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Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Chewbacca is called the most overrated sidekick, then defended as a co-pilot, mechanic, marksman, strong fighter, and the contact who arranges passage with Han.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:21:27Read transcript
  • An early take labels Chewbacca the most overrated sidekick because his size makes him conspicuous and his speech is unintelligible to almost everyone.
  • The rebuttal credits Chewbacca as a co-pilot, mechanic, expert shot, and source of physical strength.
  • Chewbacca talks to the mentor and arranges the deal that gets Luke and the mentor onto Han's ship.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

The most "year the movie came out" thing

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Practical effects, primitive laser bursts, creatures in suits, and Mark Hamill’s television haircut define 1977.

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:26:26Read transcript
  • Some laser blasts and explosions resemble sparklers despite the overall effects achievement.
  • Practical creatures played by people in suits are selected as a defining 1977 quality.
  • Hand-drawn imagery, matte paintings, models, and optical effects are praised as practical craft that remains appealing.
  • Mark Hamill's period haircut and his departure from the Eight Is Enough pilot are offered as another marker.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

What’s Aged the Best?

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

The film’s influence, Leia, practical craft, mythmaking, Darth Vader, Obi-Wan, world-building, and cultural afterlife form a long field.

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 00:27:58Read transcript
  • Interconnected cinematic universes and ILM are credited as foundations of contemporary Hollywood storytelling.
  • Leia is praised as a fearless hero rather than a passive damsel, with particular importance for young viewers.
  • Lightsabers update the durable screen appeal of sword fighting through a futuristic design.
  • The fast spaceships are traced to hot-rod culture and Lucas’s American Graffiti experience.
  • The Force works especially well as an almost-forgotten spiritual discipline practiced by a few remaining believers.
  • Minor details such as squadron check-ins and a stormtrooper hitting his head became durable shared lore.
  • The trench run is treated as an enduring aerial-attack template copied by later action films.
  • Darth Vader is the leading answer because he expanded from mysterious villain into the franchise’s most recognizable tragic figure.
  • Introducing Vader immediately is defended because later stories reveal the saga to be partly his story and the Emperor to be the deeper evil.
  • The secret that Vader is Luke’s father is praised for leaving subtle retrospective possibilities without revealing itself.
  • Obi-Wan is praised as an archetypal mentor and every Vader entrance retains power.
  • The strange creatures, villains, opening crawl, and constant parody produced a distinct world with an unusually long cultural life.
  • The long-concealed Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford affair is offered as something that aged well because their chemistry remains visible in the film.
  • Blasters age well relative to bullets because their clean impacts make the movie accessible to younger viewers and avoid ammunition-count questions.
  • Carrie Fisher’s advice that she and Mark Hamill should accept their defining roles is praised as a healthy view of fame.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

The Great Shot Gordo Award for Most Cinematic Shot

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Luke watching the binary sunset wins over the Death Star corridor, escape pod, post-duel reaction, and Alderaan’s destruction.

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:40:58Read transcript
  • The binary sunset wins because it conveys Luke’s hunger for a larger life without explanatory dialogue.
  • The bottomless Death Star corridor is praised as an astonishing matte-painting illusion made with old compositing methods.
  • The escape pod against the stars is cited as an early digital effect that still feels tactile.
  • The wide view of Luke frozen after his mentor falls is another emotional composition.
  • Alderaan’s destruction is admired as the first overwhelming demonstration of the Death Star.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

Sean Fennessey Award for Stealth Homage That Gives Every Movie Nerd a Criterion Orgasm

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

The Hidden Fortress wins for direct visual and character parallels.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:44:23Read transcript
  • Specific images and character functions in The Hidden Fortress are said to map directly onto Star Wars.
  • Kurosawa’s influence on both Lucas and Spielberg is treated as essential to the movie’s existence.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

The Neil McCauley “A Book about Metals” Award for Best Line from the Movie

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Han Solo’s rejection of an all-powerful Force is the flex selection.

Flex pick · Chris Ryan

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:46:47Read transcript
  • The selected line says the speaker has crossed the galaxy without seeing proof that a mystical field controls destiny.
  • The quotation was used as a senior yearbook quote at a Quaker school.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

The Butch’s Girlfriend Award for the Weakest Link in the Film

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

No consensus emerges: Mark Hamill’s early performance is criticized and defended, while Porkins is an alternate.

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:47:39Read transcript
  • The first response says, 'I couldn't think of one.'
  • Mark Hamill is criticized as limited beside Fisher and Ford and described as an intentionally young, whiny system quarterback.
  • The defense says Luke must begin uncertain and off-kilter so his confidence and scars across the trilogy register as growth.
  • Kurt Russell is acknowledged as a cooler alternate who may have brought too much confidence to early Luke.
  • Porkins is another answer because the pilot is immediately lost despite the rebellion’s thin roster.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

What’s Aged the Worst?

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Retitling, representation, the reduced Fox slate, franchise alterations, and mishandled extensions dominate the criticism.

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 00:52:19Read transcript
  • Adding A New Hope to the original Star Wars title is called unnecessary and irritating.
  • The movie is called a 'big sausage party' with only Leia and Luke's aunt identified as women.
  • The film’s assumption that fascism is obviously bad is jokingly said to feel less secure in 2025.
  • After Star Wars succeeded, 20th Century Fox reducing its annual slate from about twenty films to seven is criticized as a lost opportunity.
  • The original story’s incestuous tension is awkward in retrospect, though Luke does not know Leia is his sister.
  • A Marvel comic run ending after 107 issues is treated as a missed opportunity for continued storytelling.
  • Disney’s early rejection of the screenplay is contrasted with its later purchase of Lucasfilm for four billion dollars.
  • The film could have used more than twelve minutes of Vader, though his limited screen time may strengthen him.
  • Contemporary criticism of the film’s whiteness and of black imagery being attached to Vader is preserved as historical reception.
  • The special-edition alterations, Holiday Special, and empty early-bird toy boxes are cited as mishandled parts of the movie’s afterlife.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

Van Lathan Award for Did This Movie Need More Black People?

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

The lack of Black characters matters, while one participant also values fantasy as a temporary escape from real racial burdens.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:00Read transcript
  • Seeing Black people in fantasy is described as reassurance that imagined worlds have not erased them.
  • The counterpoint says this particular fantasy offers relief from thinking about real-world racial barriers.
  • Chasing Amy is praised for satirizing the racial politics of the original Star Wars.
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