Return of the Jedi
Short description
The Rebel Alliance learns that the Empire is building a second Death Star, an even more powerful battle station capable of destroying entire planets. Before the Rebels can mount an assault on it, Luke Skywalker and his companions must first free Han Solo, who is being held captive by the crime lord Jabba the Hutt. Once Han is rescued, the Rebels travel to the forest moon of Endor to disable the shield protecting the new station, while Luke confronts Darth Vader and the Emperor.
Return of the Jedi is the third film released in the Star Wars saga created by George Lucas, who wrote the screenplay with Lawrence Kasdan. Richard Marquand directed it, the third of the four features he made, between Eye of the Needle and Jagged Edge. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels and Peter Mayhew reprise their roles, and the production credits 185 cast members and 99 crew.
Made for 33 million USD, the film took 375 million USD worldwide, a large return on its budget. On IMDb it holds 8.3/10 from 1.2 million votes, while on TMDB it has 7.9/10 from a much smaller electorate. A critics' rating of 7.9/10 from 169 reviews places it close to the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- According to the script, Lando Calrissian was supposed to perish in the explosion of the Death Star along with Han Solo’s ship, the “Millennium Falcon.” However, due to negative public feedback, this detail was changed. It is worth noting Han’s line as he flies away on the captured Imperial ship and casts a farewell glance at the “Millennium Falcon”: “I have a bad feeling about this.”
- After George Lucas saw 'Eraserhead,' he offered David Lynch the directorship of this film, but Lynch declined, suggesting that if he accepted, he would be forced to compromise his vision for the film to align with Lucas's desires.
- Darth Vader was played by three people: David Prowse was his body (in armor), James Earl Jones provided his voice, and Sebastian Shaw was his face. Additionally, in the 2004 DVD release, in Luke's final appearance with three Force ghost Jedi, Sebastian Shaw was replaced by Hayden Christensen, who was 2 years old when the film first premiered in 1983.
- The scenes on Endor's moon were filmed in the forests of California. During the episodes when Chewbacca acts alone, Peter Mayhew was accompanied by assistants in bright clothing. This was done so that local hunters would not mistake the actor for a Bigfoot and shoot him.
- Actress Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) was very worried that her character wore long, shapeless clothes in all three parts of the saga, which concealed her figure. George Lucas made a concession to Carrie and, in the final film, in the scene where Leia is held captive by Jabba the Hutt, he exposed the actress as much as possible.
- Initially, immediately after rescuing Han from Jabba's captivity, a sandstorm was supposed to follow. This scene was removed because it seemed superfluous and very difficult to film.
- One of the songs sung by the Ewoks sounds like 'Det luktar flingor har'. In Swedish, this means 'I smell porridge here'.
- Rumor has it that another, different ending to the film was shot, featuring the wedding of Leia and Han Solo.
- The scenes on Jabba's "sand barge" were filmed in Yuma, Arizona. The crew had a problem – how to hide from 35,000 enthusiastic fans who had arrived in the desert on buggies. For the sake of secrecy, the filmmakers announced that they were actually filming a horror movie called "Blue Harvest: Horror beyond your imagination", and even dressed all crew members in caps and t-shirts with this title. This was necessary because even a barbed wire fence and round-the-clock security could not prevent desperate fans from sneaking onto the set and taking a few secret pictures.
- It is unknown whether the title 'Revenge of the Jedi' was always a fake, or whether it was genuinely changed at the very last moment. The official explanation for the title change was that 'revenge is not the Jedi way', but there was another reason for the change: it was much easier to track pirated products by the incorrect title. Several early posters actually titled the film 'Revenge of the Jedi' – such a poster is now worth a lot of money.
- George Lucas was very unhappy that in 1983, US President Ronald Reagan announced the Strategic Defense Initiative and called it "Star Wars." In retaliation, the director gave the Viceroy of the Trade Federation—a greedy, cowardly, and evil type—the name Nute Gunray. Nute translates as "triton." Gunray is an anagram of the surname Reagan, and also an anagram of the pun: ray gun.
- The word 'Ewok' – the name given to the 'natives' of Endor who resemble bear cubs – is never used in the film itself, only in the credits.
- Several Ewoks speak in Filipino (Tagalog).
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
