What does Star Wars Episode 7 mean to you?

I'm 39 and I teach in a middle school in the states.

I played the teaser trailer for my students the instant I had access to it. I didn't shave over X-mas, and I told them that it was so I'd look more like Obi Wan Kenobi. They shook their heads...

To them, (and they have told me this) star wars is just for kids. They like to see the look on my face when they tell me it's stupid. "Wha....?"

Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Anderson and Shakespeare are from a bygone era, borne of a people who did not know what it was to dream of traveling off world, as Luke did. I agree that SW is the fairy tale and myth of our (or maybe just my) generation.

I don't blame them, in light of the PT, for thinking that Star Wars is just for kids. But I can detect, even if they can't, that JJ is going to rectify that little misconception. More than any single element, its the tone of the teaser trailer. VII will be a serious film. I tell them, "You wait. You just wait a year and then tell me its just for kids."

I'm looking forward to this with immense satisfaction. I think that George Lucas has, in a sense, saved his own creation by mishandling it. To an experienced film-maker, GL's work was illustrative of exactly what to do, and what not to do, what the fans needed and wanted, and what they definitely did not need or want. He CANNOT mess this up.

 

Wonderful post. Welcome to The Cantina, Fish!

 

TFA is a few things to me:

1. A new beginning- A chance to become captivated by new characters just like the OT did. A chance to create a whole new generation of Star Wars fans. A chance to carry forward the greatness that is Star Wars for many years into the future

2. A return to the past- A chance to take me back to my childhood and the love and excitement of all things Star Wars. A chance to be reintroduced to old heros and friends and see where they have been and where they will go since we last saw them

3. A time to bond- A chance to share the love and excitement of Star Wars with my two girls for years to come as the new story unfolds. A chance to look forward to spending time watching a new movie with them whenever one comes out

TFA is truly a movie to get excited about.

 

It means one cold ass night standing in line for the midnight release. I'm sure it will be well worth it . I plan on buying a bunch of those 10$ lightsaber toys and handing them out to kids at the premier for Christmas. My favorite toy and weapon as a child. I use to fight off bumble bees lol.

 

To me, it's the first REAL new Star Wars since ROTJ. The EU was cute and I consumed a fair bit of it. I'm okay with it being gone and that they reserve the right to mine from it as need be, but it was a ******* jack move to start anew.

Even the prequels were a bit of a let down (even had they been done brilliantly) you'd still kinda know the story and who couldn't die, so it was something of a non starter.

Ep 8 even will be a 'known thing' to a degree as we'll know the trajectory of the story at least. Ep 7 is the ONLY time perhaps in the GFFA where everything will be a new thing. Sure, we know characters of old and such, but ROTJ tied such a pretty bow that it will be exciting to see where this jaunt takes us.

DBH


Edit: apparently the word "C R A C K E R" (as in ******* Jack) gets the bum's rush.

 

I like your post Fish, but so far I am worried that there will be enough elements in The Force Awakens to warrant people calling it childish, anyway. Case in point: BB8. Now, if this little cute rolling droid is the only element that has that kind of "childish" (and I certainly do not mean that in a derogative way) quality and the rest of the film is more "serious" (for a Star Wars movie)...well maybe. But Star Wars movies aren't all that serious in the first place, are they?

After all, these are fantasy movies and there's a certain amount of silliness in the weave in each movie (sometimes misguided, as, for example, Jar Jar Binks - in many people's opinion) so I think we will have to live with people thinking it crazy or whatever that we are hung up on that galaxy far, far away....but it touches our hearts in a way they cannot understand no matter how much you would try to convince them of its qualities
That being said, the concept art of say, the detritus of war (fallen AT-ATs) and that awesome TIE shuttle thing do give an impression of a more "serious" tone, I don't know.

However I hope the movie doesn't take itself too seriously cause that could lead to other problems..maybe?

 

It means redemption for the PT.

 

What the ST will means for me is that I don't have to look at the SW Saga as Anakin's anymore. It never sat well with me that the SW Saga 1-6 was essentially the character arc of Anakin Skywalker (he is a kid in TPM and dies in ROTJ). I always liked that the story was about Luke, but Lucas decided to make the PT overlap that story and the movies were about Darth Vaders journey.

The ST will erase that, and now I can look at the Saga as 4-9 with Luke's journey in the OT and the possible next generation Skywalker journey in the ST. It brings back SW to being about the good guys, and that is the way it should always be. I know some fans enjoy Anakin's story in the PT, but I could never gravitate to watching a whole character of someone who ends up being a mass murderer, because I am torn on whether he deserved to be redeemed at the end. The ST makes it a much more enjoyable story with the OT, and it sits better with me when its all said and done.

 

Great response! I have to say you are super right. It's a feeling that is hard to describe, and impossible to share with someone who just doesn't feel it.

The Dark Knight, for example, was very serious in tone, and left me with VERY strange feeling as I left the theater. The Joker was sublime, but not what you'd call upbeat. I left that movie tense, feeling like Batman and the Joker had only taken the first step in a dangerous yet neverending dance. Yet, that movie also had plenty to laugh at along the way, and was PG-13.

I don't want to draw any lines between Nolan and JJ at this point. But tonally, that's what I'm hoping for. Replace Batman and Joker with elements of Light, Dark Side.

About the "just for kids" thing: There will always be adults that point at some work of fiction and claim that mature people ought to set it aside. In the Republic, Socrates argues that artists and playwrights only create things that represent the REAL world. Anything else would be forbidden as immoral. Wow, what a ghastly world to live in! But adults love to do that. They pick and choose the things they don't identify with, point at them and say, "this thing is useless. Mature minds will leave it behind". All the while, they secretly nurture their own little, hidden, pointless fantasies... Sorry. Off topic.

What I really mean is that I'm seeing youths, young people point at Star Wars and say its just for kids. That's just weird. And, as far as I can tell, its code for saying that Star Wars is flat out dumb. Incoherent. A puppet show for kids. Lots of pretty lights and funny sounds with not much meaning or structure underneath. A conclusion, if I may be so bold, that can reasonably follow if you only watch the PT.

About BB-8: I get that it's super cute. Replace "droid" with "unmanned drone" and suddenly you are in the real world. And regardless of how cute a drone might be, no one can dispute that they are highly relevant and modern and potentially extremely dangerous. I love that BB-8 is real, in the sense that it is a working model. This is the toy of an adult. I would love to know more about the team that put it together, and the technical details of how BB-8 got designed and manufactured. I guess I'm saying that it's hard to call BB-8 "just for kids" when it takes a team of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) professionals to put it together. It's not like someone just handed concept art to a special effects team and said, "animate this". And that elevates BB-8, in my opinion, beyond cute.

 

I think the "just for kids" aspect among today's youth comes from the place that they have been weened off kids shows by thinks like Game of Thrones. Meaning they have not just seen stories where there are more than two monolithic factions but that the subject matter depicted is far more complex, brutal and disturbing. Add to that the other options competing for their time and money I think that the sweet spot of Star Wars is going to come off childish in comparison. Add to the fact that Star Wars for 10 years now has been an animated series, comics and toys.

What it means personally to me is a return to a galaxy that I love and a great mix of science, fantasy and human themes put on the screen. As a dad I am thrilled my 6 year old talks about Star Wars, likes space ships and makes lightsabre sounds when playing with his toy swords. I think it is great that he might have something that inspired me so much as a kid a part of his childhood. That said I cringe a little when people talk about hoping "its not a kids movie" or "I hope its dark" I want something that tells a story on several levels like both the OT and PT (granted I think the OT succeeded more on this).

 

SW7 means a great time in the theater watching it

But seriously, this is gonna be epic for sure.
I'm a SW fan since i was a kid. Now is still find the movies fantastic, even the prequels.
The prequels are slower and have more talking sequences, but i dont care, the whole atmosphere of SW is there, it means you are in a other galaxy in diffrent planets and so on.
I find the SW films more rewatchable then most of the blockbusters they make these days.

 

TFA and the new trilogy as a whole will mark the most historical event in SW history since 1977.
Every time I re-realize that I cant explain how excited I am for this!

For the first time since ANH was released we are going into the theater to see a SW movie and we have NO IDEA what is going to happen!!
Even more exciting is it isn't some new story based elsewhere or with all characters we don't know....THE ORIGINAL LEADS ARE BACK!
It is the continuation of the story we fell in love with not a look back to explain a characters history this is a continuation of THE real deal.
Young fans seeing a SW film for the first time and us guys who weren't around when the OT was originally released will all get to enjoy a totally fresh story but at the same time it's still the universe and the characters we know and love.

I couldn't be happier about JJ Abrams directing it and I think with Disney taking over there couldn't be a better scenario for making TFA completely shockingly awesome. If there is anyone you want to buy Lucasfilm and make sequels ...it's Disney. They have boatloads of money to put into it and they are going to do just that to ensure that they not only get a return on us existing fans but to mesmerize the new fans and lock then in the way we have been locked in. It's a win-win for us all.
I think the cast on paper looks amazing and I think it will translate on film just as good. We aren't familiar with all of the actors but once again with JJ and Disney behind the casting I think it's safe to expect great performances from all around.

The main thing I'm hoping for is to walk out feeling I got the following..
1. Got enough nostalgic moments with touches of tasteful nods to OT content.
2. Felt visually sucked in. As if I was really in the SW universe for 2 hours.
3. I want a story that not only gives me goose bumps when I see how our OT characters tie in but I want to feel like I need more of the new characters too.
4. BAD. ASS. VILLAINS. Kylo Ren and whoever else had better OUT DO VADER! (yeah I said it). We need it! We can't dwell on the old villain forever.

I CAN'T FREAKING WAIT!

 

great OT.

The announcement of Ep7 and this site has completely re-stoked my passion for all things star wars.
I hope for a great film in december, but it's almost immaterial to me.. star wars is back in my life.

as weird as this may sound.. i'm looking forward to cast announcements for the spin-offs and the rest of the trilogy almost as much as seeing ep7 at the end of the year. I need to know that more are definately coming lol !

 

I teach twelve to fifteen year olds myself. I'm happy to report quite a few of them are not only aware there is more Star Wars coming up, they are looking forward to it.
True, they are the 'geekier' (for lack of a better term) kids who are typically also into comic books and such, but still: they exist (cue Arcade Fire track)
It's typical for a young teenager to call a certain kind of fantasy 'for kids' only to go home and play Call of Duty and think that's an adult thing to do.

 

For me, it means redemption from the Prequels. A return to great, epic story telling. It represents a redo, a mulligan for Star Wars as a whole. An opportunity to deliver on all the promises and potential of the PT. I so horribly wanted to like the PT.

 

I don't know what that means. First off Star Wars was ALWAYS primarily for the kids. That was the whole point. That is what drove the first film. The second film was "serious" in terms of comparison to ANH but still had a lot of things that were still the same kidstuff but a bit older. ROTJ then mixed those 2 things together. TPM went back to the more primarily kids movie but sort of in-between like VI. II was dark as or arguably darker and more adult than V and ROTS was on a whole other level of seriousness that we will likely not see again.

The kid aspect though is always the entry level. I don't think VII is going to be much different. It might start light then darken down by the end of the movie but I don't think it will become that "serious."

I think the kids aspect is also tied more directly now to SW being animated series like TCW and Rebels now.

He didn't mishandle it in the least as the success of the prequels with audiences showed. Just because a relative handful of the audience who make up a portion of the fans were doesn't really mean a thing. If social media existed back in 1980 then TESB would have come in for plenty of flack and ROTJ did anyway as the core fan base grew up.

Focusing on fans needs and wants are totally the wrong way to go. It's George's story to tell and he has to do it the way he wants not what is expected of him. If he did what was expected then the films after ANH would not be the ones that they were anymore than if he did the prequels the way they were "expected" would be.

I fear that for many of those fans that what they want and expect and what they will get will be closer than the PT in many ways simply due to the trio and imagery of the OT but after that nostalgia hit wears off and they realize "Wait, you mean the new ongoing story is tied into all the saga and TCW as well? The prequels are not going to be forgotten but be essential?"

I find that the single biggest insult of the PT for those fans is that it's "ruins" the "surprise" of the Vader reveal. So they talk about watching the movies in any order than keeps the surprise. Well with VII coming out it will be another "surprise" ruiner because anyone new is going to find out that Vader is Luke's father. It's just going to happen.

To me great epic storytelling is what the PT is all about and on a far greater scale than the OT could do. In fact the PT made the OT scale much bigger and more epic in scale.

As above though the ST is going to make the PT's importance as storytelling in connection to the OT even greater than it is already.

Watching only half the story won't work. Soon enough the OT is only going to be a third of the story.

 

I have to disagree with that because if you look at the Original Star Wars, the demographic they went after was Teenage SciFi geeks at Comic Com (something similar to the Star Trek audience) that loved the show in the 1960's. (This is talked about in Empire of Dreams Documentary on the 2004 DVD's) No way did Lucas ever think that kids under the age of 10 would have loved it THAT much, or they would have marketed it differently. Heck, they had very little toys ready for the Christmas 1977 because they never knew how big kids like me would love the movie that summer.

And The Original Star Wars (the OOT version) is just as serious or gritty as ESB. The difference is Lucas was making it as a standalone movie and he didn't have the time to delve into the characters the way he was able to do in the sequels. Stuff like showing Luke in Jedi training was just not an option in the Original film, whereas it was something that gives ESB much more depth. Yes, Star Wars has humor, but that is a result of the chemistry of the Big 3, and the great one liners that are sprinkled throughout the movie. ROTJ is a definte shift in gearing the SW brand towards a younger audience, as you can see it in the writing, the ewoks, and the overall tone of the movie.

 

No, it wasn't really that big of a shift. I feel there's a lot of 'retcon'-ing of history going on when discussing the OT. The third film was always going to be the 'good guys' ending up triumphant. Of course the tone is different. The films are space fantasies to be enjoyed by anyone with a mind to enjoy it. Regardless of age. Geek family films. And there are a lot of 'geeks' out there.

If you take the Ewoks out of the picture for a moment, there is just as much 'darkness' in episode 6 as in previous films. Palpatine anyone? The final Vader/Luke showdown is pretty dark in how it is staged, lighted and filmed. Some scenes in Jaba's palace are pretty 'dark' as well, and scary to anyone under 10 and so on...

It wasn't the films as such that changed that much but the audience and the marketing that had exploded to (even more) insane proportions once episode 6 rolled around. At least that's how I remember it.

 

As a kid who saw all 3 movies when they came out, ROTJ was my favorite simply because of the things I said earlier. I loved SW, but I did NOT like ESB in 1980, yet loved ROTJ in 1983. Then when I got older and revisited the trilogy again highschool, ESB and ANH were my clear favorites, while ROTJ paled in comparison to those 2 movies.

 

I loved Empire when I was six. My father sat there next to me in the cinema whispering the storyline in my ear (too young to read subs) .
When Jedi came out, I was old enough to read the subtitles and it blew my mind even more. To this day I can't pick a favourite. Episodes 5 and 6 are like one film in my mind, more so than any other films in the series.

It was episode four that, as a kid, I liked the least. Growing up I came to see just how brilliant it really is. It's probably the best 'film' in the whole series.