Star Wars Celebration V is the Lucas Film approved event that brings together Starwars fans from all walks of life to discuss, celebrate and network with other Starwars fans. The events include celebrities, live music, collectibles, fans, and contests. This event experienced its fifth celebration this year, and the developer of its iPhone app has released Celebration V version
It's hard to imagine that back in 1971 when the idea of Star Wars, a sort of spaghetti western in space, was pitched to Universal, that such a film almost didn’t see the light of day. Even though it had been greenlighted along with American Graffiti as a two film deal, the initial scripts were rejected. George Lucas had to fight for its very creation with rewrite after rewrite and wondered even after it was complete whether it was worth it to continue.
So how did this worrisome experiment turn into a multi-billion dollar empire and cult classic still thrilling people? Well like Walt Disney, Lucas knew that good moviemaking started with a great story. No film becomes as memorable as Star Wars on special effects alone. People have to care about the subject matter, relate to it. Themes such as fighting the establishment, death, friendship, betrayal, and redemption are timeless subjects that live on. They draw us into the film, instead of strictly being spectators in our seats.
And then there are the characters of Han, Luke, Leia and Darth Vader, not to mention C3PO and R2D2. While perhaps innovative on the outside, on the inside they were the comfortable types we knew and loved. Recognizable personalities contrasted the new and strange worlds of space travel, giving us something familiar to hold on to. Han Solo, for instance, was the typical braggart that could not say no to a damsel in distress or for cash, a characterization made popular in just about every western. Luke was the small farm boy who yearned to escape his provincial life like many teenagers do. Leia was the headstrong and smart young lady who was a role model for every girl out there. And then there were the robots, the comedy team, who kept us laughing through the original trilogy and some of the new one. People who watched Abbott and Costello and the like could certainly see those traits in these non-human, yet too human counterparts.
But our favorite was Vader. Unlike his predecessor Darth Maul, Vader was the epitome of just about every villain out there. He had the deep voice, incredible strength, a sinister hissing from his ventilator, the German type helmet (which hinted at the evil of World War II) and he could strangle anyone who got in his way. He was the ultimate bad seed and we loved to watch his misdeeds with guilty pleasure. Even when he died, people actually mourned and you left the theatre wondering if a simple hug could have saved countless worlds.
A story and characters that can manipulate the emotions of the viewer will always work despite the setting. Recent examples include Titanic, Harry Potter and Avatar. They may be rich in special effects and mind-numbing visuals, but without a solid story that makes people feel enriched by their time in a theatre, they just fall flat. Just ask Transfomers or Tron.
