This week, for a change, movie credits are at the bottom, since I'm discussing three films instead of one. Thankfully no plot summaries will be necessary.
It's probably unfair to compare Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to Robin Hood and Zorro, but I'm going to anyway. Robin and Zorro have everything: charm, poise, skill, bravery. No character development necessary – throw them into the fray and they'll put everything right. But what if you split them apart and divided their qualities unevenly?
I've mentioned the villain being split in two and even three characters, but Star Wars splits the hero in two: Luke and Han, the boy next door and the boy from the wrong side of the tracks, respectively. Luke plays by the rules – he studies, he trains. Han ignores the rules – he steals, he lies. Luke will always do the right thing and Han will always act like he won’t until the very last minute. If this were a high school movie, Luke would be wearing glasses, building a robot while studying for finals, and Han would be wearing a leather jacket, cruising on his motorcycle looking for fights. Luke would end up class president, and Han would end up with the prom queen. They’re two different heroic flavors: Teen Angst sprinkled with Identity Issues and Smart Ass with Selfish Tendencies.
Han’s character development pretty much ends in the second film. Once he falls in love with Leia (Carrie Fisher) - Prom Queen to his Juvenile Delinquent – that’s it. He can’t go back to being a selfish scoundrel. Thankfully, though, permanently switching over to the good guys doesn’t neutralize his ability to wisecrack. But let’s not overdo it – it’s not like he was a shady character to begin with. Although, when you think about it, we really don’t know a thing about him. (Judging only by the movies, that is, I’m sure there are plenty of novels that explore his background.) We don’t know where he was born or why he got into smuggling. And who cares, really? It would probably spoil things to find out what his childhood was like or if he got along with his parents. The tortured/haunted/angsty bit wouldn’t become him.
Luke is another story. His conflict stems from not knowing who he is and from being stuck in the middle of nowhere. His character development runs along the entire trilogy, beginning with the discovery of his potential powers and ending when he tells the Emperor (Ian McDiarmid), “I am a Jedi.” Speaking of the Emperor, after watching Darth Vader (James Earl Jones) be totally evil throughout the first movie, it’s necessary to up the ante in the second one by hinting that there’s someone even more powerful. It’s kind of cheap to hide him with a black cowl and a holographic projection – but it’s also effective. Just like it’s effective to hide Vader behind that mask.
But let’s get back to Luke. He’s a hero without a love interest. Han, his more dashing counterpart, gets that storyline all to himself. Though it was pretty obvious that Leia wouldn’t be able to fight him off forever, Empire manages to drag out the tension very nicely. The tension with Luke, though it’s hardly there, is artificially resolved in making them siblings. That’s the part where it looks like they couldn’t decide whether this was a trilogy for children or adults, and that probably the kids won out because they’d buy the toys. Not that the trilogy needed Luke and Han to get into a fist fight over Leia - there was more than enough material to fill out three movies - but a little ambiguity would have been interesting. The various plot threads did not have to be tied up in a bow. Although, to be fair, it's not like we see Han and Leia get married after Luke gives her away or something.
Next week… The Lord of the Rings, moving from a galaxy far, far away to Middle Earth. Again, I'll be talking about the whole trilogy.
Episode IV: A New Hope. Written and Directed by George Lucas; Cinematography by Gilbert Taylor; Edited by Richard Chew, T.M. Christopher, Paul Hirsch, Marcia Lucas (and George Lucas, uncredited); Complete Credits. 121 min. 1977.
Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. Screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan; Story by George Lucas; Directed by Irvin Kershner; Cinematography by Peter Suschitzky; Edited by T.M. Christopher and Paul Hirsch (Marcia Lucas and George Lucas, uncredited); Complete Credits. 124 min. 1980.
Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. Screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas; Story by George Lucas; Directed by Richard Marquand; Cinematography by Alan Hume (and Alec Mills, uncredited); Edited by Sean Barton, T.M. Christopher, Duwayne Dunham, Marcia Lucas (and George Lucas, uncredited); Complete Credits. 134 min. 1983.
It's probably unfair to compare Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to Robin Hood and Zorro, but I'm going to anyway. Robin and Zorro have everything: charm, poise, skill, bravery. No character development necessary – throw them into the fray and they'll put everything right. But what if you split them apart and divided their qualities unevenly?
I've mentioned the villain being split in two and even three characters, but Star Wars splits the hero in two: Luke and Han, the boy next door and the boy from the wrong side of the tracks, respectively. Luke plays by the rules – he studies, he trains. Han ignores the rules – he steals, he lies. Luke will always do the right thing and Han will always act like he won’t until the very last minute. If this were a high school movie, Luke would be wearing glasses, building a robot while studying for finals, and Han would be wearing a leather jacket, cruising on his motorcycle looking for fights. Luke would end up class president, and Han would end up with the prom queen. They’re two different heroic flavors: Teen Angst sprinkled with Identity Issues and Smart Ass with Selfish Tendencies.
Han’s character development pretty much ends in the second film. Once he falls in love with Leia (Carrie Fisher) - Prom Queen to his Juvenile Delinquent – that’s it. He can’t go back to being a selfish scoundrel. Thankfully, though, permanently switching over to the good guys doesn’t neutralize his ability to wisecrack. But let’s not overdo it – it’s not like he was a shady character to begin with. Although, when you think about it, we really don’t know a thing about him. (Judging only by the movies, that is, I’m sure there are plenty of novels that explore his background.) We don’t know where he was born or why he got into smuggling. And who cares, really? It would probably spoil things to find out what his childhood was like or if he got along with his parents. The tortured/haunted/angsty bit wouldn’t become him.
Luke is another story. His conflict stems from not knowing who he is and from being stuck in the middle of nowhere. His character development runs along the entire trilogy, beginning with the discovery of his potential powers and ending when he tells the Emperor (Ian McDiarmid), “I am a Jedi.” Speaking of the Emperor, after watching Darth Vader (James Earl Jones) be totally evil throughout the first movie, it’s necessary to up the ante in the second one by hinting that there’s someone even more powerful. It’s kind of cheap to hide him with a black cowl and a holographic projection – but it’s also effective. Just like it’s effective to hide Vader behind that mask.
But let’s get back to Luke. He’s a hero without a love interest. Han, his more dashing counterpart, gets that storyline all to himself. Though it was pretty obvious that Leia wouldn’t be able to fight him off forever, Empire manages to drag out the tension very nicely. The tension with Luke, though it’s hardly there, is artificially resolved in making them siblings. That’s the part where it looks like they couldn’t decide whether this was a trilogy for children or adults, and that probably the kids won out because they’d buy the toys. Not that the trilogy needed Luke and Han to get into a fist fight over Leia - there was more than enough material to fill out three movies - but a little ambiguity would have been interesting. The various plot threads did not have to be tied up in a bow. Although, to be fair, it's not like we see Han and Leia get married after Luke gives her away or something.
Next week… The Lord of the Rings, moving from a galaxy far, far away to Middle Earth. Again, I'll be talking about the whole trilogy.
Episode IV: A New Hope. Written and Directed by George Lucas; Cinematography by Gilbert Taylor; Edited by Richard Chew, T.M. Christopher, Paul Hirsch, Marcia Lucas (and George Lucas, uncredited); Complete Credits. 121 min. 1977.
Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. Screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan; Story by George Lucas; Directed by Irvin Kershner; Cinematography by Peter Suschitzky; Edited by T.M. Christopher and Paul Hirsch (Marcia Lucas and George Lucas, uncredited); Complete Credits. 124 min. 1980.
Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. Screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas; Story by George Lucas; Directed by Richard Marquand; Cinematography by Alan Hume (and Alec Mills, uncredited); Edited by Sean Barton, T.M. Christopher, Duwayne Dunham, Marcia Lucas (and George Lucas, uncredited); Complete Credits. 134 min. 1983.
4 comments:
What separates The Empire Strikes Back from all the other movies is that Leigh Brackett wrote the screenplay. She is a far better writer than George Lucas.
To my shame, until I did this post, I never realized that Leigh Brackett had anything to do with Star Wars. I actually did a double-take.
I think the lessons learned from Star Wars is never go back - you listening Mr Lucas?
Or maybe if you do decide to go back, don't just rehash...
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