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Your History seeing Star Wars films through TFA? Tell your story

Discussion in 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' started by Old Biff from the Future, Dec 2, 2015.

?

What is your favorite Star Wars film

Poll closed Jan 31, 2016.
  1. Star Wars

    14 vote(s)
    25.0%
  2. The Empire Strikes Back

    30 vote(s)
    53.6%
  3. Return of the Jedi

    16 vote(s)
    28.6%
  4. The Phantom Menace

    1 vote(s)
    1.8%
  5. Attack of the Clones

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  6. Revenge of the Sith

    4 vote(s)
    7.1%
  7. The Force Awakens

    2 vote(s)
    3.6%
Multiple votes are allowed.
  1. Old Biff from the Future

    Old Biff from the Future Dune Sea Hermit

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    These are the exact moments I seen Star Wars in theaters in my life.
    This was created from memory and stories that were all true, all of them.....

    Where did you see them and what was your experience?

    SHARE AND DISCUSS YOUR STORY -

    When and where and your experience!


    My Story....................

    Feb 1978 - Star Wars: A New Hope

    ...
    100 Twin Drive In.
    710 Medtronic Parkway NE, Fridley, MN 55432

    [​IMG]

    This one I remember clearly because it was the re-release of the film for 78'. This I know for a fact because a little film called "Young Frankenstein" played before the film. My mother and father and myself just came from the department store named Target where they bought me the Chewbacca and C-3p0 figures (I still have them in the garage). I remember sitting in the back seat all of 6 years old of the Nova and seeing the GIANT Star Destroyer go over the top of my car. I remember the MONO speaker hanging off my father's driver side window.

    --------
    1980 - Star Wars - The Empire Strikes Back.

    Mann Southtown Theatre
    7770 Penn Avenue S, Bloomington, Bloomington, MN 55423

    I also had the privlege of seeing The Empire Strikes Back here on opening day 5-21-1980. It was the only time I ever saw a movie there.I can remember standing in line with a young kid wondering if it would be anything like the first one, it was better. I remember the battle of Hoth the most as I was amazed and in awe at how real everything looked. wink emoticon

    --------
    1983 - Star Wars - Return of the Jedi
    Anoka Cinema.
    420 E Main St #101, Anoka, MN 55303

    This was the same theater I saw Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1981. This was my favorite as I still remember Luke jumping off the spring board on the Tatooine Skiff and seeing R2 launch the saber and Luke grabbing it. Still my favorite scene out of the entire SAGA. I can still see it if I close my eyes.
    ---------
    1997 - Star Wars - Special Edition - A New Hope and Return of the Jedi

    70mm - Valley Circle Theater
    5040 Mission Center Road, San Diego, CA 92108
    -demolished 1998
    This theatre was the old fashioned ONE screen type
    [​IMG]

    Star Wars I remember clearly, this was the first time in over 19 years that I would see the ORIGINAL SW on the big screen and in 70mm to boot. They also passed out a LUKE Jedi figure which I still have in my garage. In the lobby I played the original vintage Star Wars Trilogy stand-up game.
    What a Blast!

    ------------
    1997 - Star Wars Special Edition - The Empire Strikes Back.
    Grossmont Cinemas
    5500 Grossmont Center Dr
    La Mesa, CA

    This was the second time in my life seeing the Hoth Battle on the big screen was awesome. This was the first time I had ever seen the film in such a large theater.
    ______
    1999 - Star Wars: Episode 1: The Phantom Menace.

    United Artist Horton Plaza 8
    Horton Plaza, San Diego, CA 92101

    I can remember standing in a very long line which wrapped around the whole entire mall. I had my ticket and I got in the first showing. I can remember when I came out wondering if this was a joke. There was a family with kids who couldn't get enough of it and where going to see it all day and as many of showing as possible. What a cool dad that was. I later liked the film more as the years passed. But it was so different from the other SW films.
    ----------
    2002 - Star Wars: Attack of the Clones

    United Artist Horton Plaza 8
    Horton Plaza, San Diego, CA 92101

    This one again wrapped around the building and people actually clapped at this one. I really enjoyed the midnight showing talking with fans. People dressed as Star Wars characters and some lady crying during the BEN HUR type scene with Anakin and Padme with the fire place.
    _______
    2002 - Star Wars: Attack of the Clones

    Stillwater Cinema

    I almost forgot, I had come home to MN to visit and drug my mother to a showing of the film. My mom put up with it. true story!!!
    --------
    2005 - Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
    Grossmont Cinemas
    5500 Grossmont Center Dr
    La Mesa, CA

    Opening night again was a blast with tons of friends. After hearing the new title released in 2004 at the comic con in SD we were hopeful and got the best of the prequel movies. Although, I prefer the magic of TPM the story is actually written a little better than TPM.
    _____

    2012 - Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace 3D

    Feb 10th 2012
    AMC Palm 24
    San Diego, CA

    This one was really cool. Although, the film wasn't originally shot in 3D, the opening credits stood out as the best. It was a fun ride with my son. Got a Hasbro Star Wars fighter pod for my kid also.
    _____
    2015 - Star Wars: The Force Awakens
    AMC Mission Valley 20
    San Diego, Ca
    December 17th 1 AM

    --------
    2016- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
    AMC Classic Palm Promenade 24
    770 Dennery Rd, San Diego, CA 92154
    December 15, 7PM

    I will be attending all of the previous films in the franchise on Thursday, Dec. 17 2015. It all begins with "The Phantom Menace" and ends up with "The Force Awakens." The previous six films will be shown in 2-D, but "The Force Awakens" will be in 3-D IMAX



    - May the Force be with you!!
     
    #1 Old Biff from the Future, Dec 2, 2015
    Last edited: Jun 1, 2017
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  2. jmhartman70

    jmhartman70 Rebel Trooper

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    I remember when ANH came out and I was awed by Chewbacca. I wanted to see this film. My father took me to the first showing in Decatur, GA @ South Dekalb Mall. After the phenomenon hit I was checked out of school in 1980 and 1983 to see ESB and ROTJ, both at the same mall. It was a memory I will never forget with my father. He was not that big into the sci fi genre, but he wanted to see me happy.

    When the PT came out, I took my kids to see each showing on opening night at the Regal 24 in Atlanta, GA. They are all huge fans and my daughter just finished the whole series again just last week.

    We plan on watching TFA @ Stonecrest Mall at the 7pm viewing on 12/17. I can't wait! Hopefully, my children will pass this experience on to their kids.
     
    #2 jmhartman70, Dec 2, 2015
    Last edited: Dec 2, 2015
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  3. Old Biff from the Future

    Old Biff from the Future Dune Sea Hermit

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    Hello, great story brother.

    So you were one of the lucky ones I see and the PT experience as well. Isn't that the greatest part of everything
     
  4. jmhartman70

    jmhartman70 Rebel Trooper

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    Yes sir, the gift that keeps on giving!
     
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  5. BamBoosle-8

    BamBoosle-8 Force Sensitive

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    I am not old enough to have seen the OT in cinemas. I saw them when i was a kid on those VHS tapes. My cousins (they saw the movies in theaters) showed them to me.
    Then in 1999 I saw, with one of my cousins, TPM on the big screen at Pathé Groningen, twice. 9 years old, biggest bucket of popcorn available and biggest cola drink available. Got my first lightsaber too. I loved the movie.
    And after that AOTC and ROTS the same story. Always twice with the same cousin. :)

    And a few years ago I saw TPM again on big screen, with the 3D release.

    And for the future TFA! I plan on seeing the movie at least twice. I'm going the 16th at Pathé Amsterdam with my best friend. Then during the holidays I will take my nephew (10 years old) to see his first Star Wars movie on big screen.

    Memories. The Star Wars Magic.
     
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  6. Darth Malkovich

    Darth Malkovich Rebel General

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    Star Wars - The Empire Strikes Back - 1980 - Lyric Cinema, Brews Hill, Navan, Co. Meath, Ireland

    [​IMG]

    My first experience of Star Wars was in the old one screen Lyric cinema in my home town of Navan, 30 miles north of Dublin city. That's it as it was in the photo above, it's where I saw most of the films of my youth - Gremlins, ET, Ghostbusters, Back to the Future 1 and 2, BMX Bandits, Rocky IV, Tranformers the Movie and others. They used to show a cartoon before the main event. (Today it's a block of apartments but they've maintained the art deco facade, which I like because the place holds so many great memories for me).

    In 1980 my dad took me to see The Empire Strikes Back. He'd taken his brother to see Star Wars in 77 but he was old enough now to go with his friends. I was four and it blew me away. I'd already had some Star Wars comics and a C3PO action figure. I remember coming home and telling my friends I'd been, having been the first of them to go and thinking it was a big achievement.

    Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back Double Bill - 1982 - Lyric Cinema, Brews Hill, Navan, Co. Meath, Ireland

    Same cinema, in 1982 my dad took me to see the double bill of the first two, and I think it was my first time seeing ANH as we didn't have a VHS recorder at the time and either it hadn't been on TV in our part of the world or I'd missed it.

    Return of the Jedi - 1983 - Waterford, Ireland

    I can't remember the name of the cinema. We were on holiday in Tramore when RotJ came out and I wanted to see it ASAP so we went to Waterford to see it. Both my parents went, remarkable because it's probably the only time my mother watched an entire sci-fi/fantasy movie.

    Star Wars Special Editions: ANH, TESB and ROTJ - 1997 - Savoy Cinema, O'Connell St, Dublin, Ireland

    [​IMG]

    At this stage I was at university in Dublin, went to all three of these in the Savoy with friends from college. My obsession with Star Wars cooled a bit over the course of my teenage years as other things seemed more important, but by 97 when I was 21, it was a big part of my life again and I had already been reading the EU novels and dark horse comics for about a year before these came out. My initial reaction was that I loved the special editions of ANH and TESB apart from greedo shooting first. I was less enthused about what was done to ROTJ, in particular, Jabba's palace and the ending.

    The Phantom Menace - 1999 - Savoy Cinema, O'Connell St, Dublin, Ireland

    Had recently graduated from University and was working very anti-social hours as a security guard in an office block when TPM came out. I couldn't round up friends to go to an early afternoon showing so I went by myself. Wasn't blown away but enjoyed it the first time. Went to see it again with a friend back home in Navan (Diamond Cinema) a week later and was less impressed the second time around.

    Attack of the Clones - 2002 - Savoy Cinema, O'Connell St, Dublin, Ireland

    Was doing post graduate study in journalism when AOTC came out. Went with my then girlfriend and a college friend. I was the only one of the three of us who didn't hate it. I thought it was an improvement on TPM. Still not blown away.

    Revenge of the Sith - 2005 - Savoy Cinema, O'Connell St, Dublin, Ireland

    I had low expectations for RotS and I didn't bother trying to entice anyone to go with me as I didn't want to listen to moaning. I was pleasantly surprised and to this day it is my favourite of the prequels. There are things I hate about it (nooooo - etc) but for me, it redeemed the PT slightly.

    The Force Awakens - Midnight 16/17 December 2015 - The Lighthouse Cinema, Smithfield, Dublin
    [​IMG]

    My fiancee bought us tickets for this. She's not a Star Wars fan, but she knows how much it means to me and she has patiently listend to me get ever more excited over the last couple of years. There's some sort of Star Wars party starting at 9:30pm at the cinema, don't know what it entails but I'll be there with bells on. Can't wait.
     
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  7. Fiddlestyx

    Fiddlestyx Rebelscum

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    My journey into the Star Wars universe did not start with any of those movies.
    I saw the movie Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure at home sometime around 1984-86, I would have been five years old around this time.
    Then I saw Ewoks: The Battle for Endor at home around the same time as the first.
    (Keep in mind I was already playing with Star Wars toys before I saw any of the movies.)
    Next I saw Return of the Jedi, The Empire Strikes Back, and then A New Hope, I saw all of these at home too and of course out of order.
    I saw The Phantom Menace at Embassy Oaks theater in San Antonio, Tx.
    I waited for Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith to come out on dvd.
    As for The Force Awakens I am planning on seeing it in theater, but I will wait until after the crowds have died down.
     
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  8. MarsPhoenix

    MarsPhoenix Sith Psychiatrist

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    A New Hope

    I was too young to see it in theaters back then. I remember the period and the craze though... When I spent time at my older cousins, their rooms were filled by either Star Wars posters, or John Travolta and Olivia Newton John's. I was more interested and fascinated by Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind at the time.

    Empire Strikes Back

    I went to see a double feature with my family at the Drive-In, it was "The Rescuers" and "Empire". That was my first contact with Star Wars. By that time, I was playing with the Kenner Toys with my brother and neighbors.

    My true real "connexion" to Star Wars was on its first airing on CBS back in 83? Then it replaced E.T. in my heart (I was an E.T. maniac back then :) )

    Return of the Jedi

    I went to see it on its premiere with my father and brother. That was crazy! It's then that I became obsessed by the SAGA. I read all the making of books, started collecting everything about Star Wars, watched religiously the Droids and Ewoks cartoons.... and watched and rewatched Ewok Adventure and Battle for Endor on TV and VHS.

    The Special Editions

    I was first in line all three times, and being released during the coldest season in Canada, I was in line for hours in the cold and snow (even a snowstorm when ESB-SE came out)... I was there with fellow friends, drinking alcohol and smoking cigarillos in the movie theater lot. I was so drunk that during ESB, I fell asleep for half of the movie lol. I must have seen each of the SE at least 5 times each in theaters.

    The Phantom Menace

    Returning from LA (and standing in line half an hour with fans in front of the Chinese Mann)... I went to see the premiere with old pals from the Cinema school. I was again first in line at the midnight screening. I went to see it again the next morning.

    Attack of the Clones

    I stood in line for a whole day (again first in line) from 7 in the morning to the midnight screening. I ended up playing games with kids that skipped school to attend the premiere. I was interviewed on TV since they thought we were crazy people.

    Revenge of the Sith

    I planned waiting in line by sleeping in the theater parking lot, finally, the theater owner offered us to wait inside. Again, I was first in line, along with good friends of mine. We rewatched the SAGA on portable DVD players.

    The Phantom Menace 3D

    I went to the premiere along with my oldest son. It wasn't as crazy as it was the first time but it was a full house.

    The Force Awakens...

    I am going with my son again. This time, again, since the premiere was sold out minutes after the tickets went on sale... I only managed to buy tickets for the second screening at 10:10 on December 17th... so, I'll wait in line, as a tradition... probably playing games on my iPad mini until the batteries run out :)... and since I already had my Star Wars marathon last week-end with my 2 boys (Yes I introduced Star Wars to my youngest and he was fascinated by R2D2 and is already a BB-8 fan).
     
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  9. DarthOfInformation

    DarthOfInformation Rebel General

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    I don't remember my first time seeing each of them (heresy, right?), but there are a few things that stick out in my mind.

    Return of the Jedi
    This was the first one I saw. My cousins lived next to us in the woods, and I remember many times walking over to their house in the dark, all of us kids piling on the floor and the bed in my aunt and uncle's bedroom, and watching the movie, recorded to VHS from TV, of course. Once the special edition came out, I realized there were whole parts of the movie I didn't know were there because they'd been cut for the TV edit. Still, I love the movie, and my cousins convinced me that the piney woods behind our houses were once home to real-life Ewoks, and that the mossy mounds that sprouted in little clearings were Ewok graves. I believed this for longer than I care to admit.

    The prequels came out around the time I was 10, and by then I'd learned of the existence of ANH and ESB, which I'd subsequently rented from Blockbuster—scratch that, Movie Gallery. (Naturally, I eventually got the whole OT on VHS for Christmas)

    I saw ROTJ Special Edition at a theater I can't remember the name of in Austin, TX. My friend convinced me to sit in the front row—something I should have known better than to do—while his Dad sat in the back. The speeder chase on Endor, which I'd previously only seen a very truncated version of, made me very dizzy. It was great.

    The Phantom Menace
    I was a freshman in high school, and by then my little town had it's very own movie theater (-slash bowling alley) to replace the beatiful Art Deco, one-screen converted train depot that burned down when I was very young. A friend managed to get us tickets to the completely unnecessary midnight premiere. I only remember wondering why on Earth anyone in our town would show up to a midnight showing. I mean, a gaggle of teenage boys, sure. But we could have waited until the next afternoon. No one was lining up around the block.
     
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  10. CaptainPhastastic

    CaptainPhastastic Rebel Official

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    The first one I saw in the theater was Empire Strikes Back at age 3. Haha. Saw it again, along with A New Hope, prior to seeing Return of the Jedi in the theater. They massively informed my childhood, the creativity, the desire to know more and curiosity about space and what's "out there" and in science (even though, yes, they are 95% "fiction" and 5% "science"). I had all the toys. My parents practically had slave labor because I would work my fingers to the bone doing anything to earn extra allowance to buy more. Those films amazed me then and now.

    Saw The Phantom Menace after waiting in line for tickets with more than a hundred people for more than an entire day as a freshman in college, and followed every step of its creation up until its release. It massively disappointed me to the point that I only saw the other two when I got around to it. Also massively disappointing.
     
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  11. stephied

    stephied Rebel General

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    I believe I saw my first Showing of Empire Strikes Back at the Mann Theater off of Penn Ave and my 3rd showing Return of the Jedi at that same location back in the 80s. I saw Star Wars in 1978 at a theater in Hopkins, MN.
     
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  12. Old Biff from the Future

    Old Biff from the Future Dune Sea Hermit

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    I know that theatre, seen ET in Hopkins.... ;-)

    small world
     
  13. David_1994

    David_1994 Clone

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    The first star wars movie i saw was the phantom menace in the cinema when i was about 5, i was amazed by it and made sure i had every single piece of merchandise for it (toys, lightsabers, alarm clocks, bicycle, and even shoes! Lol).

    After watching it and being facinated with star wars my dad then told me that there were original star wars movies from when he was a kid, i didn't believe him until he got the star wars original trilogy vhs boxset from my uncle and we stayed up all night watching them lol, i was then completely hooked and realised just how much cooler and better the originals were compared to TPM. I then later saw AOTC in the cinema (thought it was boring) and later ROTS which i thought was quite cool (at the time lol) and now going to see The Force Awakens is going to make me feel 5 years old again lol.
     
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  14. TARS

    TARS Clone Commander

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    Well you know how long-winded I can be about telling stories so...

    I saw all of the OT at a place called the Smoot Theater.

    ANH: Saw it in 77 when I was around 8 with most of my friends. Heard the other kids in school talking about Luke Skywalker, with Ham Solo and Chewie in the Meluminum Falcon. Obi-Wan's awesome life-saver fight with Dark Vader. And of course this weird word "Jedi". I think "stunned" is the best word to describe my experience as I was walking out of the theater. After long last searching, I had found what I wanted to be when I grew up. Jedi.

    Wouldn't see ANH again for about 10 years when it finally premiered on HBO.

    TESB: Saw it at about 10 in 1980. I think this is where my fanaticism really found an anchor. After Empire there was no looking back. It was all Star Wars, all the time. I remember heated argument in the school gym where I prosed the insane theory that Leia was Force-sensitive, and was ridiculed to no end. "It makes perfect sense!" I demanded; but no one would listen to me. Until...

    ROTJ: Vindication! Wait until I get to school tomorrow that gym will resound with my Wookie-like howls of vinidication! Saw it in 83 with my friends. It was the greatest trilogy of all time for me then. A little bitter-sweet though, knowing it was over. No more Star Wars. But what a great ride. The trilogy had come to a close, along with the chapter of my life called "childhood"

    Twenty years go by...

    What's this?! I hear rumors? Prequels?

    The PT I saw all in Regal Cinema at our local mall. I won't bother to link because it's just a routine cinema, nothing special or unique.

    TPM: Okay quick anecdote with TPM. So my cousin (also huge SW fan) got us tickets "for 12 on Wednesday". So I went camping with some friends for about a week. Then on Tuesday night I go "Hey I got to get back in town tomorrow by noon to see TPM"; so the next day I get up, and I'm running late so I'm flying back to town in my car- like 90mph on curving roads, almost killed myself a couple of time- but tires squealing I roll up to his house, go up and his wife comes to the door. She looks at me all confused and I go "I'm here, let's get it on!" and she's like "Dude you were supposed to be here at 12 midnite !" and I was like "NOOOOOOoooooOOoooo!" Anyway, we went and saw it then, my cousin was twice seeing it.

    I liked it quite a bit. While I personally didn't think Jar-Jar was either a good or bad character (I regarded he must be for the kids) I was however completely awestruck by how real the character looked; the CGI aspect was insane.

    AOTC: Saw this one with my friends and the Kenobi storyline was my favorite part. One of my favorite SW movies from that point of view. Also liked the noir-niche it had; it was like a detective story in SW, so it felt it had its own unique place in the story. Didn't care all too much for the romance scenes, but didn't bother me. Never cared for the romance in the OT, either, if I'm being honest.

    ROTS: This movie was probably the most strange SW film experience I've had. I saw this movie on the day it was released, and the first time I saw it I absolutely didn't like it at all. I remember everything seeming to be disjointed to me, the CG was off, and it looked like the real actors weren't carefully enough spliced in with the CG. I can't remember what else, but I was driving home really bummed out. My cousin called me later to ask if I wanted to go see it with him. I told him I wouldn't pay to see it again. He asked something like "That bad, huh?" And I said, "Terrible; I don't even know what happened."

    So anyway, he offers to pay my way in so I begrudgingly accept because me and him have seen all the movies together, so if this were to be the last film, I wanted to see it with him. Anyway, we go to the theater to watch, and I'm all bummed out, and waiting to see the disappointment on his face, and to hear the people in the theater all bitching. But then, that's not what happened.

    As I'm watching the movie, I'm suddenly kind-of in to it. I'm looking at the CG and it's spot on. It looks like I'm almost watching a different movie. I wonder what's going on. I start thinking, When my friends say how awful they thought it was when we're walking out, I'll suggest a second watch because maybe there's a discinnect caused by too much info being processed with all the ... but I'm glancing at my friends to see if they're frowning or whatnot, and they're all smiling. The audience is all laughing at the jokes, and cheering at certain scenes, and I'm absolutely baffled. We're walking out of the theater and all my friends look at me with this incredulity on their faces and my cousin is like, "Dude wtf are you talking about that was awesome" and I was like "Yeah, it was awesome" and I never figured out what happened that first viewing.

    Anyway, so, again a bittersweet feeling as we're walking out, because now it really is over. No more SW. This time it's for real. George is done. Star Wars is done. It's a done deal- but at least I lived to see the entire saga. Well worth it.

    Ten years go by...

    My cousin stops by my apartment with a friend of ours. He walks through the door, and standing in my living room. "Those stories about episode 7" he asks with anticipation. "It's true," I reply with subdued smile. Our friend standing behind my cousin takes a few wide-eyed steps forward. "All of it."
     
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  15. Kreetle Kris

    Kreetle Kris Rebel Official

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    Empire was the first one I saw on release. My father took me to see it. I was six years old.
    I became so obsessed with Star Wars (some parts scared me to bits back then, especially the Dagobah scenes with Luke in that cave) he later took me to a screening of 'Star Wars.' This was before the days when everyone owned a VHS or a Betamax player. I was hooked for life.

    Then when Jedi came out my mind was completely blown away. The whole opening; Jabba's palace, the skiffs, the Rancor, the lightsaber, ... it still sends shivers down my spine and although I have seen that film hundreds of times I'm still a nine year old when I revisit it.

    For years Jedi was my favourite. It got replaced by Empire when I was a student. Nowadays 'Star Wars' is my favourite. I feel it"s the most complete film in the whole saga if that makes any sense.

    The PT, ... I tried. I really did. I don't despise them as so many seem to do. They leave me cold, mostly. Which is perhaps worse. Whatever. Don't want to get into THAT debate again. To each their own. But I will say this; the ending of episode three, everything after the final duel, brought tears to my eyes. Finally Star Wars had become a simple fairy tale again, even if it was for only five minutes. Powerful, childish, pulpy, riveting. If JJ can capture some of that magic ... fingers crossed.
     
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  16. Snazel

    Snazel Force Sensitive

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    It's December 1976, I am living in Hudson, Quebec, a sleepy middle-class commuter village 30 miles outside Montreal. I was delivering news papers, I was just 10 years of age and I already liked making and spending money.

    I took myself, on my own, with my own dime, to see the remake of King Kong with Jessica Lange. Before the feature started, there was a small trailer for a new film called Star Wars.

    It flashed in front of me with no warning, There I was eating bad popcorn and it just suddenly appeared in front of me.

    I remember distinctly thinking a few things as the trailer flashed before my eyes:

    "I've always wished they'd make a cool space movie"

    "Wow and this one has awesome space ships, look how fast they fly!"

    "Is that a Sasquatch?"

    "This is the most amazing film I've ever seen..."


    I felt all that in just the two minute long trailer.

    Fast forward to the film's actual release. I live in Calgary, Alberta, I'm an awkward shy 11 years of age and I have no friends at all because we just moved 2000 miles away. Our furniture hadn't arrived yet and my birthday weekend was Star Wars' opening weekened. For my birthday, I ask my Mom, "Hey can I see this movie?"

    I needed that film the day I saw it. I was kinda scared of being in a new town and I was alone, nothing familiar or friendly at all around me.

    The film just transformed me. It just somehow made everything better. I no longer felt alienated or alone, in fact, I felt empowered.

    To my utter delight, other kids in my new class loved it too and so my very first friends were made by talking about the "Force" and "Jawas". These conversations and mutual admiration of the film, purged my fear of moving to a new home and helped forged friendships that I still treasure and have to this day.

    Thanks Mr. Lucas, that little piece of magic you created in 1977 still continues to have a positive influence over my life.
     
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  17. tinaalsgirl

    tinaalsgirl Clone Trooper

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    Well, I already basically did this, so I'll just quote my post from the Intro Thread:

    And the theater I saw the Special Editions and the Prequels at was the AMC Independence Commons 20 in Independence, MO, USA. And that's the theater I'm planning to be at for The Force Awakens as well. I could easily go to one of the newer, fancier theaters, but I feel like it would be breaking a tradition to do that. :D
     
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  18. Schwarma

    Schwarma Clone Commander

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    Nice to see ROTJ getting some love in the poll.

    I'm one of the few born in 1977 who did not see any of the originals at the cinema as, quite simply, I never cared about SW at that age. I was preoccupied with the Christopher Reeve Superman films. First time I saw A New Hope was when it premiered on British TV. My parents made a VHS recording of it. I must've been about 4 or 5 years old by then as it would take years for movies to come to TV back in those days. That was the only Star Wars I knew for several years, save for having seen bits of Empire and Jedi at a friend's house, until about 1991 or 1992 when my parents bought me the three movie set on VHS (although curiously I still did manage to buy some of the Kenner toys as a kid). That was the point at which I became a proper fan. First time I saw SW in a cinema was at the UCI at Pickett's Lock in North London, which was the Special Editions. By then I knew the films well, and so the changes were quite a novelty. It was, in effect, my first experience of see new SW content in the cinema. Of course, two years after that the prequels started. All three I saw at the Odeon Leicester Square, where I will likely see TFA. Not much more to tell really.
     
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  19. PrincessLeiaCB3

    PrincessLeiaCB3 The Princess that was Promised
    1030th Commander *** (Mod)

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    I was born after 2/3 of the OT were released and unfortunately, nobody in my family was crazy about Star Wars.

    Back in 1999, my cousins had TPM game on N64 and they liked the movie a lot, so it meant lot of re-runs while spending time with them... but the prequels were not interesting enough to entice me to watch the OT.

    Then I ended up watching Episode III (2005) at the movie theatre as well as the 3D re-release of TPM (2012) and I knew the main plots about the OT, but still not interested.

    Then the proximity of the TFA release finally moved me to watch the OT. And it caught immediately my attention. It made me think, "WHY ON THE GALAXY IT TOOK ME SO LONG TO WATCH THIS???". I guess the Maz Kanata quote from the trailer ("Dear child, the belonging you seek is not behind you... it is ahead."). I might be sort of a newbie, but in the last month it has struck me strongly. And I'll be there on December 17th to watch TFA!
     
  20. appfanincaaland

    appfanincaaland Rebelscum

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    I remember going to see Star Wars at the drive-in near our house during a ''79 re-release I believe, don't know for sure but I know it was before I saw TESB, so I must have been about 4. I remember clear as day my folks made a bed in the back of the old station wagon, put my 3 year old sister and I in our PJ, backed into the space and opened the back hatch. They were sitting on lawn chairs while we laid in the back, my sis feel asleep pretty quickly but I stayed awake and glued to the screen. I still vividly remember the image of the Star Wars logo shooting across the screen of that old drive-in.

    I hear that drive-in is still open to this day, it's a four hour drive from where I live today. I should go watch TFA there, but I doubt they'd play it there in the winter.
     
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