Review Detail

9.8 26 10
Documentary/Review July 23, 2012 7091
(Updated: July 23, 2016)
Overall rating
 
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
 
10.0
Audio Editing
 
10.0
Visual Editing
 
10.0
Narrative
 
10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
Final documentary from Jamie Benning’s Star Wars trilogy is arguably the best.
Jam packed with extras, boasting an unbeatable menu design.
If you can only get one - this is the one.

Video - 720p X 480p. My version is NTSC. Quality wobbles a bit, though nothing unexpected. As far as layering of visual “extras” this seems to have had more than the other pair.

Audio - 2 Channel AC3. Movie dialogue clear, voiceovers clear - even from Harrison Ford, with whom I have problems occasionally.

Narrative - As with the other pair, memories, anecdotes, popups and background details are interwoven with the narrative proper. Perhaps because the film had been such an unexpected smash, and enthusiasm was so high, the voiceovers are optimistic and fresh. The “good cheer” factor is off the dial in this one.

Enjoyment - This is the doc I have watched over and over. Seems like I am always picking up on fresh details, or spying something in the frame corner. As far as extras, not much, which is mildly surprising. There was a plethora of material listed on the “cuts n additions.” Perhaps Benning desired a strict DVD-5 and goodies would have bumped this into a DVD-9.

The menu deserves singular praise. This is one of the finest menus I have even seen, and extraordinarily conceived. The entire show is encapsulized in Ralph McQuarrie’s conceptual art and John Williams’ music. Often viewers click past the menu as swiftly as possible. Not so here. This shines a graceful innocence and can be rewatched multiple times. Well done - really - well done.

This is essential.

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