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Star Wars, A New Hope

George Lucas
Hugo 1978

With the recent re-release of Star Wars, A New Hope has come an endless stream of reviews -- an appropriate response for a movie considered one of the foremost guiding myths in world culture for the past generation.

Critics of the movie have always been in plentiful supply. The violence in Star Wars is comic book-like, they point out, with no blood and few moral repercussions. This certainly is true of the movie, but Star Wars is hardly unique in this depiction. George Lucas followed a long tradition of war movies and westerns. Twenty years later, this criticism seems especially pale when held up against the latest Schwartzeneger or Stallone bloodbath.

From the other end of the critical spectrum, comes the hardcore science fiction fan who claims that Star Wars is just a lot of "space opera," that it's more fantasy than true science fiction. Again, this criticism has its element of truth. Star Wars is none too subtle in its use of mythological archetypes of character and conflict. There is little science, and the technology and special effects are really just window dressing for the story.

But, you know what? Science fiction or not, violent or not, the story works. On a very basic, visceral level the story grabs hold of you, the audience member, and catapaults you on a grand adventure through many worlds.

Who among even the most strident critics didn't feel his pulse beat a little faster when watching the restless young farm boy, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hammill), first hear of the "nobler age" of Jedi knights from the wise old wizard-warrior Obi Wan Kenobi (Alec Guiness)? Who hasn't chuckled at the little droid R2D2's ability to gain the upper hand in an argument with C3P0 (Anthony Daniels) without the aid of any apparent vocabulary?

The list of characters who have become icons of the world culture is a long one. Add to the above: Han Solo (Harrison Ford), the rakish space pirate and reluctant hero; Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), one of the first movie heroines able to hold her own in a gun battle -- definitely no fainting Penelope; Chewbacca, Solo's first mate, the furry giant who manages to be both fierce and cuddly at the same time. And then we have Darth Vader, who has become the most immediately recognizable embodiment of villany since he first strode across the screen, respirator wheezing threateningly.

Yes, Star Wars is a fantasy and a fairy tale -- but in the most noble of traditions. Star Wars creator George Lucas made no secret that he was conscously crafting a myth for modern culture. And he succeeded, much to the world's benefit. People don't stand in line for hours because of marketing blitzes and nifty action figures. Star Wars has become one of the most powerful myths we share. It has initiated millions -- yes, millions -- of the young and not so young into the hero's quest. It has been one of the most powerful calls to adventure issued across the globe in the past generation. Those wide-eyed pre-adolescents in the mid-Seventies are all adults now. Star Wars opened up for them doorways to everything from mysticism to martial arts, and it has restored to us the idea of the noble hero in a jaded age.

Even in its recently "upgraded" form, Star Wars is not a perfect movie. But it is truly one of the most compelling movies ever made, and its influence is far from subsiding. At its heart, Star Wars inspires us to find our hidden strengths and stand up for noble causes.

So, to all the seven-year-olds out there watching the re-release of Star Wars, I heartily say, "May the Force be with you!"

Ivan Granger

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