ST The Impact of The Force Awakens on non and casual Star Wars fans

kevmp · Dec 30, 2015

I have to admit it's nice to have people wanting to go with me on my multiple viewings, my experience with the Prequels was 1 viewing with a friend or 2 on opening night, then basically the rest on my own lol. So far on my 4 viewings I've had at least one new person coming with me, and on 2 occasions it was a group of us.

kevmp · Dec 30, 2015

beebee-ate said: ↑

A topic I can actually contribute to! Didn't think that was going to happen for quite some time.

Anyways, I am (was?) one such individual. I've never been a big fan of sci-fi. Also, SW isn't nowhere near as deeply rooted in the collective mind of the denizens of my home country as it is in the American pop culture, for example. So I was already in my twenties when I first saw a SW film, ANH, a few years ago. A classic, I expected to enjoy it at least to a certain amount, in spite of not being an admirer of the genre. And I did. More than I thought I would, to be honest. I gave it a 8/10, according to IMDb. And yet I never got around to watch the rest of the series. Because while I did enjoy ANH and thought it was a great film, it didn't get me hungry for more. Thinking back to it now, I guess it had to do with the lack of connection I felt towards the characters (I bet you don't hear that often here--no throwing rocks, please!).

Well, years went by and along came TFA. An avid moviegoer, there was no way I was going to miss out on one of the biggest films of the year. My attempt at getting into the SW universe might have ended in a failure, but all the buzz had still gotten me excited for the film. So I went and saw TFA last Tuesday ... and loved it! The characters, the visuals, the humor--all of it. Objectively speaking, I don't think it's as good of a film as ANH as a whole, but the impact it had on me on an emotional, psychological level, even, blew me away.

It started gradually. I had my eyes locked on the screen throughout the film (heck, I wasn't even bother by the 3D glasses, which I dislike with a passion) and was extremely satisfied upon leaving the cinema. Satisfied and, this time around, dying for more. But that's not the first time something like this has happened to me. I wanted more after seeing the first Hunger Games movie, for example, but the feeling soon passed, never growing into anything bigger. With SW, it seems, it is. After getting home from the theater, I found I couldn't stop thinking about the film and before I knew it, I was binge-watching TFA reviews on Youtube, eagerly filling in the many blanks in my SW lore (I was overall familiar with the story before seeing TFA, despite not having seen the other films) and impatiently planning a second viewing (which I was finally able to get around to on Monday).

This forum felt like the next logical step--I've done some extensive lurking this past week. In a way, signing up felt like sealing the deal, admitting the fact that I'd become seriously hooked and that I was alright with it. I don't know whether that makes me a prime example of the film's potential impact on a casual viewer or disqualifies me. I guess you can say I'm a fan in the making. One thing's for sure: I'm coming down with a bad case of SW fever. Help?
Click to expand...

Welcome to the boards and to the Galaxy Far, Far Away!

EviL_eLF · Dec 30, 2015

kevmp said: ↑

I have to admit it's nice to have people wanting to go with me on my multiple viewings, my experience with the Prequels was 1 viewing with a friend or 2 on opening night, then basically the rest on my own lol. So far on my 4 viewings I've had at least one new person coming with me, and on 2 occasions it was a group of us.
Click to expand...

I'm going to an IMAX viewing today with a group of friends who have all seen it 2 or more times already! This will be my fifth!

Ganger · Dec 30, 2015

My friends who are casual fans and PT haters, liked it a lot. "Now this is a Star Wars sequel".

beebee-ate · Dec 30, 2015

kevmp said: ↑

beebee-ate said: ↑

A topic I can actually contribute to! Didn't think that was going to happen for quite some time.

Anyways, I am (was?) one such individual. I've never been a big fan of sci-fi. Also, SW isn't nowhere near as deeply rooted in the collective mind of the denizens of my home country as it is in the American pop culture, for example. So I was already in my twenties when I first saw a SW film, ANH, a few years ago. A classic, I expected to enjoy it at least to a certain amount, in spite of not being an admirer of the genre. And I did. More than I thought I would, to be honest. I gave it a 8/10, according to IMDb. And yet I never got around to watch the rest of the series. Because while I did enjoy ANH and thought it was a great film, it didn't get me hungry for more. Thinking back to it now, I guess it had to do with the lack of connection I felt towards the characters (I bet you don't hear that often here--no throwing rocks, please!).

Well, years went by and along came TFA. An avid moviegoer, there was no way I was going to miss out on one of the biggest films of the year. My attempt at getting into the SW universe might have ended in a failure, but all the buzz had still gotten me excited for the film. So I went and saw TFA last Tuesday ... and loved it! The characters, the visuals, the humor--all of it. Objectively speaking, I don't think it's as good of a film as ANH as a whole, but the impact it had on me on an emotional, psychological level, even, blew me away.

It started gradually. I had my eyes locked on the screen throughout the film (heck, I wasn't even bother by the 3D glasses, which I dislike with a passion) and was extremely satisfied upon leaving the cinema. Satisfied and, this time around, dying for more. But that's not the first time something like this has happened to me. I wanted more after seeing the first Hunger Games movie, for example, but the feeling soon passed, never growing into anything bigger. With SW, it seems, it is. After getting home from the theater, I found I couldn't stop thinking about the film and before I knew it, I was binge-watching TFA reviews on Youtube, eagerly filling in the many blanks in my SW lore (I was overall familiar with the story before seeing TFA, despite not having seen the other films) and impatiently planning a second viewing (which I was finally able to get around to on Monday).

This forum felt like the next logical step--I've done some extensive lurking this past week. In a way, signing up felt like sealing the deal, admitting the fact that I'd become seriously hooked and that I was alright with it. I don't know whether that makes me a prime example of the film's potential impact on a casual viewer or disqualifies me. I guess you can say I'm a fan in the making. One thing's for sure: I'm coming down with a bad case of SW fever. Help?
Click to expand...

Welcome to the boards and to the Galaxy Far, Far Away!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the welcome! I'm glad to be here.

Jedi Knight Fett · Dec 30, 2015

I brought my friends who don't like Star Wars that much, but they said this film is one of the best!

Vanthorne_OX · Dec 30, 2015

My wife grew up with knowledge of the OT from brothers who watched it all the time. She always liked to joke how traumatized she was was from this. She watched TPM and AotC with me on DVDs because I returned the favor and watched unmentionable romantic comedies with her. She saw RotS in the theatre with me and vowed she'd never sit through a 2nd viewing of that in her life.

The big surprise with me on TFA was not that she went to go see it with me, but that she wanted to see it again and did. I was not expecting that at all.

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ST The Impact of The Force Awakens on non and casual Star Wars fans

kevmp Jedi Master

kevmp Jedi Master

EviL_eLF Force Ghost

Ganger Force Ghost

beebee-ate Jedi Padawan

Jedi Knight Fett Chosen One

Vanthorne_OX Jedi Master