Star Wars Holiday Special

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More About

• Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
• Han Solo
• George Lucas
• Chewbacca
• Boba Fett

For people who grew up with the internet, the title Star Wars Holiday Special might conjure up images of a crappy, fan-made YouTube monstrosity filled with eerily familiar amateurs in ill-fitting costumes. But no, it is a very real monstrosity written by George Lucas and starring the original cast, which was released for Christmas in 1978, wedged between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. It is the story of Han Solo and Chewbacca braving Imperial blockades in order to celebrate "Life Day" with Chewie's family on the Wookie home planet of Kashyyyk. There are a few painful celebrity cameos (the late Golden Girl Bea Arthur sings to the Cantina theme) and animated segments (Boba Fett's debut). It has all those same overblown orchestra cues and cheesy dialogue recycling we've come to know and love, but its barely sitcom-quality filming and stilted story make it a prime candidate for trainwreck rubbernecking. Bryant-Lake Bowl would like to show it to you in an alcohol-rich party environment to take away the sting. The price of admission is only an unwrapped toy to be donated to Toys for Tots. It's a chance to see something that should never have existed (most of those involved won't acknowledge it does anyway), as well as spread some holiday cheer.
Wed., Dec. 16, 9 p.m., 2009