Star Wars Soars in Des Moines

by Ryan Dunn

Des Moines (Feb. 4, 1997)-- It's Friday night, you're bored and there's nothing to do. Your roommate walks in and asks you if you want to go with him and see "Star Wars."

"Star Wars ?" you say. Does he mean the same "Star Wars" you've seen at least 20 times before on cable ?

Well, he does. Starting last Friday, George Lucas re-released his famous sci-fi trilogy onto the big screen.

This time Lucas has added four minutes of new footage, and doctored the negatives and sound to make the effects look more real. "Star Wars," which is one of the top ten movies of all time, has all ready grossed $36 million in its first week in theaters. Fans have been waiting in lines just to see the show. "I stood in line for four hours at River Hills, opening night to see it," Dean Simmons (JO1) said. "I loved it and can't wait to see the next ones."

After "Star Wars," Lucas plans to release "The Empire Strikes Back" and "The Return of the Jedi" with the hope that it will prep the audience for his next movie starting in 1999.

From all early accounts, it seems to be working. Kurt Van Auken (JO1) is going with members of the Theta Chi house this Friday to see it. He thinks it's over rated, but he would like to see it anyway. That seems to be the opinion of most students at Drake. "I'm excited to see and want to find out what's different from the original movie." Melissa Beaton (JO1) said. "I want to see what all the hype is."

If you're a die hard "Star Wars" fan or want to learn more about the movie, look it up on the Internet at www.starwars.com. The site has entertainment options like sound bites from your favorite characters, trivia and scenes from the movie. It also explains how Lucas originally produced and directed the movie.

"Star Wars" is showing at the River Hills, Cobblestone and the Carmike II theaters in Des Moines. So, if you're bored and want to go to a movie, "use the force" and see the "Star Wars" trilogy.

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