1980’s Star Wars movie with compelling character development, shocking plot twists, and most notably, a darker tone.
Back to the Future Part II, and George Lucas’ own Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. From Luke’s Force vision to Han being turned into an ornament for a crime lord, this Star Wars sequel was packed with dark scenes.
The Wampa Attack
George Lucas introduced audiences to exciting new worlds in each of his Star Wars movies. In the opening act of The Empire Strikes Back, he transported viewers to the harsh wintry wilderness of Hoth, where Luke is attacked by a wampa and dragged back to its cave.
The Star Wars universe has introduced a bunch of memorable movie monsters, from the rancor to the Sarlacc, but the wampa is one of the galaxy’s most terrifying creatures.
Han Cuts Open A Tauntaun For Luke To Sleep In
When Han finds a delirious Luke freezing to death in the snow, he realizes it’s too dark to get him back to the Rebel base in time and thinks quickly on his feet to save his friend’s life.
He grabs Luke’s lightsaber and cuts open his dead tauntaun to give his budding Jedi pal a warm place to sleep. 35 years later, Alejandro González Iñárritu included a similar scene with a horse in The Revenant.
Vader’s Helmet Is Lowered Onto His Scarred Head
After Darth Vader was introduced in the original Star Wars movie as a faceless symbol of evil, The Empire Strikes Back went out of its way to humanize him ahead of the revelation that the man under the mask is Luke Skywalker’s father, the fallen Jedi.
Vader’s helmet being lowered onto his scarred head, glimpsed by a ing Imperial officer, offered a poignant reminder that there’s a tortured human being in the robotic suit.
The Space Slug
While the Falcon is being relentlessly pursued by the Imperial fleet, Han decides to land it in a nearby cave. Unfortunately, as it turns out, it’s not a cave – it’s the mouth of a giant space slug known as an “exogorth.”
Audiences know the Falcon will make it out because the main characters are onboard, but watching the exogorth’s jaws close on the ship still makes for a tense, suspenseful moment.
Luke’s Creepy Force Vision
In the midst of Luke’s Jedi training, he’s drawn into a mysterious cave. Yoda encourages him to go in and have a Force vision. The ensuing fantasy is a disturbing affair as Luke is confronted by Vader and manages to decapitate him.
On the floor of the cave, Vader’s mask falls off, revealing Luke’s face underneath it. Not only does this foreshadow the big twist, but it’s also super creepy.
C-3PO Is Kidnapped And Dismantled By Ugnaughts On Cloud City
Upon arrival in Cloud City, C-3PO wanders off from the group and gets kidnapped and dismantled by a bunch of mischievous Ugnaughts. This hints that there’s more villainy lurking on Bespin than meets the eye ahead of Lando’s betrayal.
When Chewie finally finds Threepio, he has to fight the Ugnaughts for all his parts, and then he bundles him up and reassembles him later on the Falcon.
The Empire Tortures Han
After being captured by the Empire, Han is brutally tortured with a futuristic device. This is a case where the off-screen horrors are scarier than anything that could be depicted on-screen. Han’s screams of anguish tell us everything we need to know about what he’s going through.
When the interrogation is finally over, Han reveals that the Emperor only had him tortured to get Luke’s attention across the cosmic void of the Force: “They didn’t even ask me any questions.”
Vader Effortlessly Annihilates Luke In Lightsaber Combat
When Luke cuts his Jedi training short to save Han and Leia from Vader’s wrath, Yoda warns him that he’s not ready to face Vader. But being the hero that he is, Luke can’t just let his friends suffer, so he walks right into the Emperor’s trap.
Just as Yoda predicted, Luke is no match for Vader. The Sith Lord effortlessly annihilates him in lightsaber combat and ultimately slices off one of his hands.
Han Is Frozen In Carbonite
The most subversive, unconventional aspect of The Empire Strikes Back is its surprisingly downbeat ending. The heroes are hopelessly defeated by the villains and barely make it out alive.
While Luke loses a hand, Han suffers perhaps an even worse fate: being frozen in carbonite to be hung on the wall of the crime lord he owes money to. Luke’s hand is replaced with a state-of-the-art prosthetic, but Han is turned into an ornament.
“I Am Your Father.”
The most iconic moment in The Empire Strikes Back – and one of the most iconic moments in all of cinema – is when Vader has Luke backed out onto a ledge and tells him, “I am your father.” This earth-shattering revelation blew audience’s minds in 1980, and remains arguably the greatest plot twist in movie history.
Not only did this twist surprise audiences and bring Luke and Vader closer together as a perfectly matched hero and villain, but it also created some dark implications, like the risk of Luke turning to the dark side.
