43 years ago 5/21/1980

https://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-two-cents/052123-1200

YT video with spoilers



original 1979 trailer narrated by Han Solo

YT comment

I saw it in the movie theater during its original run and I remember that day very well. I was 7 years old.

You are lucky and blessed.

I remember on the drive back from the theater after seeing The Empire Strikes Back saying, repeatedly, "Man, that was a good movie!" I was 17.

IMHO, ESB is the best Star Wars movie from the entire saga (original trilogy + prequels + all the Disney movies). Among the Disney films, I think "Rogue One" is by far the best.

+1

What's sad is we haven't had anything Star Wars or ESB big in a couple of decades to release, maybe longer. There have been some big movies, for sure, but nothing as culture shifting for an entire generation. Star Wars literally redefined my childhood. Without, would there have been Gi Joe, Transformers, etc., the way we had them? I don't know. But I sure would love to see a film IP as groundbreaking and impressive come along again, that family members of all ages can enjoy.

ESB still holds up, and stands the test of time. NFB, I suggest you google for the despecialized version of "Empire Strikes Back," download and watch. This way you can enjoy the theatrical release in original, unaltered form.

Since 2000 I can't think of ANY films that come close to the "culture shifting" that you mentioned. Not even Avatar managed to do that and it made 2 billion world wide.

The LOTR series was pretty significant, and helped reinvigorate the medieval fantasy genre, influencing the look of many games like the subsequent Elder Scrolls, and helping spur series like The Witcher and Game of Thrones.

However we'll never see another series as culturally significant as Star Wars because movies themselves are no longer as culturally significant as they once were.

+1


It was inevitable really. All art forms have their peak and then decline from there. It's just a matter of how quickly that decline progresses and how much.

IMO visual storytelling that's not at least partially interactive is bound to fade out just as radio dramas did.

And opera is going down the same route at least in the US. Once the core audience (upper income people over the age of 60) dies off, I predict that many opera houses will close or will be converted into showing Broadway-style musicals.

I remember the original Star Wars coming out. I was 9. It is the first blockbuster movie I think I saw, at the cinema. I had the soundtrack on vinyl (double album). I guess my Mom thought I would like it. Anything to keep me from those evil Kiss records
I remember the Jaws sensation, but I don't think I saw it until it was on TV.

I don't think opera will go away. The wealthy and high class will continue to partake. Theater has survived for hundreds of years, so I don't think it will vanish. We might move to "holo theater" or something of the sort, but I think the venue will continue.

Great sci-fi will continue, but the big problem is the world has been in a constant state of decline since the 1980s ended, our last golden age, at least in the free(and even communist) world.

It's still hard to believe at times that "Aliens" is now 37 years old. That movie has aged extremely well.

Aliens is one of the greatest cinematic accomplishments in history.

Agreed. Alien and Aliens are timeless classics worth watching over and over again. The rest of the Alien franchise varies from average (worth watching a couple of times) to totally forgettable and not worth watching a second time.

I was 26. I went to see it twice. Once with my father. And then with my then wife. My father and I didn't see eye to eye on much but science fiction was one thing we both agreed on.