The Climax-
With out a doubt, the very best thing about this movie is the ending. The plot twist was perfectly set up: the whole story up to that point unfolds methodically, almost to the point of being dry.
After the first act, 2/3rds of our Golden Trio is on the run; trying on the run to lay low as they're pursued by various adversaries...
And the other 1/3rd (Luke) goes on a meditation retreat to...find himself (Force-Mastery 101: Accelerated Edition).
It's all very dry stuff, only in retrospect do we recognize how much of his training is geared towards prepping him for his show down with Vader.
(Of course, Luke is oblivious to all the heavy handed (*wink**wink*) hints supplied by his mentors.
He expects them to have his best interests at heart, and he expects them to be as honest and open with him as he is with them.)
The reason I think this twist resonates with people is that it's more than just the shock factor (although, admittedly, I think some of us nerds are still collectively reeling from that), it also (if you watch chronologically from movie's release date) that introduces us to the most intriguing and legendary character in it that we've met to date:
Anakin Skywalker-
Yes, I know we've heard about him before. We've even (technically) seen him before, but this is our first glance of this character as an individual: first time we're invited examine him as a character instead of a caricature.
It's a tantalizing storytelling technique turns a predominantly Sci-Fi-ish Adventure into something of more literary value:
Anakin Skywalker can be seen as a modern reflection of characters from our own myths, and his story echoes some of the greatest history has to offer: Greek Tragedies, Shakespearean Romances, Arthurian Legends...
If it seems a bit much to put Anakin Skywalker on equal footing along side figures like King Arthur, Hamlet, and Oedipus Rex, instead consider that he follows in their tradition...and that finding that element unexpectedly showing up in a space fairy-tale has made it resonate with viewers all the more.
(On a side note, one of the reasons I've come to believe the Sequel Trilogy cannot possibly live up to the original is because the twist was unexpected by almost everyone (Besides, possibly, David Prose. Kudos, David!)
This first one set a precedent. No matter what plot twist the future installments of the franchise have in store, we'll expecting them...even if we don't have a clue exactly what they are.
From my point of view, right now is when we can have the most fun with Rey, and Finn, and Kylo Ren...Everything is speculation, and so everything is open game.
Once the storytellers get past the "big reveal", we're not going to have that aspect anymore. We're going to have to stick with the storyteller's vision (and if the prequels are any indication, a fair bit of complaining that our vision would have been undoubtedly superior to what the Star Wars Writers ended up choosing!)
There is some debate as to at what point in the story's development the identity of Darth Vader was solidified. But in this movie, the Anakin Skywalker's dual identity never feels like a storytelling cop-out (like something George Lucas and Co. pulled out of their nether regions because they couldn't think of what else to do...)
Even if it wasn't planned all along from the beginning, it works so well it feels like it was.
A lot of people probably disagree on this next point, but I have to mention it because it greatly enhanced my enjoyment of watching the film:
Star Wars ™ :The Special Edition ™ /Remastered Edition ™ -
If you are younger than me, or didn't watch the Star Wars films prior to 1997, you may not remember the audio and visual quality of the films took a nosedive in the second installment.
Now, I get that some people might prefer the nostalgia-cheesiness of the primitive (by today's standards) visual effects in the original version, and I also get that being too trigger-happy with CGI can negatively impact the viewing quality of a visually analog-inspired universe...but in the case of this particular movie... it just worked OK?
The whole first act of the movie had really poor visual quality on VHS when I was growing up: In addition to being an inhospitable place to live, Hoth was hideous to look at. Not to mention the practical and special effects looked cheap (Like seeing through the wall of a space ship (not the window...THE WALL) to the landscape and enemy ships on the other side, or Luke fighting a disembodied Sasquatch arm, or him having a conversation with Ghost!Obi-Wan that you can only hear two friggin' words of!!!)
For the average viewer, those types of things are unnerving and disruptive. I remember as a kid, sometimes it got to the point where you're not watching it for the story anymore, you're watching it to catch all the glaring technical mistakes.
These technical mishaps do not to justice to the story; they're like glaring typos in the cheap original edition of your favorite book: great for your novelty collection, not so much for your reading (or viewing) pleasure.
Music-
This escapes a lot of people, but The Empire Strikes Back is actually the first time we hear most of John William's most memorable music themes:Vader's Theme: The Imperial March
Han and Leia's Love Theme (Which is basically more intense version of Princess Leia's Theme)
Yoda's Theme (The one that sounds like flying)
It's so iconic, and expressive, and powerful...I'm really the I'm so grateful to John Williams for not being cheap and just using the same themes from the first movie over again.
Cloud City and Co.-
This is one of the things that could probably be summed up under the previous headings (Bespin was greatly visually enhanced in the Special Edition ™ and the slow buildup/iconic showdown between Luke and Vader is beautifully set here) However, there are a couple of really cool story elements people kinda dismiss because of what comes after:
This baddass guy:
(Awesome mode: Activated)
These two lovable scumbags:
(Lando Voice: "Hellooow...What have we heere?")
(and C3PO being totally oblivious to that fact)
Luke Skywalker in his prime:
(Before his whole life goes to the crapper)
And everyday concerns of the Rebel Alliance (and the galaxy at large for that matter)...being more than just as side plot:
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