Entertainment : Awakening to \'The Force:\' A \'Star War\'s newbie tries to explain Episode VII

“Your names are safe.”

I spent the night after Christmas at the late showing of “Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens,” with my three youngest children, Leah, Lydia and Abigail.

It was the first time I had seen a Star Wars movie, ever.

I was 12 when the first Star Wars Movie (Which George Lucas and his producers would soon re-name “New Hope, Episode IV”) came out in 1977. I wasn’t much for space movies at the time, so my recollections of the movie are based on what I saw from those who loved it: Light sabers, “May the Force Be with You” t-shirts and action figures.

What I remember most, however, was meeting a man who really, really, really loved Star Wars like crazy. In fact, he loved it so much that he changed his last name to that of a machine mentioned in the movie. And when he got married and had children, he gave his children celestial first names, too. I later would take their photos and put their names in the newspaper in his home town.

Knowing that “Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Episode VII)” was coming to the Palace in January, I wanted to see it before so I could write about it before you see it at the Palace. I wanted to see what the fuss was all about in 1977, and to find out if indeed, I had missed out on something significant 39 years ago.

I couldn’t imagine liking a movie so well that I’d want to name my kids after its characters, but I went with an open mind.

We had to settle for one of the world’s second-best theaters, the Starlight Cinema in Independence. The theater was pretty empty the night after Christmas, although its parking lot had been full the night “The Force Awakens” opened there.

Episode VII picks up where (naturally) Episode VI left off. However, for those of you unfamiliar with the Star Wars series (as I was before last month), here is the list of movies in order:

Episode IV, 1977 New Hope

Episode V, 1980, The Empire Strikes Back

Episode VI, 1983, The Return of the Jedi

Episode I. 1993; The Phantom Menace

Episode II, 2002; Attack of the Clones

Episode III, 2005; Revenge of the Sith

At least two more episodes are in the works, and yet-unnamed. Episode VII is scheduled for late 2017, with Episode IX coming two years later.

It’s worth noting that Ep. 7 is the first Star Wars movie not made by George Lucas, who sold Lucas Films to Disney a few years ago, before work on “The Force Awakens” began.

The Story:

In Episode VII, A young female scavenger and a renegade stormtrooper enlist the help of Han Solo and Chewbacca to transport a droid carrying information regarding the whereabouts of long-lost Jedi Master Luke Skywalker to General Leia Organa of the Resistancem, before it falls into the hands of Kylo Ren and the First Order.

So, what did I think of my first “Star Wars” movie?

A. It was long, very long. Two hours and 15 minutes is way longer than I am accustomed to sitting at one time.

B. It was better than I expected; good enough to make me start looking for the original – which is harder than you might think, even in this world of Netflix and other online movie services. I was expecting to be bored by the long celestial battle scenes and special computerized effects (and at times I was), but also, I found myself somewhat surprised at the complexity of the plot and characters.

C. Yet, I thought: There’s no way this can be as good as the first one.

Episode IV: The beginning

The first thing I did when I got home from the theater after seeing Episode VII was to start looking for Episode 4. I ended up watching “New Hope” and “Return of the Jedi” on Netflix DVDs, although the local video store, Movies & More, does have Episode 5 (“The Empire Strikes Back”).

The original “Star Wars” was a big, big, deal – perhaps the biggest deal in movie history, ever. More people saw “Star Wars” in 1977 and 1978 than any other movie, with the possible exception of “Gone With the Wind” in 1939.

“Star Wars” was also among the very last blockbusters to come out before every house had a VCR, so if you wanted to see the movie again, you would have to go back to the theater. Many people did – several times.

While we now look back at the special effects as being somewhat primitive, considering what Lucas and his producers created with the limited computer technology of the 1970s, the movie is quite amazing. But more than the light sabers or star cruisers, the movie is a cleverly-written series with some unique characters: A narcissistic, whiny motor-mouth robot. An ape-like co-pilot who only grunts. Another robot that only communicates in beeps. Then of course, the main characters: Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Darth Vader.

And then there’s my favorite character: Obi-Wan Kenobi, played by Sir Alec Guiness; the quiet warrior with sage advice and a wry smile had one of the best lines of the movie: “You can’t win Darth. Strike me down and I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.”

All of these characters combined to change the cinematic world, and even made their way into the politics of that day. Remember a speech about “The Evil Empire?” Or how a plan to create a system of missiles to attack Soviet missiles before they could reach the U.S. was derisively called “Star Wars?”

Most people who have watched all seven “Star Wars” say Episode 5 “The Empire Strikes Back,” with its tiny green Jedi Master Yoda, was the best of the series. I disagree. I don’t think any of them equal the power or originality of “New Hope.” And it seemed that “Return of the Jedi” was too similar to the first two, with a Death Star that looked an awful lot like the first one and yet another closing light saber scene between Luke and Darth. But I will let the Force’s forever faithful debate which one is best.

I didn’t feel, in Episode 7, the magic, heart and soul of the unique blend of characters of “New Hope,” or their memorable lines:

“Hang on tight R2. You’ve got to come back. You wouldn’t want my life to get boring would you?”

“If money is all you came for, it’s all you will receive.”

But as my daughters – now called Galactica Starfire, Andromeda Martia Laseria Aquarius – will tell you: The original Star Wars is as much of a life-changing experience as a movie can be.

If you are a Star Wars newbie like me, Episode 7 is not likely to make you fall in love with the franchise, although it’s likely to inspire you to find out, as I did, how the magic began.

And if you are one of those who did fall in love with Luke and Leia, CP-30, R2-D2 and Han Solo nearly 40 years ago, then “The Force Awakens” is just good enough to make you remember why.