May 21, 2005
The ten hour wait in line was wonderful. We arrived at two, and were the first people there. People kept driving by and giving us thumbs up, or telling us they'd be joining us later. By six or seven, the line started to wrap around the block. They let everyone in at 10:30. The lights went down exactly at midnight. And now it's all over.
As to what I thought of this final Episode...well, I don't really know how to put it without slipping into hyperbole. I've felt somewhat emotionally exhausted for the last few days. I know that might sound ridiculous, but I can't help it. A large part of it has to do with the film, which I loved and which I found very sad, but a greater part has to do with myself.
I filmed some of the line outside the theater with my digital camera, right before we all went inside, right when the excitement was at its peak. I was originally just going to put that footage online as is, but then I got a little too carried away, and now I've ended up with something that might embarass me with its sentimentality a few years down the road, but is nonetheless a sincere representation of how I've felt since leaving the theater:
I've got things I want to say about the film itself - so many things - but I'll wait until I can maintain a more objective point of view (you know, like a year or so after the DVD comes out) to discuss them. Suffice to say, I've already bought tickets to see it again tomorrow.
Posted by David Lowery at May 21, 2005 08:55 PM
Comments
Absolutely lovely.
Thank you for this little treasure.
(You were such a cute little boy!)
Posted by: Chuck Olsen at May 22, 2005 12:53 AM
Goddamn brilliant my friend. Honestly. Seriously. I'm glad I was there with you first for the last.
Please don't ever turn to the Darkside. I'd hate to hunt you down and mutilate you like Obi-Wan did to Anakin. (i.e. don't ever start making shitty films for money or I'll poke your eyes out or something.)
Posted by: jmj at May 22, 2005 01:48 AM
oh my god, david. that was so unexpectedly moving!
Posted by: Yen at May 22, 2005 09:10 AM
Great beautiful little film, David.
"Star Wars" has been the most important film in my life as well - I would not be making movies without it. Watching the last film Thursday night at the Arclight in Hollywood was one of the high points of my life.
Until my wife gave birth to our first child 30 hours later.
My daughter barely dodged the bullet - if I had missed Episode Three, I never would have let her forget it!
Posted by: Evan Mather at May 22, 2005 07:50 PM
I've already said my bit.
Posted by: Matt at May 22, 2005 08:19 PM
Congratulations, Evan! Wow. That must have been the greatest, most profound one-two punch ever.
Posted by: Ghostboy at May 22, 2005 08:49 PM
Definitely. Although I'm still pissed about chewbacca apearing. what was the point of that? what was so critical about saving the wookie planet that yoda had to go there personally? was it their incredible advances in stick technology? it would have made some sense of course if Obi wan had met chewbacca. "you can thank me for saving your ass by showing up at Mos Eisley in 20 years, 3 months, 6 hours and 30 minutes. i'll be wearing a brown cloak."
Posted by: Evan Mather at May 23, 2005 12:30 AM
That was a great little film. I don't know what I love more, that you made a film about how Star Wars has influenced your life or that you have a picture of Mace Windu standing in front of John Cassavetes. I saw The Empire Strikes Back as a little kid. It was the first movie I'd ever seen that had no storybook ending. I left the theater feeling cheated and exhilerated at the same time. It was the first movie that planted in me the need for film to do something more than help me escape from my life for two hours.
Posted by: Paul Moore at May 23, 2005 08:24 AM
Lovely film, David. Expresses many feelings very economically. Can you please share what the music was, the composer and title? I've heard it used elsewhere and it's great, but I never could discover the name...
Posted by: Dave at May 23, 2005 10:28 AM
It's Beethoven's glorious Symphony No 7 in A Major. You've heard it before in films by Stanley Kubrick, Gaspar Noe, and Woody Allen...although those are just the ones of the top of my head, I'm sure it's been used before. As far his famous works go, I prefer this to the 9th, the 5th and the 3rd, although sometimes it depends on my mood.
Posted by: Ghostboy at May 23, 2005 12:42 PM
lovely david!
Posted by: brad at May 23, 2005 04:36 PM
man, i feel almost the same way about episode III - after i left the cinema i had these images and sounds in my head for days after, the saga definetly went out with a big BANG!
greets from germany
ansgar
Posted by: Ansgar at May 24, 2005 02:31 PM
Greetings from Texas! Out of curiosity, is the film dubbed or subtitled over there?
Posted by: Ghostboy at May 25, 2005 12:50 AM
DVD, I'm impressed. Great editing. I wonder if you still have some of that stop-motion footage we used to do with the Star Wars figures (or was it just the Spawn figures? I can't remember).
Posted by: Just another anonymous kook at May 25, 2005 05:05 PM
I don't think I do - but I recently went through all the old hi8 tapes from those days, and found some cool stuff.
Your response to Anthony Lane's review of the film was a great read. Ironically, Lane's is one of the few reviews of the film I actually like (along with A.O. Scott's and Jason Kottke's) - I think he went into hyperbole on purpose, and did a nice job at it. It's better than all the 'eh' reviews out there. Or compare his piece to Ebert's, which, although purportedly positive, is pretty worthless.
Posted by: Ghostboy at May 25, 2005 05:48 PM
I like the hyperbole as well, but being humerous at the extent of ignoring--what I feel are--the most important elements of the series, annoyed me. I just read Kottke's brief review (I don't see how you can get anything done with all the reading and writing and blogging and responding and so on, that you do) and I saw Vader in my mind and I did feel sympathetic. I guess it's because I was really sorta frightened by the guy as a kid, that I felt somehow betrayed to see his human side when he wasn't so human anymore. Now I just want to cry for the fucker.
Posted by: Just another anonymous kook at May 25, 2005 06:40 PM
If you haven't seen Darth Vader's blog yet, check it out in its entirety here:
Posted by: Just another anonymous kook at May 25, 2005 11:03 PM
Heh, that's really quite good.
"I fell asleep for a while, but nobody could tell because of my masque."
Posted by: Ghostboy at May 26, 2005 04:17 AM