The Empire Strikes Again

In Los Angeles and New York, die hard fans waited for six weeks to insure they would be first to see the film. As showtimes neared, Campers dressed in Obi-Wan Kenobi outfits joined scalpers charging up to $100 a seat outside many of the theaters.

Chris, a 24-year-old musician in Washington, DC, camped out in front of the theater for two days. “The weathers been good… it’s like kicking off the Summer. Everyone’s happy. Everyone’s here to share something in common… love of Star Wars.”

The first diehard fans to see the film are raving about pure good and evil set to spectacular special effects. Their enthusiasm is lighting up numerous special Star Wars message boards and chat rooms.

“I got to see a midnight showing and I’ll tell you this much…there are only about three movies that even come close to this one and I think you know what three movies I’m talking about,” wrote a fan from Saint Croix Falls, WI on Yahoo’s message board. “I’ve never seen anything like this…. I’m almost speechless.”

Some reviewers disagree.

“It’s all sound and fury and special effects, signifying nothing,” wrote Jami Bernard of the New York Daily News.

Although the $115 million film has received a lukewarm response from critics, it hasn’t deterred thousands of people from already attending screenings of the film. Another 120 theaters across the country are showing the film nonstop, 24 hours a day.

Some theater managers balked at the requirements George Lucas and 20th Century Fox imposed on moviehouses. Originally, theaters wanting to show “The Phantom Menace” needed to agree to carry the film on it main screen for no less than 12 weeks.

This left some areas with fewer screens showing the movie (In all of Manhattan, only six theaters have agreed to carry the film). Fox did relent and allow theaters in smaller markets to carry the movie for six weeks.

In these first few days, companies are bracing for 2.2 million absentee workers playing “Wookie Hooky,” or staging a “Phantom Sickout.” Technology companies are expecting the most empty desks.

John Stewart, a 38-year-old senior vice president at a Washington, DC advertising agency, said he may not be able to get out of work tomorrow for his 1pm tickets.

“I’m freaking out. I’m thinking about going tonight and offering some kid 50 bucks,” he said. “Who knows what will happen when I get there, I’ll probably lose all sense of reality.”

Stewart said many people in his office are leaving work early today “under various excuses.”

The craze for the George Lucas series began in 1977 with the original “Star Wars.” The film is the second largest grossing film in American history having sold $461 million in tickets. “Return of the Jedi” and “The Empire Strikes Back” hold the 7th and 9th spots for the most popular movies of all time domestically.