An Impartial Response to Destructive Criticism of The Empire Strikes Back
•Many viewers equate The Empire Strikes Back to another film that George Lucas put in the middle of a trilogy: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Particularly harsh, inconsiderate critics direct their scorn at the allegedly "depressing" nature of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, the films before and after it in the trilogy, respectively. By the same token, critics of Temple of Doom frequently cite the contrast between its gruesome yet realistic outlook on cult rituals in India versus the upbeat exhilaration of Harrison Ford's clashes with the Nazis in Europe and the Middle East in Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (Doshi).
•Many Star Wars fans choose their favorite film from the original trilogy based on the extent to which it affects the film affects their endorphins. Witnessing Luke and Han Solo team up to destroy the first Death Star in A New Hope or empathizing with Anakin Skywalker in Return of the Jedi when he finally turns back to the Good Side of the Force. With all due respect to their choices, these people frequently forego the full pleasure of watching The Empire Strikes Back (Preston 47).
•While The Empire Strikes Back may include the Empire's domination of Rebel forces on Hoth, Luke's failure to complete his Jedi training under Yoda on Dagobah, the failure of Han to fix the hyperdrive on the Millennium Falcon, Boba Fett's apprehension of Han Solo (whom the Empire freezes in carbonite), and the classically depressing scene of Darth Vader chopping off Luke's right hand with a light saber, the exhilaration of the film overall provides one of the best viewing experiences in the history of science fiction (Preston 48).
•This site entitles all Star Wars™ fans to their opinions, because in general, Star Wars aficionados have high intellects and can implement logic and not mere emotion in their decisions to select favorite films. Each Star Wars movie has enough redeeming qualities to gain a spot in any cinematic record book. The Empire Strikes Back, debuting in 1980, grossed the least of the original trilogy at the box office, yet from a philosophical perspective, the other members of the trilogy never delve as deeply into the underlying concepts that fuel the message of the saga (Preston 46).
•Finally, The Empire Strikes Back thus deserves more credit as a great film with the great philosophical impact it portrays.