I fail to comprehend the massive collective orgasm so many people seem to be having over the new Star Wars movie. I mean it actually depresses me that folks could be in such ecstasies of anticipation over a bloody movie. Really, it’s a damn movie, people, that’s all it is.
Now, I like me a good movie as much as the next fellow. I don’t mean I like any film so much that I’d actually go to see one in a cinema, but God gave us DVDs for a reason and there is also Netflix (as I understand but don’t actually subscribe to because I’m kind of a cheapskate). If I wait long enough it will be on TCM, uninterrupted by commercials.
SW passion though is a bit beyond my comprehension. I mean I saw the first one, even in a movie house. It was OK. It doesn’t really stick in my cinematic memory like some other flicks, but it was decent enough for the silly fake space-age fantasy genre. The ones that followed are, I understand, kind of crappy. I don’t know what the new one is like and I really don’t care.
A good exercise for the pending dotage of Harrison Ford, I guess. But my favorite HF film by far is American Graffiti in which he played hot rodder John Falfa. Now, AG, there was a movie. The music, the cars, the pretty little stilletto boobed girls and a pre-Shirley Cindy Williams. I loved that flick. It captured me at a time when I was the same age as those guys and in California in 1961 we actually would listen to Wolfman Jack on the radiio.
But, back to Star Wars. I guess what gets me down about it is the obnoxious hype over the vehicle and it only leads me to wonder what it is saying about us at this time juncture. There is a great deal of bad stuff out there. I’m not suggesting we shouldn’t seek a means of escape from the agonies of the world but isn’t there more that we might want to address than a redo of a vehicle that has maybe been trotted out too often? You know, have some fun, but does this thing really warrant the throes of ecstasy in which it seems go be sending certain people. And by that I mean grown up people, not adolescents. 
I used to like sci-fi when I was a kid. I had a few favorite writers like Bradbury, Heinlein, Asimov and so forth. But then I grew out of it. Of late I have been reading The Martian. Cute book, kind of funny in parts and then, half-way through it began to bore me. The Robinson Crusoe-esque plot was not only derivative but also impossible and eventually no longer had much enchantment. I don’t think I’ll bother with that movie, either. I like ‘real’ human tales.
And that’s the thing about Star Wars. There is no nod to any sort of logical reality, so what are people to learn from such a film. Oh, I know (even from the first one) it’s a metaphor for knighthood derring-do and is a pure fantasy. Well, I was never much into the Arthurian legend, either. And vehicles do not go ‘whoosh’ in the deep vacuum of space. And even if they did, I still wouldn’t care enough to attend.
And I still think so 
I don’t care enough to go see it either and don’t understand people bedwetting over it either, but I do understand why some are excited. In times like these, it’s nice to sit and escape somewhere far far away for a few hours, to have something fun to look forward to, to dream just for the sake of dreaming. 99.9999% of the rest of your life is so serious, so why not indulge in a little fantasy? And speaking of fantasy, what if all of those folks from American Graffiti reunited for another cruise movie?
An American Graffiti reunion. Amazing. They’re all of pensionable age now. Oh and nothing wrong with a little fantasy. My fantasies, however, are different from SW
I had friends who were there the first day it was out to see it! They do that a lot. Me, I am not in a rush ever, and often do not see the movies in the theaters, but only when out on DVD! Rose
Very much like me regarding DVDs
There was once a great newspaper columnist named James Kilpatrick. Though he mostly loved to write about our language, and I loved those columns, his one column that stayed with me all these years was about society’s collective shared experiences. Star Wars is a shared collective experience that is positive, unlike when JFK was shot, the Challenger disaster, or 9/11 or other major events that our society, as a collective share. It’s a bonding thing amongst strangers to quote lines or make references to Star Wars. I wish I had a copy of that column (it did not mention Star Wars as it was written before that, but referenced other pop culture that he felt everyone should know). As a giant Star Wars fan, with many great memories I could share, I sometimes feel your bitterness may be that you somehow feel left out. You should rent the original three and just enjoy them. Do it as research if you will. I think you will finally get it.
I remember Kilpatrick well and with fondness and you/he raise a good point. As for SW, I’m not at all bitter about it. Everyone to their own taste. It’s just not a vehicle that turns my crank.
I saw the first couple of movies back in the day. They were so much fun. Just pure unadulterated fun, and god knows we don’t get enough of that. I never did see the others and don’t think I ever will. I think that fun is what people love about them – you don’t haveto learn anything at all from a movie. It’s pure escapism and sometimes that’s what you need. Logical reality is highly overrated. I won’t be seeing Star Wars, but I’ll probably make my way through all 10 or so hours of Lord of the Rings. Again. Cause I love it and have had way too much of reality in the past couple of years. OMG we disagree!!! Have a great holiday my friend (we can agree on the need for that!)
PS: Of course they don’t do “woosh”, but damn it’s such a cool sound!
No we don’t have to agree on everything and we do agree on the important things. Otherwise, chacun a son gout. I’m just not really into space stuff. Was never a Trekkie either, but loved Hitchiker and Red Dwarf and, of course, Dr. Who Have a wonderful Christmas, meanwile
Well, we agree in Red Dwarf and Hitchhiker, that’s for sure.