Story
Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) returns to his home planet to rescue Han Solo (Harrison Ford) from the monstrous Jabba the Hut (voice of Larry Ward). Han Solo is still frozen in carbonite. Meanwhile Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Lando (Billy Dee Williams) also mount their own rescue plan. The three eventually manage to escape with Han and destroy Jabba’s palace in the process. They then learn that the Empire has almost completed a new Death Star, far worse than the first. They travel to Endor to demolish the shield that protects the Death Star so that they can destroy it.
On Endor they encounter the Ewoks, furry little creatures that live like primitive tribesmen. At first, the Ewoks are defensive towards the newcomers, but then they join with the rebels to destroy the Empire’s Death Star. Meanwhile Luke, now almost a fully fledged Jedi Knight, has to confront his father to complete his mission.
Themes
Good versus evil
Violence
This movie has some violence. For example:
Sexual references
None of concern
Alcohol, drugs and other substances
None of concern
Nudity and sexual activity
This movie includes some mild partial nudity. For example, Jabba the Hut’s harem is made up of scantily clad women.
Product placement
None of concern
Coarse language
None of concern
Ideas to discuss with your children
Star Wars Episode VI: The Return of the Jedi is the final episode of the original Star Wars trilogy. It reaches its conclusion in an intense climactic battle between good and evil forces. The Star Wars trilogy is classic science fiction and a great adventure series for older children and teenagers.
The main message from this movie is that evil can’t be overcome by evil but can be overcome by good.
Values in this movie that you could reinforce with your children include patience, self-discipline, courage, self-sacrifice and the ability to see good in what appears to be evil.
This movie could also give you the chance to talk with your children about real-life issues such as their beliefs about good and evil and whether you can justify the use of force to defend beliefs and oppose evil.