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

Watched the original Star Wars with my parents and little brother in the summer leading up to second grade.

Been a huge nerd ever since.

 

-Saw the Original SW in 1977 when I was 5 years old. It is so strange because I loved the movie but never saw it again til it came to HBO in 1983 (we didn't get a VCR til 1985). So all I had from 1977-83 was the action figures to fill the void of wanting to see the movie again. But let me tell you when it finally premiered on HBO in February 1983, I probably watched 300 times that year!

-Saw ESB in 1980, and still remember we sat in the right hand side of the theater probably about 10 rows up. I was only 8 years old so I was not ready for the dark tone at the time, as the whole Vader revelation to Luke really stuck with me for a while. Honestly, I didn't believe it, but was proven wrong in 1983.

-Saw ROTJ in 1983 at 11 years old as it the first SW film I was old enjoy to enjoy the hype. Still remember being over a friends house in the summer of 1982 and her mom told me she read it was called Revenge of the Jedi. I can't tell you how hyped I was at I took it that Luke was going to kick some serious ass in the movie. I still remember sitting in the middle of the theater towards the back as it was a packed house, and I was the perfect age to see it. All 3 SW movies stick with you after you saw them in the theaters as you would be on cloud 9 for a few days!

-Sorry but Bail Organa had my mind wiped from 1999-2005, so I can't tell you my experience with the PT.......

 

Too young to have seen them originally in the theater, I had seen bits and pieces of all three films on television, at friends' houses, and at a school party.

My first time actually sitting down and seeing them in their entirety was on this glorious format:



Yes, and I didn't even own them. They were borrowed from the local library.

 

I'm not gonna go into detail but if it wasn't for my oldest brother, I'd not seen Star Wars at all. I seen TESB first then ROTJ and then I seen A New Hope in that order and was blown away by all of them.

 

My introduction was in 1980 via the toys. Some people had the toys in my class at school and I asked my dad if he would get me one. Lo and behold, one day after school he had bought me the Han Solo in Hoth Gear figure That was it - I was hooked and had never even seen so much as a clip of a film! Not long after we did go to see Empire at a local cinema in Sheffield, England (the cinema is now long gone). All I remember (I was only 4) was we were late and missed the beginning, but I do recall the first image I saw being Darth Vader on the Star Destroyer and that image has stayed with me after all these years.

This is the cinema (around the same period, showing Monty Python):

 

My story is one of these "Star Wars saved me" types.

I come from a bit of a difficult background with divorced, alcoholic parents, just to give you some background why SW was so incredibly important for me.

As I grew up behind the Iron Curtain I saw ANH at the earliest time possible for me: 1989

I was nine.
I still remember sitting right in front of the tv on the floor, while my mom was passed out drunk.
The living room was dark and there was the opening crawl and it looked weird and suddenly this triangular shape moved into view and it was different and it was AWESOME!

My mom didn't know why I wanted all available Star Wars videos loaned from the videothek all of a sudden, but she didn't care either way, so I took what little pocket money I had and went and watched all of them about five times each in the span of 3 days. (yes, that Ewok movie, too. I was nine, for Force's sake)

I spent the next year trying to construct a lightsaber, but never got farther than a painted wooden stick -.-
It literally changed my life. It gave me heroes when I needed them most and for years 'What would Luke do' became my mantra when I had to deal with difficult things. It gave me the courage to reach out and the trust in people I needed at one point or another in my late childhood.

Thanks to Star Wars I got into Fantasy, into roleplaying, gaming and LARPing.
(I can say though, that me studying archeology was NOT Harrison Ford's fault )

I can happyliy say that up until the PT I had read every book in existence.
I had to replace the Thrawn books eventually because they fell apart.

The first time I watched any Star Wars movie in a cinema was TPM.
It also was the last time I watched a Star Wars movie in cinema.

Which is why I am equal parts excited and utterly terrified for TFA.
I am so thrilled that this movie exists and so scared it wil be another TPM...

 

Well, I wouldn't say it is cool, but my oldest brother is like 15 years older than me. My dad died when I was young and my brother became like my dad and would take me to the movies, or watch movies with me to get my mind off of things and escape for awhile.

But when he showed me Star Wars it truly helped beyond belief because it was more than an escape it became my favorite movies ever. So I will always be thankful for him for all he's done.

 

Oh man, it's not just the movies. It's the movies, toys, video games, books, etc. that hooked me...

I was too young to watch the originals in theaters (Born in '78). My first memory of Star Wars was with a 3.75" series Yoda action figure getting stuck in the cockpit of an Imperial Lambda class shuttle vehicle when I was like 5 or so. I was maybe 7-8 when I first watched ANH on VHS, followed closely by the other two. Repeat dozens of times between 8-10 years old. Then came the basement toy battles. But it wasn't Jedi versus Sith, or Rebellion versus the Empire... no, no... it was Luke, Han, Yoda, Vader, Palp, the Stormtroopers all teaming up against Duke, Destro, Scarlet, Snake Eyes, Stormshadow and Cobra Commander. Sadly, a lot of those toys - figures, vehicles, missiles - met their untimely end during those battles.

In time I saw all of the prequels on the big screen.

I was a fanboy forever after all of that, but what really took me to the next level were the Star Wars Galaxies MMORPG game and the KOTOR games. I loved those games and they were so immersive that you couldn't help but learn and love the lore surrounding Star Wars in a way that I don't think you can get with just the movies. Thanks to those games I can tell you every species of animal on Tat, Corellia, Dath, Yavin IV, etc.

Throw in the stories from the books and you can just color me addicted.

And now my kids will get to experience that same awesome world with me. Bring it on. 13 days to go until TFA.

 

I saw Rocky 2 & 3 before Rocky 1 when I was a kid and it didn't ruin the movies either. Rocky 1 ended up being my favorite and is the still best of all of the movies.

 

Spring 1997: I was at Cici's Pizza in Sugar Land, TX when ANH came on he giant tv they had and I sat enthralled and asked my parents about it.

Summer 1997: my dad rented all the films for me.

Spring 1999: My mom buys me a shirt with The Final Space Battle on it (which I still have)

May 1999: I see the film and have all of the cool McD toys but my mom refuses to buy me any of the toys and such.

May 2002: I save up money to buy an Obi-Wan Kenobi light saber, light up collapsible one, and take it to go see AOTC...mom still refuses to buy me anything Star Wars as its "too childish."


May 2005: I'm at a new school, no friends, but meets a kid that's just a loner/science nerd like me, and we take our sabers after our first 6th grad finals to see ROTS...after, we spend the entire day and into the night fighting each other until I force push him into his pool.

2005 - present: attending Celebrations, trying to join The 501st, acting, modeling, starting my company, making films, signing artists, college, Star Wars, Star Wars, Star Wars, Star Wars, Star Wars, Star Wars, while convincing everyone that TFA a would happen before I'm 25...in fact, one of my old friends still owes me $25,000 from that bet ... And that friend works for Raytheon and works for classified government projects with NASA sand stuff...but doesn't want to pay me the bet...

 

ROTJ was my introduction to Star Wars. I first saw it when I was 7 years old, it was the first VHS tape my mother purchased for our VCR back in 1986. I watch ROTJ religiously. I remember never knowing what Vader said to Luke in the Throne room for our copy's audio would cut out for 5 minutes at that point and we couldn't afford another copy of it. I don't remember an exact date of when I saw a New Hope and TESB but I remember being so happy that there were more movies.

The prequels are a little foggy for me. They were the first Star Wars films I was able to see in the theatre and I was so excited for them. TPM had its problems but I enjoyed it somewhat the first viewing even though my friends despised it. I was less aware of the craft of filmmaking back then

Attack of the clones was insane. The theatre was packed with super fans all wielding lightsabers. One fan brought in a stuffy of Yoda. Before the curtain dropped he spent a good twenty minutes holding him up in the air like Simba from the Lion King and everyone would cheer. The guys I went to see the film with stayed at the theatre all day and watched it, show after show.

ROTS was probably the best time I had with the prequels, some parts worked, At the end of the film when Vader force destroyed everything with anger I was so pumped thinking, wow, this part is actually good, and then Vader screamed "NOOOO!" I laughed out loud in the theatre, I couldn't help myself. Everyone was silent except for me. lol

Out of all the Star Wars films ROTJ will always have a special place in my heart. Star Wars awakened my creative side and I credit it for pursuing the arts, taking traditional animation in college and now working in film doing graphics and storyboards.

 

I'm a lot younger than a lot of the members here, so I unfortunately only experienced the Prequel Trilogy as they were released in cinemas.

I was about 5 when I first saw the Original trilogy, my family had just moved from London to Melbourne, Australia and it was just before the Special Editions were released in cinemas, my dad had borrowed some movies from the local Blockbuster, 3 being ANH, ESB and ROTJ.

I watched all three back to back and was instantly hooked, i loved everything about it and asked my parents to get me the films for that coming Christmas.. I got them in the Special Edition VHS boxset which i still have to this day, although its packed away in a box atm since I've got no room to put it anywhere lol.

We then moved to Brisbane, Australia [where i still live] and that's where I saw the Phantom Menace with my dad, i liked it, at the time that is but it never really kept my attention like the OT did, I remember after seeing it he took me and my brother to Toys R Us and I got a lego darth maul with his little speeder and my brother got an anakin with the naboo starfighter.

I Saw AOTC with my Brother and Dad as well, which i think was my first IMAX movie, since i remember going to this absolutely massive theater and the screen was massive.

ROTS was the first one I didnt see with my dad, since i went with my best friend and brother. This was my favorite of the prequels, loved the Obi/Anakin fight at the end.

In recent year's i have had the chance to see the OT in cinema's and they have all been amazing, it's just a shame it was the SE versions and not the originals.

For The Force Awakens I'm going to see it in the brand new Cinema that opened about 10 mins away from me at Midnight. Seeing it in IMAX 3D with Dolby ATMOS and i can't bloody wait.

 

1977 ANH- I was preschool aged and fell asleep when the X-Wings approached the Death Star. My dad filled me in later when we got home what happened. I remember being mad that Vader escaped. My favorite character was R2D2. Vader scared me.

1980 ESB - Watched the movie with my family, and cousins family. BY FAR BEST MOVIE AND MOVIE EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE. Hoth Luke, Han and Leia were favorite. Probe droid, Wampa, Bounty hunters, asteroid monsters, Cloud City duel were and are my favorite scene.

1980-1983 Spent this time playing with action figures, spaceships. My mom decorated my entir room in Star Wars. I had a R2D2 wall switch that glowed in the dark. Also it was a big deal if ANH would be on TV. Not sure what year we got a VCR but it was a big deal. Dad was making payments on a new one at a local family owned Hardware/Retail store. Cost him over $300-which was a lot back then. More than a vehicle payment. Anyway I remember lots of discussions about whether Vader was really Lukes father. Or how would they save Han. Adults and kids would debate about this. Seems comical now. But its true....all of it.

1983 ROTJ same family experience as ESB.

1999 TPM-went in Happy to see a new Star Wars movie, left with mixed feelings

2002 AOTC-went in hopeful to see how George would advance from TPM mess, left with mixed feelings.

2005 ROTS-went in after reading spoilers (first movie I ever read leaked scripts for). However the script I read was mostly accurate, except it was pre editing script. Left mostly happy. Never thought there would be anymore Star Wars movies.

 

ANH came out a year before I was born. I was 2 when Empire was in theaters but saw both on VHS before seeing Jedi in theaters ( probably why its my favorite). Saw the prequels in theaters and ANH and Empire in theaters when the anniversary editions came out in theaters. Faves in order: ROTJ, ESB, AOTC, ANH, TPM, ROTS.

 

I went go through my entire Star Wars history, mostly because it's fairly average, but let me tell you about the last time I saw a Star War in theaters. It was during the 3D re-release of TPM and I went with a friend of mine, I'm more of a fan than he is, but he's still into the movies. We get into the theater and it's packed with fans, which was a welcome surprise for me, I looked forwarded to watching TPM with other people who would enjoy it. Well the before the film starts there's some Ice Age short film with the squirrel thing from that series, but the problem is it keeps freezing. Finally, before the movie had even started, it freezes entirely. A theater employee walks in and says basically "technical problems, we have one more theater we can show it in, or we can play the 2D version". As soon as she says which theater is playing the 3D version half the theater runs for the door to get good seats, there wasn't enough room for everyone. My friend and I agree to bail, we've both seen the 2D version 100 times. We got free tickets for a tomorrow showing and were greeted by a less enthusiastic crowd, which was kind of a bummer.

 

It all started back in 94.. I was a manic three year old who loved the original trilogy purely for the action, but then as I got a little older and actually payed attention to the plot.. I realised just how profound Star Wars (1977) and Empire Strikes Back were. I watched Return of the Jedi so much when I was 3-5, that watching the film now still feels like a window to my childhood. The end celebration scene still moves me.

Then in July 1999 I saw The Phantom Menace.. the eight year old me cringed at Jar Jar, but in general I loved the movie. I absolutely accepted it and felt it was a good movie. To this day I maintain that is the best prequel, it captured the joyful tone of A New Hope.

Then 2002 rolled around.. I didn't see Attack of the Clones in cinema, and instead I ended up watching it on DVD.. and by God was it an awful experience.

From the moment that ship cut through the clouds, to the moment it landed and a Captain Panaka ripoff said "Looks like there was no danger at all." I had a bad feeling in my stomach, before BOOM! A weak sounding, lackluster CGI explosion occured - followed by a lame looking digital camera shake. I swallowed anxiously. "This may be the end of the franchise I once loved." pondered the 11 year old me as I clamped my knees together and tightened my grip on my blue painted wicker chair.

I was right, what followed was arguably the most boring 2 hours in science fiction cinema, topped off by that HORRENDOUS droid factory scene and HUNDREDS of Jedi all cutting down non-existant CGI droids in a CGI arena on a planet made of CGI.. and that was the moment I realized that my sweet George had gone too far.

Then I saw Revenge of the Sith in cinema with some pals, I really enjoyed it. I even claimed it was better than Return of the Jedi a mere 24 hours later! But now? Not so much. Revenge of the Sith has somehow aged the worse out of all the prequels and I can't get past the first half without wanting 50 grams of Zinc in my system. That film really is a depression-inducing pile of nostalgic digital mess. The scene with Vader getting his legs chopped off is cool though.

Well thats 4/6 Star Wars films that I enjoyed, 2 of which I still worship.. and I can only hope The Force Awakens can bring back at least some of that excitement and creativity that I felt as a kid. Star Wars is a big part of who I am.. and I remember designing my own X-Wing/Tie Fighter space battles - Scribbling them on an A3 piece of paper before throwing it in the trash and starting again on a new piece.. Star Wars certainly made my childhood happier. Lets hope for more of the same for this generation.