Since the new trailer for the upcoming Star Wars film was released today, I thought I would bring up Star Wars and it’s influence on film and pop culture in general. Star Wars is one of the few franchises that has almost universal appeal – pretty much everyone has at least seen a Star Wars movie and if you haven’t, you’re met with what could only be described as incredulity. Everyone knows what Star Wars is and this most recent trailer hinges on that fact – literally every line/frame in this trailer is a call back to the original trilogy of movies. From Darth Vader’s destroyed helmet to Harrison Ford proudly proclaiming that he’s “home,” this new Star Wars seems to be incredibly aware of it’s place in our culture. Time will tell if it lives up to everything that has come before.
I like that at least someone touched on this, because I feel as though there is no better example of a film having such a large impact on society than Star Wars. It obviously goes beyond the thought that, “Oh, well everyone has seen Star Wars”, it is about the fact that the franchise has bled into so many industries, and become a brand name. All the way from action figures, to books, to video games, and even into politics(look up some politician quotes). It is just truly amazing how integrated the franchise has become in not only American life, but worldwide. If anyone in the class has not seen the movies, I implore you to watch them.
Also, some of the dissections of these trailers by film critics is absolutely spectacular and encourage anyone to check them out.