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Yoda

I don’t know how to precisely capture Yoda’s appeal. Frank Oz appears to have envisioned him as a really old shriveled-up Grover, cuddly and yet badass at the same time. Even though his speech patterns could have become as immediately polarizing and infuriating as Jar Jar Binks’, there is a calm and stillness at the center of the ancient Jedi Master that both soothes and commands respect. Plus, the screenplay and Irvin Kershner’s direction use Yoda precisely as much as he needs to be and not a minute extra. And, loath though I am to turn to The Empire Strikes Back for life-guiding philosophies, “Do or do not, there is no try” contains a central truth. If someone tells me they are going to “try” their best, rhetorical device though it may be, all I hear is someone who isn’t going to come at the situation with 110%. They have already committed to “try” which is significantly less than all they’ve got (maybe 65-70% but certainly no more). Okay, end of inspirational sidebar. If you want something more, Who Moved My Cheese awaits you at your local library.

The Final Shots

There is a desolate beauty in the simplicity of the shot and reverse shot that ends the film. Luke and Leia stare out the window of a medical center looking off into the vastness of space, bidding farewell to Lando and Chewbacca in the Falcon as they set off in search of Han. The film ends with a view from the outside looking in, rendering the two as little more than stick figures in the distance, regarded by the abyss that threatens to swallow up the Resistance.

Next time: The first of two non-movie related Chapter Twos. In anticipation of next summer’s The Avengers and its place in the recent string of interconnected Marvel-produced features, I look back 25 years to a nine-issue comic book sequel that encompassed pretty much the width and breadth of the Marvel Universe at the time.

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