The Battle for Star Wars

I wrote the below in response to this video –

Star Wars isn’t dead. lol. What’s happened is that some people don’t like the direction some of the movies went in. When I was young, I watched each movie of the original 3 ( 4 5 and 6 just to be clear) well over 200 times each. I used to be able to say each line of those movies from all the characters right along with them.

One cannot critique a movie without having personally seen it. So, to say you’ve boycotted it while you’ve seen it is counter intelligent. You’ve not boycotted anything. You’re bitching because the movie or movies didn’t go your way. Don’t confuse those words. I’m not supporting the story or characters of the new movies by saying it. I hope you’re intelligent enough to discern the difference. If you rage at me for typing that, then I guess not. And, you missed my point.

I saw the original movies (4 5 and 6) in the theater. They were amazing to see during my childhood, and I suggest them to anyone raising children. And this is where my point comes in. Star Wars wasn’t intended as an adult movie franchise. George Lucas himself says that. Try looking at the new movies in that light. Look at how a child might see those characters you’ve criticized, and you might see something completely different than your adult eyes will allow.

The old skool Star Wars fans have all grown up. Watching these movies as a grown up is very different than during childhood. Children don’t have expectations as adults do. Children don’t have awareness of adult political arguments, or the political climate going on at the time a movie was made. Children don’t understand that the United States of America is having a Morality and Ethics War, nor should they. But, these paint how adults look at movies.

I’ve seen arguments about what a strong woman should be related to the Star Wars series. This argument belongs in political / moral / ethical discussion (it’s more a discussion that should exist in the realm of politics, ethics, morality and psychology), but emotionally driven people can’t help but spew their garbage all over the place, even attempting to relate it to children’s movies, because they don’t have the knowledge to address these issues in a formal setting, with people who do.

I’ve got to say this. The only one who can say what a strong woman should be is woman. No man can define what a strong woman should be, unless he’s quoting from or taking observations from a strong woman he knows, or knew. Men who bash on depictions of strong women put themselves into a weak position to begin with.

Many adults go to see these movies, wanting an adult experience of the Star Wars Universe. But, those just don’t exist, at least not yet. I’ve yet to see a Star Wars movie receive an R rating. Of the 10 currently released Star Wars movies, 5 have a PG rating, while the other 5 hold PG-13 ratings. To me, the target of these movies, based on the ratings, shows they’re for children and young teenagers.

Spoiler Alert here (Don’t read this paragraph if you’ve not seen and want to see The Last Jedi). As example, to show how the movie caters to the teenage rebellion mentality, I’ll bring to mind how Poe Dameron rebels against Vice Admiral Holdo. He knows better than any old mother type figure could possibly know, right? I’ll also bring to mind also the anger issue that Kylo Ren (Ben Solo) deals with, which is very similar to what new teenagers go through when experiencing the increasing strength of emotion that happens on the way to adulthood.

Maybe it’s time disenfranchised fans, those disenchanted by the new Star Wars movies, understand that the movies might not have been made for them, but for children and young teens according to the ratings and George Lucas’ original vision for Star Wars, as entertainment for kids. May the Force be with You.