There will never again be a May 19th, 1999. Days pass, one like another and another and another until days and weeks simply merge and become indistinguishable. But, for the last couple of years, the passage of time has become significantly more distinct for one reason: STAR WARS: EPISODE I - THE PHANTOM MENACE.

The anticipation of this movie was a highlight of my life from the time I first learned of it. I am, of course, an avid STAR WARS fan, having an older generation of family members introduce me to it and then adopting it as my own. I adore the original trilogy and, of course, was elated when it was finally revealed that a new film, the first in 16 years, was due out in the summer as the first in a brand new prequel trilogy.

From the moment it was revealed that George Lucas had written a script to the untitled EPISODE I, I was seeded with the fruits of delight and eagerness.

In the months that followed, I gobbled up all the waves of information and speculation that are so inherent in gigantic media projects. There were many incredible high points to the steady escalation of excitement that occurred over these last two years. Learning which lead actors had been cast. Finding out the subtitle of the film. Seeing the very first still images. And, the single greatest agent of hope, the two theatrical trailers.

These trailers gave myself and my equally rabid good friends the very first moving images from THE PHANTOM MENACE. Images and sound and dialogue and effects that revealed the whole range of the movie's depth and action. Trailer A focused on young Anakin Skywalker and the dreaded future he represented. Trailer B showed us the Naboo and their struggles against the greedy Trade Federation. But rather than satisfy my need for STAR WARS and tide me over until the actual theatrical release, I hungered for more, constantly wanting to compose all the pieces into a final product.

Suffice to say, the two trailers practically drove me out of my mind.

By the time mid-May arrived, I and my few closest buddies were on the verge of drooling in anticipation for this movie. May 12th proved to be an incredibly crucial day. To ensure that we would be some of the very first members of the general public to behold this unbelievably hyped film, I waited in line for eight hours to get tickets to the 12:01 AM show, as well as the 3:30 AM show (for more on that see the other stuff I wrote called "The Battle of the Line"). When I emerged from the line victorious, tickets in my hand, the film which had now become so much more than a film finally seemed solid to me.

It was now a physical entity, manifested in 12 little squares of white paper. And now at last I could see the movie. I was very proud of myself that day. Few things prove your dedication to something like a film than waiting in line eight hours for tickets.

That last week was one of the longest of my life. The anticipation had been a steady upward slope for the last two years and now, finally, it was about to reach its climax.

I arrived at the Madison at 3 PM, awaiting my four companions, who appeared shortly afterwards.

We immediately formed a line outside, and for the next nine hours hunkered down, braving rain, darkness, and a frenzy of media attention. Every major news channel had arrived to talk to us, the very first people in line. This, of course, only added to our excitement.

By 9:30, we had also been photographed and interviewed by the Times Union and the Daily Gazette. Night had fallen, the marquee was lit, and we were all engaged in merry conversation with Scott Goldman, the owner, and Jay Bobbin, the movie critic for NewsChannel 13. Then, they let us in.

Fortunately the short into Theatre Two was not a mad rush or the beginnings of a riot with all the other fans gathered. In fact, the only mad rush was in my own mind. My God! I'd entered this theatre so many times before but NEVER before had it meant so much! We had agreed on fifth row, but the presence of some slack-jawed know-it-all in row six prompted us to move to row four. Just as good, if not better! Finally... Finally! After years of waiting and worrying, we were exactly where we needed to be. 9:34 PM/ Still almost two and a half hours to go.

That last block of time was agony. If ever we considered the last week to be the home stretch, Lord now we're on the last hour! Time rocketed and lagged at the same time. The theatre had a kind of party atmosphere. Lots of people grabbed a seat then proceeded to horde concession stuff around them and bounce from place to place chatting with others. We were absolutely wallowing in excitement.

We took our seats at 11:40 PM. I was on the aisle of row four, followed inward by Peter, Mike, and Nick. Stephen Pause insisted on row three for an closer effect.

As the minutes ticked away, the entire theatre begun to vibrate, as if every fan in every seat was fuel for each other. We were super charged. My heart was pounding. My body was tensing. My very being seemed ready to leap into the heavens.

The darkness.

The theatre lights were extinguished. Everyone knew what came next. The crowd erupted in a cheer that seemed more a primal scream than anything else. Some clapped. Others merely whimpered. I did it all.

Previews.

Not even worth mentioning.

Drum roll. Fanfare. 20th Century FOX. Another scream. Clapping. So much clapping. LucasFilm. A very deserving "Yeah!!!" from Mr. Keegan. More cheers.

Then... absolute dead silence. Nothing.

And in that brief second of nothingness, I suddenly looked back on myself; to the past. To what I had been. So much... so much had led up to this very moment. For years, I had only dreamed of being at the exact moment that I was at now. I had arrived. We had all arrived.

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

It was magnificent. Just magnificent.

Amazing. Spellbinding. Luminous. Earth-shaking. When the words "EPISODE I" crawled into infinity, it finally hit me. This was not a trailer, or a magazine, or some demented fantasy of the future. This was real. EPISODE I was here.

When the screen irised to black and the credits rolled, as the always had, to John Williams's tenent title theme, all I could do for the first few moments was sit forward in my seat and cradle my head in my hands.

All sat silent for a moment.

Then... applause. Uproarious, ear-blasting applause. I would have applauded, too. But, I was suddenly hit with such a wave of mixed emotions. I was speechless... unable to verbalize them.

Myself and my fellow members of the Security Council exited Theatre Two to see a huge line of people gathered in the lobby. It was 2:14 AM. The 2:30 show would begin in Theatre Two in just a short while. Scott was there, as cheerful as ever in discussing any topic his patrons brought up.

My comrades and I sat -- collapsed is more appropriate -- right in the front of the door to Theatre One, where the 3:30 AM show would begin... soon enough.

Then, the speechlessness passed, and for the first time, I was able to sort through my feelings.

My God. It was good. It was so very good. The droids. The podraces. The lightsabre duels. The music. The effects. My mind had been overloaded, but in a very, very good way. The movie was magnificent. And it was finally HERE! That was as much a cause for joy and celebration as anything else was! Finally, after so long, EPISODE I was here. It was the greatest feeling in the world that every second of anticipation had paid off with interest. EPISODE I was here!!!

The Security Council began chittering excitedly yet quietly, for there was a massive assembly of people not ten meters from us who simply COULD NOT hear all that we were speaking of. I asked Scott if the original EPISODE IV had even made his heart pound the way the last twenty minutes of "THE PHANTOM MENACE" had for me.

He said yes, but at the beginning, in that unforgettable scene that started it all when the princess's Rebel Blockade Runner was overtaken by the massive Star Destroyer.

We sat and talked until 3:10 AM, reflecting on all that we had seen and charged ourselves up for the next show in twenty minutes. All the while, another part of my brain, the logical left side, perhaps, was analyzing the elements of the movie, the plot points, the acting, etc.

I determined, as almost everyone eventually does, that EPISODE I was not going to win movie of the year, nor was it going to sweep the Oscars (except in the effects categories -- oh man, what effects!!!). The story had a couple of small plot holes. A couple of the actors (though none of the main three -- Neeson, McGregor, and Portman) were a bit stuffy and almost uncomfortable-looking. Jar Jar Binks -- I didn't have any problem with him except perhaps that he was a bit too obvious and unnecessary in some shots (for more on that, see my official review). But, I also determined that the film was, minus all the dazzling effects, still a pretty terrific story. There were very "slow" parts, the action was edge-of-your-seat exciting and quite varied (ie. lightsabre duels, space battles, ground wars). There war humor. There was heart. There was romance. And, there was a happy ending. In other words, it was a STAR WARS movie.

We saw it three more times that day. After the 3:30 AM I had been up some 24 hours or so. I ate, told my parents what I could about the whole grand experience while they told me about the number of times they had seen me on the news. Finally, I collapsed into bed, not falling asleep for a while because two screenings of that great movie were still churning through my mind.

I woke five hours later to an empty and blissfully quite house. There, with my mind rested and my body recharged, I was finally able to make sense of the vortex of thoughts and feelings I had.

The movie had been magnificent. The entire experience form my first moments in line on the 18th to the moment I returned home on the 19th had been a journey I would tell my successive generations of family about. For those who would be born into a world where STAR WARS was just an aging legend of an era long past: when these movies which had become myths themselves were never again to be found on the big screen and seen only on laserdisc as a means of glimpsing the past, I would be there to tell them how it was and what it really meant. I felt so proud. I also felt, as I had predicted I would, rather let down. I wasn't let down by the movie at all, but let down by the fact that the entire experience was over. Two and a half years of buildup hand finally hit a grand climax... and now there was no more to build.

The experience had now plateaued into an extended high that would guarantee me weeks of giddy excitement and repeat viewings, but there would never again be an experience like the one I had just had. What did I have now to look forward to?

That was when I checked my watch and realized that it was STILL opening day, and I still had another show to go to. But, when I showed up at 3:50 PM for the 6:50 PM show (one can never be too careful) my Security Council comrades informed me that the 4:05 PM show had not yet been sold out. We bought tickets, and for the next four and a half hours remained in the same theatre for two more shows.

Each time I saw EPISODE I, I saw something new. Each time some line of dialogue hit me in a new way. Each viewing was an experience in and of itself. It was wonderful.

There will never again be a May 19th, 1999. But, that is perfectly ok. After all, that was just opening day. The theatres will be keeping THE PHANTOM MENACE for a minimum of twelve weeks. Four shows? Just the beginning.

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John Paige
8.19.1999