ORIGINAL Star Wars Opening (1977) - 16mm Film Preservation 

I Transferred the 35mm print with mag sound for VHS duplication

Am I the only one that gets chills hearing the 20th Century Fox fanfare from this era of film?

I was 5, this was the first movie I ever saw... I woke up and my sister was excited, getting ready and my brother and my sister told me, "Get up! We're going to a movie!"... My mom came in and helped me tie my shoes and I asked her where we were going?... and she said... "We're going to see a movie.. you'll see what we're talking about." So, I had already heard of Star Wars and was excited about it, but I had NEVER been to a movie... so we went to the 7 Eleven and got a newspaper to check showtimes, and I remember my dad running in to get the paper... we get to the theater and I see all these kids there and these huge Star Wars posters and I was excited but also confused, I had never been to a movie... we walked in after my mom paid for the tickets... My dad says..."Do you want some popcorn and a soda?" I said... "They have that here?" It smelled so good!... so we got a medium Coke and a medium popcorn and to me they were huge... we walked through the corridor to the theater... I held my Coke in one arm and held my mom's hand... my dad held my popcorn... I turned around and saw my brother and sister walking behind us, and they had these huge smiles on their faces (They're older than I am.) My sister nodded her head at me and smiled... we sat down and the theater wasn't very dark, kids were laughing, and talking I sat right between my parents... My mother kept trying to set me back into my seat but I saw this "HUGE TV"... So... the lights went down, all the kids were excited and talking and I could hear people going .... "SHHHHH!"... My mother set me back in my seat, with my soda in her hand holding it for me to drink and my popcorn between my legs lol... then I remember the movie starts... I don't remember the trailers... or if there were any, I didn't pay much attention to them... I was sort of shocked at what I saw... but didn't know exactly what I was seeing.... then THIS starts... My mom read to me the scrolling texts....and I see the two ships and lasers... my mouth dropped open.... my life changed forever...

I'm 58. I saw the original Star Wars in 1977 when I was 12 at a theater in the mall. Two hours later, I walked out of the mall, and it was if every dream I ever had was possible! Man, I loved those days. And it's still with me. I just finished a 3 foot Star Distroyer that sits proudly on my desk. Thanks for the memories.

For a 22 year old in 1977, that opening shot, seen for the first time, of the star destroyer coming over the top of the screen and filling it, was truly thrilling in away that nothing else in the movies had been-or has been since.

That opening scene is a seminal moment in my life. We sat in that theater in 1977 with our jaws hanging. We had NO idea what we were in for.

A lot of people probably didn’t know that it wasn’t called A New Hope in 1977 it was just called Star Wars

There’s something magical about seeing this in the lower res, and original sounds and such, with all the “flaws” included. I am not old enough to have seen this originally in the theater, but I appreciate this a lot.

As a guy in his 30s growing up in the Prequels era, I am thrilled to see the Episodic title missing in this one.

Just imagine sitting in a theater with no idea of what was about to happen & then seeing that Star destroyer filling the screen. It sent my little 7 year old mind off into a world of imagination. This is why over 40 years later i still love this movie.

44 years later, the special effects here STILL look good.

I'll never forget the opening of that movie, simply jaw dropping compared to anything seen or heard before. It was a quatum leap in terms of special efffects and sound quality. Cannot begin to describe how good it was seeing that movie for the first time in 1977.

My grandmother took me to see it when I was 10. The Tusken scared the heck out of her, but despite that she fell asleep somewhere during the rescue of Leia and I had to wake her up at the end. That's one of my favorite memories of her...she took me to see Star Wars. RIP Grannie.

I can't wrap my head around just how good that opening shot still looks. The planets, the lighting, the scale. It all feels so real. Absolutely insane.

Still one of the best opening scenes for any movie ever made. If you didn't see it in a theater in 1977, you missed something very special. Cinematics would never be the same.

I was 17 when I first saw this. As a science-fiction aficionado I had never seen anything like this before in my life! As a man in his 60s no one believes me when I tell them “Star Wars” was originally a standalone movie.

That three minutes took me back forty-three years.

That opening scene of the star destroyer chasing the corvette was like nothing we had ever seen before in ‘77. From that moment on, the sold out theater (for two years, BTW) was glued to the screen. The whole audience cheered for Luke, applauded when Leia kissed him, booed Vader, and erupted when the DeathStar blew up. A magical experience. It just doesn’t happen any more.

Just goosebumps, I remember how great this was... before the dark times, before Disney.

I was a 12 year old girl in Germany and my biggest dream came true watching Star Wars at the cinema back in 1978. Will never forget the impact that movie had on me. A beautiful memory in my life.

I was 11, my parents didn't have any money, so I got a job at the store next door, taking out trash and other odd jobs for 50 cents a week for the elderly lady that owned it. I saved my money until I finally had enough to go see Star Wars, and I was blown away. It was the greatest movie my 11 year old mind had seen up to that time. I still remember the look and smell of the theater, and the excitement I felt as the movie filled my heart with a sense for adventure.

Thanks for posting. I could watch the entire film this way!

Greatest start to a film EVER!! I was 8 in '77. Man, I remember seeing this opening sequence & my eye were like saucers as I gripped the seat.

That opening scene was the most amazing thing I had seen, as a teenager I remember gasping out loud “WOW”, to this day it has not been equaled!

When you look at sci-fi movies made around the same time, the visual FX and overall presentation of Star Wars must have blown people's minds back in 1977

That opening scene changed so many lives...and changed cinema forever...

The fact that the opening theme starts at the same energy level and roughly same notes as the 20th century fox fanfare feels special

I gotta show my dad this. This must've been exactly how he saw it in 1977. Incredible.

My wife and friends saw this with me in theaters in 1977. Believe me, it was life changing, cinema wise. Like nothing anyone had seen before. I drove very fast on the way home, making pew pew sounds.

Yep, I was there in '77. Not only the visual of the Destroyer sailing overhead but really the first time Dolby Surround took hold. Never had you heard something coming at you from behind like that destroyer did. It was mindblowing and the audience sat there stunned at what they just saw and heard.

I was 11 when this came out. I’ll never forget it. Everyone in the theater was blown away and the stood up and cheered at the end.

This movie opening still looks and sounds incredible

I think most of us who experienced that first cinema viewing as a child in late 77 will confirm and say that their lives were never the same again.

These 3 minutes alone are more enjoyable than 7, 8 and 9

Lost my dad a year ago. One of my fondest memories of him was he and I going to this movie when it first came out. Seeing this how it was then flooded all the memories of that day. It was such a life changing day for both of us. We both loved sci fi from then on, and especially Star Wars. I had tears watching this again. Thank you for sharing this.

I saw the first showing on opening day. There was only 10 people in the entire theater! Told all my friends. It was so awesome. We went back a week later to see it again. It was standing room only!!!!

On May 25, 1977, history was made.

I hope we see an official re-release of the original 1977 film at some point. That would be pretty awesome.

I remember seeing this at the age of 13 in 1977. My father told me we were going to see this new movie that "everybody's talking about it. It's the biggest thing in movies anybody's ever seen. I was impressed, of course, but I left the theater thinking, "Mark Hamill? Harrison Ford? Carrie Fischer? Who the hell ARE these people? Where were Captain Kirk and Mister Spock? What a gyp!!!" (in those days, I had the idea that anything sci-fi HAD to have Captain Kirk and Mister Spock in it, or it wasn't authentic).

On the original versions of the first three Star Wars films when my brother and I used to watch them as young kids, when the text at 0:20 came up, my brother used to say “green letters”

Yep, that's exactly how us 'old timers' remember it. No "Episode IV". No "A New Hope". Just this incredible music, a mysterious opening title crawl, and a F/X shot that absolutely blew our collective minds. No one had seen anything remotely close to what we experienced when this shot first hit our eyeballs. It is impossible to articulate to modern movie-going audiences just how much this cinematic moment changed the game forever back in '77.

I remember seeing this in the theatre in 1977. Absolutely EPIC! If you did not see Star Wars in 1977 in the theatre, you missed out on the most epic movie theatre experience ever.

I grew up in a small town that didn't have a movie theater. We were dirt-poor and although all my friends eventually were able to make the hour-and-a-half trip into to the nearest town to see Star Wars, I didn't see it until almost 2 years after it released because we were dirt-poor and I had to work on my parents farm when I wasn't in school. When I turned 15, I couldn't stand it anymore and, against the wishes of my parents, I snuck out after dinner as I'd arranged a ride with my older brother's friends to go see the film. What I saw was mind-blowing and that feeling of wonder and joy watching this story unfold was incredible. When I got back around midnight, my mother was frantic and I knew there'd be hell-to-pay for disobeying mom and dad, but that movie was well worth the punishment I got. As soon as I was of age, I got the hell out of there and started a new life in California and have never looked back. I've seen all the Star Wars films in the theater several times now, but I've never, ever felt the same wonder of it all as I did that summer night way back in '79.

i remember when I saw this in the theatres for the first time. It brought chills to me as a kid. I was in awe.

I was 9 and my dad brought me to watch it in the biggest cinema at that time (Emperial cinema in Copenhagen, Denmark). I will never forget the size of that stardestroyer. It just kept on going forever! Or Darth Vader, the laserguns, the millennium falcon, the light sabers, the death Star, C3P0 and R2D2, the desert people, Chewbacca, X-wing fighters and every detail and second of that masterpiece of a movie! R.I.P. dad❤️

My Grandpa had a VHS labelled "Star Wars" and I was so eager to watch it on my own time. Once I put it in, though, the first thing I saw was "Episode IV: A New Hope" and I immediately popped it back out because I didn't want spoilers...

I defy anyone to find a better opening shot. Absolute magic.

"Dad, can we go see Star Wars tonight?" "Sure." Just like that, off we went in early July 1977 to see that opening scene at the Holiday 1 theater in Cheektowaga, NY (South of Buffalo)...I think it cost $1.75 for a ticket. What an incredible opening. Thank you for posting it.

My parents told me how everyone was blown away by the opening of this movie. I've seen it many times but I got to say I can try to imagine it. Sadly, I don't think we'll ever have something like this again.

This brings back memories when I went to see this movie back in 1977. It will never be the same. It will be an event I will never forget.

Having seen SW before it was cool, and became "Episode IV A NEW HOPE," I thank you for this. A friend made me a copy of the movie, years before it was released on video for sale. The images were too large for the TV. When I asked him where he got the copy, he said "You know better than to ask me things like that." To which I responded "I know better than to ask you things like that." The dark side of the Force was with him.

The only shame about this is that nobody nowadays will ever understand the awe and excitement this had when we saw it for the first time. Wonderful beyond measure to see it like this again - heartfelt thanks ❤

For anyone wondering, films shown in theaters were 35 mm, so much better quality than this 16 mm print. They had surround sound too, so really the theater presentation in 1977 wasn’t significantly different than today’s digital projection. Except the 35 mm prints could get scratches and dirt after dozens of showings, or if you were really unlucky the film could break. Then we’d have to wait while the projectionist spliced it. There were 70 mm projectors too at some theaters - they were the IMAX of their day.

I remember like it was yesterday. I was 16 and said “this is incredible” as the star destroyer entered the scene. Still my favorite movie.

I can still remember as an 8 year old kid being mesmerized by this opening sequence.....like nothing we'd seen before...that big opening note from the symphony, the STAR WARS letters flying into space right into the groundbreaking special effects of the opening scene. I remember just wanting the movie to go on forever

Still Gives Me Chills... I was 10 and absolutely blow away by that movie. It changed me.

Imagine being a 13-year-old sci-fi and comics nut in 1977, and you get this......that was me. Ah, to go back.

I remember the day we saw it for the first time. It was 1977, we had just stood in line for 5 hours waiting to see this new movie that was so hyped. We saw it at Grauman's Chinese Theater, & that very opening just as was shown right now, still gives me the chills that I felt the first time we saw it. No movie I had ever seen had ever started like that. During the scene of the death star chasing the rebel ship, the entire theater gasped as it kept going & going & going as it turned out to be FAR MORE MASSIVE than anything our imaginations could wrap our minds around. It might seem old & outdated as it was just shown in this clip, but it was far more impactful in its approach to no nonsense seriousness of a story that promised to be grand in scope, depth & content like no story ever was shown. It was the greatest movie I had ever seen in my life, & that year, I & an entire generation competed to see Star Wars as many times as we could. I saw Star Wars exactly 47 times in 1977. My father was just as impressed as it was him that took us each time. . .

I remember seeing the opening back in 1977. Everyone in the theater cheered.😂It was awesome.

I was 9 years old when Star Wars came out on my birthday in 1977...and I never got to see it. Nope.Never saw it. Was obsessed with it,got the picture book,was the perfect age for it but never got to see it. Broke my heart but sometimes life gets in the way of your childhood.It's a long story but I envy all the kids who got to experience that magical moment .I think I was the only kid back in 1977 who missed it.Lol.God bless.

Reading these comments about people, and their experiences witnessing this for the first time in the theaters in 77 brings a sort of curious yet joyous emotion to me, it makes it more immersive. Glad this version exists. Thank you for sharing this with us all.

So this is what time traveling looks like... Neat.

This title crawl was achieved using physical models for the letters and words laid out across the floor, and the camera moving longitudinally across them to give the appearance of a crawl. It was painstakingly difficult to achieve the smoothness of movement that we see here. This was achieved more simply with CGI in the prequels, and most versions of the OT that can be found today also use the updated CGI crawls. It is a truly special occasion to view the hard work that went into making the original three title crawls.

its good to see these works of art are being preserved.

Notice that without the Episode title, the crawl is synced with the music. The Star Wars theme was written to narrate the crawl.

When Luke responds to Ben Kenobi: YOU FOUGHT IN THE CLONE WARS?! 1977 people be like: ????

5 years old when I saw this at a drive in, 1977. It's still my earliest memory.

What a beautiful unrestored gem. I don’t care how many times they restore it, the way the film degraded is just so crucial to movies of that time. Kids will never understand that. Adults will always long for it.

Can never forget seeing this in 77 as a 7 year old. Simply blown away by the star destroyer going across the screen.

I was born in December 1974, meaning I was too young to have seen Star Wars in the cinema in May 1977... And being raised in a single-mum-with-two-kids household meant money was tight, and I didn't see a cinema screening of ANY movie until about 1982. I saw Star Wars for the first time when it was shown on TV here, which would have been some time in the early eighties, and I was never aware of the hype until MUCH later than that. I am today though a huge fan of film in general. I watch a movie a day, on average (no exaggeration) and I am a devoted fan of Star Wars! My point with this little tirade: I wasn't there to see it in 1977, but that really doesn't matter! Through seeing thousands of movies from every possible decade, I can easily imagine what it would have been like, sitting in a movie theatre in 1977, watching this unbelievable thing unfold on the screen! There is NOTHING like Star Wars from that time period! Nothing that comes even CLOSE! It is, for lack of a better way to put it, an entirely new kind of film that was invented right there. And watching it for the first time in 1977 must have felt like stepping through a portal into another time! The only three real life movie experiences I have had that comes close (but still could not possibly be the same) are: 1) Toy Story. Something that is taken for granted now, but back in 1995 it looked so incredibly bizarre! It was like animated claymation, but 1000 times smoother. 2) Terminator 2. I saw this with ZERO pre-knowledge, which of course made for a great twist with the good guy/bad guy switch. But also made my eyes almost pop out of my head when the T-1000 walked through those bars. That was something I had never seen before!! 3) Jurassic Park. My all time most memorable cinematic experience. As a kid I loved dinosaurs (what kid didn't, right!?) so I was eagerly looking forward to a Spielberg movie with DINOS!! Again, zero pre-knowledge, I hadn't even seen a trailer! About 20 minutes in, when everyone climbs out of the jeeps and the camera pans around to show.....a REAL LIVE DINOSAUR walking across the field.... I swear I almost started crying. My mouth hung open for such a long time I actually drooled on myself before remembering to close it. -Still.... Star Wars must have been something even MORE special than that!

Unless old audio just wasn't as clear, some of the wrong notes as soon as "Star Wars" pops up,l always gives me chills. Just shows how old and original it is

Even for a 36 year old in 2024, having seen the movie many times, this opening is a mind-blowing spectacle!

In 1977, I had read about Star Wars in Time magazine. I had the paperback (unread) with the original artwork. But when I saw the spaceships in battle, I was blown away. "I've waited my entire life to see a scene like this" came to mind. Star Trek had space battles but never like this. My first viewing was on a Thursday, and on Saturday I went to see it again.

The theatrical versions of the original trilogy are canon to the star wars timeline, I don't care what George Lucas and Disney say. Edit: As pointed out in the replies, George Lucas said that the Special Editions are canon, not Disney (I said Disney because unfortunately they currently own the rights to the Star Wars franchise and put the Special Editions on Disney+ so they obviously consider the SEs canon) so I added George Lucas as well.

Got to see it on my 11th birthday. And wanted to see again that night. Never forget it.

Opened in the UK during Dec 1977. I watching it for the very first in February ‘78. A life changing event.

I can only imagine how totally blown away everyone was in the theater. No one had seen effects of this caliber before, so to see this must have been like the most amazing thing ever!!

I remember seeing in for the first time in ‘77. The fanfare, the scroll, then the Star Destroyer that comes in at the top of the screen and keeps coming and coming and coming. One of the best movie watching moments ever.

That was awesome!!! I was 10 when that movie came out and was instantly hooked! This brought back the magic I felt then and is strong as ever now. Thank you very much for sharing that piece of history!

This is the only time I’ve ever seen it called just “Star wars”. Not “episode IV: A New Hope” 🤯. Have wanted to see this for so long

I was there, aged 9. I can't describe to you the moment that great battle cruiser stretched across the cinema. The entire audience was awestruck. This film left a lasting impression. Thankyou for posting.

The passion that this fandom has for preservation and franchise history makes me proud to love Star Wars.

Two of the seminal cinematic moments of my life that I still remember vividly to this day...7 yr old me seeing Jaws in 1975 and 9 yr old me seeing Star Wars in 1977. Both wonderful.

I was 9 years old when my mum took me and my brothers to this in 1977. I was blown away how spectacular the visuals were and have been a Sci fi fan eversince. Thank you for the wonderful memories of a happy childhood.

This is exactly how u start a movie

I was 7 when I saw this for the first time in 77. Magic. That was before suburban cinemas and I remember the line going out onto the city street and around the corner.

I wanna watch it all now! Thanks for uploading.

I was just about to turn eight in 1977 when my mom first took me to see this. Middle of the afternoon, packed movie theatre and when that Galactic Cruiser comes flying over the screen she blurted out "Wow!" You just never forget moments like that.

This is - TOO GOOD - i want the original versions on DVD. Way back in 1977 this movie blew the cinema going audience away ! No one had seen anything like it. Back then you could stay in the cinema and watch the same movie again, i watched this twice in a row.

I was 8 in 1977 and this was the most amazing movie. I saw it 23 times in the theater. I begged my mother to ask ever friend she had if I could go with them when they saw it. Looking back 23 times wasn’t enough.

I saw it opening day May 25th, 1977 at the Lowes in NYC. I was 19. I did not know what to expect, but it was science-fiction and I was going to go see it with my buddies. We were part of the first 200 people to see it and we got a “May the force be with you” button that I still have to this day. , cursing out loud as they did the scroll of chapter 4, yelling, “what am I gonna have to read this damn movie “. The theater rumbled as the imperial battle cruiser appeared on the screen. When I saw the engines fill up the screen, I knew there was going to be different than any movie I ever saw. I saw it every day thereafter and sat in the same seat for a week. Is Groundhog Day was real that would be the day I’d want to relive over and over and over again.

Thank you so much! I have truly missed the original version.

I've had arguments with people who were adamant that the 1977 theatrical release had "Episode IV" in the text crawl...

Nobody at that time knew this movie would be the phenomenon it still is. This intro alone is so powerfull. I still feel the magic through out the years.

Loved it! Thank you very much.

That must have been amazing to hear that music in a theater for the very 1st time. I wasn't here yet but at age 10 I saw the first Jurassic park in theaters. I will never forget being surrounded by that Trex roar. It seemed to make your who body vibrate when he did.

If that isn't one of the all time great film openings, I don't know what is. I was only 7 when I first saw it and I still get goosebumps today 😁

For me, it wasn't until June 1977. The lines had been so long, we couldn't get into the theater. In a time of Twin Cinemas, both screenings were sold out. We'd wait in line for an hour or more, just to be turned away at the box office. But on one night, they had one seat left and my dad said that I could sit in his lap. I was 6 years old. When the opening text crawl appeared on the screen, he read it to me (I couldn't read much beyond Dick and Jane books). But I will always remember him whispering those words to me. And it was one of the best times of my life. My dad has been gone for many years now, but your video helped me feel the nostalgia of that special day.

I deeply enjoyed this, thank you. I long for the full original film

Wow that’s great. I’d love to see the entire movie this way. Thanks for posting such a gem.