The Empire Strikes Back Irvin Kershner, George Lucas

Critical response

The Empire Strikes Back received mixed reviews upon its initial release, a change from the positive reception of Star Wars.[172][230][231] In March 1981, The Los Angeles Times released a summary of the leading critics’ choices for top 10 films of the year: Robert Redford’s Ordinary People appeared on 42 lists, while Empire made it onto 24.[232] Fan reactions were decidedly mixed, with many concerned by the film's change in tone and surprising narrative revelations, particularly Leia's love for Han over Luke and Luke's relationship with Vader.[233][234]

Some critics believed The Empire Strikes Back was a good film but not as enjoyable as Star Wars.[235][236][237] They believed the tonal shift featuring darker material and more mature story lines detracted from the charm, fun, and comic silliness of the original.[235][237][238] The Wall Street Journal's Joy Gould Boyum believed it was "absurd" to add dramatic weight to the lighthearted Star Wars, stripping it of its innocence. Writing for The Washington Post, Gary Arnold found the darker undercurrents and greater narrative scale interesting because it created more dramatic threads to explore.[239][237] The New Yorker's David Denby argued it was more spectacular than the original, but lacked its camp style.[238] The Hollywood Reporter's Arthur Knight believed the novelty of the original and the plethora of space opera films produced since made Empire seem derivative; even so, he called it the best in the genre since Star Wars.[236][239] Writing for Time, Gerald Clarke said Empire surpassed Star Wars in several ways, including being more visually and artistically interesting.[240] The New York Times's Vincent Canby called it a more mechanical, less suspenseful experience.[235]

Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Charles Champlin said the inconclusive ending cleverly completed the narrative while serving as a cliffhanger, but Clarke called it a "not very satisfying" conclusion.[241][242] Canby and the Chicago Reader's Dave Kehr believed that as the middle film, it should have focused on narrative development instead of exposition, finding little narrative progression between the film's beginning and end.[235][243][237] The Washington Post's Judith Martin labeled it a "good junk" film, enjoyable but fleeting, because it lacked a stand-alone narrative.[244] Knight and Clarke found the story sometimes difficult to follow—Knight because the third act jumped between separate storylines, and Clarke because he missed important information in the fast-paced plot.[236][242] Kehr and Sight & Sound's Richard Combs wrote that characterization seemed to be less important than special effects, visual spectacle and action set pieces that accomplished little narratively.[243][245]

Reviews were mixed for the principal cast.[237][241][243] Knight wrote that Kershner's direction made the characters more human and less archetypal.[236] Hamill, Fisher, and Ford received some praise, with Champlin calling Hamill "youthfully innocent" and engaging, and Fisher independent.[236][241][246] Arnold described the character progression as less about development and more about "finesse", with little change taking place,[239] while Kehr felt the characters were "stiffer" without Lucas's direction.[243] Knight called Guinness's performance half-hearted,[236] and Janet Maslin criticized Lando Calrissian, the only major black character in the film, as "exaggeratedly unctuous, untrustworthy and loaded with jive".[247] The Chicago Tribune's Gene Siskel said the non-human characters, including the robots and Chewbacca, remained the most lovable creatures, with Yoda being the film's highlight.[248] Knight, Gould Boyum, and Arnold thought Yoda to be incredibly lifelike; Arnold considered his expressions so realistic that he believed an actor's face had been composited onto the puppet.[236][237][239] Canby called the human cast bland and nondescript, and said even the robot characters offered diminishing enjoyment, but Yoda was a success when used sparingly.[235]

Although Arnold praised Kershner's direction, others believed that Lucas's oversight was obvious and Empire lacked Kershner's established directorial sensibilities. Denby described his work as "impersonal" and Canby believed it was impossible to identify what Kershner had contributed.[235][238][239] Combs believed Kershner was an "ill-advised" director because he emphasized the characters, and the result was common tropes at the expense of the comic-strip pace of Star Wars.[245] Peter Suschitzky's cinematography was praised for its visuals and bold color choices,[236][239] and the special effects were lauded as "breathtaking",[237] "ingenious",[236] and visually dazzling.[239] Jim Harwood said he was let down only by the familiarity of the effects from the original, which were emulated by other films.[246] Champlin appreciated that the effects were used to enhance scenes rather than being the focus.[241]

Accolades

At the 1981 Academy Awards, The Empire Strikes Back won the award for Best Sound (Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker, and Peter Sutton) and a Special Achievement Academy Award for Best Visual Effects (Johnson, Edlund, Muren, and Nicholson). The film received a further two nominations: Best Art Direction (Reynolds, Leslie Dilley, Harry Lange, Alan Tomkins, and Michael Ford) and Best Original Score (John Williams).[249] Williams also won two Grammy Awards: Best Instrumental Composition and Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media.[250] He earned the film's sole Golden Globe Awards nomination, for Best Original Score.[251]

The 34th British Academy Film Awards garnered Empire one award for Best Music (Williams), and two additional nominations: Best Sound (Sutton, Varney, and Ben Burtt) and Best Production Design (Reynolds).[252] At the 8th Saturn Awards, Empire received four awards: Best Science Fiction Film, Best Director (Kershner), Best Actor (Hamill), and Best Special Effects (Johnson and Edlund).[253] The film also won a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation and a People's Choice Award for Favorite Motion Picture.[254][255]