Unfortunately there was no midnight screening for Episode I in New Plymouth. Being a school day (and being only 12 at the time) I had to wait through an excruciatingly long day of classes before attending an evening screening on opening day. A few weeks later it was the school holidays, and time for a second viewing.
My age no doubt played a large part, but The Phantom Menace blew me away from day one. While my admiration for the film has diminished a little over the years, I still have incredibly fond memories of that opening day and seeing an entirely new Star Wars movie on the big screen.
