“Wax on…Wax off”

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Matt Todd

I just finished watching The Karate Kid for the first time in…well, probably more than a decade. It’s definitely a classic 80s movie – the hair, the clothes, the music – even though it obviously wasn’t trying to be a period piece or anything like that. I realized tonight that Aiden is almost the same age that Christy and I were when the movie came out in theaters. It’s a strange feeling when you realize that your son is the same age you were when you watched certain movies for the first time. That being said, I doubt we’ll let him watch Karate Kid any time soon.

The Karate Kid is one of those movies where no matter how many times I watch it, the ending still gives me chills. You know Daniel’s gonna ‘Crane Kick’ Johnny in the face and you just can’t help but get excited. The hairs on my arms and neck stood on end as I watched the scene for the umpteenth time.

Watching this scene made me think of other movies I can watch over and over again, yet still get chills at the ending. These are the ones that make me want to stand up and shout, “Yeah!” every time I see them. Amazingly, they’re all from my childhood. Here they are, in no particular order.

* As mentioned, The Karate Kid

* Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope

The chills begin the moment the Death Star blows up. Unfortunately, that scene is unavailable online as far as I can tell – and I just wasted 45 minutes looking for it (yeah – dumb me!). They probably go after anyone who posts it for protection of the image of Star Wars. Come on – after the release of the Special Edition, it became pretty clear that the real motive behind anything Lucas does is to squeeze more money out of a piece of art that revolutionized the industry and brought a generation together. He’s always said he wants to ‘protect’ the Star Wars name. Really? I think he just wants to keep making a buck. If he’s still alive in 10 years, I’ll bet he starts talking about doing another movie. And big ol’ dorks like me will still go to midnight showings of the premieres of yet another series of films that don’t quite live up to the original.

But I digress. In spite of all of the changes that have, in my opinion, ‘watered down’ the entire Star Wars saga, the ending to the original first Star Wars still makes me want to get up and shout for joy. It’s one of those moments in storytelling that inspires me to want to create something.

* Transformers: The Movie

When Hot Rod places his fingers in the Autobot Matrix and the music starts to play (5:13 mark on this clip), I can’t help but feel like I’m in the movie theater again with my friends. It was one of the coolest moments…ever.

Yep – I’m a big ol’ dork. So sue me. Are there any movies that still make you get goose-bumps and feel inspired, regardless of how many times you’ve seen it? Feel free to share!

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Matt Todd

Howdy. I'm Matt. My wife, Christy, and I have four kids and two dogs, I'm passionate about orphan care. I'm a die-hard fan of the Evansville Aces, the Indiana Hoosiers, and Star Wars. I'm trying to live life by the Todd family motto: "It behooves us to live!"