Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) Star Wars (original title)

Director:

George Lucas

Writer:

George Lucas (written by)

Release Date:

25 May 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

It's Back! (re-release)

Plot:

Luke Skywalker leaves his home planet, teams up with other rebels, and tries to save Princess Leia from the evil clutches of Darth Vader.

Plot Keywords:

Death Star | Empire | Planet | Galaxy | Princess

Awards:

Won 6 Oscars. Another 27 wins & 21 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Mark Hamill	...	Luke Skywalker
Harrison Ford	...	Han Solo
Carrie Fisher	...	Princess Leia Organa
Peter Cushing	...	Grand Moff Tarkin
Alec Guinness	...	Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi
Anthony Daniels	...	C-3PO
Kenny Baker	...	R2-D2
Peter Mayhew	...	Chewbacca
David Prowse	...	Darth Vader
James Earl Jones	...	Darth Vader (voice)
Phil Brown	...	Uncle Owen
Shelagh Fraser	...	Aunt Beru
Jack Purvis	...	Chief Jawa
Alex McCrindle	...	General Dodonna
Eddie Byrne	...	General Willard

Also Known As:

"Star Wars" - USA (original title)
"La guerra de las estrellas" - USA (Spanish title)
"Star Wars IV: A New Hope" - USA (video box title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for sci-fi violence and brief mild language. (special edition, DVD version)

Runtime:

121 min | 125 min (special edition)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | DTS 70 mm (special edition) (70 mm prints) (Europe) | DTS (special edition) | Dolby Digital (special edition) | Dolby (35 mm prints) | SDDS (special edition)

Certification:

Iceland:L (special edition) | Iceland:LH (original version) (video re-rating) | Malaysia:U | Canada:G (British Columbia/Quebec) | South Korea:All | Brazil:Livre | South Africa:PG | Netherlands:12 (DVD rating) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:PG (Nova Scotia) (special edition) | Chile:TE | Denmark:11 (special edition) | Denmark:12 | Finland:K-12 (original rating) | Finland:K-8 (special edition) | France:U | Germany:6 (special edition) | Hong Kong:I | Iceland:L (original rating) | Ireland:G | Mexico:AA | Netherlands:AL | New Zealand:PG | Norway:11 (special edition) | Norway:12 | Peru:PT | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG (special edition) | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:U | USA:PG (certificate #24925) | West Germany:12 (original rating) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Tikal National Park, Guatemala

Company:

Lucasfilm

Trivia:

According to Ben Burtt, the sounds Chewbacca makes have been made from a compilation of large mammals, mostly bears (he said one particular zoo-kept Grizzly Bear was an invaluable source of Chewbacca sounds). R2-D2's sounds are various people (mostly Burtt) making baby-like sounds or sometimes actually recordings of babies electronically manipulated to sound mechanic.

Goofs:

Continuity: After C-3PO and R2-D2 escape from the Blockade Runner, the Blockade Runner has vanished from the Star Destroyer's underside tractor beam hatch. This is most evident in the last frame of the scene that shows the Star Destroyer flying by.

Quotes:

[first lines]
C-3PO:Did you hear that? They shut down the main reactor. We'll be destroyed for sure. This is madness.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Delta Farce (2007)

The greatest cinematic epic of all time begins here.

Here begins the greatest cinematic epic of all time, and arguably one of the greatest stories ever told. Originally conceived as a serialized popcorn movie in the manner of the old action movies that Lucas grew up with, Star Wars surpassed even George's keen and bombastic imagination to become a central part of movie history.

There are countless tales of the making of this movie; how Lucas never believed he would get the chance to complete the series, how it spawned an industry and made the name of nearly everyone who touched it a household word. But what that does not reveal, nor do the much diminished prequels, is the sheer joy and excitement these movies generated.

It was a once in a lifetime experience. You could feel it from opening day, earlier if you paid attention to such things. We had never seen anything like it, and we are not likely to again.

This episode finds young Luke Skywalker yearning to leave the agrarian life he has with his aunt and uncle, and chase after adventure as his friends before him have already done. And what adventure there is. The galaxy is in the grip of a massive rebellion against a tyrannical and oppressive empire, but on Luke's home planet, it's something you only dare speak of in a whisper.

Along come two robots, "Droids" for short, who inadvertently involve Luke in a stellar attempt to contact an old wizard named Ben Kenobi, who lives in the caves near Luke's home.

The rest is history, and there isn't a person alive in the civilized world who doesn't have at least some awareness of the epic story that unfolds. Luke's rise from adolescent obscurity on Tatooine to a leading role in the greatest struggle of all time is told with humor, action, adventure, and always a sense of story that is unmatched on the screen or on the page.

With the completion of the prequel trilogy, these films are enjoying a renewed popularity among a generation that never saw the films on the big screen, and the theatric revivals are almost guaranteed. Go. Get some popcorn. And may the Force be with you.