Star Wars is NOT Sci-fi

This has been bugging me. When asked to classify the genre of the Star Wars films, people always say science fiction. There is nothing scientific about these movies. Calling them scientific cheapens the intellectual depth of movies like The Matrix and even The Terminator. It's FANTASY dammit, why don't people think?

The Term 'Sci-Fi' means fictional science(or not real) not real science.

I think your the one who needs to think....

Science fiction is supposed to be speculative in that it explains how it works, making the science in sci-fi movies POTENTIALLY real. Fantasy means something that could never happen, which seeing as no explanation is given for the science in these movies, is what Star Wars is.

I've never thought of Star Wars as Sci-fi. It's a fantasy film in a sci-fi (space ships, laser guns, etc) setting.

I've always thought of it as Science Fantasy. Certain things could not be very well explained away.

*Cough* midichlorians!*cough cough*

ding!ding! last 2 posts have got it...what seperates fantasy and sci-fi is TECHNOLOGY! LOTR is pure fantasy because of lack of it, I could see calling Star Wars a sci-fi fantasy, but with starships and blasters and galactic civilisations, it can't be considered pure fantasy...

I guessed it. What do I win?

Err, yes, of course Star Wars is sci-fi; it doesn't matter how silly the technology is. Its influences, such as Flash Gordon, come within the same category.

But Star Wars has a far more mythological mood than most sci-fi, which makes it feel different.