20 / STAR WARS INSIDER
THE SKYWALKER SAGARefl ecting on how children
perceived the movie, Kershner
noted: “I hadn’t realized how
many young children would
be seeing the fi lm, and how it
would affect them. I think the
kids responded to the movement,
the characters, and the fairy-tale
quality of the fi lm. The humor
helped make the fi lm appealing to
more mature audiences as well.”
While fairy tales are sometimes
dismissed as light fare for children,
in truth they have always been
fi lled with darker material and
mature themes, using adventures
in mystical realms as vehicles with
which to prepare children for the
more diffi cult issues and moral
choices they will face as they
approach adulthood.
Children responded especially
to the fantasy elements introduced
via protagonist Luke Skywalker’s
interaction with a new character,
Yoda: Luke fl oating rocks, Yoda
levitating Luke’s X-wing, and
the dark foreboding tree cave all
harking back to classic fairy-tale
magic and motifs. The humor
between Luke and his newfound
mentor, right from their awkward
fi rst encounter, teaches Luke—and
the audience—to look past our
preconceptions: the greatest Jedi
Master to ever live may not fi t the
idealized version in one’s mind.
A Fine Romance
While The Empire Strikes Back
is best known for taking Luke
Skywalker’s story in a bold and
unexpected direction, equally
unexpected is the rollercoaster
romance between the original
trilogy’s other two central
characters that literally propels
the movie forwards. Racing
through an asteroid fi eld as they
attempttoevadetheEmpire’s
clutches,LeiaandHantradethe
kindofbarbeddialoguethey
exchangedinA NewHopeand
againonHoth,astheirlove/hate
relationshipdevelops.Inpart,the
deliveryandemotionreflected
a naturalchemistrybetweenthe
actorsthatcarriedovertothe
charactersonscreen,andit addsa
greatdealofwarmthandlightto
thefilmthatbeliesitsreputation
fordarkness.
Thehumorbetweentheheroes
atthecenterofthemovie’s
romancecontinuesrightupto
thescenewhereHanis aboutto
befrozenincarbonite,possibly
losttoLeiaforever.Inthatcrucial
moment,theyoungrebelprincess
wholosteverythinginthe
destructionofAlderaan,dropsher
emotionalbarriertoadmithertrue
feelingsforHan.“I loveyou,”says
Leia.“I know,”Hanreplies.
Thelinebecameaninstant
classic,butthesmuggler-turned-
paramour’sheartfeltyetsimple
expressionofdevotionwasn’t
quiteaswell-honedinthe
shootingscript.Aftermanytakes
inwhichHarrisonFord’suseof
Solo’soriginalresponse,“I love
you,too,”lackedluster,KershnerAs Luke advances in
his training, Yoda
delivers the basic
tenets of what it
means to be a Jedi.
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