Friday, December 18, 2015

The Force Awakens

I was nine years old when Star Wars: A New Hope was released and I distinctly remember watching it on the big screen.  I loved Princess Leia and I was terrified of Darth Vader.  I had the action figures and a model of the Millennium Falcon (which I foolishly removed from the box to play with) and I also spent most of my money buying packages of gum to collect all of the playing cards which, when pieced together, created the movie poster (I never actually finished it because I could never find a few of the more elusive cards).  I have such great memories of watching all of the movies in the franchise so, when I heard that the seventh film was in the works, I could hardly contain myself!  Christmas 2015 couldn't get here soon enough!  Tickets to the early screenings were a hot commodity in my neck of the woods but I managed to snag one seat in the middle of a row for the 10:35 show last night.  Star Wars: The Force Awakens could not be more aptly titled because I felt just like I remember feeling back in 1977 when I was first introduced to Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, R2-D2, and C-3P0.  You could say that my affection for these characters was reawakened and I clapped, as did the entire audience, when they each appeared.  I cheered when I heard that dramatic first note in the instantly recognizable fanfare by John Williams during the opening crawl and I was completely captivated by a new group of characters:  Finn (John Boyega), a stormtrooper with a conscience, Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac), a daring Resistance pilot, Rey (Daisy Ridley), a scavenger who gets drawn into an adventure when she meets a droid carrying a secret, and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), a former Jedi apprentice struggling between the forces of good and evil.  All of the mythology is there and the story of a new threat to the Galaxy by the evil First Order is a believable continuation of the plot.  I loved every second of this movie, which made me cheer, laugh, cry, and remember all of the magic felt by a nine year old girl.

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