Sunday, May 15, 2005

4am the alarm clock, my phone and the missus's phone started beeping in tandem. Ten minutes later I was in the shower trying to wake up and scrub up. Twenty minutes later we were on the road to Dublin. Quarter to Six, I crusie past a lone cop with a speed gun. Around 2 hours later I hit the M7, with the caffeine firing on all cylinders (or whatever that section of motorway is called). At 19 minutes past eight I get a nice parking space in the Irish Life Centre.

My 2 invites are snug in my inside pocket and we still have a bit of time to kill till 11am, when The Savoy in O Connell St opens its doors for a preview screening of Star Wars Episode III : Revenge of the Sith. After a McDonalds breakfast and plenty of trudging around the shops we arrive at the Savoy at 10.30. We are greeted by 2 stormtroopers and are quickly left in upon presenting our invites and told to turn off all mobiles. Im not sure what time it was, but close enough to 11am the lights dim, the curtains open and a trailer for the fantastic four hits the screen. A few minutes later the words
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...... appear. Having been a far Star Wars fan for most of my life, this is what I waited for. No rush of blood to the head, no chills....nothing, only the thought in my head "Here we go"

Two hours, twenty minutes later the credits start rolling and we pile out into O Connell Street. I kept the occasional tears well hidden and had an overwhelming sense of happiness and sadness walking down O Connell Street in the direction of TGi Fridays in St.Stephens Green. For all the SW fans, this is the full circle. For just film fans in general, its a piece of history and for the non-believers this movie kicks the shit out of the last 2. The special effects are absoluely mind blowing and the gradual transformation of Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) to Darth Vader is touching, and most of all I found myself wishing things might not go the way they were supposed to go. But of course they do and the saga, as mentioned earlier, comes full circle. I dont want to giveaway any of the movie for the 2 or 3 of you that are reading, but just go see it.

Im on air in about 45 mins from now, and I am already counting down the days until I go see this again.

Dont forget my Cork Talks Star Wars special airs on Red from 10pm(GMT) on Tuesday.

May the Force be with you all, and it certainly was with Mr. Lucas for Episode III.