If you want a loyal friend or a lethal weapon, try a machine. But when the revolution is sliding down the incinerator chute and there's only five seconds left to save it, you had better rely on the Life Force.

That's the unexpected message of Star Wars, a movie which manages to slap technology's face while celebrating the glories of gadgetry. This double-jointed maneuver gives the film its springy bounce. An anti-modern message in an ultra-modern wrapper: what could be more stylish? What could be more fun?

Much of Star Wars' success is simply the overflow from its excesses. Loaded with enough special features to equip a dozen lesser vehicles, hurtling along at a velocity close to light speed, George Lucas's movie breaks down all barriers of resistance. Like a radio serial, it begins at the middle, quickly summarizing previous events and starting right in with some sizzling...