DVD Review: 5-25-77

5-25-77
(DVD 5-25-77)

My wife checked out this quirky biographical film, recognizing that she and I are both Star Wars fans, and May 25, 1977 was the opening date of the very first film, Star Wars (later renamed Star Wars IV: A New Hope). I hadn’t heard anything about this film, and no idea what to expect. In the end, I was very pleasantly surprised!

 

This film is a coming-of-age autobiography of filmmaker Pat Johnson, who grew up in a small town in Indiana, making 8mm sequels to many of his favorite movies, with the help of his friends and the support of his beleaguered mother. Absolutely enthralled by 2001: A Space Odyssey, it becomes Pat’s dream to meet and work with filmmaker and special effects artist Douglas Trumball. This movie looks at Pat’s journey, both as an aspiring filmmaker but also in the relationships he has with various people in his life, including his first serious girlfriend.

 

The opportunity to go to Hollywood and briefly meet Trumball, turns into an opportunity for Pat to see a rough cut preview of George Lucas’ upcoming movie Star Wars — an event that changes Pat’s life and inspires the rest of the events of 5-25-77.

 

John Francis Daley blew me away as Pat Johnson. He starred as a regular on Bones for several years, as “Sweets”, and he actually appears younger in 5-25-77 than he did for a half-dozen years on that series. Longtime character actor Austin Pendleton was great as Herb Lightman, as was Colleen Camp as Pat’s mother.

 

The style of film-making here was very stream-of-consciousness, and a lot of plot threads seem to evaporate or never get followed. There are tons of fast cuts and fantasy sequences, which may be off-putting to some viewers. But, in the end, I enjoyed this emotional journey. Anyone who’s ever dreamed to making movies will enjoy this. And Star Wars fans who’ve been there since opening day will definitely find something to appreciate in 5-25-77.

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars.)

 

( Internet Movie Database entry for this film )

 

See the Star Wars Reviews page here on BookGuide for staff recommendations related to the vast Star Wars publishing and film world!

 

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

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Book Review: The Rise of Skywalker by Rae Carson

The Rise of Skywalker
by Rae Carson (Carson)

Please Note: if you saw “The Rise of Skywalker” movie and did NOT like it, this novel is unlikely to change your assessment. However, for those who saw the movie and at least didn’t dislike it, or are curious as to who everyone was and what the name of all the locations was (and why are they important), this novel is well worth your time. Rae Carson is a talented writer and does a nice job in telling the story in novel form and making the characters feel like her own. There are numerous fun little bits of background and the motivations and the characters are expanded upon nicely. It’s hardly a required read, but a worthwhile one all the same.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Most Wanted by Rae Carson, The Force Awakens by Alan Dean Foster or The Last Jedi by Jason Fry.]

[ official The Rise of Skywalker novel adaptation page on Wookiepedia ]

Recommended by Corey G.
Gere Branch Library

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide Blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Book Review: I Am C-3PO: The Inside Story by Anthony Daniels

I Am C-3PO: The Inside Story
by Anthony Daniels (Biography Daniels)

“I was hooked. Forget it was sci-fi. Forget Luke and Han and Vader. Threepio was the one for me !”

In this quote from his new book, I Am C-3PO: The Inside Story, actor Anthony Daniels is not just speaking for himself. Legions of fans of the lovable, fish-out-of-water droid feel exactly the same.

Daniels tells the story of how he was cast and, with help from a dedicated crew and movie magic, brought the hapless humanoid to life. His style is warm and engaging, while still maintaining a wry British sense of the absurdity of it all. I laughed out loud many times while reading this book, and found myself going back to re-read particularly funny or fascinating passages.

C-3PO and the other inhabitants of George Lucas’ universe are so much a part of the fabric of popular culture, it’s hard to imagine anything new we could learn about them. Yet, I found myself wondering, along with Daniels. if the young director was even going to be able to complete the film. That’s the mark of a great memoir — you know the ending, but the author’s experience shows you how easily, at every turn, things could have ended very, very differently. Daniels does offer insight and analysis of the movie-making process he has gained with time. But, we feel the fear, doubt, trepidation and joy right along with him as the cast, crew and technicians struggle to bring the young director’s vision to the screen.

This book is perfect for the casual Star Wars fan as well as those who put the fan in “fanatic”. Even readers who know little or nothing about the film series (are there any of those readers?) would get a lot out of it. Just following Daniels’ trajectory from stage actor to the seasoned movie performer he became is compelling. I know that I’ll never watch Star Wars: A New Hope or any movie where Anthony Daniels plays his shiny alter-ego the same way again after reading “the inside story”…

[ publisher’s official I Am C-3PO web page ] | [ official Anthony Daniels web site ]

Recommended by Lisa V.
Eiseley Branch Library

Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

May the 4th Be With You -- Happy Star Wars Day 2020 -- Check out our Star Wars resources on BookGuide!

Here at the library, we have two resource pages for fans of Star Wars:

The Star Wars Review Page -- which gathers all the Star Wars book, DVD and CD reviews we've published over the years on our Staff Recommendations pages, into a single large page.

and

Star Wars: The Reading List -- which lists all professionally published Star Wars fiction, from a variety of different publishers, from the late 1970s to the present.

As you prepare for the last movie of the original Star Wars series, we hope you'll stop by these two pages as you look for additional Star Wars reading ideas. And have no fear -- there will be new Star Wars films coming in the future!

Book Review: Dooku: Lost Jedi by Scott Cavan

Dooku: Lost Jedi
by Scott Cavan

Dooku: Lost Jedi is an interesting book in that it appears never to have been intended to be a book. It appears the origins of Count Dooku were only meant to be a script for a digital audiobook. Thus, what we get is the script for the audiobook instead of a novelization. It turns out to be a pretty good story, but its script format makes the story choppy and clunky. I found it tricky to keep track of the characters and why each of them were important. I imagine hearing different voices for each character would have made that easier. Still, its an interesting story and a fun peak into the origins of an iconic Star Wars villain. It’s definitely worth a read or a listen.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Master and Apprentice by Claudia Gray, Dark Disciple by Christie Golden or Lords of the Sith by Paul S. Kemp.]

[ Dooku: Jedi Lost page on Wookiepedia ] | [ official Cavan Scott web site ]

Recommended by Corey G.
Gere Branch Library

Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Book Review: Resistance Reborn by Rebecca Roanhorse

Resistance Reborn
by Rebecca Roanhorse

Much as “Rise of Skywalker” has been described as fan service, Resistance Reborn could also be described the same way. This is a really nice story, but if one is only a casual Star Wars fan, it might turn out to be difficult to fully appreciate without stopping to consult Wookieepedia on a regular basis. There are story elements from Claudia Gray’s novel Bloodline, Chuck Wendig’s Aftermath trilogy, the Poe Dameron comic book series and even the story-mode campaign from the video game Star Wars: Battlefront II (not to mention a fun cameo from a prune-faced alien that hardcore Star Wars fans will enjoy). There’s a lot going on in this novel, including a very engaging story about a Corellian citizen turned First Order convert. My assigned rating reflects that casual fans might have trouble fully enjoying this book. For dedicated Star Wars fans, this book is a solid “8”, maybe even a “9” if one loves geeking out about a trove of Easter Eggs in the story. I would advise reading the recommended books listed below before taking on this story.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try Bloodline by Claudia Gray, Aftermath Aftermath: Life Debt and Aftermath: Empire’s End by Chuck Wendig, or Star Wars: Poe Dameron (comic book series) by Charles Soule.]

[ Resistance Reborn article on Wookiepedia ] | [ official Rebecca Roanhorse web site ]

Recommended by Corey G.
Gere Branch Library

Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!