Top 8 of '08: #3 - The Movie

At Celebration III, right before the release of the final Star Wars movie, Revenge of the Sith, George Lucas made a surprising announcement to an auditorium packed with fans. Star Wars was going to continue, but not on the big screen. The future was in television and two TV series were currently in development. The first was an animated cartoon based on the Clone Wars and the second a live-action series set in the Dark Times between Episodes III and IV.

Fast forward three years. Beyond a teaser trailer for the cartoon shown at San Diego Comic Con in July of 2007, there had been remarkably little news about the development of the show. That changed in February of 2008, where not only was a Fall launch date unveiled for the TV show, but also an announcement was made that, despite previous disclaimers, the show would be preceded by a theatrical movie! It took a while for it to sink in with me that the Star Wars theatrical experience was not over, that once again I would be sitting in a large dark room watching a new story from that galaxy far, far away.

The Clone Wars hit theaters August 15, 2008. August is traditionally a dull spot for summer releases, when people are focused on getting back to school and summer vacations are ending. I had very little feel for the general zeitgeist surrouding this flick. Were people going to line up like any other Star Wars film in the past? Would I be sitting in a theater packed with ravening fans or was this a much lower-key experience that what had gone before?

Turns out it was the latter. In my case, we couldn't work out a sitter for Friday, so I ended up seeing it the following Monday. I was so stoked all day long, sitting in the office waiting to get to the theater. My parents sat Stella and so Gina and I went to a late afternoon showing followed by a lovely dinner. There were maybe a dozen folks in the theater, tops, and we had premium seats right in the center with plenty of space around us. Digital projection makes for a great theatrical experience and this was no exception. About eight minutes of trailers for various goofy films, a couple of PSAs and we were off.

The movie itself? I loved it. I expected a light-hearted Clone Wars romp and I got it. The movie largely served to initiate viewers into the new look and feel (especially those who had enjoyed the 2D Clone Wars aired a few years earlier) and to introduce Ahsoka Tano. The vertical battle on Teth was a particular favorite moment of mine, and just getting a chance to see Anakin and Obi-Wan in action again was enough to make me happy. After walking out of the theater, I couldn't wait for the TV show to begin!

I ended up seeing The Clone Wars four times on the big screen. One time I was the only person in the theater and that's something I won't forget. I've never had a private Star Wars theatrical viewing before, and it was so fun sitting in that massive empty room as the lights went down and the music blared out. Fantastic.

It's certainly debatable whether releasing this film had the impact Lucasfilm and Warner Bros. were looking for. The film netted $35 million in the U.S. plus another $33 millon overseas. Small potatoes by past Star Wars standards, but considering its origin as a Friday night Cartoon Network show, quite amazing. Regardless of the success of the movie, I know I had a blast seeing it and for my part would be thrilled to have every season kick off the same way (doesn't seem likely, though). Seeing Star Wars return to the big screen was my #3 Star Wars experience of 2008.