Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi Returns review: Understanding the Star Wars series a little better

4/5

Story:

24 years after Star Wars franchise films came to an end, Ewan McGregor brings his character Obi-Wan Kenobi to life through a web series. Nostalgia fills in as many old and new faces join the show. The journey from Star Wars to Obi-Wan Kenobi, documented.

Review:

Nostalgia is sure to take over you as you see the Obi-Wan Kenobi from Star Wars - Alec Guinness (he won Best Supporting Actor for A New Hope) - in his true glory. He does nothing but sit on a chair but his character is so powerful that you instantly feel the connection and scream 'Obi-Wan Kenobi.'

The documentary - Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi Returns - commences on a hopeful note. Ewan McGregor, who has played Obi-Wan Kenobi in the latest Disney+Hotstar series, recalls his memories of Star Wars and the character. You see his eyes filled with marvel and hope, much like every Star Wars' fan who saw the film at least the first time around.

The viewers then get a glimpse of what happened when Obi-Wan Kenobi went into the making. Soon, Deborah Chow, who has helmed the series, explains her thought behind making the project in the first place. She describes the series as what comes in between Revenge Of The Sith and A New Hope.

She also goes on to claim that the series was about Ben Kenobi as a man more than a Jedi. "We wanted to show he's broken and how he comes back from it," Ewan added. The show actually touches upon those aspects but in doing so, it did lose a little magic of Star Wars, created by George Lucas. As expected as that was, the concept, of course, was not a bad idea and it even managed to reach across people.

Since Ewan was also a part of the original Star Wars prequels (episodes I to III), the documentary also shared his tapes from the time. The actor makes huge revelations in the documentary.

Another character that was spoken about throughout the series was Moses Ingram's Reva. That is another character Deborah wanted to stand out and like you could guess, she did.

Joel and Bonnie, who played Luke's adoptive parents in the Star Wars films, came back for the series. This came as a pleasant surprise and lived up to the nostalgia the show promised.

Another character that made his comeback to the series is the second main lead - the antagonist Anakin Skywalker -played by Hayden Christensen. His transformation was one of the best things to happen to the series and you go through that journey in the documentary too.

Deb points out that she wanted to shift the focus from Luke Skywalker to Princess Leia, who has been one of the strongest women portrayed in cinema till date. Although that holds true and Obi-Wan Kenobi did have Princess Leia, it was only in her younger form. The elder Leia is what people love. So, it looks like the director hinted at a new season of the series.

If you thought that Vivien (who played young Leia in the series) impressed you in scenes, wait till she tells you how she prepared for her character. Not just that, she actually is spontaneous too, which is just so lovely to watch.

Deb, as always, explains the importance of certain scenes - what they wanted to convey and how they were executed. Needless to say, the process is as beautiful as the final product.

Liam Neeson, who surprised one and all by returning as Qui-Gon Jinn, was taken by surprise himself. He returned to the franchise 24 years later (The Phantom Menace released in 1999).

The documentary has a fitting end - with the team coming together to celebrate the legendary franchise. "Hello there," followed by Darth Vader and Leia-Luke's entry, is just the perfect ending needed for this documentary.

Verdict:

Director David Gelb has managed to make a documentary interesting. Yeah, that happened. Do watch this and wait for post-credits because there is so much more to this documentary. It is a whole experience.