Harrison's Performance is the Driving Force Behind ANH

To me when I watch ANH, the single thing that stands out most in the film is Harrison Ford's performance. The way he plays Han as such a smooth talker gun slinger, almost all of his lines in the movie make me smile

Without Ford playing Han in ANH, the film would be much weaker IMO, he gives his character such an aura that without him I think the film would be far less enjoyable

Does anyone else think Han is what makes ANH so great?

 

I agree. Han is the exact opposite of the careful, methodical Imperials. Without him, the movie would be a lot duller.

 

I agree. Han definately helped ANH more than any other character singular, IMHO.

 

Unlike many others, it would seem, Han is by far not a reason I watch ANH (or any other OT movie, for that matter).

 

Hmmm...I dunno. I think the story could've worked without Han Solo, but then there wouldn't be that great counterpoint in terms of his character's beliefs/attitude. Even the acting style is a nice counterpoint. Harrison's attitude meshes perfectly with Han's attitude, and it just works so well in the film. If you examine them closely, Han Solo's lines often seem like quotes of what the audience is thinking. Think about it. As a portrayal, it's some of Harrison's best stuff. Or at least I think so. But I still think ANH is driven by the other performances too- James Earl Jones, Alec Guinnes, Mark Hamill; they carry the film too, y'know.

 

Agreed, Han Solo was always the character that stood out the most in ANH - I don't think any other actor that Ford could have pulled it off as good as him.

 

Not for me. Han's probably my least favorite major character in the saga, and Harrison Ford has yet to ever convince me that he is a character, not just a handsome guy saying lines.

Eh, to each his own.


Rick McCallum loves you!

 

Harrison's Performance is the Driving Force Behind ANH
I don't think so. I much preferred Leia's performance in ANH.

IMO, Han is such an annoying character. He's the type of guy trying to be cool, but he isn't.

Anyway, just my POV.

 

But when you were younger and you played Star Wars, Han Solo was the one everyone (the lads anyway) wanted to be.


Or was that just me!

 

I still think Burt Reynolds should've played Solo...

 

I could not agree more... Only a couple of weeks ago I attended a charity screening of ANH at the new Cine Capri theatre in north Scottsdale (Arizona). I had not seen ANH on the big screen since the SE release, and was really looking forward to it.

The atmosphere was perfect... a line formed hours before the screening, and we had people in costume. Everything was perfect... The wife and kids were in tow, and I was ready to relive my childhood.

Just to give you some background, over the course of years, I have seen ANH in theaters over a hundred times... I must have seen it some 40 times alone in the summer of 77. I love ANH. I used to think it was the perfect movie. When the SEs came out I got to relive the films through my children's eyes (they were seeing the films for the first time... BTW my youngest daughter is a total Star Wars geek now)...

Well, I'm 36 now, but here was a moment for me to go back to that summer of 77... and guess what??? I was bored... Looking at things objectively, the first 40 minutes of ANH moves at a snail's pace. Everything the PT bashers complain about is right there, encapsulated in the first 40 minutes... really bad dialogue, bad humor, bad acting, and it takes itself too seriously, and instead of whiney Anakin we get whiney Luke.. it's all right there.

Finally, some life is breathed into the film when Peter Cushing makes his first appearance, but the film doesn't really take off until Han Solo appears. At that point ANH has life, it has a sense of fun and adventure.

You are so right, ANH takes off when Ford first appears on screen... it was at this point I realised who was responsible.... it wasn't Lucas, it wasn't Lawrence Kasdan, or Irvin Kershner, or Gary Kurtz (or any of the so-called "saviors" of Star Wars). It was Gloria Katz and Willard Huyck... yes of "Howard the Duck" fame. Lucas brought them in to spruce up the script and add some punch to the movie, and their vehicle for this is Han Solo. Han brings a lighter tone and sense of fun to a movie that often times takes itself a little too seriously.

BTW great topic.

Gallandro

 

Thanks for the input everyone

I just love the witty banter with Han, and I still laugh every time he talks to the Imperial commander on the comlink and totally messes up, and how he cringes after he stops talking, I love it

And Gallandro you are definately right. Although I enjoy the first 40 minutes despite it being a bit slow, the film certainly does take off as soon as Han appears on screen

And I don't mean to belittle the contributions of the other actors in the film, Alec did a great job with Obi-wan, and James Earl Jones did great with Darth Vader. But for me ANH doesn't have the mythical under-score and is meant to be more of a thrill ride, and to me when Han blasts that TIE Fighter and saves Luke while yelling "Yahoo!" That's the best part of the movie and I silently cheer to myself every time

 

I know Han's a jerk, but I can't help but love him. Everything he says amuses me. But even more than that, I think he's an important character in the OT because he's Luke's antithesis. Luke wants to be a brave warrior and has never been able to, and Han doesn't want to be one and is being forced into it. A lot of the saga is about good and evil, dark and light, but Han is a nice grey area which I think adds more realism to it.

-sj loves kevin spacey