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\nIt\u2019s December and Star Wars fans all over the world are in a frenzy to see the next installment of the epic space opera franchise, which comes after 10 long years.<\/p>\nThe movie Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, which will premiere on Dec. 18, is nearly a Christmas present for all fans after Walt Disney acquired Lucasfilm in 2012 and announced the creation of three new movies.<\/p>\n
However, with only two weeks left until opening day, fans in the CNMI are on tenterhooks as the fate of the local cinema is still unclear.<\/p>\n
Saipan\u2019s only theater, Hollywood Theaters, has been closed since the devastation of Typhoon Soudelor in August. After sustaining major damage to its cinemas, renovations and repair are still ongoing at the theater.<\/p>\n
Saipan Tribune made several calls and sent numerous emails to the theater\u2019s owner, Regal Entertainment Group\u2019s main office in Knoxville, Tennessee, but the company has yet to respond as to when the theater would open.<\/p>\n
Because of the uncertainty, a few Star Wars fans on island are already making plans on how to watch the much awaited movie.<\/p>\n
For Brad Ruszala and his family, they are eyeing Guam, which is the nearest option, and where America\u2019s premiere of the new movie begins.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the theater is still closed, we\u2019ll probably fly to Guam for that purpose,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Ruzala said he and his friends were joking about their movie plans way back in August when it still wasn\u2019t clear when the power would be restored to the island after Soudelor.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt started with a joke but with two weeks away, it started to become a reality,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Ruszala, who once had his whole family wear Star Wars costumes for Halloween, said he wouldn\u2019t do this just for any other movie.<\/p>\n
\u201cStar Wars has been around since I was a kid,\u201d Ruszala said.<\/p>\n
And Ruszala isn\u2019t the only one.<\/p>\n
According to Glenn Keaton, also a Star Wars fan and owner of Green Flash Comics, the only comic book store on island, he has some customers who also talked about going to Guam just to see the seventh episode of the franchise.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s already booked his flight a month ago because he didn\u2019t want to take any chances,\u201d Keaton said of one customer.<\/p>\n
He said there has been a buzz in his store for Star Wars in the past months.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fans are really looking forward to it,\u201d Keaton said.<\/p>\n
However, Keaton himself won\u2019t be flying to Guam for the movie.<\/p>\n
Another fan, George Hasselback, will not also be going to another island, but instead hopes that the theater will open.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust keeping my fingers crossed for the theaters to open on time,\u201d Hasselback said.<\/p>\n
While there is still hope for Star Wars to actually be shown on Saipan, there are several big films that movie lovers have already missed this year during the four months that the theater has been closed. Just some of these are The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2, Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials, Attack on Titan, The Martian, and the latest iteration of the James Bond franchise, Spectre.<\/p>\n
Star Wars fans on Saipan may have to collectively \u201cawaken The Force\u201d for the theater to open by Dec. 18.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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