| Movie | Year | Director | Producer | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Empire Strikes Back | 1980 | George Lucas | George Lucas | Smashing sequel to STAR WARS manages to top the original in its embellishment of leading characters' personalities, truly dazzling special effects (which earned a special Oscar) and nonstop spirit of adventure and excitement. (It does assume you've seen the first film.) Story threads include a blossoming romance between Han Solo and Princess Leia, the cosmic education of Luke Skywalker (by the mystical Yoda), an uneasy alliance with opportunistic Lando Calrissian, and a startling revelation from Darth Vader. Sequel: RETURN OF THE JEDI. Panavision. US (1977): Science Fiction CineBooks' Motion Picture Guide Review: 5.0 stars out of 5 |
| Escape From New York | 1981 | John Carpenter | Leonard Maltin Review: 2.0 stars out of 4 For a "fun" film this is pretty bleak. The year is 1997, Manhattan is a maximum-security prison, and a character named Snake Plissken (Russell) must effect a daring rescue from within its borders. Reminiscent in some ways of Carpenter's ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13, which was smaller�and better. Panavision. |
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| Escape to Witch Mountain | 1975 | John Hough | Leonard Maltin Review: 3.0 stars out of 4 Excellent Disney mystery-fantasy: two children with mysterious powers try to discover their origins, while being pursued by evil Milland, who wants to use their powers for his own purposes. Followed by sequel RETURN FROM WITCH MOUNTAIN. |
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| Farenheit 451 | 1967 | Francois Truffaut | Leonard Maltin Review: 3.0 stars out of 4 111 min, No rating, Color, Available on videocassette and laserdisc Odd and generally slow-going adaptation of Ray Bradbury sci-fi novel depicting future Earth civilization where all printed reading material is banned. Though viewer interest is held throughout, film has curiously reserved, unemotional feel to it. Truffaut's only film in English. |
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| Five Million Years to Earth | 1968 | Roy Ward Baker | Leonard Maltin Review: 3.0 stars out of 4 Workers unearth spaceship and remains of alien crew in modern-day London. Good cast, great script complications, and suspense in fine example of what can be done on meager budget. Only subject matter will turn some viewers off. Originally released as QUATERMASS AND THE PIT, and superior to the earlier QUATERMASS films, known in the U.S. as THE CREEPING UNKNOWN and ENEMY FROM SPACE. Followed by QUATERMASS CONCLUSION. |
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| Return of the Jedi | 1983 | George Lucas | George Lucas | Leonard Maltin Review: 3.5 stars out of 4 133 min, Rated PG, Color, Available on videocassette and laserdisc Third installment in the STAR WARS saga is a sheer delight, following the destiny of Luke Skywalker as his comrades reunite to combat a powerful Deathstar. Some lazy performances are compensated for by ingenious new characters and Oscar-winning special effects. More sentimental and episodic than its predecessors (and probably incomprehensible if you haven't seen them both)�but carried out in the best tradition of Saturday matinee serials, from which it draws its inspiration. Followed by two Ewok adventures for TV. J-D-C Scope. |
| Star Wars | 1977 | George Lucas | George Lucas | Leonard Maltin Review: 3.5 stars out of 4 121 min, Rated PG, Color, Available on videocassette and laserdisc Elaborate, imaginative update of Flash Gordon incredibly became one of the most popular films of all time. It's a hip homage to B-movie ethics and heroism in the space age, as a callow youth (Hamill) becomes an interplanetary hero with the help of some human and robot friends. R2D2 and C-3PO steal the show. Won seven Oscars for various technical achievements and John Williams' rousing score. Followed by THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK and RETURN OF THE JEDI. Panavision. |