Star Wars (1977)
Star Wars is a 1977 adventure movie directed by George Lucas, with a running time of 2h 1m. It stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher.
On a desert planet at the edge of a galaxy ruled by the Empire, a farm boy named Luke Skywalker buys two droids and finds a message meant for a princess. Soon he is training under the old hermit Obi-Wan Kenobi, hiring the smuggler Han Solo, and flying toward a battle station that can destroy worlds. George Lucas fused Saturday-serial adventure, samurai films, and myth into a story of rebels against an empire. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher lead a cast that turned a risky 1977 gamble into a saga.
Quick answers
What is Star Wars about?
On a desert planet at the edge of a galaxy ruled by the Empire, a farm boy named Luke Skywalker buys two droids and finds a message meant for a princess. Soon he is training under the old hermit Obi-Wan Kenobi, hiring the smuggler Han Solo, and flying toward a battle station that can destroy worlds. George Lucas fused Saturday-serial adventure, samurai films, and myth into a story of rebels against an empire. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher lead a cast that turned a risky 1977 gamble into a saga.
When was Star Wars released?
Star Wars was released on 25 May 1977.
How long is Star Wars?
Star Wars runs 2h 1m.
Who made Star Wars?
Star Wars was directed by George Lucas.
Where can I watch Star Wars?
Star Wars is available on AMC, AMC+, DirecTV On Demand, Disney+, Philo and YouTube TV.
Where to watch Star Wars
Stream: AMC, AMC+, DirecTV On Demand, Disney+, Philo, YouTube TV
Rent: Amazon, Google Play
Buy: AppleTV, Fandango at Home, Google Play
Official site
https://www.starwars.com/films/star-wars-episode-iv-a-new-hope
Cast
- Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker
- Harrison Ford as Han Solo
- Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia Organa
- Peter Cushing as Grand Moff Tarkin
- Alec Guinness as Obi-Wan "Ben" Kenobi
- Anthony Daniels as C-3PO
- Kenny Baker as R2-D2
- Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca
- David Prowse as Darth Vader (performer)
- James Earl Jones as Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
- Phil Brown as Uncle Owen
- Shelagh Fraser as Aunt Beru
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A few thoughts on Star Wars
The mythic space-opera sweep carries straight into Galaxy Express 999, Leiji Matsumoto's melancholy train ride across the stars. For time inside this galaxy, the role-playing game Knights of the Old Republic lets you build a Jedi thousands of years before Luke. Frank Herbert's Dune supplied much of the desert-and-destiny DNA George Lucas drew from, and rewards anyone who wants the source.
The rest of the Skywalker saga, on screen and beyond
Luke's first outing left an entire galaxy still to explore, and these pick up different threads of it. The Empire Strikes Back continues Luke's story directly, The Phantom Menace rewinds to the fall that made the Empire possible, Solo fills in Han's history before he ever met Luke, and Knights of the Old Republic lets you play through the same universe thousands of years earlier.
Pulpy space opera in the tradition Star Wars grew from
George Lucas built Star Wars out of old serials and pulp adventure, and this angle runs in both directions from that source. Flash Gordon is the swashbuckling comic-strip hero Lucas openly borrowed from, while Guardians of the Galaxy, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, The Last Starfighter and Rebel Moon all carry that same rocket-and-blaster spirit into their own galaxies.
An ordinary person pulled into a fight across the stars
Luke Skywalker starts as a farm boy with no idea he'll join a rebellion, and these share that same leap from small life to galactic stakes. Ender's Game and Rebel Moon: Part Two put an untested lead at the center of a war, Project Hail Mary strands an unlikely astronaut with humanity's survival on the line, and Old Man's War drafts an elderly recruit into a war between star systems.
Star Trek's own galaxy-spanning saga to explore next
If the scale of a galaxy under empire and rebellion is what hooks you, Star Trek offers a whole parallel universe of it. The 2009 reboot reintroduces the crew from scratch, Into Darkness and Beyond carry that crew through new threats, and First Contact and The Motion Picture return to the earlier Enterprise era for a different flavor of the same voyage.