Skip to content

WATCHING SKIES – STAR WARS, SPIELBERG AND US

Written By:

Mark Newbold
Watching Skies

There’s something distinctly familiar about the period of time between 1977 and 1985, a slice of cinematic gold that not only raked in piles and piles of cash but also inveigled its way into the hearts and minds of kids across the planet and still manages to weave its magic well over thirty years later. What was it about this golden age of pop culture that has not only continued to flourish and grow well into the 21st century but also influences brand new television like Stranger Things, Super 8 and even TV comedy like The Goldbergs. Watching Skies – Star Wars, Spielberg and Us offers us a window into the past.

Taking a personal look back at his childhood, author Mark O’Connell delves back through the years to a time when Star Wars was everything, the connective tissue between Lucas and Spielberg brought the works of Amblin and Lucasfilm under the same umbrella and a film’s arrival on VHS was a HUGE deal. Try waiting five years for your favourite film to arrive on home video in 2018 – most kids these days are hard pressed to wait five months.

Wrapped around a beautifully evocative cover, reminiscent of many Close Encounters of the Third Kind promotional images, O’Connell is deft with his words, bringing back old memories in technicolour that remind us (those of us old enough to remember anyway) just what it was that got us so invested, especially British kids raised on a diet of Doctor Who and ‘60s re-runs. Star Wars is ground zero and remains so to this day, but Close Encounters followed closely behind, Superman and John Williams stirring theme – filmed in the UK, an important link through many of these blockbusters – the Indiana Jones series beginning with the magnificent Raiders of the Lost Ark and of course E.T., Spielberg’s masterpiece, which was the perfect storm of Spielberg magic, Williams musical gold and ILM wizardry.

In 2018, it’s often tough to imagine just how HUGE these films were when they arrived. Riding the edge of a technical wave bringing visual effects to the screen that no one had ever seen before, overseen predominantly by two visionaries – Lucas and Spielberg – who opened up the world of cinema to a hungry audience of kids who were the children of the ‘40s Republic and ‘50s B-sci-fi crowd, the ‘60s influx of Irwin Allen series, Star Trek, and Ray Harryhausen. There’s never been a more perfect storm in pop culture, and O’Connell encapsulates this beautifully in a book that is a love letter to the era, and a reminder of just how lucky we were to have lived through it.

WATCHING SKIES – STAR WARS, SPIELBERG AND US / AUTHOR: MARK O’CONNELL / PUBLISHER: THE HISTORY PRESS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Mark Newbold

You May Also Like...

First-Look Images and Sizzle Reel for Disturbing Shocker CARA

You can now get your first look at the upcoming disturbing kitchen sink horror film CARA, directed by Hayden Hewitt (Lips) and starring Ellie O’Hara, Johnny Vivash, Laurence R. Harvey,
Read More
chinese remake of anaconda drops trailer

ANACONDA Trailer Grants First Look At Remake Of 1997 Horror Flick

Three sequels and a spinoff-crossover film wasn’t enough for the 1997 creature feature Anaconda, which not only has a new movie in development, but is getting a Chinese remake! From
Read More
black widow star scarlett johansson in talks to lead new universal jurassic world film

Scarlett Johansson In Talks To Join JURASSIC WORLD Film

Another MCU star appears to be taking up the reins for Universal’s new Jurassic World movie: two-time Oscar nominee Scarlett Johansson is reportedly in talks to lead the franchise that
Read More

Exclusive Reveal! Titan Comics to Deliver Prehistoric Hysterics in First 2 DUMB DINOS Collection

Titan Comics have exclusively revealed to STARBURST that they’re gearing up to publish the first-ever collection of the hilarious cult digital comic strip 2 Dumb Dinos, and we’re not the
Read More

New Dates For Lovecraftian Key of Dreams

Key of Dreams has announced new spaces for its titular immersive luxury horror event. The critically acclaimed company is known for its overnight experiences that dunk you into a strange
Read More

FAB Café to Host Free Film Screening of New Indie Comedy SECRETS OF A WALLABY BOY

We’re well known for our championing of truly independent filmmakers here at STARBURST, so it’s doubly exciting to be writing about one of our own! After joining the crew in
Read More