There is no doubt, the original Star Wars movie (Episode IV - A New Hope) is one of the great movies ever, a classic in every sense of the word, and a model of clear concise storytelling. Add to it the special effects created for the movie, long before the digital age, and you have got a movie experience that is really something special. Granted, the acting leaves something to be desired in places except the craft masters of Alec Guiness and James Earl Jones but it doesn't detract from a great movie that I sat and watched yesterday for probably the tenth time.
But each and every time, one scene bothers me, and bothers me, and bothers me some more. It's that bar scene when our heroes first encounter Han Solo. This scene, with its gazillion weird characters, each one more garish than the next, accompanied by some really hokey music seems like an exercise for George Lucas's ego and when it comes down to it, just plain silly. It isn't dramatic, it doesn't add a whole lot to the story, but in the end, just seems like about 5 minutes of just plain non-sense. Weird looking characters do not necessarily make good characters. The bar scene screams with George Lucas saying "look at what I can create that you people have never seen before." I got news for you George. I didn't want to see it 40 years ago and still don't want to see it now. The encounter with Han Solo and Chewbacca could been handled so much better and far more compelling.
Yep, as an admirer of the original Star Wars, that bar scene does everything possible to sabotage a great movie. Luckily it's short enough and I can create my own intermission by going out and raiding the refrigerator while its playing.
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