Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back

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Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back

PG

1980

2h 4m

Sci-Fi

Adventure

Action

Fantasy

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Popcornmeter

93%

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174 Reviews

97%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

The adventure continues in this "Star Wars" sequel. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) face attack by the Imperial forces and its AT-AT walkers on the ice planet Hoth. While Han and Leia escape in the Millennium Falcon, Luke travels to Dagobah in search of Yoda. Only with the Jedi master's help will Luke survive when the dark side of the Force beckons him into the ultimate duel with Darth Vader (David Prowse).

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Critics Consensus

Dark, sinister, but ultimately even more involving than A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back defies viewer expectations and takes the series to heightened emotional levels.

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David Denby

New York Magazine/Vulture

Apr 24

A Wagnerian pop movie -- grandiose, thrilling, imperiously generous in scale, and also a bit ponderous... The throwaway wit and the recondite references to old movies have been replaced with solemn reverence.

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Jack Mathews

Detroit Free Press

Apr 24

The Empire Strikes Back will deserve whatever it earns. Despite the inevitable loss of exhilaration moviegoers will experience from a second installment, it is an extraordinarily broad audience entertainment.

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Peter Travers

Gannett Westchester Rockland Newspapers

Apr 24

After 10 minutes into The Empire Strikes Back, I realized that I was getting more than I bargained for. This film was not a sequel at all, but a freshly conceived movie marvel.

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Lane Mills

InSession Film

Jun 9

A+

A New Hope was first but there wouldn’t be a Star Wars as it stands today without The Empire Strikes Back.

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Robert A. Masullo

Sacramento Bee

Apr 24

An audio-visual super-duper-spectacle, worth every penny of the $22 million it took to make. The continuation of the Star Wars saga is a cornucopia of treats that move along so briskly you're afraid you'll miss something if you blink.

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Khris

09/26/2020

watching it in a theater proves that a movie thats 40 years old is still better than the sequel trilogy

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Suzan L

07/11/2020

Nice to be back at the movies with safety measures in place. Classic films being shown, so I got to see Empire Strikes Back in the theatre for the first in years.

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Blake K

@Blokae 23h

Best of the original trilogy and most definitely a top 3 Star Wars movie for me.

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kish b

Nov 17

★★★★★ Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back is not only the best Star Wars film; it is one of the greatest sequels ever made in any genre, a darker, richer, more emotionally devastating masterpiece that turned a beloved space fairy tale into legitimate myth. Everything is perfect. Hoth is still the most breathtaking planetary battle in the saga (those walkers moving through the snow feel like gods of war). The asteroid chase is pure cinematic joy. Dagobah is swampy, weird, and profound; Yoda’s introduction and training scenes remain some of the wisest, most beautiful moments ever put on film. And Cloud City… that golden sunset lighting, the betrayal, the duel, "I am your father" (a twist that broke the world in 1980 and still hits like a freight train). The performances are career-best: Harrison Ford finally lets Han Solo be vulnerable and in love, Carrie Fisher’s Leia is fierce and heartbreaking, Mark Hamill grows up before our eyes, and Billy Dee Williams is the smoothest man in the galaxy. Irvin Kershner directs with a confidence George Lucas never quite matched again; every frame feels deliberate, every line of dialogue lands. John Williams delivers what might be the single greatest film score of all time (The Imperial March alone changed cinema forever). And that ending: Han frozen, Luke maimed and shattered, the Rebellion on the run, no victory, no resolution, just two friends staring out at an uncertain galaxy while the greatest love theme ever written swells. It’s bold, brutal, and perfect. Forty-five years later it still feels dangerous. It’s the moment Star Wars grew up, and it never looked back. 10/10. No notes. The force will be with you… always. ⚔️❄️❤️

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Kimmo K

Nov 14

Better than new hope but still I don't get the hype.

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Ian A

Nov 12

Fan, I am your movie that you have been looking for.

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Irvin Kershner

Director

Mark Hamill

Luke Skywalker

Harrison Ford

Han Solo

Carrie Fisher

Princess Leia

Billy Dee Williams

Lando Calrissian

Anthony Daniels

C-3PO

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Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back: Trailer 2

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Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back: Teaser Trailer 1

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Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

The adventure continues in this "Star Wars" sequel. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) face attack by the Imperial forces and its AT-AT walkers on the ice planet Hoth. While Han and Leia escape in the Millennium Falcon, Luke travels to Dagobah in search of Yoda. Only with the Jedi master's help will Luke survive when the dark side of the Force beckons him into the ultimate duel with Darth Vader (David Prowse).

Director: Irvin Kershner
Producer: Gary Kurtz
Screenwriter: George Lucas, Lawrence Kasdan, Leigh Brackett
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Production Co: Lucasfilm Ltd.
Rating: PG (Sci-Fi Action Violence)
Genre: Sci-Fi, Adventure, Action, Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 21, 1980, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Nov 19, 1982
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 10, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $291.9M
Runtime: 2h 4m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby Stereo, Dolby A, Magnetic Stereo 6 Track
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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