As critics around the world raise their respective thumb - or lower it, as many already have - in review of the new “Star Wars” film, it makes me wonder, why is it that this series has, for so long, captivated us all?

Why do thousands of fans dress in Boba Fett costumes and Princess Leia hair-wraps? Why do they wait in line for hours on end just to secure what “good” seats might be left in a sold-out theater?

Why have they held their collective breath for nearly three years, ever since “Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace” sparked the beginning of the prequel trilogy?

Maybe it is the presumed fact that this, like the four prior films, will ignite within each viewer just a tiny bit of the Force (hint of sarcasm there).

Maybe it is a way of showing praise for such an epic, creative work of cinematic art. Or, it may be possible that all the fans who arm themselves with homemade lightsabers are just obsessed with the film series on a very unhealthy level.

Or maybe, just maybe, it is true that the “Star Wars” series as a whole provides the perfect cinematic escape for its viewers. And in today’s cinematic era, where ticket sales and projected net-profits may call all the shots, this once movie-must may seem about as common as an Oscar-winning “Friday the 13th” sequel.

Even with this possibility, I am proud of the fact that I have never succumbed to the whole “Star Wars” fiasco, aside from enjoying what is on the screen, that is. But, this obviously sets me aside from a very large portion of the film industry’s demographic.

I have never bought an action figure, nor do I ever plan on it. But that doesn’t mean I don’t love the movies.

This division of “Star Wars” opinion grew obviously thicker as the release of “Episode II” drews nearer. Even now - the very week of its release, the very day of its premiere - critics go head to head in debate. Some, obviously deeply affected by the dark side (more sarcasm), claim the film can not dig it’s way out of the hole “Episode I” dug. Others claim that George Lucas has outdone himself. It seems everyone is cemented in a position.

But stuck right in the middle of all the heated reviews is mine (yet to be written) and maybe a few others, including Roger Ebert’s - a film critic whose opinions I seldom take to heart.

“It is not what is there on the screen that disappoints me, but what is not there,” Ebert said in his review, which appeared in the May 10 issue of the Chicago Sun-Times. “What about the agnostic viewer? The hopeful ticket buyer walking in not as a cultist, but as a moviegoer hoping for a great experience?”

This is the first time I can remember where I have actually listened to Ebert. However, with all of this uncertainty still clogging the critical pipeline, I can do everything but set my expectations in stone (which is something I always love to do). This is one of those times I never look forward to, but always end up looking back on a lot.

So, with all of my expectations constantly being pounded down by negative reviews, and only to rise again thanks to some positive ones, I can only ask why. Why is it this hard? I do not know what to expect.

The time leading up to this film seems like one long tug-of-war match. On one side is all the fanatics; the Han Solo look-alikes and the parents who enthusiastically dress their kids as Yoda. And on the other, everyone else.

I would be surprised to hear that George Lucas knows exactly what it is about his creation that feeds so many hearts and minds, leading them to grab this rope and tug. He is stuck with just as many questions as I am.

However, as we all know, with “Star Wars: Episode III” due out in 2005, Lucas does not have the time to answer any of his own questions.

So, in desperately trying to answer all of my questions, I have gone in a complete circle. Lucas’ grand design is only as grand as it’s followers.

Without die-hard fans, “Star Wars” would, eventually, die hard. Therefore, anything these people do is worth it, at least to them. And that’s all that matters.

Cory Vowell is a State News film reporter. E-mail him at vowellco@msu.edu.