the solutions to problems exist in the past. Ben stresses this idea when he informs Luke that for thousands of generations “the Jedi Knights were guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic, before the dark times, before the Empire.” 

 

Luke asks what happened to his father. Ben says that he had a pupil named Darth Vader who became “evil.” He betrayed and killed Luke’s father (a distorted version of the truth, which we do not learn until The Empire Strikes Back). We now see that Luke’s connection to the primal fight between good and evil is part of his destiny. Darth Vader hunted down and destroyed the Jedi Knights, and they are all but “extinct.” Ben says that Vader was corrupted by the dark side of the Force, which Ben says “gives a Jedi his power.” Ben describes it as “an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, penetrates us. It binds the galaxy together.” By introducing us to the Force, Lucas accomplishes a few goals. He inserts the religious, supernatural element that is in mythological stories. By doing so, he taps into the ageless desire to connect with some power beyond the individual’s basic abilities. It also contrasts materialistic technological achievements with something that transcends the limitations of science. (Even Vader says that the power of the Death Star is “insignificant next to the power of the Force”). And, it offers a hopeful feeling that everyone is connected to each other. 

 

Since R2 has found the person Leia sent him to deliver his message, the droid plays back the full message. The holographic Leia says that her father served with Ben and she is trying to get the information stored in R2 to help the Rebellion in its most “desperate” time. She says that Ben is their “only hope” of getting R2 to her father on Leia’s home planet of Alderaan since she has failed in that mission. Ben decides that he needs Luke to learn the ways of the Force and help him complete the task. Luke says he can’t abandon his uncle and aunt, but promises to get Ben to a place where he can acquire a transport spaceship. We have the elements of a classic story of a young person who is caught between the draw of staying in the safety of his home and the desire to venture out to expand one’s experience and develop one’s potential. The story of the orphan who discovers his true heritage is also a standard plot in fiction, as that youth seeks a parental figure to fill a void that existed since birth. Ben is that father figure and mentor in this episode of the series

 

The story taps into the shared fear of losing liberty by having the high ranking Grand Moff Tarkin (Peter Cushing) on the Death Star informing his staff that the Emperor has suspended the Imperial Senate. He now runs the Empire with his local governors. With the use of the Death Star, the plan is to wipe away all that is left of whatever democracy remains in this sector of the galaxy. 

 

Luke and Ben find a destroyed cargo vehicle that belonged to the Jawas. Ben determines that Imperial storm troopers engineered the attack, and Luke now knows that they are tracking down the information contained in R2. So, he realizes that his family is in danger since the Jawas sold the droids to his uncle. Luke finds the burned remains of his home and aunt and uncle. He no longer has anything to hold him there, so we have him tragically freed to go on his hero quest. Now that he has some understanding of his past and has been personally affected by the evil enemy, he tells Ben he wants to go to Alderaan, learn about the Force, and become a Jedi. Finding one’s purpose is another example of a theme that resonates with everyone.

 

In the spaceport of Mos Eisley, a place of notorious “villainy” as Ben says, they seek a ship to transport them. Ben’s use of the Force is on display as it serves as a deterrent to that of Vader. He is able to get them past Imperial guards by controlling their minds, and is adept at defending Luke against one of the nasty customers with a lightsaber in the cantina they enter. The place has all sorts of strange looking creatures and the scene combines the right amount of danger and humor. Ben talks with the tall, furry Wookiee, Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), who introduces them to his partner, the smuggler Han Solo (Harrison Ford). He is the archetypal bad boy who appears to be only interested in himself (his last name is “Solo” after all), but who, according to type, will find his morality and commitment to help others in the end. But Lucas and Ford bring dimension to this stock character by adding humor and swagger. 

 

While haggling over the deal to go to Alderaan, the rivalry between Han and Luke begins. The proud Han boasts about the speed of his ship, the Millennium Falcon, and the price he charges makes Luke feel like they are being cheated. Han is condescending about Luke’s claim that he is a good enough pilot to fly a ship himself. After Luke and Ben must quickly leave when storm troopers show up, Han tells Chewbacca that the payment will get him out of trouble. So, we know he has a huge outstanding debt, which is in keeping with his unlawful ways. He runs into Greedo (Paul Blake), a pointy, rubber-faced alien with a money-loving name, who is employed by the infamous Jabba the Hut, the creature Han owes money to. Greedo is trying to get the cash for himself and appears ready to do away with Han. Han is cool and can defend himself, blasting away the collector. (The revised version adds a scene that was edited out of the original film where Han meets the giant slug-like criminal, Jabba. Jabba’s gross appearance paints him as a stereotypical fairy-tale villain. Han persuades Jabba to give him more time to compensate for the smuggled cargo he dumped when being chased by Imperial forces. The scene shows Han is only concerned about his own interests at this stage).

 

Back at the Death Star, Vader notes that Leia has been able to surprisingly resist the use of “mind probe” drugs during the interrogation. Her character in fairy tales would make her the “damsel in distress” who must be rescued by the male protagonist. But, Lucas has made Leia a feminist heroine. She is the one who has taken on the dangerous mission to deliver the Death Star specifications. When Luke eventually says he has come to rescue her, she berates him and Han for not even having a plan, and is the first one to grab a weapon to blast open an escape route. She has a wicked sense of humor when she tells Grand Moff Tarkin that she recognized his “foul stench.” Later she calls Chewbacca a “walking carpet.” The David versus Goliath theme is depicted when she says when she first sees the disguised Luke, “Aren’t you a little short for a storm trooper?” It is again stressed in her words to Tarkin when she says, “The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers.” It is a good line, which visualizes how the small by their nature can evade those that are larger, and can live to fight another day. But, Tarkan demonstrates the total destructive nature of the Death Star by obliterating Leia’s home planet of Alderaan. It is an act of genocide, another reference to what the Nazis and other brutal civilizations have tried to accomplish. This action shows how technology can be vastly abusive when in the hands of those whose morality is completely corrupted by power.

 Luke criticizes the Millennium Falcon for being an old ship, but it fits in with Lucas’s providing a lived-in, realistic version of a science fiction tale. Han’s upgrades make it exceptionally fast. Lucas again shows the link between the old and the new, emphasizing the epic scope of the story and showing how those who are young need the wisdom of history and older individuals who have lived it. Likewise the elderly need the vitality of the young to fight for just causes, which is shown as the Falcon and its passengers are able to escape storm troopers and Imperial cruisers.

 

Ben feels the pain of the millions destroyed by the Death Star, showing how the Force symbolizes how everyone is connected, and the wrongful harm against one affects everyone else. Luke is practicing lightsaber maneuvers and the disbelieving Han says, “Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster.” At this point he is a cynic who just wants to put his faith in the material aspect of the world. Luke takes Ben’s advice of having his eyes shielded against the small drone used in the exercise. Ben tells him that what one sees can be deceiving, and he should “act on instinct,” and his “feelings,” intangibles that use one’s inner strength, which is the opposite of what Han says. Luke is successful, and Ben says, “You’ve taken your first step into a larger world.” All of us can relate to that path that takes one from the self-centered myopic view of a child to a vision of existence that has more depth and a wider lens of perception. (On a humorous note, one of my favorite alliterative lines occurs here. Han advises not beating Chewbacca at a holographic game because Wookiees can pull arms out of their sockets. 3PO tells R2, “Let the Wookiee win.”)

 

After realizing that Alderaan is no more, The Falcon encounters the Death Star which draws it in with a tractor beam. Han has hidden compartments in which he smuggled cargo, and the crew remains there until they can escape before being detected. It is an example of what Leia said about the small evading the larger foe. They overpower a couple of storm troopers and are able to hide in plain sight using the uniforms. Once R2 accesses the computer system they know where to release the tractor beam. Ben says he will handle that, and he already knows that Luke’s “destiny lies along a different path” from his. It is another universal example of an individual leaving the instruction and protection of a parent to find one’s own road on which to travel. Ben says the Force will always be with Luke. So, this otherworldly power that Ben has introduced Luke to is Ben’s legacy to his protege, one he hopes will turn out better for Luke than it did for Vader. Vader, however, with his powers of the Force, can feel beyond that which the senses can detect, and notes an old “presence” which he can’t determine just yet. It is that of his old teacher, Obi Wan. 

 

When R2 discovers that Leia is on board, Luke, who has seen her recording and is drawn to Leia, wants to save her. She is scheduled to be executed. Han doesn't want to stick his neck out, saying, “better her than me.” Luke appeals to Han’s selfish interests by saying there will be a reward if they rescue Leia. After she shows her toughness, Han’s admiration for her is evident when he says he’s “either going to kill her, or I’m beginning to like her.” A little later she admits to admiring his courage as he charges at the enemy so that the others can reach the Falcon. It’s that traditional love/hate relationship that is beginning to reveal itself, with the accompanying humor as the romantic leads insult each other, with their true passion simmering below the surface. 

 

Lucas has some more fun with the traditional hero quest story as he places the protagonists in a garbage compartment, and even though it is a dangerous situation as the compacting walls close in on them, it is still an unusual and comical challenge which in this case the sidekicks, 3PO and R2, not the principles, as is usually the case, save them. As Luke and Leia head to the ship they are pursued by storm troopers. There follows an Errol Flynn type of scene where, instead of high-tech tools, Luke slings a rope with a small grappling hook around a high outcropping of metal and swings them across a deep air shaft. Leia even gives him a kiss for luck, as an old-fashioned heroine might do, which again links the past to the future appearing setting.

 

The ages-old face-off between the forces of good (Ben) and those of evil (Vader) is actually a diversion set up by Ben after he deactivates the force field restraining the Falcon. He wants to give Luke, the one who must continue the nobility of the Jedi, and the others time to get away. Vader sees the fight with Ben as a way to show that he was once “the learner” but is now “the master.” But Ben’s morality is superior since to him it’s a desecration to turn the uniting power of the Force into a weapon to foster arrogance. That is why he says Vader is only a “master of evil.” Vader seems to defeat Ben with his lightsaber, but actually Ben transforms himself into a pure spiritual form, leaving no corporeal remains behind. He transcends this world and completely merges with the Force. The scene depicts a spiritual rising above material existence. Luke is devastated as he sees Ben “lose” to Vader, but as he and the others get away, he hears Ben’s disembodied voice telling him to run. 

 

There are more references to the past with the blaster cannons on the Falcon that swivel like the turret guns used in WWII aircraft (as Ebert notes). When 3PO is damaged, he says “I’m melting,” which is an obvious reference to the 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz, which links the magic in that old movie to the wizardry in this space epic. However, the insightful Leia realizes the enemy allowed them to escape or else they would have been stopped. She realizes that the Imperial forces are tracking them, which is confirmed by Tarkin, who wants to follow Leia and her companions to the secret Rebel base. She just hopes that the specifications of the Death Star are intact and that the Rebellion can find weaknesses in the Death Star. But, Han assures her that he just wants his money, and doesn’t care about the Rebellion. She bitterly tells him he’ll get his money since that is all he cares about. At least in this movie, there is a bit of a love triangle going, another time-honored plot device, as Luke discourages Han’s interest in Leia, who, as we know turns out to be his sister in the later films, and which, in retrospect, is a bit disturbing, like the plot of Back to the Future.

 

The Falcon arrives at the Rebel base on a moon orbiting the planet Yavin. They review the Death Star schematics. The David and Goliath metaphor appears again here as Rebel Commander General Dodonna (Ales McCrindle) says the Death Star was designed to defend against a large-scale attack, but a smaller fighter craft can penetrate its defenses. It can fly down a narrow trench on the surface and drop torpedoes into a shaft with a small opening that leads to the reactor which will destroy the spacecraft. Luke, the David in this analogy, feels he has the experience to accomplish the task because he “used to bulls-eye womp rats,” back on Tatooine. Dodonna’s last line is now the often repeated “May the Force be with you.” It is an obvious variation on “May the Lord be with you,” the Christian blessing, which connects to the audience by invoking a centuries old phrase, and which also links us to an otherwise alien civilization. 

 

Han loads up the Falcon with his reward and Luke tries to appeal to his humanitarian side by stressing that Han can add meaning to his life by joining a fight for the greater good. Han does not see attacking the Death Star as an act of “courage” but instead calls it a “suicide” mission, and wants Luke to go along with him since he’s a good fighter. Luke tells him to take care of himself, because that's what he’s “best at,” indicating Han’s inability to see past his own interests. Han, the previously self-proclaimed non-believer in anything that transcends materialistic personal gain, now is able to give the “May the Force be with you” blessing to Luke.

 

Lucas once more gives us a battle in the stars that is reminiscent of an old airplane dogfight from the past to allow the audience to relate to the story. Before the Death Star is in range of the moon, the Rebels fly their fighters as they meet resistance from laser cannons and Imperial aircraft. R2 is on Luke’s craft for technical assistance to show how humans and machines can merge in harmony for good, and not just for dark purposes. But Luke hears Ben’s voice assuring him that the Force is with him, and that he should trust his “feelings,” and “use the Force” to rise above material restraints. Vader himself joins the battle. He recognizes that Luke is strong with the Force, but just as he is about to destroy Luke’s ship, Han, now committing himself to a cause beyond his own needs, appears and fires on Vader's group, causing Vader’s ship to fly off course. Luke releases the torpedoes without the computer’s aid and uses the Force to find the target and destroy the Death Star. After the hard fought battle, you feel like standing up and cheering, so effective is Lucas’s direction in this sequence.

 

After landing, the three main characters hug as they rejoice, and Leia says she knew there was “more” to Han than “just money.” Even the self-absorbed 3PO (who originally told R2, “Why I should stick out my neck for you is far beyond my capacity”), shows how the desire to help others is contagious as he offers to donate any of his parts to repair the damaged R2. The film ends in a large hall filled with the troops of the Rebellion, now showing that their size and accompanying spirit has grown in size to take on the Goliath dimensions of the Empire. To John Williams’s triumphant music, Luke, Han, and Chewbacca stride down to the dais where Leia presents medals of valor to Luke and Han, with 3PO and the restored R2 in attendance.

 

Despite the emphasis on special effects and technology, Lucas’s focus in the story emphasizes the intangibles inside a person, one’s morality, courage, and faith and the desire to care for others.

The next film is The Big Short.