directed by Irvin Kershner
The rebel alliance (including Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO, R2-D2) is holed up on the ice planet of Hoth when the forces of the Empire (led by Darth Vader) catch up to them. Luke almost dies investigating a meteorite. He is knocked out by an ice monster that kills his Tauntaun steed. Luke escapes from the ice monster but is in bad shape without a steed to help him get back to base. Han, who didn't intend to stick around, goes out looking for Luke and finds him just in time.
The Empire launches a ground assault on the base the next morning. The rebels are forced to evacuate. Leia and C-3PO wind up leaving with Han and Chewbacca in the Millennium Falcon when the route to the princess' ship is cut off by the fighting. Luke takes part in the battle but once the evacuation order is given he heads back to base and leaves with R2 in their X-wing fighter.
Luke heads for Dagobah instead of to the rendezvous point. He had a vision when he was freezing to death in the snow, before Han found him. He saw Obi-wan who told him to head to Dagobah and find his teacher, Yoda. Dagobah is a swampy planet, or at least the part where Yoda lives is like that. Yoda is reluctant to teach Luke but eventually with some nudging from Ben Kenobi's spirit he agrees to do so. The training only lasts until Luke has a vision and realizes that Han and Leia are in danger.
Han, Leia, Chewbacca, and C-3PO are also unable to make it to the rendezvous point. The hyperdrive on the Falcon is broken. They are chased into an asteroid field by a few Tie Fighters. They avoid the fighters and land in a cave on a large asteroid. They start to make some repairs but something isn't right. They take off from the asteroid only to discover that they landed in the belly of a giant space slug.
The forces of the Empire are still in the asteroid field looking for the Millennium Falcon. They avoid the bad guys by landing right on the outer shell of a Star Destroyer. Just before the Star Destroyer goes to hyperspace they sneak away in the debris that is jettisoned. They head for Bespin unaware that another ship spotted them.
The Falcon lands in Cloud City high above the planet Bespin. They are greeted by Lando Calrissian, the city's administrator and an old friend of Han and Chewie. Lando agrees to help them get their ship repaired and take good care of them.
C-3PO quickly goes missing. He turns up later in pieces. It is about then that Darth Vader and the forces of the Empire show up. They were there all along. Han is tortured and then frozen in carbonite. Luke arrives. Vader has set a trap for him. Leia, Lando, Chewie, 3PO, and R2 escape from Cloud City in the Falcon. Luke fights Vader, loses his right hand, and learns the truth about his father. He is almost killed but is rescued by Leia, Lando, and the others after almost falling to his death.
The Falcon just barely escapes the Empire and makes it to the rebel fleet.
Thoughts
This is the original cut of Empire. I never saw the update from the late 90s although I own a copy now.
There was a lot here that I remembered and some details that I didn't. This movie is packed with considerably more than the previous one. That 's how it felt to me. It doesn't really stand on it's own very well. Almost all the relationships were established in Star Wars (1977). I like how Han and Leia's relationship evolves in this film. Luke seems to learn very quickly. Yoda doesn't think that he's well trained enough, and he may have a point considering that he almost gets killed by Vader, but he seems miles ahead of where he was at the end of the previous movie.
Overall I'm glad I splurged and got the special editon with the original version of this movie.
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