“What is the friggin’ deal with those Jawas?” I remember thinking to myself. I was scared, and who could blame me? Those chattering little bastards were menacing: a skosh taller than me, beady yellow eyes glowing like cinders under their dark burlap hoods. They surrounded a slightly paunchy Darth Vader, one Jawa clinging to his leg, which was odd in retrospect, because even though Vader grew up on Tatooine, there is no cinematic evidence of his ever hanging out with Jawas. But there they were, a few storyline-challenged cosplayers standing in line at a West Texas strip mall in the summer of 1980—terrorizing the likes of 4-year-old me. My dad hadn’t planned for me to be terrified when he brought me to see The Empire Strikes Back, of course. He just wanted me to learn to love Star Wars.
Four decades later, we can debate whether George Lucas really understood how deeply the world he invented would affect our culture, but even as a scared kid, I knew Star Wars was for me. The films have been a constant in my life—an emotional refuge. They’ve given me goose bumps, made me angry, given me hope. Being a fan means you own those feelings, and that you care. A lot. I haven’t seen the new movie (though I have put the three trailers on autoplay-repeat for extended periods). And I admit, when I heard about it, I was nervous. I can still taste the prequels. But J.J. Abrams is a fan too. He cares a lot too. The man has a plexiglass-encased, life-size bust of Grand Moff Tarkin at the reception desk of his production company, for God’s sake. When I went to Santa Monica to interview him, I was reminded, yet again, that a filmmaker who loves Star Wars as fiercely as any fan is in charge of reanimating it.
We’re in the midst a planet-wide resurgence of Star Wars enthusiasm. Somewhere out there, a 4-year-old kid is about to have his life changed forever. And somewhere (OK, in my office), a 39-year-old is about to reconnect to some pretty intense stuff. To paraphrase some of my favorite people: I have a very good feeling about this.
Robert Capps
