I was a few months away from my ninth birthday in 1977 when the words “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away….” ushered in a little movie that would change the landscape of science fiction film making forever. As I sat at the drive in theater with my parents and younger brother, a handful of characters, both good and bad, entered my psyche and have never left. Two in particular have been fictional heroes since that day: Han Solo and his Wookie companion, Chewbacca.
I know from previous conversations that there are some of you who just don’t get the lasting impression that Star Wars has had for those of us who experienced it as it was released in theaters. That is fine, truly. We all have those books, films and television shows that have shaped our passions and interests over the years. Star Wars isn’t the only one for me, but when it comes to science fiction, Star Wars has always been my first love.
When I watch it today, even in the digitally “improved” versions that make us loudly proclaim, “Han Shot First!!!”, it sends chills up my spine. Those opening notes of the John Williams score and the narrative text crawling up the screen are hallmarks of a childhood spent lost in books with an imagination that never quit.
I was both excited and nervous when I heard that Disney acquired Star Wars and would be putting out new films. Even with my adoration of J.J. Abrams, those mixed feelings of wonder and dread remain. The first trailer for the upcoming December release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens certainly made me stand up and take notice. But it was the recent release of the second teaser trailer, with the inclusion of two old friends, that has my excitement at a fever pitch.
The trailer makers certainly knew how to grab the hearts of all of us old-timey fans with the line about being back home. Watching it for the first time over the weekend I felt that I too had come back home.
Here’s hoping the film as a whole generates those same feelings.
Perfectly stated! How many of us of that age pretended we lived on Hoth during winter? Or thought our beds made fantastic Millenium Falcon cockpits? The whole feel of this latest movie, at least what we’ve seen in the two trailers so far, fit right into those memories that are seared into our brains and hearts. I, like you, can only hope that the rest lives up to the trailers’ promises and that an entirely new generation finally understands just how amazing the Star Wars world really was.
Exactly! Either alone or with neighborhood friends I did a lot of pretending to be various SW characters.
This certainly has the look and feel of Star Wars with these teaser trailers. I found the following quotes online that also excite me:
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” the upcoming seventh episode in the space fantasy saga, drew its primary inspiration from the late 70s and early ’80s look of the original trilogy, said key members of the new film’s visual effects team on Saturday at Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim. Speaking on a panel on the third day of the four-day fan expo, the effects wizards assured fans that “The Force Awakens” emphasizes characters over digital magic.
“It’s almost liked ratcheting it down,” said Christian Alzmann, part of the production team for “The Force Awakens.” Alzmann, who worked on “Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones,” was asked how the J.J. Abrams-directed film would distinguish itself amid today’s landscape of effects-heavy genre films.
“To me, there’s almost like a lot of white noise of visual effects,” he said. “I think just ratcheting it down and making it more about characters and more about the story of the people and not about million man armies.”
From this link:
http://herocomplex.latimes.com/movies/star-wars-celebration-the-force-awakens-is-a-transference-of-generations/#/0
Like you, I’m looking forward to the new STAR WARS episode. These movies swept generations of kids into an exciting future. We all want to go back there!
Happy Star Wars Day, George. I’m looking forward to the film, but I wish Disney would have stuck with the tradition of releasing Star Wars films in May…and not just because we would soon be seeing it.
Yes! I enjoyed that clip very much – thanks for sharing Carl.
Lynn 😀
I’m glad, Lynn. I watch it every once in awhile now just to put that grin on my face.
I also got to watch that first “Star Wars” movie in a drive in theatre, but I admit to being old enough that we drove ourselves. In the climactic fight with Vader and Kenobi there was a huge electrical storm lighting up the sky behind that screen… it just added to the effects.
I saw it three times in the release year, and I went with friends to watch the re-release in theaters in the 90’s. Same feeling of being swept far, far away. I have seen them all on the big screen at least twice and intend to do so with the one…
It would not have been good had I driven myself to Star Wars, Ian. 🙂
I too would have done multiple theater viewings if I had been old enough to drive. As it was, it wasn’t until Return of the Jedi came out that I made it several times to the theater to see a Star Wars film. Which is probably why I ended up seeing Phantom Menace 7 different times in the theater, each with different people, even though I had many issues with it.
I was a bit older when the first film was released, I went to see it about a week after it opened, after work, stood in line. As a science fiction reader since I was a kid, it was amazing to see an SF movie that was realistic and looked so “right”. Star Trek was pretty good, but this!
I saw it 3 more time in the next months, bought the VHS tape when it came out and damn near wore it out. I don’t dislike the prequels as much as most people, it’s still Star Wars for me, but I’m really excited about the new one.
I agree with your comment about realistic. Constumes, space vehicles, weapons, sound effects, all combined into a glimpse into different part of the universe.
I did, and still do, like that gritty, “realistic” look of the ships, etc. In watching the blu ray versions I am amazed at how clear and high def the transfer is and how those old non-cgi effects hold up.
I was 16 when it came out, and solidified my love of the SF. Though I still don’t enjoy reading space opera, I love watching it! I remember the comparisons to 2001 for the number of special effects. Somewhere, I think I still have the program you could buy at the concessions counter. And I thought John Williams was the greatest composer ever. I became a soundtrack album buyer because of this film. I’m looking forward to this!
I’m a big fan of reading space opera, arguably my favorite type of SF, almost entirely because of Star Wars and the impact it, and to a lesser degree Star Trek, had on my childhood and the way it informed my reading choices.
John Williams is indeed an amazing composer. The music he created is so iconic, even all these decades later.