The Saga is Over.

This post is for everyone, but, to give some perspective, I would like to mention that I was 9 when the first one came out, so I am all about being awed by the special effects, having the arguments about who was sexier, Han or Luke, and all that stuff that we did at the time.

I was the first person in line for Empire Strikes Back. To this day, I have never recaptured the awe of that moment when I walked into the theater and every single seat was empty and I could sit anywhere for the sequel to the greatest movie I had ever seen.

I am not now, nor have I ever been one of those fanatical people who can recite all the dialogue, and wears a light sabre to school/work. Hell, you should see how fast I lose Star Wars Trivial Pursuit. I am still sitting in the middle when the frog returns with his pie full. I don’t like to talk about it.

Now, like almost everyone on the planet, I have grown wary and skeptical about the prequels. To me, the original three were as much about special effects as they were aboutl plot. Now, with CGI, there is nothing impressive about special effects anymore. You can do anything on a computer. It is not so great.

I have read the articles and criticisms of the first two and read things about bad acting and stilted dialogue. I think people forget that these words could easily describe the first three movies as well, but we gave them a break because it was STAR WARS. Well, I think our patience ran out after sitting through an entire movie with Jar Jar Binks. I hope someone lost their job over that.

The main difference between the old films and the prequels is that the older films were much more linear. Their entire storyline was “defeat the empire”. How they went about doing it varied from film to film, but the goal was the same for all three films. The problems the prequels faced were that the audience already knew the outcome and the films had to fill in all the blanks. Why was there a war? How did Aniken become Darth Vader? Why were Luke and Leia separated at birth…etc. A lot of questions had to be addressed and there is just no way to give so much information in a linear storytelling.

The frog and I kind of decided to brave the movie at the last minute (well, two hours before the show) because we noticed that new shows were starting about every half hour. Well, with that many shows, if we bought our tix, got in line, we should get a good seat. So that is what we did. All was well. Even sitting through The Twenty and a half hour of more commercials and previews was not so bad. Then…..the Lucas logo came on screen….

I sat up and grabbed the frog’s hand. The silence accompanied by the words “long ago, in a galaxy far, far away…”, that moment of anticipation where my tension became almost unbearable and then….

The first notes of John Williams famous score blasted out of the screen and the words STAR WARS pulled back. I squeezed the frog’s hand and wiggled with glee in my chair. I was instantly 12 again. I am not even sure what the scroll said, I was too busy wriggling in my seat.

The opening battle sequence was impressive. It was not so much about special effects as how the shots were put together. I really felt like I was in a ship running around as part of the battle. It was awesome. And it only got better.

Now, I read the reviews and I know that there were more than a few complaints that the light saber battles went on too long. Huh? Is that possible? Sure, the fights were long, but they were rarely one long sequence. There was often a cutaway to something else so it didn’t seem so long. To those critics I say….SIT DOWN, SHUT UP, AND EAT YOUR POPCORN. What a waste of a seat that could have gone to someone who appreciates the movies.

The best part is watching the Darth Vader costume come together. The mask comes down and you watch, in profile, as the helmet comes over and clicks into place. There is a moment of silence just to take in the vision of the profile of evil and then…you hear it. Darth Vader takes his first breath through the respirator. I almost dove into the frog’s lap. A moment later, the voice of evil (donated by James Earl Jones) comes through and the transformation is complete. The universe has a new evil and it is wonderful.

The movie is not great, but it made me happy. I actually clapped like an idiot at the end. I can see the flaws, but I don’t care. There are areas that could have been more developed, but I still don’t care. Lucas did a fine job of bringing the story full circle.