The Middle of a Saga, the End of an Era. . .
A personal review of "Revenge Of The Sith"
By Alice
Haddock
I’ve yet to experience a hangover, being under the legal drinking age,
but I’m pretty sure that this is what it feels like. For twelve days
now, I’ve been feeling the aftereffects of “Star Wars—Episode III:
Revenge of the Sith”. Twelve days of savoring Industrial Light and
Magic’s CGI wizardry, twelve days of John Williams’ triumphant score
reverberating in my head, twelve days of a “Star Wars” induced daze.
Life is good.
Good Times
“Revenge of the Sith” was truly the missing link, that film that
effectively bonded new and old, spanning generations of fans. Since
Darth Vader said “Luke, I am your father,” in 1979, the world has
waited for the story behind the Dark Lord. Now George Lucas has
mercifully quenched the myriad of burning questions.
Although “Empire Strikes Back” still reigns supreme in my book,
“Revenge of the Sith” was a worthwhile film. Otherwise I wouldn’t have
gone to see it three days in a row. (Oh, okay, I probably would
have…out of allegiance to George Lucas, though) In the end, compared to
Harrison Ford’s allure, Hayden Christiansen is but a padawan.
“What was that, again?”
I was overwhelmed with utter relief when “Revenge of the Sith” didn’t
turn out to be a disappointment. As a Star Wars fan in the savage
jungles of suburban high school, there’s been many times when I’ve had
trouble with negative comments about the saga, particularly about the
Episodes I and II. It’s especially hard when they’re justifiable
comments that I can’t easily defend.
In fact, a boy in my English class once dared to remark that “George
Lucas is getting senile.” Boy, did that cause some unpleasant reactions
from me. Frankly, I doubt he’s going to make a callous statement like
within earshot of me again.
And it’s not just distant individuals, either. Liz, one of my closest
friends, and also my greatest critic besides myself, seems to be found
of trashing music, movies, basically everything that I like. When it
comes to a classic film series like Indiana Jones, almost without flaw,
she enjoys pointing out the lack of technology in comparison to a
modern movie, like her favorite, “Pirates of the Caribbean”.
(Forgetting, of course, that the special effects in “Pirates” are made
by none other than Industrial Light and Magic.)
It drives me up the wall when, for example, she chooses to say “Wow,
that was so fake,” when Luke blows up the Death Star in “A New Hope”.
Totally ruins the moment.
You can imagine how I relished her speechless reactions to the
explosions (and there are lots of them!) in “Revenge of the Sith”.
George Lucas’ special effects company has remained one step ahead of
the technology of the times, and I hope it always will.
A Legacy
My friends and I stopped at Burger King’s before getting to the
theatre, trying to get a toy Jabba the Hutt for me, since my English
teacher had cruelly confiscated mine earlier that week, claiming it was
a squirt gun, and thus not allowed in school. (Was NOT! It was most
definitely a squirt Jabba!) Unfortunately, we didn’t get one.
Fortunately, we got a Yoda toy, which gave us all a little scare when
he did a full flip after we wound him up.
As I sat there sipping my drink, waiting for my friends to finish, I
took a good look around the food joint. There were Star Wars posters
everywhere, even a full size Darth Vader figurine that would breathe
through its respirator if you pressed a button. Kids were everywhere,
playing with their kid’s meal toys, Boba Fett, Han Solos, Darth Mauls,
just to name a few. (Nope, no Jabbas…)
I wondered if this was what it was like in 1977, 1979, and 1984, and
also in 1999, when “The Phantom Menace” sparked up the force in
everyone again. I’d been nine when “Phantom Menace” came out in
theatres, and not quite interested in Star Wars. (And obviously I
wasn’t alive in the 70s and 80s) When “Attack of the Clones” came out
in 2002, there hadn’t been much excitement, as it was undermined by the
success of “Spiderman”.
Sure, I was thankful that I could at least claim that I had been
present and participated in the enthusiasm before the opening of the
final installment of the Star Wars saga. But along with that was
regret. Regret that it was over. I thought, After today, there’s going
to be no more Star Wars. Although unthinkable, it was true. Star Wars
has been so engrained into our culture, that every child knows who
Darth Vader is. To not know would be unthinkable.
I guess it was a historic moment, that Thursday of May 19th, 2005. It
marked the end of the Star Wars era, one which spanned almost 30 years,
encompassing three generations.
Sound Advice
The Tuesday before “Revenge” opened in theatres was the last day that
the seniors members of our school’s select Film Club would be attending
a club meeting. Seeing how it would be the last Film Club screening of
their high school career, I agreed to watch whatever they chose. Not
surprisingly, it was another “Al Pacino being intense” flick. After the
credits rolled, as sound equipment was being carefully put away, the
topic turned to “Revenge”. To my surprise, they were attending a
midnight screening. More than slightly envious, I mumbled something
about how lucky they were that they were legally adults and able to
drive. Me? I depended on the goodwill of parents and older siblings.
“Do as many epic things as you can in your Senior year,” they answered.
“In fact, start now. Freshman year’s a great time to start!”
Alas, I couldn’t have gotten tickets then even if I could have made it
to a midnight screening. Ah, well. There’s always Indiana Jones IV.
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About The Author: Alice is a student at Acton-Boxborough high school, and
jokes about her soul is owned by Lucasfilm Ltd. She is easily identified
from a distance by her Red Sox baseball cap, and if for some reason you
should need to contact her,
send her an
e-mail. Alice specializes in making
cinematic music videos, film trivia, and discussing the finer points of
Scottish barge drifters that live lonely, meaningless lives.
