Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi (Special Edition) Bowie MD

Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi (Special Edition)

Soundtrack

RCA Victor Records, 1997

REVIEW BY: Alfredo Narvaez

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 04/04/2000

John Williams has established himself as THE composer of themodern movie era. Jaws, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, Superman, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, Williams had become the personwho created the music for many of childhood's dreams andnightmares. (I know he did for mine).

Still the task had not become easier for Williams when it cameto this score. On the contrary, now he had to compete witheveryone's expectations and demands - much like what he had to do,I'm sure, for last year's The Phantom Menace. At the same time, he had to create newmusic that would fit alongside the already-classic themes and unitethis film with the other two to create a complete body of work.What does this all mean? It means the major themes from Episodes IVand V find their way here. It means new themes. And it means ascore that is far lengthier than the movie it is accompanying.

So what about the new music. Williams creates four new majorthemes. The first one is for the gangster, Jabba the Hutt. Thistuba-heavy ode to the grotesque space slug first appears in "BountyFor A Wookie" and is prominent throughout the entire Tatooine partof the score. Perhaps its most amusing use occurs during the greataction piece, "Sail Barge Assault." As Leia uses her chain tostrangle the obese slug from its life, his theme kicks in as hekicks the bucket. Notice that Williams did not use a triumphantversion of Princess Leia's theme for this scene, but instead choseto highlight Jabba getting his due. (On a side note, Williamsreuses Jabba's Theme for his scene with Han Solo in the Tatooinehangars during Star Wars: A New Hope. That sets up the payoff that takesplace here.)

The second new theme presented is a very cool, ominous and darktheme for the Emperor. Unlike the large and loud Imperial March,the Emperor's Theme - which first appears in "The Emperor Arrives"- is almost religious in its nature. It's like Williams wanted tocreate the exact opposite of Yoda's quiet and benign theme.Featuring a male choir that sings no lyrics, Williams createssomething that sounds like a wailing of the damned or a chant bymaniacal monks. Like I said, very cool. It fit the character sowell that Williams reused it for The Phantom Menace's score - as Darth Sidious' theme.