It’s here. The last installment of the unparalleled series of Star Wars movies. Even you can’t wait to see Revenge of the Sith. Your children have grown up with the stories. They own the DVDs. They have the action figures. The light sabers. The books. At Halloween, they have dressed as Wookies, Darth Vader, and Boba Fett. Now, they can’t wait to see the final movie. If they are eleven years old and up, stop reading immediately and go buy tickets to this, the best Star Wars movie since Return of the Jedi.

But if they are ten years old and younger, welcome to a great media dilemma.

Here’s the deal: From now until they are taller than you, you will be engaged in a more or less constant negotiation with your kids about why they can or can’t see, play, hear, or buy something that a) all their friends are seeing, b) looks so cool c) has been advertised so much that they believe they know what’s in it and it isn’t so bad. Compound those arguments with a major must-see cultural event like the final Star Wars movie and you’re dealing with the equivalent of gorilla-sized peer pressure.

Here’s the rest of the deal: Only you know your kids well enough to make the decision if this movie is appropriate for them. Read some reviews -- ours, or others. Know what’s in the movie first. If you decide your children are too young for the movie, remember to tell them the DVD is coming. Sometimes kids on the cusp of understanding will do better to see an intense movie in a more familiar environment where the action on the screen can be stopped if things get too challenging.

But if you do decide to take your younger kids, be prepared to answer questions they might have about why children are killed, about childbirth, about why other people died or turned evil. Will young children be “harmed” by seeing the movie? No, probably not. But depending on the stage of their development, they may have nightmares, they may ask questions you’d rather not be answering, and they may be introduced to dark psychological concepts that they probably aren’t ready to understand. They might be afraid because some scenes -- dismemberments and maimings come to mind -- are scary, or they might be worried later that something “bad” could happen to them or to you, their parents. Be prepared to talk about these things after the movie and ask your kids what they liked, what frightened them, and what worried them. Allay their fears, probe their concerns. Remember to tell your kids who are seven and under that this is a story, a fairy tale, because children of that age have trouble distinguishing between reality and fantasy. We forget what an enormous impact mythic figures have on children. Make sure you fully understand your kids’ reactions to what happened to their heroes -- you will be teaching them about more than Star Wars. You will be setting an example of critical thinking about media -- and that’s a great thing for a loving parent to do.