Part II
(Credits again so no one sues me: This film was directed by Irvin Kershner, story by George Lucas, screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan, produced by George Lucas. 20th Century Fox, 1980. Starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher.)
Luke goes to find Dagobah while Han and Leia try to outrun the Empire. Han gets the ship ready for hyperdrive, and the audience anxiously awaits to see those stars turn into lines...but they don't. This is Act II, after all. The heroes can't have it easy or there would be no suspense. Threepio, who for the entire scene and previous scene has been trying to tell Han something but keeps being shot down, finally gets to tell Han that he noticed that the hyperdrive is broken. Han goes to fix it and Chewie brings him a toolbox; the ship shakes and the toolbox falls on his head. It's funny, but not too funny, as it's perfectly believable that a ship in space would get knocked around and things would fall down. At a dismal time, a small bit of humor helps lighten the mood. The shuddering of the Falcon alerts Han to the fact that they've flown into an asteroid belt, as laser blasts don't hit the ship like that. Then Han goes into the asteroid field, feeling that the Empire would have to be crazy to pursue them there. Then Leia says, "You don't have to do this to impress me." Her real feelings come out in this simple line. She admires him and likes him, and she wants him to know that he already impresses her; he doesn't have to do dangerous stunts to attract her attention. We then have a short, thrilling action sequence as TIE fighters chase the Falcon through the asteroids, being destroyed one by one until the Falcon lands in a cave on an asteroid so that the crew can attempt to fix the ship.
Across the galaxy, Luke arrives at the swamp planet and crashes lands. The genius of this comes when you realise that Yoda probably messed with the X-wing so that it would crash right near his hut so that Luke wouldn't have to trek halfway across the planet to find him, and that Yoda made the ship crash so that Luke couldn't get out, take a look around, decide swamps weren't for him, and leave. Luke and Artoo get out and Artoo falls into the swamp water. I've always loved the sound that Artoo makes after Luke says, "You be more careful." It's full of sass. This is another case where we don't need subtitles for Artoo's language. There's no need for words. He conveys exactly what he needs to just by the tone of his beeps and whistles. A creature eats Artoo, spits him out, and Luke goes after him. Luke then has a line about how Dagobah seems like a dream. This line has never been properly explained in the canon, so I'll attempt it. For one, Yoda's very presence may be acting on him. Unable to identify it, Luke calls it familiar and dreamlike. He feels a mystical force he's never sensed before, but unable to place what it is, he labels it as something he's experienced before. Secondly, Yoda may have been sending him subconscious dreams about this planet to prepare him. It may also be that Luke is simply reacting to the new world around him. He's lived in deserts his whole life--first on sand, then on snow. For the first time, he's surrounded by water, fog, and trees. It very well could seem like a fantasy world to him. Maybe he did dream about water worlds on Tatooine, where expanses of water are rare or nonexistent. To someone who's used to walking in the woods, the trees are nothing special. To someone who's never seen the forest and suddenly gets to walk around in one, the experience can be very magical and back-in-time-like. Luke may be going through the same thing. It's a small line that implies so much.
Then comes another little moment. Piett comes to see Vader, who is in his breathing chamber. A machine puts Vader's helmet on him, but not before we see the back of the scared, white head underneath. Now we know that there is a real human person inside that suit. As we never see Vader outside the black cape in this movie and Star Wars, it would be possible to say that Vader is a robot. Now we know that there is a disfigured person inside who thinks for himself, feels emotions, and has quite a past. If you hadn't thought about it before, now you think about what happened in this man's life to lead him to living in a life-support system at the head of an tyrannical empire. In fact, that's the whole point of this scene, as the rest concerns Vader telling Piett to keep pursuing the Falcon regardless of asteroids. Not only are we learning more about our heroes, we're going to learn more about our villains, and it's a pleasure to learn almost as much about them as we do about the protagonists.
Next we go back to the Falcon for a brief scene in the cave. There's a lot of good dialogue here about Threepio claiming the asteroid is "not entirely stable," which Han sarcastically appreciates, and Leia claiming that being held by Han "isn't quite enough to get me excited." The lighting is also good, with red and blue lights to draw our attention while still retaining shadows that echo the film's darkness and the bleakness of the Falcon's situation.
Cut back to Luke, who has run into a short, seemingly insane creature claiming to know Yoda who turns out to be Yoda himself. The Dagobah scenes could have become slow and preachy, but instead they provide a tranquil but chilling centre to the film. I noticed that in the original print, the Dagobah scenes have a green-grey pallor to them. The remastered 2004 version saturates the scenes with a blue that doesn't really fit a foggy swamp setting. Yoda isn't supposed to be filtered through blue--he's supposed to be green. It's just one more way that Lucas changed this movie that didn't need fixing. He didn't just change scenes--he changed the look of the film, which has a huge effect on how we perceive it.
The puppet work on Yoda has rarely been equaled. The intensity and sincerity of the puppetry, the puppet design, and Frank Oz's vocal performance make Yoda expressive and believable. I never once doubt that Yoda is a real, living creature. The extent of his facial expressions and body language give him the best performance in the film. Lucas was right when he said that the movie would have failed if Yoda had not worked. Yoda needs gravitas and dignity, and had the puppet looked silly and been played comically, the core of the film would have been lost. Yoda begins as a crazed creature who beats Artoo with his walking stick because he wants a lamp, but it all turns out to be a ruse to test Luke's patience, a test he fails. The insanity fades instantly when he says that he cannot teach Luke, and it's a testament to the puppetry and Oz's performance that the audience completely buys the transformation from insane swamp being to wise Jedi master who has merely been putting on an act. His face displays every emotion he needs effortlessly: awe, disappointment, sadness, frenziness, anger, and calmness.
It not just the puppet work that makes Yoda a marvel; many times, a film has only its special effects working for it and no real human story or characters. Yoda's character makes us so attached to him. He's wise, not impressed by the "hero" who's convinced he can do anything, and has quirky but believable mannerisms. When it comes down to it, Empire is all about its characters. They are all very memorable, based on classic archetypes but each of them unique. Luke progresses from being a whiny teenager stuck on a farm to rebel leader to brash Jedi apprentice to mature, learned Jedi. There's Han Solo, a mercenary figure who takes the slow road to becoming a selfless, compassionate person while shedding none of his roguish personality. Princess Leia at first seems to be a damsel in need of rescuing but proves, at times, to be the most competent player on the field with her courage, compassion, excellent aim with a blaster, and readiness to take charge of any situation at any time (Death Star escape and Jabba strangulation, anyone?). Darth Vader becomes more complex as the trilogy progresses, from pure villain to a tragic figure, until he ends up doing what the heroes could not and destroying the Empire. Yoda embodies the maxim "don't judge by appearances" with his short height, old age, and status as one of the most powerful Jedi who ever lived. His speech mannerisms, which mimic Latin, and Japanese to a certain extent, identify him as someone who comes from a different time period but whom you can still understand. He's wise, wise enough to know he can't stop death, strong though he is. He's lived through many changing societies and has probably incorporated morals from all time periods into his way of living and teaching. He's been alive for nine hundred years and must have seen just about everything, which colors how he perceives and teaches Luke.
Back aboard the Falcon, Han and Leia have their moment. Han tries to touch Leia's hands, but she doesn't want him to. Slowly he moves towards her, and the two continue with their conversation until they mutually kiss, which Kershner likens to sex in a movie like this. Threepio breaks in, completely unaware of the moment he's broken up. Even when he sees the two kissing, he still has no idea what a special moment it is for them. He's a robot--he has no real emotions, only responses programmed into him, so he can't even apologise for the intrusion because he doesn't understand what Han and Leia were doing or why they might be upset when interrupted . Leia uses the distraction to slip out. Is she still a little unsure she wants to have a relationship with Han, even though she loves him? Is she concerned that he'll leave her soon and doesn't want to start something that will end so soon? Young as she is, is she startled by her own feelings? Han is understandably upset at the disruption, but doesn't pursue Leia, letting her go and respecting her choice to leave him even though he might want to continue kissing her. This is a real relationship we're watching unfold, not some contrived story with comical misunderstandings and pratfalls. It has a natural place in the grand scheme; unlike many action movies where the two main characters get together at the end for no other reason than to get together at the end (i.e. James Bond and many action movies), Leia and Han gravitate towards each other naturally and the love story fits into the fabric of the film, enriching the rest of the drama.
The Empire is still searching for the duo. In another interesting detail, we see the bridge of one of the ships destroyed by an asteroid. Cut to inside Vader's ship, where a transmission is being made by several captains. One of the men flickers out, having been killed. And Vader doesn't say anything about it, seeing his crew as expendable and easily replaceable. Great little moment. But as scary as Vader is, he still answers to one person--the Emperor, whom we then see for the first time. Only two or so mentions have been made of this figure so far, and to see him makes us fully understand that there is someone even more powerful than Vader in the galaxy. Vader may be strong and scary, but he answers to someone else. The Emperor tells him that their new enemy is Luke Skywalker and that he must not become a Jedi or he will destroy them. Vader responds that he will join them or die. Now we see some of why Vader is so interested in finding Luke. It also adds suspense to the story, as Luke faces no real danger on Dagobah. Once he leaves the planet, though, away from the presence of Yoda and the Dark cave, he's exposed.
On Dagobah, Luke discovers that the little creature is Yoda. John Williams' score meshes with the scene brilliantly in the scene in Yoda's hut when we hear his theme for the first time. Yoda's been around a long time. He's seen lots of young men and women like Luke who think they know everything better than the master and can do anything without having studied. Luke thinks he's ready to learn when in fact he has no idea what he's really in for. In season 3 of the series Avatar: The Last Airbender, Sokka goes to a sword master to ask to become his apprentice. Instead of proclaiming his worthiness, Sokka bows his head and says that he has a lot of learn and he doesn't even think he's worthy to be taught by a great master. This humility is what draws the master to Sokka, and he accepts Sokka as a student. Luke has none of this--he has no humility, no patience, and no true drive to be a Jedi beyond following in his Jedi father's footsteps, and the lack of these characteristics worry Yoda. Yoda is the last of the Jedi and Luke is the only apprentice who has come to him. Luke's all he's got to work with and he thinks that if Luke doesn't put all his energy into learning, or doesn't understand the nature of what he learns, the Jedi way will be lost forever. He can't really turn Luke away, though he would like to because Luke has issues that need to be dealt with before he can begin learning a whole knew philosophy. I feel that if there were a better contender, Yoda would definitely have refused Luke and trained somebody else. Luke, right now, is not the best person for the job, which puts us on edge about the fate of the galaxy and of our three leads. We don't have total confidence in him (Han doesn't either; as he says at the beginning of Return of the Jedi, he doesn't trust Luke to take care of himself), which is better than watching a hero whom we know will always succeed. Perfect heroes are dull; flawed ones are fascinating. All I can say is that the music, like every other piece of music in the trilogy, fits the mood perfectly. With just the music and without the dialogue, the scene would still work as it should, conveying Luke's antsiness and Yoda's misgivings.
Then we have a mysterious scene where the crew of the Falcon slowly discover that they are actually in the throat of a giant space creature instead of a cave. It opens up even more possibilities of a galaxy far, far away. How does that creature breathe? Does it need to? Is the space there not a vacuum? (Considering that we see explosions in space, that may very well be possible.) How does this creature eat on a daily basis? How did it even get there? These are little questions that don't need answers in order for us to understand and enjoy the film, but they do point to great differences and similarities between our galaxy and theirs. The fact that Leia is surprised at the cave being a creature while Han isn't shows that there are many things in their galaxy that they don't know all about yet, just as we don't know everything about our galaxy. Han, as a pilot, may have heard of these things while Leia, a Senator, hasn't. Fun, huh?
Back on Dagobah, Luke does some physical training while Yoda tells him about the Force. This scene contains a case where real life dictates the story's actions. Since Yoda is a puppet and can't run alongside Luke, he sits in a pack on Luke's back. Lucas says in the commentary that if they'd had digital technology in the 80s, Yoda would have been bouncing alongside Luke. I'm grateful that they didn't--Yoda bouncing up and down would have ruined the spooky atmosphere of the swamp and the serious mood of the story. Yoda in a backpack is the simplest and most effective way to do this scene. Yoda then tells Luke that the Force is used for defence and knowledge, not to attack others, and that the Dark side is consuming if you let it be. It's simple stuff, but sometimes simple is the most effective (as in the case with Yoda in the pack). This story is a fairy tale for the modern audience, and simplicity works well in fairy and morality stories. Yoda then tells Luke to go into a Dark cave, which contains "only what you take with you." It's Luke's own soul that he goes into. Since he cannot trust Yoda's advice that he won't need his weapons, he brings them along. If he didn't bring them, then he wouldn't have combat. The fear of combat would not manifest itself in the cave. Something else would, though what, the audience doesn't find out, as Luke never returns to the cave without his sabre.
He enters the cave and sees an apparition of Vader. The rest of the scene is shot in slow-motion to add to the unreality of the vision, a projection of the turmoil in his soul. It's also the most symbolic scene in the series. Actually, it's pure symbolism. Luke cuts off Vader's head and finds his own in the mask. It's foreshadowing, but more importantly, it symbolises what will happen if Luke continues to use violence and brash actions instead of more peaceful, deliberate means. He'll destroy himself. After the fight, the film cuts to Yoda, surely aware of all that is happening. He makes a simple grunt before the scene changes. As I said before, the tiny moments add up to greatness. Yoda knows what Luke encountered and expected it. His grunt says that he knew what would happen but sent Luke in anyway and knows he's got to change his mindset before he can embody the traits that Yoda imparts to him.
Vader is about to dispense the bounty hunters to find the Falcon, but the ship is spotted. It can't go into light speed, so they turn around and fly directly over the Empire's ship, mystifying the crew as the Falcon disappears from radar entirely. The scene ends without revealing what happened to Han and crew, giving the movie more suspense.
Then back to Dagobah in one of my favorite film scenes of all time. Luke is trying to lift some rocks with the Force; suddenly, his X-wing, the only way off the planet, starts sinking, and Luke, overcome with fear, loses concentration and falls to the ground. Now, having noticed after one hundred viewings that the ship is just fine in one shot and then rapidly sinking in the next, I have no doubt that Yoda pushed the ship back and made it sink just to set up another lesson for Luke. It's no big deal if Luke can't lift a rock. On the other hand, if he can't get his ship out of the swamp, he's not getting off the planet, as no one else knows where he is and he has no way to communicate with the outside world. That is another great thing these Dagobah scenes do. We have sequences where Luke interacts solely with Yoda and the planet. No outside influences seep in to disrupt his training, and for once he has only himself to rely on. Luke is effectively dead to the world; no one can help him and he can help nobody, which will gnaw on him in a later scene.
So, Luke is pessimistic about getting his ship out, saying that moving rocks and ships are "totally different." Yoda then says that the difference is only in his head, and how well this statement can be applied to just about anything in life. This combined with his later line, "Size matters not...Judge me by my size, do you?" is some very basic but important philosophy. There are no major differences between the sexes, different nationalities, people of different skin tones, heights, weights, hair colors, or religions. No important differences anyway, and certainly nothing big enough to warrant the classifications and extreme characteristics and stereotypes that society assigns to them. Yoda's wisdom can be applied to just about anything, and it's especially important that Luke grasps this concept. So Luke tries and fails, or, as Yoda would say, "do[es] not." Luke claims that he can't lift it because it's too big, to which Yoda supplies the line above, explaining that the Force is all around and can be used for anything if the person truly feels its presence. But Luke just cannot grasp this concept, leading to his failure. Luke's own prejudice of not being able to move something because it's too big and heavy is the very thing that's stopping him from doing it. Lifting a rock and a ship using his own muscles is different--there's a limit to how much weight a human can pick up. However, that situation is not applicable here, and Luke cannot see that the Force will work on a basketball and a boulder in the same way. Instead of trying to understand Yoda's point and a whole new way of thinking about things, Luke calls the situation "impossible" from his point-of-view and walks away.
Another teacher may have lectured Luke until Luke was ready to pull it off, but that's not what Yoda does. Deciding that the best way to teach is by doing the impossible thing himself in view of his pupil, Yoda closes his eyes and raises the ship out of the swamp to the amazement of Luke and Artoo. Artoo is a droid who's seen all kinds of scientific wizardry, but even this little droid knows that it's seeing something really special. Once again, the score is at its prime with a mellow rendition of Luke's theme followed by a triumphant version of Yoda's theme. Yoda opens his eyes and looks at Luke as if to say, "And you were saying it couldn't be done?" He also sighs with the implication that the ship-raising will be his final act using the Force. Luke then says, "I don't believe it!" to which Yoda responds, "That is why you fail." He doesn't fail because the move is too advanced--he fails because he doesn't think he can do it. His own negative opinions bring him down, not the tasks themselves. It's a great lesson that everybody can learn from. If you think you can't write a book, you may never try and find out that you actually can. If you think you could never be someone's friend because you have a prejudice against an entire group, then you will never know whether or not you might have become friends with that person. It's one of the many beautiful parts of the film. The lessons are timeless and applicable in many different situations. The same thing happens to Luke here as happens in the cave: he creates his own negative influences, and it's these things that stop him from achieving his goals, not any random acts that the universe throws at him. The scene touches us because we recognise the very same things in our lives.
The next scene starts with Needa choking and dying while Vader stands over him and says, "Apology accepted, Captain Needa." More reminders that incompetence of any kind will not be tolerated. He eerily reminds Piett, appointed Admiral in the stead of the one who was strangled at the beginning of the movie, to not fail again. Piett gained his rank through another's incompetence, and another officer could gain the Admiral rank if Piett messes up again. It turns out that the Falcon has attached itself to the Star Destroyer and shut down to avoid detection. Han and Leia decide that they will go to Bespin, where an swindler and friend of Han's, Lando, has set up a mining colony. As the ship detaches and floats away, Leia kisses Han on the cheek and tells him that this is one of his "moments," which he appreciates. She initiates this kiss--it's her choice, and it lets everybody know where she stands on her relationship with Han.
Once more, Luke is in training, but now is open to receiving the kinds of visions and feelings that Obi-Wan had when Alderaan was destroyed. Obi-Wan tells Luke in Star Wars that the Force will obey his commands, but it also will control his actions, and that's what it does in sending him visions. Luke is open to the Force now that he's seen what Yoda can do, but what Luke can't do is control the Force enough to limit the visions. All he thinks about is his friends being in danger and not the larger picture. He can't see that his coming to rescue them is exactly what the Empire wants. All he sees is that he is on this swamp planet when he should be rescuing his friends. He's acting impulsively for his own interests and without all the information. Yoda says that his friends might not even die, as the future is always uncertain. Nevertheless, Luke still wants to go to save them. This hero is not perfect, which makes him endearing and easy to relate to. I've seen so many other stories where heroes mature too quickly and accomplish everything without making any big mistakes, which makes for a dull narrative. They don't start out with any real flaws and progress through the story, learning only how to control more magic or getting one step closer to facing the Big Villain. Not realising that his own actions might cause that future to come about, Luke departs the planet, leaving Yoda saying, "And now, matters are worse." To add suspense, Yoda claims that if Luke fails, not all will be lost, as there is someone else whom they could turn to. So, Luke has been set up as expendable, not invincible, and very much able to fail.
End of Part II
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