Return of the Jedi

Our Review

Return of the Jedi gets graded on a curve because it follows the two greatest adventure films of its era, and the drop is real but smaller than people remember. The plot resolves everything the trilogy set up: Luke confronts Vader, the Emperor gets his hands on a second Death Star, and Jabba the Hutt learns the hard way not to keep a princess on a chain. The opening act in the palace and on the sand barge is gaudy, funny, and mean in a way the series never attempted before or since.

The middle sags. The Ewoks remain the most argued about decision in Star Wars history, and the criticism is fair: teddy bears defeating the Empire with logs stretches even space fantasy. Watch it now, though, and the forest battle plays better than its reputation, fast and physical where modern CGI battles are weightless. The space assault on the Death Star is superb scale filmmaking, and Lando flying the Falcon into the station’s guts is still a thrill.

What earns the high score is the ending. The throne room sequence, Luke throwing away his saber, Vader’s final choice, is the emotional payload the whole saga was built to deliver, and it lands every time. The opera of it works because the actors believe it: Hamill finally gets to play a Jedi at full power, and his scenes with the Emperor have genuine menace. Sebastian Shaw shows up for one scene and breaks your heart. Flaws and all, this is a satisfying, warm, and generous finale. Nine feels right.