Okay, here's the deal. Y'all ever heard of somebody having a revelation? You know, like when you have a car wreck, and you see your Great-Aunt Merlene standing in a bright light, but she tells you to go back, and you wake up and go back and for about a week you stop lying about your weight and start paying attention in church? I had one of those kinda things happen to me once.

I was a young buck, sitting in a movie theater, nerves on end about a new sci-fi flick that was turning over major coin and setting records all over the place. I sat there through the coming attractions for Billy Jack Goes to Washington and Telefon, already copping a severe attitude. I had convinced myself that the masses must be wrong -- they usually are -- and this thing is sure to be just another goofy cheese-fest with guys shooting at rubber dragons and wearing tin-foil caps. I was a junior in high school, so of course I had my share of attitude. The screen goes black, the Twentieth Century Fox logo runs, then the screen goes black again.

That's when it happened. These words appeared on the screen, in green, against the black background. "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.........."

Well, that threw me. A long time ago? I thought this was science-fiction. Futuristic science fiction. A long time ago? Was I in the right theater?

Before I could gather my thoughts, the first notes of the soundtrack bombarded into my head, and the words "Star Wars" appeared before my eyes. And, for the next two hours, I was completely absorbed. I let my jaw go slack and simply tried to forget everything I had ever thought about how tired the sci-fi genre was. As the footage unrolled in front of me, I became more than a film fan -- I was living the lives of the characters on screen. I even stopped eating my popcorn so I could "fly" the Millennium Falcon. The whole experience was a life-changing event...a revelation. The revelation struck me to all the way to my pancreas, and forever changed my thoughts about movies, the filmgoing experience, and, in some ways, even my basic philosophy of life. The film went on to change Hollywood too, reinventing the way films are made, marketed, and mythologized.

Friends and patients, Star Wars is back, and, yes, it is indeed better than ever. There is no reason for me to outline the plot for you. If you don't know it by now, you probably don't own a computer anyway, and your space under the rock is waiting for you. The characters are the same as you remember them. Nobody's got a new nose or a breast enhancement. What has occurred, though, is that the entire film has gotten a facelift. According to Star Wars creator George Lucas, it's all just an attempt use new technology to realize his original vision.

The negatives have been cleaned up to current standards. The soundtrack has been rerecorded in THX surround sound. And, oh, yeah, in case you haven't heard, there are a couple of new scenes here and there. Whoa, Nellie, stop panicking. It doesn't hurt anything. You get a handful of new creepy crawlies, an up-close with Jabba the Hut, maybe three completely new scenes lasting no more than two minutes apiece, and a couple of sprinkles here and there of laser bolts and explosions and trinkets. No major overhaul here.

The best thing is that Star Wars is back in theaters. And I had to go. I was drawn to the theater like an Ewok to a honey pot. I mean, I knew I'd make the trip when it came out again, but convinced myself I'd be too busy for opening day...too cool to storm the ticket booth at first light. Wrong. As soon as Star Wars hit town, I sped over and joined the line. There were the freaky geeks you'd expect, true, but there were many people there who had children with them. These parents were relating to their children what they were about to see, the people and places they were about to learn, the names that were going to be their friends for life.

And when those words appeared on that screen in green against black, I became a kid again. I forgot about my office, my patients, my ex-wives. I was a cocky teen again, arms crossed, waiting to be impressed. And with that first note of John Williams' booming score, I was Alex in Wonderland.

But I noticed things I didn't catch the first time around. I even noticed things that never caught my eye on video. I noticed the stormtrooper who bonks his head on a doorway, obviously a blooper that slipped by. I noticed what appears to be a pair of dice hanging from what could be the Millennium Falcon's rearview mirror. I noticed that Mark Hamill yells the name "Carrie!" at Carrie Fisher, even though her name in the movie is Leia. I noticed that Leia calls Han Solo "flyboy" only moments after meeting him for the first time, dressed as a stormtrooper. There's no way she could know his occupation at that point in the proceedings. So friggin' what, you know?

I also noticed that the audience applauded eleven times during the movie. The first appearance of Alec Guinness, the swagger of Harrison Ford braggin' about his fast ship, the moment C3P0 shuts down the garbage chute -- everybody applauded their favorite scenes. Every friend I've talked to says this was the scene in their theaters, too. The crowds love the movie, and they love being a part of the movie. They love experiencing this all over again, and they love sharing the excitement with their families.

George, thank you for bringing Star Wars back. Who cares what that idiot in "Entertainment Weekly" thinks? We missed it, and we wanted it back.