Fans Already Think 'The Force Awakens' is the Best 'Star Wars' Movie Ever
A new poll shows that fans sure do love getting their hopes up.
By all accounts, anticipation is high for J.J. Abrams’ upcoming Star Wars movie, The Force Awakens. In fact, according to a new online survey conducted by market research firm Harris Interactive and business information provider FusionOps, it’s already the best Star Wars movie ever.
Variety first reported on the survey, which was taken in mid-September to gauge fan response to the film as well as measure merchandising expectations. 63 percent of people already say The Force Awakens is probably the best chapter of the whole saga. Over half of the 2,031 U.S. adults over the age of 18 polled singled out the visual effects, plot, and cast as the primary reasons to be excited about The Force Awakens.
About 36 percent cite “more advanced CGI” as why it’s already the best of the series. And we get it, the teaser trailers featured some of the best visuals of the entire series yet. But if it’s visual effects that people want they may want to take a step back and remember that the prequel trilogy was basically 99.9 percent CGI. Maybe they just weren’t fans of George Lucas’ gross misuse of poorly rendered and cartoonish effects like Attack of the Clones’ diner owner Dexter Jettster.
About 25 percent of respondents stated that they were basically fed up with all this Anakin Skywalker business, and that The Force Awakens already has a “more interesting story” than the other six movies. That sentiment could also be linked to another 25 percent admitting that the new installment will be “more true to the ‘Star Wars’ series” after the disappointing prequels stomped all over our nostalgic childhood memories of the original three. Another 14 percent cited a better cast for The Force Awakens, perhaps not realizing that it features three of the actors from the original trilogy. Seems like there are a lot of Oscar Isaac fans out there.
The most tragic figure is the relatively small 15 percent that singled out Abrams as a reason to hold the new movie above the rest. This is a guy that’s been waiting his entire career to make this movie, but it looks like people are more tuned into the broader story while acknowledging the directors themselves are just glorified fanboys and hired guns.
The survey also calculated fan response to the merchandise, with a massive 69 percent of people admitting that all the best Star Wars toys will be out of stock before the movie hits theaters on December 18. These fans admitted they’d also be willing to choke people out by resorting to “unusual measures” to ensure they get their grubby mitts on Millennium Falcon toys before they sell out.
Despite all the numbers, this poll uncovers a certainty: Star Wars fans love getting their hopes up. Considering the fact that all we have to go on are two teasers and small snippets of footage here and there, it may be worth waiting to see the movie before walking the slippery slope of calling it the best Star Wars movie ever. Even the trailer for The Phantom Menace makes it look like the greatest movie of all time, and we know how that turned out. But as of right now people love Star Wars toys, and they really love The Force Awakens. Let’s hope the anticipation pays off.
