The new “Dune” movie came out a little while ago, and I thought it was phenomenal. As I was sitting in the theater this week, I couldn’t help but think about “Empire Strikes Back” and the other “Star Wars” movies. I’ve seen comparisons between “Dune: Part Two” and “Empire Strikes Back,” so I have been thinking about the “Star Wars” franchise. There are aspects of the movies that are quite similar aside from them both being science fiction franchises with complex worldbuilding behind them. Both stories initially take place on desolate, sandy planets with multiple moons and a main character who is fated to save the world and trying to avenge the death of one or more guardians.
The “Star Wars” movies were a large part of my childhood and one of the ways I bonded with my dad. He used to tell me stories about how he went to the first “Star Wars” movie with his entire family of 11 and they took up an entire row in the theater. He and his brothers used to save all of their allowance money so they could go see the next “Star Wars” movie as many times as possible. He even told me about how his younger brother stole all of his money that he had been hiding and saving up to see “Return of the Jedi.”
You can imagine that he could hardly wait until my brother and I were old enough to watch the movies, and he waited until I was four and my brother was three. At the time, I couldn’t really appreciate the movies for their stories, but even at such a young age, I knew that they were important to my dad. As we grew up, we started to appreciate the movies for their story and we understood what was so special about these films from the 80s.
Now, what I value most about the “Star Wars” movies is not the story or their significant impact on culture and media as we know it today, but how important they were to my dad. He and I have always enjoyed going to the movies and watching new things together, but for him to share something special from his childhood with my brother and I is his way of showing us love. If I have children someday, I plan on showing them my favorite “Star Wars” movies and hoping that they understand the sentimental value that media can have when shared with the right people.
