![]() The small, humanoid working class of Bespin goes about their yeomen-like work, without a hint of awareness of the intense emotion cascading throughout the chamber. It is no wonder that he is one of the most terrifying screen villains of all time. The message: in a frighteningly brief instance, Vader can take everything away from you, without the slightest sense of emotion or remorse. It’s also a close-up the Rebels cannot escape from the Empire, and neither can the viewers. This is no accident it’s a method filmmakers use to have the character stare right into the audience, making it personal for them. His black mask is expressionless, as he looks almost straight up into the eye of the audience. The remnants of a smoky frost stream from the top of the frame straight down, revealing an unattached, cold-hearted Vader. In just three brief moments, Kershner chillingly reinforces for the audience all they need to know about Darth Vader up to this point in the film. The audience experiences great empathy as a result. He is in crisis, and cannot see what is going on, which mirrors the audience’s point-of-view as well. He feverishly tilts his head from one side to the next, in order to see what has become of his co-pilot. He is so emotionally distraught that the camera does not show the audience his face, as his grief is too great in that immediate moment. Not only does he have an albatross on his back in the personae of a fettered protocol droid, but he is emotionally crippled by the seemed loss of his dearest friend in the galaxy. Much like the heroes in this sequence, C-3PO feels completely out of control and useless.Ĭhewbacca is helpless as well, but for very different reasons. He is confused, helpless, and dreadfully nervous. The blocking of the scene has C-3PO’s head frantically turning from side to side, with no possibility of seeing Han’s fate, due to his being strapped to Chewbacca’s back. The most immediate character shot after Han is frozen features a discombobulated C-3PO and a mournful Chewbacca. Kershner has framed this moment to demonstrate where each character is emotionally, and uses many effective cinematic storytelling devices to make this moment even more affecting. ![]() It is both contextually and cinematically powerful, as each shot communicates a vast amount of information in seconds. Solo’s fate affects multiple characters in drastically different ways director Irvin Kershner and screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan create a powerful scene that enriches the poignancy of this dramatic and tense moment. Perhaps no scene evokes more pathos for fans of the original trilogy than the first climax in The Empire Strikes Back, in which Han Solo is encased in carbonite. In this subset of Studying Skywalkers, we look at the anatomy of a scene, and how it enriches not only the particular film, but inserts crucial moments of story that enable the audience to come to know this universe in a more profound and insightful way. ![]() Each one tells its own story, and helps to reveal much more detail than one might originally suspect. The English idiom “A picture is worth a thousand words” works well here, as many frames and moments in the saga speak volumes about what is going on in a scene. Much has been said about the craft of film when examining the Star Wars cinematic universe and that is because each movie is replete with visual splendor. The latter is of particular interest here, in that Star Wars is not only a terrific story with beloved characters, but also is cinematic art. It can be entertaining, can feature insights into the human condition, and can enrapture us with beautiful and profound imagery. In this installment, examines character reactions to Han Solo’s placement in carbonite from a contextual, cinematic perspective.Ī Star Wars film speaks to its audience on many different levels, and in many different ways. Studying Skywalkers is an exclusive column that investigates the characters, themes, and lessons of Star Wars from an educational, literary perspective. Breaking down one of the saga’s most haunting sequences.
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