Star Wars: Episode VI Movie Review

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)

Buy Star Wars Episode VI on Amazon Video
Written by: Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas (screenplay by), George Lucas (story by)
Directed by: Richard Marquand
Starring: Mark Hamill , Harrison Ford , Carrie Fisher,  Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, David Prowse, Frank Oz, Jeremy Bulloch
Rated: PG

Plot
After a daring mission to rescue Han Solo from Jabba the Hutt, Endor is the destination for the rebels to destroy a more powerful Death Star. Meanwhile, Luke struggles to help Vader back from the dark side without falling into the Emperor's trap.

Verdict
How can you not watch the concluding movie of the original trilogy. It's not the best of the trilogy, but it does provide a solid conclusion. It's got some big reveals, big action set pieces, and it's fun to see a fully powered Luke as he battles the dark side.
Watch it.

Review
From the start, Jabba's place seemed like it was full of muppets. It just didst' have the feel of the cantina in episode IV. I felt like I was watching puppets, and it doesn't help that we're watching a band or Jabba's pet. This jumps into the rescue mission for Han Solo, which  follows the line from episode V of the value Luke places on his friendships. The rescue mission is fun as we're left to guess what exactly is going on.  Of course the protagonists make it out okay, but not before battling Jabba's men and a giant venus fly trap. Unfortunately Boba Fett looks a lot less cool in this movie, meeting an unceremonious end. Maybe that's the problem with this movie, all aspect feel a bit too cartoon like. Episode V was dark, and I liked that.

The agency Vader seemed to have in episode V is gone. Now he's a puppet to the emperor who wants to bring Luke to the dark side. The rebels go to Endor to stop the new death star.
The Ewoks on Endor  are cute, but it just didn't work for me. It doesn't make this bad, but it's another aspect that feels like a cartoon. The speeders on Endor are cool, which might be the best part of Endor.

As a conclusion to the trilogy it works very well. We've got a lot of big moments and we learn that Vader and Luke aren't the only relatives we've seen up to this point. Luke tries to save his father from the dark side, which seemed highly unlikely anyway. Vader does get a redemption moment, sacrificing himself for his son.

Luke's learned some tricks between episodes V and VI, and it's fun seeing him wield his power. Yoda tells him that Luke is the last Jedi. That's an interesting connection to the upcoming episode VIII, titled The Last Jedi, which presumably is Luke, though we may get a twist.

It's weird to see Hayden Christensen CGI'd into this, which distracts from the ending. Upon victory Luke sees Yoda, Obi Wan, and Anakin, all now one with the force.