There aren't many films that the term "iconic" feels insufficient as a description, but Is there any point in reviewing this ? Has anybody over 10 still not seen it ? The only part of the series that can really be watched as a standalone film, even with the controversy over changes, it is difficult to find fault. Following two secondary characters for the first part of the film is a masterstroke and a lot of humour between C3PO and R2D2 as they begin their journey helps to immerse the audience in the world, which is far less grand and more lived-in than that introduced in the prequels and ultimately more real to the audience despite the science fiction aspects. Luke's desire to strike out on his own makes him instantly relatable, and once Ford appears, the film picks up a relentless pace. It is the banter and interplay between the three primary characters that also helps to set this film and its sequels apart from the prequel trilogy. The conviction of the actors in their roles together with the pace help to gloss over dialogue which can be just as problematic as the prequel trilogy. And then there is the score - Williams has written many iconic pieces, but the original score for Star Wars still stands as one of the greatest ever written - is it any wonder that many of the themes and motifs continued to be used in the other films ?

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope - 10/10

Yeah, yeah, yeah, we all know Lucas changed the movie up and made it look a little shinier. But whatever. It's still the classic we know and love, as hard as that is for some to believe. Get over it. Some flaws/things I noticed for the first time while watching it on BluRay:

-Obi Wan's Krayt Dragon Call was changed yet again.
-Luke has absolutely no mourning period for his aunt and Uncle, (in fact he's more shaken up when Obi Wan dies). Leia has little to no mourning period for the destruction of Alderaan despite the initial shock. Weird.
-Tie Fighters look poorly superimposed - there appears to be a red square around them in certain scenes.
-You can see Darth Vaders eyes behind the glasses. This was particularly disturbing.
-That hole was a SERIOUS flaw in the Death Star. Like. Cover that up with something guys.
-C3PO didn't know who Obi Wan Kenobi was, after all the adventures they had been on previously. Obi Wan didn't recognize the droids either. C3PO also didn't realize he was on Tattooine? The planet he was built on? Or recognize the name Skywalker??
-That one scene where Han chases the Stormtroopers into the room with a bunch of Stormtroopers - They yell something along the lines of "shoot him", and Han shoots one of them. Why do the other 8 run away? That's a bit silly. 8 guns to one guys. Don't run.

I managed to get ahold of an HD rip from the original Laserdisc set over the weekend, and immediately commenced with my first non-Special Edition viewing in about fifteen years. In a roundabout way, Lucas's tweaks and reworkings in later versions of this film actually make the original effects more impressive as they stand. Of course, in the twenty-first century anyone with a large enough processor can film their own spaceship dogfight, but for ILM to have produced something during the mid '70s that still seems competitive today remains a truly gargantuan achievement. Even with the veneer of post-production and extra CGI stripped away, it's a miraculously good looking picture, intricately detailed and fully functional - a thorough realization of Lucas's vivid imagination. In many instances, the old school special effects that were replaced in later revisions and the subsequent prequels actually work to make the film more lifelike and tangible. Take Vader and company's infamous debut appearance, for instance: marching through soot and smoke after blasting a hole in Leia's overtaken cruiser, the boarding party seems more imposing and threatening with a thick haze still obscuring much of the screen. That would've been digitally omitted or altered in a modern LucasFilm release, to ill effect.

Naturally, though, there's more to this film than just effects work. While its story is fairly straightforward and restrained, especially compared to the increasingly tangled, coincidence-laden plots of its follow-ups, there's a certain infectious, youthful energy occupying the driver's seat. Despite its laughably scripted dialog and rough, amateurish editing, a giddy sense of adventure and delight makes the whole thing somehow, perhaps miraculously, come together and work as a brilliant, cohesive, thoroughly befuddling ball of wax.

As further sequels were anything but a given at its release, it's also the most self-inclusive film of the Star Wars sextology, with a clear progression for each member of its cast and a sound, rewarding genesis, apex and conclusion. This shouldn't still be so good, but it is, and I'll be watching it with my kids for decades to come.

A quality start to the franchise.

I say start, I guess that depends on the (seemingly) controversial way of watching these films - I've decided on release order, so it's the beginning for me anyway. I've heard a lot about 'Star Wars' so I am expecting big things, this didn't disappoint whatsoever.

I unquestionably enjoyed this! If I didn't know this was released in 1977 I would never have guessed, it still holds up astonishingly well. The special effects are spectacular for the vast, vast majority; even the stuff that perhaps hasn't aged as supremely still looks superb.

The cast are a joy. I actually wouldn't say any performance sensationally stood out, but all the actors and all the characters are so much fun to watch together. Mark Hamill is impressive as Luke, Harrison Ford is entertaining as Han and Carrie Fisher is super as Leia. Credit also to James Earl Jones and Alec Guinness, among others. Despite not watching until now, I literally already knew all of the character names - shows how timeless these are.

The plot makes for top notch viewing, I found the pacing to be particularly spot on. And how about that score? Stupendous! I really have no negatives for this, I'm sure it isn't perfect but I had a very fun time with it.

Thinking back to the films that define my generation; I recall queuing round the cinema as an excited 10 year old for two hours waiting to see this film. I wonder how many people could say that they have done that in the last 20 years? This film is a truly groundbreaking piece of formative cinema. Leaving aside the magnificent special effects; this is a film about good and evil; empire, freedom and democracy and of their true characterisations. It has a slightly stilted script (particularly from Sir Alec Guinness) but that is more than offset by a fabulous John Williams' score and the hugely engaging performances of Hamill, Fisher and Ford with undoubtedly the best baddie cinema has ever seen in "Darth Vader". Truly a wonderful watch.