Fans excited for ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” premieres at movie theaters across the country tonight.

UNCW Assistant Professor of Film Studies, Carlos Kase, said he is a huge fan of “Star Wars,” but as a scholar is torn by the franchise.

“I don’t think there was anything ever that was more important to my childhood than ‘Star Wars.’ Not who the president was or the Cold War, or a sports team, or anything. ‘Star Wars’ was the most important thing in the world to me,” said Kase.

Kase said that although “Star Wars” did great things in terms of special effects and compelling storytelling, the series did some damage to a previously thriving independent film industry in the 1970s.

“It makes every movie incredibly expensive to make, expensive to produce and market. And humble, interesting small scale movies were basically trampled by the Lucas empire in a sense,” said Kase.

Kase said that George Lucas had a number of experimental film artists working on the original “Star Wars” films, and that is how they were able to accomplish such impressive achievements in cinema.