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

My experience of seeing the prequels was quite different - I saw every one in the cinema. I was so hyped about TPM and I couldn't believe we were getting a new Star Wars movie after all that time. Back then, the film was going to be released much earlier in the US than the UK - can't remember exactly, but it was weeks later (unlike now when Europe will get TFA first ). So, I decided to fly to New York for a weekend and make sure I saw the movie as early as possible and before it was out in the UK.

I think I was so excited, I loved it on that first viewing. I remember a few things disappointing me, but overall I thought it was great. Only after repeated viewings did I see that it wasn't really that fantastic and it was only my desire for it to be so good that made it seem so on that first viewing.

So - basically I spent hundreds of pounds and took days off work in '99 to make sure I saw TPM as soon as possible. Any US folks flying to Europe to see TFA early this time around??

 

I would, but I'm scared of flying and avoid it at any time that I can .

 

I was born in 1996, so I was really young when the prequels were out.

I must've seen TPM, ANH, ESB & ROTJ at some point prior to 2002 though as by the time Attack of the Clones came out I was already Star Wars crazy. I remember going to see it with my mum and grandparents at Grand Cinemas Whitfords here in Perth, Western Australia. I don't remember the day (from memory it was night time though) and at the time I'm pretty sure I loved it (I was 6, come on).

Revenge of the Sith, 2005. Don't remember exactly when or where I saw this but I DO remember that my mum decided to go see it first to check its suitability as it was M (~Australian PG-13) as opposed to PG like the rest. I went to see it with her soon after that. The Order 66 sequence made me cry and I didn't want to watch Anakin's burning/reconstruction scene. It still bothers me slightly to this day.

Next came The Clone Wars in 2008, again with Mum...and like every other person I believe it wise to just 'skip over' that part.

Planned to go and see The Phantom Menace 3D with a mate in 2012, but the fact that 3D glasses didn't mix with regular glasses and it was Phantom Menace after all, I passed.

And now...we get to 2015. I have been following this movie since its announcement and it has been the first time I have properly been able to join in with a Star Wars movie's pre-release internet culture.

Love you all

 

That's a pretty good reason not to, then - and save yourself a load of cash

 

im 32 so return of the jedi came out the same year i was born.. so sadly i never got to see the original trilogy in theaters. My mother bought me a new hope on VHS when i was about 5 or 6 so like 1988-89.. i instantly became obsessed with it and wore out the tape within a year or 2.

i never even knew their were sequels .. my mother never told me and i never asked.. i just watched my VHS tape and that was all i thought it was.

until around 1991 or 1992 or something.. when i saw empire playing on TV and was like... THERE'S MORE?? got both empire and return of the jedi at once and once again became obsessed with them. this continued for a few years.. but eventually i found a few other interests (rollerblading.. so 90s i know) of course when the prequels came out it reawakened my obsession and i finally got to see a star wars movie in a theater.. albeit a very disappointing one (or 3).

it really has been a life long obsession though.. around the time of the prequels i was also playing star wars galaxies like my life depended on it.

And so TFA might be my first good star wars movie i see properly in a theater.. very excited.

 

id rather not talk about seeing the prequels haha i barely count them as a star wars movie in my head.

 

My first experience is being three years old and seeing The Phantom Menace with my Dad and brother. I remember looking at some of the podrace through the film projecter as well as the image of Qui-Gon dying. As well as looking at the poster as we left for as long as it was in sight. Sometime later when I was at least five my Dad's friend burned me copies of the Original Trilogy and would regularly give me copies of Star Wars fan club magazine whenever he came to visit. I remember looking at each of them multiple times and always wanting to be Luke. I always thought Han was a bit of a jerk towards Leia. Haha .. Anyways, I remember seeing Attack of the Clones with my Mom. I don't remember much except the explosion at the beginning. Revenge of the Sith I saw with my Dad and us arriving right in time for the middle of the opening credits. I was so scared and everything. Especially with remembering I had read this will be the darkest yet but, once R2 burned the Super Battle Droids my nerves really calmed. I enjoyed the film and remember my Grandma called my Dad during the movie. Haha ... I will always have a soft spot for The Phantom Menace, I consider it a truly underrated film and think very highly of it. There's a few scenes with Jar Jar that I could do without as I am older like the poop and fart jokes and the sticking out his tongue when he says "wesa going home" but, otherwise I don't hate him. The innocence of young Anakin and will of Qui-Gon are compelling to me. As is when ... Jar Jar says," Wesa got a grand army. That’s why you no liking us meesa thinks." Now say what you will about what follows but, it's compelling to me how an otherwise considered insignificant and useless character brought the Naboo and Gungans together. Just like Luke did in Return of the Jedi with bringing the Rebels and Ewoks together through C-3PO. It's like C-3PO with Anakin building him, while it may seem insufficient, what if Darth Plagueis is revealed at some point in this trilogy and to be Anakin's "father", it would be like poetry ... Well you know the rest but, in a sense The Phantom Menace starts it all and the trilogy rhymes and repeats themes that we see later. There's something connective about all of that and fascinating to me. Anyways, moving on to Attack of the Clones. It's become my least favorite of the series. It's not terrible but, in most cases it just doesn't hold up. Except maybe for me at least the Obi-Wan side of the story and Anakin searching for his mother and what proceeds. Otherwise the romance waters down what is a decent film. Revenge of the Sith on the otherhand is good. I really haven't set down to watch it in a while so can't judge but, it's good. The Original Trilogy I don't really have to discuss in detail but, for me I choose A New Hope slightly over The Empire Strikes Back for Binary Sunset, The Cantina, and the history it carries. The introduction if you will as The Phantom Menace before it, The Empire Strikes Back is a classic just as A New Hope. It's compelling from start to finish. With Yoda to the betrayal to the reveal. It's all there. Return of the Jedi is a great film in it's own right too. it's compelling to me the ending of the film where Luke and Anakin speak right before the second dies. How he commends Luke to tell Leia he was right about him. As well as Luke burning the suit and his father. The imagery of this and him letting go of his father and fulfilling his destiny is powerful. But, for him he has his father as a Force Ghost and must embrace what comes next as Yoda stresses the importance of passing on what he knows. For him, we will see where the ways of the Force lead him and what sorts of poetry lay ahead for The Force Awakens and the Sequel Trilogy.

I did go off topic a bit but, feel I answered the question. As for when or where I will see The Force Awakens, I am not sure yet. I shall see soon enough. I just hope to buy some Legos and a lightsaber to re-create some of the fondest childhood memories I have in a galaxy far, far away ...

 

Yo

yoire a yungin' !

 

The Force is strong with me. A powerful Sith ... I shall not become.

 

The dark side is better...use my knowledge, I beg you! Ask Darth Jar Jar .

 

... Never!

 

I was 5 (I think) in the summer of '77 when Star Wars came out. I remember going with my mom and one of my older sisters to see it, it was a hot day, and I remember my sister very excited about seeing it as we walked across the parking lot to the theater. The movie theater we saw it in, in Vancouver, Washington is now an auto repair shop. ha. I saw Empire with another one of my sisters, and I was totally hyped for it, and was enthralled by the whole thing..Yoda especially.

Before Empire, I remember our local TV news here in Portland speculating about a big reveal about Darth Vader..I thought it was funny TV news was as big of a geek as I was!

I think I saw ROTJ with my friend from school. He and I used to play with our Star Wars figures, and before ROTJ, I remember speculating about what the plot of ROTJ would be. He's still my best friend, and was my best man at my wedding 11 years ago. I'd love to see TFA with him - will have to try to make that happen.

The hype before TPM was insane. I worked for a start up telecom company here in Portland, and the management rented us two luxury buses to take us to the theater, where they had rented out a screen for us all to watch. I desperately didn't want to feel disappointed by it, but I was..as were most of my coworkers. I emphasized the positives of the films..like the light saber duels.

I was a swinging bachelor in 2002 when Attack of the Clones came out, and despite all the bad decisions I made about women then, I took one or two of them to see the movie..which wasn't a bad idea in either case.

I was 6 months into marriage when Revenge of the Sith came out. My wife is originally from Hong Kong, and we were visiting Hong Kong on opening day. I went with her and her family to see it there. The theater we saw it at was full, but it wasn't madhouse crazy busy like US theaters would be on opening day. It was cool watching it with Chinese subtitles. I can read some Chinese, so I was trying to gauge the accuracy of the subtitles. ha I still enjoy ROTS, and it is one of my favorite Star Wars films.

For TFA, much to the shock of my buddies, I do not yet have my tickets - I'm in grad school now, and between a full time job, busy grad school schedule and a family..I haven't had any time to plan for that yet. I know, I know..I'm dangerously close to having my geek card revoked, but it's true. I plan to see it with my wife a day or two after it opens. My 8 year old son, who loves to read Star Wars books is not interested in seeing it in the theaters. I've been struggling with the fact he might not be as big of a fan as I am..I love him anyway! ha

I hope you all enjoy it..I know I will, when I do go see it!

 

I was considered to be born into the second generation of Star Wars fans that grew up on the prequels. You may consider me below you on the scale of all you who saw the original trilogy in theaters, but what it has taught me is to respect every Star Wars film at face value for what it is worth and for what each story was telling in the total canon overall. It made me look past the acting and focus on the true meaning of the stories that were trying to be conveyed to me. This is my story. My history of Star Wars...

A long time ago at a video store in North Carolina...

2000 - Video Store Rental Turns Into Fandom With OT

My dad took me and my brothers to the VHS store to rent some movies. Little did I know he came to rent the 1997 Star Wars movies and to show me and my younger brother these movies for the first time. The year is 2000. We get the movies, take them home and we watched them one by one. I was immediately transported into this mysterious world even at 5 or 6 years old. It felt so real and also yet so amazing and confusing all at once. This was not something I had ever seen before and it seemed original at my age. After watching these three movies, I knew I really enjoyed the story. We watched them several times and rented them probably once or twice more. I don't remember quite how many because it has been

2000/2001 - The Phantom Menace

After seeing the OT, dad decided to get us into the new movies after they too were released. We watched the first part of what would later become known as the prequels. For a young boy of 6 years old, I was enthralled to see a young boy like myself be the main focus of this film. His name was Anakin Skywalker and back then he was an adventurous and courageous little boy willing to do anything to help others. He had a real heart and truly cared. Podracing became a pastime for me and that movie scene was probably viewed about 50 times. When I received Star Wars: Episode I Racer for PC on my birthday, it became an even bigger fandom. I learned the names of all the podracing drivers and still know them to this day. Back then, watching Ray Park fight the two Jedi was also amazing. I had never seen that level of action in a film before up to that point in my life and it was amazing to see the amount of energy a lightsaber fight had compared to what I had seen in the OT a year or so before that. The ending always confused me because death always puzzled me at that age and seeing Qui-Gonn die around the time my grandmother died really put things in perspective in a weird sort of way. It helped me cope years later. I later went back and took a massive liking to Williams' score many years later including that of "Duel of the Fates" notoriety.

2002 - Attack of the Clones

Yes, I knew this was going to be full of adventure and some love. They really did push trailers for this movie all over the place. It was at the level of what TFA was around the time the second trailer came out. Everyone was still excited to see this movie. I got it on DVD when my family finally got a DVD player as well as Finding Nemo on DVD. I watched Attack of the Clones so many times that I know almost all the script by heart because of how many times I watched it. The love scenes were tacky, but at 7 years old, it was embarrassing watching them. Boys aren't watching Star Wars for love scenes as kids. So it was a total "yuck!" and look away from the screen moment almost every time. When I grew up, I tended to understand how it came about more though. My favorite line of the entire movie is when Mace Windu says, "This party's over..." and I repeat it on many occasions still to this day. Yes, this movie is a bust in the overall story, but it sure has its shining moments in my childhood. You may disagree with me, but when you grow up with it, you learn to have a love-hate relationship with these things.

2005 - Revenge of the Sith - My First Official Star Wars Movie in a Theater

I was more than excited when this film was hyped up through AOL and everything else Internet related online. I went on starwars.com so many times that year just to watch new content. This was before the dawn of YouTube and things really were not quite at the point like they are today for video sharing. Video websites like ebaumsworld.com really reigned the Internet back then. Watching Anakin turn evil was something we always knew would happen, but man did George Lucas nail the evil transformation on the head with Hayden. When Hayden turns evil, I really feel like he transformed into something almost demonic. It really gave a shiver up my spine watching those trailers and later the movie. I will never forget where I was when I saw that movie:

Smithfield Cinemas 10
175 South Equity Dr
Smithfield, NC



We were there watching movies with some family friends of ours and we saw Star Wars was playing online. We went over to watch that and split off into two groups. One to see Star Wars and the other to see Madagascar. I remember sitting in the theater, going through previews, and then that opening Star Wars theme and logo came on screen. It roared in that theater and my spine was tingling watching the opening space sequence as Obi-Wan and Anakin flew through the raging Battle of Coruscant over the planet. It made me feel like I was with them and it is something that you can't feel unless you watch it in theaters. The movie scenes were beautiful and my fandom of this franchise came to what I thought would be the close of it all. It was an overall okay movie, but the final fight between Obi-Wan and Anakin has to be one of the best parts of the entire movie. Very sad and yet very powerful. The music really helped elevate these scenes to a new level. Hayden's acting was always questionable in the prequels, but he did an okay job as Vader in this movie and managed to pull off the transformation to the Dark Side pretty well (Except for "Don't make me kill you". That seemed a little melodramatic.). After this, my saga as I knew it was over and I would spend the next few years hoping for a new movie. Something told me that day as I left the theater that it wasn't going to be over, and I simply brushed it off. Boy, was I wrong.

2012 - The Disney Buyout

When it was announced that Disney bought Lucasfilm and all its titles for $4 Billion, I was honestly pissed. I cant even describe to you how infuriated I was when I heard this news. I knew that with this new buyout, a new film trilogy was bound to happen. I was seriously mad because I thought, like everyone else, that Disney was going to "Mousify" everything about the franchise I grew up and loved. It really struck a chord with me and I knew that I would either have to keep thinking that way or just let it go. I chose to stay mixed on it and would later learn that it was in good hands

November 2014 - Rumors of the Trailer

I had heard that The Force Awakens had started filming and that a trailer was coming Thanksgiving. The morning of the trailer, I donned my Star Wars gear and eagerly awaited the trailer to the next chapter in the Star Wars journey. I was blown away with what JJ gave us and I knew in my heart that everything was going to be okay. I gave up my Mousify grudge and started in the direction I am now.

April 2015 - Star Wars Celebration: Anaheim (From The Comfort of my Home)

Much like the Trailer we first saw, I wanted to see the content for SW: Celebration. I watched it with the rest of the world at the end of the panel online on YouTube. I dreamed of that moment for so long after seeing Teaser 1 and I was so excited after the trailer. I felt a sensation of complete amazement after the trailer ended and I couldnt believe what I had just witnessed. The Star Wars franchise in all of its glory and the start of a new chapter with new characters. The return of Han and Chewie. It was all moving forward so quick and yet, so far away from the premiere.

June 2015 - Joined the Cantina

I found the Cantina somewhere after looking two months for a good Star Wars community. It has since become my new home for news and more. I have a ton of new friends here and I could not be happier to have met some of you and befriended you.

October 2015 - The TFA Official Trailer and Skype Party Line

For those that were there that night, you know what happened here. We all got on Skype, talked about sports and Star Wars for 4 hours, and had a blast doing it. We shared our fandom experience and we talked about our hopes for TFA as well as our predictions of story plots and more. Little did I know this discussion would have me in the Resistance Broadcast later with Darth Lexor Kai and Pomojema (and Bluestreaking too!). We had a great experience that night and even filmed our reactions and made a super video which is now a staple here in the Cantina.

December 2015 - The Time Has Come for the Next Chapter

I am here now waiting for the next chapter albeit impatiently. I can't wait for this film. It has been 10 years since Star Wars was on the big screen and it keeps getting closer and closer. It feels like tomorrow could be the day and I write this late at night telling you my story. My Star Wars story. It is rich, deep, and full of a lot of study and detail. This is not just any fandom to me. This is my fandom. This is your fandom. To some of you, this is something that brings you a warm feeling and makes you whole. What Lucas started to what we now are about to see, it has come a very long way. It is going to be the start of a new chapter that will bring many to tears, joy to men, women, and children, and peace to all that can harmoniously come together to enjoy something we all care about: Watching a good story with people around us that all can enjoy each others company. That is what it really means to see these films. I can't tell you how many friends I have made here and in the past because the magic of Star Wars. It truly is amazing and always will be a major part of my life.

Thanks to all of you that make each day that much better by sharing your Star Wars stories and your times here at Star Wars News Net and The Cantina. It truly is something special to grow this community more and more every single day.

 

Saw Star Wars back in the 1980s. Wasn't all that impressed, I was more of an Indiana Jones kind of kid/young person. I spent a lot of time outdoors and with friends out in the woods. Wasn't until I saw Empire that I appreciated it more. Still wouldn't say I was a big fan. My one friend had like dozens and dozens of the action figures and other merch. We had a system where I'd have one set of non-Star Wars toys and he'd have another set of toys (Star Wars) that way we weren't getting the same stuff separately. I usually wound up using his Lando and Ackbar. They were two of my go-tos.

When the The Phantom Menace trailer dropped I watched that. I remember it was by using the old RealPlayer for Windows. I didn't see the movie in the theater though. I don't think anyone I knew really cared all that much. Same goes for all the prequels. Like I saw them soon when they came available on DVD.

 

Hmm. I cant remember what theater I saw the original Star Wars in. I know my parents took me to see it for my 11th birthday in November of 1977. I had no idea what it was or that it was even a "thing" back then. That movie changed my life man. The very next day I ran to the public library and looked through every book on LASER's I could find and studied the pictures. No time to read, Jedi business! Then I ran home and appropriated my dads silver EverReady Captain flashlight and compact mirror and some kind of piece of jewelry from my moms jewelry box and glued/taped it all together hoping to make a lightsaber and...CLICK!. It didn't work...

Empire Strikes Back was at a true 70mm theater on Route 4 in Paramus NJ, Cineplex Odeon (now demolished). That whole event was great. Five hours of waiting on line, talking to fans, impromptu trivia contests, people dressed in costumes before Cos-play, a van painted with Hildebrandt Bros. Star Wars artwork and a paper-mache TIE fighter on top of it driving around the parking lot. Best movie event ever in my memory.

When Return of the Jedi came along I was too "grown up" to care about Star Wars (the hubris of youth, lol) but I still went to see it with friends who were "also o.k. with going to see a Star Wars movie." It just so happens that was in the same hometown theater where I saw Star Wars nearly every day during the summer of '79 for $1.00 admission (I had my own paper route in those days, plus it was air conditioned!) so back to my roots.

By the time the prequels came out most of the magic of going to a movie was gone. All I remember is generic multiplexes.

This December, The Force Awakens will be the first time I see a movie in IMAX 3D so I hope it will be a bit of an exciting and memorable experience. And I think I'll pay a visit to the same hometown theater where I memorized Star Wars in the late 70's for nostalgic reasons .

 

As a kid of the 90's my experience first watching Star Wars was through taped vhs copies off of tv. Luckily, they were the unaltered versions so I would watch them in their best glory. I watched them all the time with Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi being my favorite. I went and saw the special editions when they were re-released in theaters. I was confused even as a child why all the changes were made, so I always stuck to my taped vhs copies up until they released the original versions on the bonus disc of the dvd. I loved the Hoth scenes in Empire and Return Of The Jedi I watched constantly because, quite frankly, it so weird and awesome. Rancor, Ewoks, and the greatest scene in all the movies in my opinion, Luke vs. Vader vs. The Emperor.

When The Phantom Menace rolled around the excitement was other worldly. I had gotten a lot of the toys and merch through Taco Bell and Pepsi products. So I was ready and as a kid I loved the movie. I think it was directed towards the new generation of kids and it worked. When Attack of The Clones rolled around my fandom for Star Wars was growing and growing basically going from playing with all my Star Wars toys to just collecting them. I know the Prequels aren't great, but they were still Star Wars and still found them captivating and interesting. Revenge Of The Sith was the culmination of everything in my High School years at the time. We had a Star Wars party and our moms made us all sorts of awesome snacks and stuff. Revenge Of The Sith was everything I hoped for to end the the Prequel trilogy even with all of its cheesiness.

Then the years of The Clone Wars and time without any movies were my college years. I didn't have the money to spend on much Star Wars merch anymore nor did I have the space, so much went into storage in my parents basement. I enjoy The Clone Wars thoroughly as they add a lot to the lore and canon, but the prospect of another movie coming out seemed hopeless. Until the day The Force Awakens was announced and I felt the same feelings as I did as a kid before Episode I.

Opening night of The Force Awakens was amazing. I saw it in IMAX 3d with a very excited crowd and it was everything I hoped for. Then I saw it two other times, picking up on all the nuances and things I didn't notice at first (now waiting patiently for the Blu Ray so I can watch it over and over). Star Wars fandom is now through the roof and I'm fully embracing everything Star Wars. I'm reading more of the books now and even participate in a podcast and am constantly learning everything I possibly can about the Wars. It's a great time to be alive and am thankful for everything Star Wars has given me my whole life.