Star Wars Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980 & 2004 Versions, 2-Disc Widescreen Edition)
by Irvin Kershner
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Anthony Daniels, Billy Dee Williams, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Mark HamillDirector: Irvin Kershner
Brand: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT
Producer: Gary Kurtz
Producer: George Lucas
Writer: George Lucas
Producer: Jim Bloom
Producer: Rick McCallum
Writer: Lawrence Kasdan
Writer: Leigh Brackett
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; French (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; Spanish (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 124 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-09-12
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
Movie Reviews of Star Wars Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980 & 2004 Versions, 2-Disc Widescreen Edition)
Movie Review: Big Improvement Over The First Star Wars
Summary: 4 Stars
Although called "Episode V," this was second movie in the Star Wars 6-part installment and I've always thought one of the better entries in the series.
If you watch the first Star Wars and then this one, you'll immediately see a vast improvement in the special-effects department. There is a much more polished look to this one, and improved sound In fact, the DVD transfer is outstanding considering the age of this film.
While the first Star Wars was a bit subdued, this one picks up the action right from the start, although lulls are really appreciated because the first 40 minutes are pretty hectic. The most notable of those scenes are the gigantic robots which were awesome when this film first came out, and are still pretty good. The movie calms down after that opening land war but retains the viewer's interest with other things.
The second half of the movie features two stories going on at once: the battle in space with most of the cast involved, and "Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) in a swampland involved in his training sessions with the Master Yoda.
Some of the movie's dialog is still corny, especially between Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) with their love-hate relationship, but it's not overdone.
More Star Wars Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980 & 2004 Versions, 2-Disc Widescreen Edition) reviews:
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Summary of Star Wars Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980 & 2004 Versions, 2-Disc Widescreen Edition)
For the first time ever and for a limited time only, the enhanced versions of the Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi will be available individually on DVD. Plus, these 2-Disc DVD's will feature a bonus disc that includes, for the first time ever on DVD, the original films as seen in theaters in 1977, 1980 and 1983.The 2006 limited-edition two-disc release of The Empire Strikes Back is not only the first time the movie has been officially available by itself on DVD. It marks the first-ever DVD release of Empire as it originally played in theaters in 1980. What does that mean exactly? The film is without the various "improvements" and enhancements George Lucas added for the theatrical rerelease in 1997 as well as the DVD premiere in 2004. So no more of Ian McDiarmid (the Emperor) replacing Clive Revill with slightly revised lines, or Temuera Morrison rerecording of Boba Fett's minimal dialogue.
What do you lose by watching the 1980 version? Dolby Digital 5.1 EX sound, for one thing (only 2.0 Surround here), and digital cleanup. But for home-theater owners, the biggest frustration will be from the non-anamorphic picture. On a widescreen TV, an anamorphically enhanced (16x9) picture at a 2.35:1 aspect ratio will fill the screen with the exception of small black bars on the top and bottom. The original edition of Empire, however, on a widescreen TV will have large black bars on the top, the bottom, and the sides unless you stretch the picture (and distort it in the process, especially considering the substandard picture quality). If you're watching on a standard square-shaped (4:3) TV, though, you won't notice a difference.
Yes, it's true that serious home-theater lovers who want spectacular sound and anamorphically enhanced picture can always watch the 2004 version of the movie also included in this set. But chances are good that they already picked up the trilogy edition of all three films, so their decision to buy the 2006 two-disc edition depends on how much they want the original film. The official LucasFilm stance is that this is an individual release of the 2004 version of The Empire Strikes Back, and the 1980 version of the film is merely a "bonus feature." Common speculation is that the only reason the original versions are seeing the official light of day at all is to undercut the booming black market for the laserdisc version. Star Wars fans will have to decide for themselves if that's worth the purchase. --David Horiuchi
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