PT Revenge of the Sith Turns 20!

2005 was indeed a terrific year for SW fans. It was so cool to get Episode III on DVD and watch it over and over. And the circle was now complete seeing the DVD displayed on the shelf with the other 5 movies.
I bought them all again with the excellent 2011 blu ray boxset. My boxset cover is the one with young Anakin and Luke walking on Tattooine.

 

I'll never forget the lead up to ROTS. Never in my life have I been SO excited for a movie! The three-year lead up to the film's release happened during a very memorable time in my life as well: My final year in college/graduating, my first year 'on my own in the real world,' getting married and all the experiences that came with that, getting my first "real" full time job, and finally right around the time of its release; our deciding to move from Wisconsin to Colorado (although we didn't move until long after ROTS had left theaters). So because of all that, there's a heavy feeling of nostalgia there too. Funny thing is - after all that anticipation over three years, I didn't even get a chance to see it until it had been out for like 2 weeks, cos I was traveling right during release time-and the place we were at was a small town in the country, so they didn't have a theater within an hour drive from there that was showing it!

During those years leading up to ROTS' release, I remember looking everywhere I could for information about the production of what back then we only knew as Episode III: Different websites, friend's discoveries, I'd even check issues of Star Wars Insider periodically when we'd go to the grocery store for any little tidbit I could find that would give us an idea of what this episode would be like. Eventually I came across TheForce.Net; My original reason for becoming a member on this site was simply to be able to get news and converse with like-minded people who were just as excited for Episode III as I was. But man, that was such a wonderful time, speculating on what we'd see, how things would play out...even just catching set photos giving us a glimpse of the aesthetic of the film; Padme's veranda...one of the Mon Calamari...two of Padme's handmaidens...a Jedi temple debriefing room. And of COURSE who can forget those periodic featurettes GL kept releasing closer to the release, featuring behind the scenes tidbits! No other SW production process was given this level of exposure from LFL, or had this amount of anticipation behind it...

I'd love to go into detail as to WHY I love ROTS so much...but after seeing all I've posted so far, perhaps that's best for another thread.

Ultimately I saw the film seven times in theaters in total. And of course I was there for opening day of the DVD release (cos of course as we all remember this was before blu rays!) And you can bet that (assuming it comes to theaters in my area) I WILL be there for the 20th ann. theatrical re-release in April.

It said 'available in various formats...' I wonder does this mean it'll be in 3D?? IMAX?? If so, I'd be interested to give ROTS in 3D a try...I heard they had showings of that at one of the Celebrations a few years ago...?

 

Just saw that LFL/D is having a special 20th anniversary showing of ROTS on April 25th. Here's the story: https://www.boxofficepro.com/lucasf...venge-of-the-sith-with-theatrical-re-release/
And, ye gods, what a poster!

 

That looks awesome! I will definitely be going to see it again!
A lot of good memories around the release of ROTS in 2005. I was heading into my third year in the Navy and on my first deployment when it came out. Prior to that deployment, before leaving, I had bought the video game for PS2, which also came out around the same time as Battlefront 2, so I bought that as well. Both had ROTS content in it which really hyped me up for the movie. I had also got the movie poster with the big Vader head and Anakin in the corner holding a red lightsaber.
We left on deployment in February. My wife had mailed me the ROTS novelization and it got to me prior to the release date. I was standing 12 hours of watch everyday, split between a 5 hour and a 7 hour. When it was my 7 hours off, instead of sleeping, I read the whole darn novelization. I just could not put it down! The lack of sleep going into that next watch really hurt, but it was worth it!
I ended up seeing ROTS in Dubai when we pulled in for a port visit. A bunch of us were really excited to see it. We loved it. Although I remember asking myself as I was watching when Anakin was going to turn. The film seemed to be going on for a while and he still hadn't turned. I also thought some of the stuff from the video game and novelization would have been cool if they had ended up in the movie. Still loved it though, and still do to this day.
When I got back from deployment in August, I told my wife I hadn't seen it yet so I had an excuse to go see it again with her. I acted surprised at all the scenes even though I knew everything that was going to happen. She ended up making me an Anakin costume for Halloween. I answered the door for all the trick or treaters with the hood over my head, and I would ignite my lightsaber. The candy all had special ROTS packaging with images of the characters on them. I accidentally scared a little girl who lived a few houses down from us when I answered the door, so I had to remove the hood so she could see it was me.
Finally, I picked up a bunch of the ROTS action figures that were released at the time. I kept them in packaging for about 10 years before I gave them to my son, who wanted to play with them so we ended up opening all of them. Both my son and daughter love ROTS and can't wait to get to it when we do Star Wars marathons.

 

I love reading everyone's own "story" about where they were in their lives when ROTS came out...

BTW does anyone know where we can find an official list of which theaters it will be showing in?

 

I was just about to ask that, I've been checking periodically to see when they drop. Only thing I saw was that the lucky folks attending Celebration were going to get first choice, then I bet afterwards we'll get our chance.

I feel the same hype as I did in '05. I had gotten all the Sneak Preview figures ahead of seeing the film. It came out a few days shy of my 13th birthday. Ironically it is the only Star Wars film rated PG-13.

Instead of getting figures, I got 3 RotS shirts and a copy of that new poster.

 

I've got good news, the local theaters in my area as listed RotS as upcoming, tickets are not available yet, but at least I know I'll be able to get them.

 

Episode III came out in 2005 when I just had turned 18. The movie represents the end of my old life and the beginning of a new one: I finished school, got my car drivers license, did the then in germany still existing "civil service" where you serve the community for 9 months and earn some money from it and got my confirmation for my job after that.

Episode III was and is the most anticipated movie I have ever waited for. No film will replecate that amount of anticipation and hype I had for this one. I was following its production through the Hyperspace account of sw.com, read all the Clone Wars novels and comics in prepartion through the waiting years from 2002 to 2005 and of course loved and enjoyed the first ever weekly dose of SW with the Clone Wars mini series, which was not available on germany but which I could watch online with the Hyperspace account. It was one of the best times beeing a SW fan ever.

I remember beeing so excited and so nervous about the release that I truly and fullheartedly shed some tears when the Opening Crawl of the move was running through on May 18th 2005. Naturally I had tickets for the premiere with some of my school mates but none of them was and has ever been as invested into SW as I have been. The movie broke me on so many levels and I loved it for it.

I've seen it 2 times back in 2005 and cant wait to watch it again on the big screen of my local theater on April 24th! Its going to be mindblowing!

 

@KyleKartan, forget 'like' - if there was a 'love' reaction for posts I would put one on yours! Although you're a few years behind me, and being in the US I can't really relate to the civil service program thing you described in Germany, my journey of anticipation was quite similar to yours.

Honestly, I really love reading everyone's "where were you in 2005?" experiences leading up to the release of ROTS! Let's keep 'em coming!

 

Can't believe it's been so long since the Prequels ended. The Order 66 scene still hits hard after all these years. Mace Windu's death and Anakin getting into the suit are still burned in memory. The prequels weren't perfect, but they did have some great scenes which the sequels fail to match.

 

Thank you mate. I love hiw many of us had similar experiencies with especially Episode III.

I honestly quite vividly remember the leaking of the "Back in Black" video back in early 2004. That was so mindblowing. Or the first image of Hayden as Anakin we got through the Hyperspace webcam where he points his finger like Vader did. And of course all the making of Web Documentations they released during the porduction process. It was an remarkable journey. And they really showed how to keep stuff secret without holindg EVEYTHING back.

 

I still get teary-eyed EVERY time I see Vader ignite his lightsaber in front of those little younglings in response to the boy's question...knowing what's about to happen there, but not being spoon-fed it all onscreen is cinematic genius; very "Hitchcockian."

 

Glad it wasn't just me, then.

I was wrapping up my sixth form exams when Revenge of the Sith came out, and was planning to leave home for a university at the other end of the country, with none of my friends joining me, so it was already an emotional time for me anyway. Everything felt like it was ending, and my new beginnings were too intangible to be excited about. Star Wars had been my obsession ever since I'd seen the Special Editions, back when I was still in single digits. Revenge of the Sith was being marketed as the last Star Wars movie ever, "the circle is now complete" and all that. I'd been living and breathing the GFFA for the better part of a decade, playing the videogames, reading the comics, writing my own stories and immersing myself in reference books. I taught myself how to draw all my favourite characters, and my schoolbooks were filled with more doodles of lightsaber duels and Star Destroyers than they were any actual work.

Weirdly enough, despite always being a bit of a lone wolf, I'd somehow stumbled into a pretty wide and diverse circle of friends, boys and girls. We ranged from "yeah, those movies are pretty cool" types to out and proud nerds, and so we all decided that we'd go see Revenge of the Sith together on its opening weekend. The night before, we had a big sleepover where we watched The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones on DVD and played the Revenge of the Sith videogame's multiplayer on PS2. Thanks to a mixture of sugar and over-excitement, I barely slept.

Smash cut to us all sitting in the cinema, with the movie's end credits rolling overhead, and I was a broken mess. All of my friends are looking at me, checking on me, some giggling, some shaking their heads, and a couple of them thankful for the distraction, so that they could blink away their own tears.

The opening crawl didn't get me, and I'd just been grinning like an idiot throughout the entire Battle of Coruscant, but my first warning sign flashed up during the scene following Anakin's first nightmare, when Padmé asks him what's wrong and he deflects by acknowledging the necklace he gave her in The Phantom Menace. Seconds later, the ever-helpful John Williams dropped a few notes from 'Across the Stars' and I immediately felt a lump in my throat. I remember thinking... well, I remember thinking a version of "uh-oh" which I can't post on a family forum, but you get the idea. I was exhausted, physically and emotionally. The happy-go-lucky opening action and adventure had lulled me into a false sense of security. Despite all the hype, I just wasn't ready.

But then, for a while, I relaxed. We got lots of intrigue while Palpatine started moving his chess pieces. Obi-Wan was being all the sass. Wookiees roared like Tarzan. General Grievous did his impression of a windmill on acid. We laughed. I was okay.

Until a single line of dialogue opened the floodgates, and I couldn't stop crying (at varying intensity) until those aforementioned end credits.

"Execute Order Sixty-Six."

I was lucky enough to go back and see it three more times that summer, twice with family and then again on my birthday, with a couple other friends who couldn't make the opening weekend. And yes, it soon became clear that my tiredness had played a part in my initial reaction, but only in so much as I had lacked the energy to put on a brave face, to contain myself and my emotions whilst in public... because every time I saw those same scenes, every time I heard that music and watched that circle complete itself, I was crying a river on the inside.

And that's why I won't be attending any of the re-release showings in a couple weeks. It ain't worth the risk!

 

that's still the most shocking scene in SW probably. Knew Anakin was going to turn evil but that was unexpected.

 

Shed those tears mate. Nothing to be ashamed of! Plus: the scene where Padme is telling Anakin that he's breaking her heart got me bad. Plus all those Order 66 scenes, "Anakin is the father"...and and and. The movie broke me. It was all I ever could hope for.

Now with all the extra TCW. Rebels, Kenobi, Andor and RO Content I'd just WISH they would have included the Delegation of 2000 scenes because they would fit so perfectly well with all the other stuff we've seen so for of the forming rebellion. The new book "Reign of the Empire: Mask fo Fear" also mentions and tributs those scenes. George, about that PT Special Edition....

 

Man...

I know this would technically now qualify as a PT gushing thread but I don't care! After all the different debates going on around this forum-some silly, some super deep- it's a breath of fresh air to be able to read posts like this with everyone's positive and nostalgic experiences with the release of my favorite movie of all time!

 

positivity and good words are rarely found in fandoms these days. Especially online hate and bad words are the drivers. You should think it’s a given to cherish what you love, especially in fan forums, but…

luckily the PT has found new acclaim in the past years. I really hope the same for the ST. I can’t stand this uncalled and unfounded hate!

 

Would be quite difficult for the ST. The PT introduced new worlds, new ships, droids etc which made SW feel fresh again. The ST just tried to rehash the OT without a proper plan. The Prequels also had the Clone Wars which boosted its popularity a lot, the ST doesn't have that.

 

Well at the time that was the issue people had, that the PT was different and in so inferior. Sometimes things just ain’t appreciated until people stop looking for problems

 

Well, duh. It's AMC theaters. They make movies better

 

It was hated by the old fans sure.. but even at that time people liked the new worlds and ship designs it brought to the table. The ST lacks an aesthetic of its own.