OK. I have something to confess-- I was not a Star Wars fan growing up. Being given the name Luke didn't really help things along much either. In fact, whenever I read that one post that's always on message boards, blogs and other websites on how Star Wars shaped person A's childhood, I get a little bit jealous. It seems like such an expansive universe to dive into. That jealousy is somewhat compensated for by seeing the following 40 posts discussing how Lucas screwed his fans over and pissed on the franchise. I guess one can find these angry bittersweet fans in any franchise. But with Star Wars, it's much more apparent.
You see, the thoughts running through my head at 10 years old weren't who shot first-- Han or Greedo. Or even what was the best film of the original trilogy. They were more akin to, who would win-- Jason or Freddy (with me always leaning toward the Freddy side). Back then, horror satisfied me moreso than the sci-fi genre. & regardless of the fact that 2001 is in my top 5 and not The Exorcist, that has more to do with film in general. But, I'm regressing. I would not see Empire Strikes Back until much later. When I finally did see it, I could understand how someone can safely call it their 'favorite film'. It has a good story but it's the execution by Irvin Kershner that makes it ultimately worthwhile. It has since been counted among my favorites.
Can't say I feel the same way about Lord of the Rings & Harry Potter. The fantasy genre as a whole just doesn't do anything for me. I remember seeing the final LOTR in the theatre and leaving with a sense of being underwhelmed. Were they massive technical achievements? Of course. However, I just could not get into the whole mythology and 'collectability' behind it.
amen. To 2001 & all.
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