Dekker_Lentz said:
I think there are some interesting things in this letter. One comparing Empire to Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
It also seems like some initial reviews of Empire were less than favorable.
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20200430-star-wars-why-the-empire-strikes-back-is-overrated#
Part of me wonders how much Return of the Jedi helps informs our thoughts about Empire. Luke/Vadar gives resolved. Han/Leia gets resolved. Emperor gets resolved. Knowing that the story gets paid off I think helps Empire.
Personally, I first watched Empire and Jedi back to back for the first time, so I never had to live without knowing how the story was going to be paid off. I would be interest in people's thoughts who can remember the wait.
I agree this letter is completely overboard, but it's kinda interesting to see a snap shot in time and the comparison of Empire Strikes Back to Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Especially since Empire influence Wrath of Khan.
That was probably the longest 3 years of my life at the time.
I don't know when I started to consider The Empire Strikes Back as the best movie I have ever seen (a stance I maintain to this day), but I know it was not at its theatrical release. I loved every moment of it when I first saw it in May 1980, but it didn't really land for me like Star Wars did. It was probably once I got the movie on video (Beta tape, roughly 1983 or 1984 but definitely after Return of the Jedi) that I really started to grasp the genius of this movie.
Yes, Return of the Jedi wrapped everything up very nicely, but it also gave The Empire Strikes Back a new life where TESB was no longer just a middle movie with a maddening ending, it was now a movie that moved the story forward in ways that I never would have envisioned in the years prior to its release. I developed almost a new-found appreciation for the movie after watching it, in of all places, on a 25" TV in my parents' living room with no sound system other than the tinny TV speakers. The score was basically on an endless loop (of sorts) on my record player, but now matching up portions of the score to actual scenes gave life to both.
Curiously, when I watched Return of the Jedi for the first time after seeing Revenge of the Sith, I had a similar appreciation for ROTJ that I had long-since lost or never had. But due to George Lucas re-inventing the teddy bear, I never had Return of the Jedi that high up my list of all-time favorites. Yeah, I loved the first act and the last act of the movie, but the middle, ugh.