Some good things to ponder there. I'm still not entirely sure about the generational aspect, though. I was born in 1962, which I guess makes me part of the "Star Wars" generation, since I was able to see the films in their original theatrical release--over and over and over!--but my escapism is nevertheless very similar to yours. And I think it was even then. In the seventies we were reeling from Vietnam, Watergate, the energy crisis, growing awareness of environmental degradation, and, at the end of the decade, the Iran hostage situation. Then as now, a world where honor mattered, technology and mysticism could coexist, and evil could be recognized and resisted was powerfully alluring. In Star Wars, those sorts of things mattered way more to me than the spaceships.
My original response to Star Wars does have one real generational difference, though, come to think of it. In the 1970s, Princess Leia was an absolute revelation--I'd never seen a heroic, kick-butt, powerful woman like that in any movie before. (But I still wished she could have been a Jedi!)
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Date: 2006-10-18 04:53 pm (UTC)My original response to Star Wars does have one real generational difference, though, come to think of it. In the 1970s, Princess Leia was an absolute revelation--I'd never seen a heroic, kick-butt, powerful woman like that in any movie before. (But I still wished she could have been a Jedi!)