The Empire Strikes Back

The Empire Strikes Back (1980) , the second film in the original Star Wars trilogy, is often cited as the 'best' and most popular Star Wars movie. In her compelling study, Rebecca Harrison draws on previously unpublished archival research to reveal a variety of original and often surprising perspectives on the film, from the cast and crew who worked on its production through to the audiences who watched it in cinemas.Harrison guides readers on a journey that begins with the film's production in 1979 and ends with a discussion about its contemporary status as an object of reverence and nostalgia. She demonstrates how Empire 's meaning and significance has continually shifted over the past 40 years not only within the franchise, but also in broader conversations about film authorship, genre, and identity. Offering new insights and original analysis of Empire via its cultural context, production history, textual analysis, exhibition, reception, and post-1980 re-evaluations of the film, the book provides a timely and relevant reassessment of this enduringly popular film.

About the author

Rebecca Harrison is Lecturer in Film and Media at the Open University, UK. She is the author of From Steam to Screen: Cinema, the Railways and Modernity (I B Tauris, 2018), and of the forthcoming Decoding Star Wars: Gender, Race and the Power of Code in a Galaxy Far, Far Away (Bloomsbury). She regularly contributes to outlets including Sight & Sound, Screen Queens and BBC Radio Scotland.

Product details

• Authors: Rebecca Harrison, Rebecca (Open University Harrison, Rebecca (University of Glasgow Harrison, Harrison Rebecca
• Publisher: British Film Institute
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 31.12.2019
• EAN: 9781911239970
• ISBN: 978-1-911239-97-0
• No. of pages: 112
• Dimensions: 135 mm x 190 mm x 5 mm
• Series: BFI Film Classics
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Art > Theatre, ballet; Non-fiction book > Music, film, theatre; Science Fiction, PERFORMING ARTS / Film / Genres / Science Fiction & Fantasy, Films, cinema, PERFORMING ARTS / Film / History & Criticism, Film Theory & Criticism, Film history, theory or criticism