Just before I left Helsinki we went to see Star Wars Episode III. Even though it had been out a couple of days, lots of Star Wars fans were still there - one guy carrying a stormtrooper's helmet. As the film began and the intro scrolled onto screen, someone near the front lit up a lightsaber, which was met with applause.

We liked the film lots, but of course it has a lot to live up to, especially as I've lived through the Star Wars years and remember going to the very first (I mean fourth) film long, long ago in a country far, far away (Dundee Odeon in the 1970's). The special effects are truly lifelike and I left the cinema exhausted from the non-stop action from beginning to end - people had problems getting a chance to eat their popcorn through it. It's also cleverly made to blend in with Episode IV - produced all those years ago - with costumes and sets merging nicely. In fact I was so impressed with the way that the story explained everything that came later (or was it earlier) that from now on I plan to begin reading all books from the middle to the end, then read from the beginning to the middle.

Here's a working robot of the real hero of the series, R2D2, that's been built by a group in Italy.
Not sure if it can project holograms yet though...