More thoughts about ROTS
I watched the movie two times already and will go again tomorrow with a friend. The movie is definitely haunting me. I've also started to feel rather sad. I think there are two reasons for that:
1) No more waiting for the next SW movie.
2) When I think that after the end of ROTS, there are 20 years of loneliness and darkness ahead for Anakin, it just makes me very sad. He'll never hold his babies in his arms, he'll never hold Padme in his arms again as long as he's alife, and he'll never knowingly meet his daughter.
When I watch the movie, I *know* how it will end. But every time I hope it will not have to end like this. In some way, watching the movie is like walking down a staircase into darkness. First step down = Dooku's death, second step down = we learn that Anakin trusted Palpatine with the secret of his attack on the Tusken raider's, and so on.
lazypadawan wrote in her journal:
Evil he may be, Vader is capable of love. This makes him unique among the Sith and it's a double-edged lightsaber. Love of course leads him astray but love is also what frees him. Someone on the Anakin Skywalker Homepage noted that it was his love for Padmé that breaks the chains on the operating table just as his love for Luke breaks the chains of the Dark Side later on. Even so, Vader is dangerous to those he loves because being a Sith requires unbridled emotion, particularly hatred. Offering Padmé the chance to rule the galaxy as husband and wife underscored that not only did Anakin have designs on the throne all along (though I think he'd put Padmé to do the actual job of ruling) but that this is the weird way he shows love to people. "Join me and we can rule the galaxy as father and son" was to him a heartfelt expression of his love for Luke. And if you don't take him up on it, he maims you or chokes you.
My reply:
I was the one with the chain comment. :-) Makes me happy to see that it struck a cord with you.
During the second viewing, I noticed that Vader rips the manacles from the table, but the manacles themselves still are around his hands. So he tries to free himself, but does not yet fully succeed. He will need his son's help for that. IMO, the remarkable thing is that Luke just does not give up. Even when the Emperor attacks him with force-lightning, he *still* calls out for his father.
I don't think being a true Sith is compatible with loving anyone. Either Anakin becomes a full Sith or he continues to love another and will remain on the Light Side. Because being a Sith means to focus on oneself entirely. There's simply no room for someone else.
Anakin dreams of ruling the galaxy together with Padme, but he doesn't understand (well, doesn't WANT to understand) that others are horrified by what he has done so far. In his confrontation with Padme on Mustafar, he *refuses* to see what he has become. He can't even admit what he did to the younglings. Instead of looking at what he's done, he tries to blame others. ("Obi-Wan has turned you against me.") It's all strongly reminiscent of the Tusken slaughter: Anakin knows what he did was wrong, but he cannot admit it. Instead the Tuskens are dehumanized (he compares them to animals) and Obi-Wan is blamed ("It's all Obi-Wan's fault. He's holding me back.")
In some ways, it's guilt and trying not to deal with this guilt, that turns him to the Dark Side!
After Anakin force chokes Padme, he doesn't run to her and checks if she's alright. He's so far gone already that he turns away from her and starts strutting up down, talking about his empire of peace. It's Obi-Wan who bends down and checks Padme's pulse. At this point, Anakin is subsumed by Vader. Oh, his good side is still there - I believe if Padme hadn't died, he would have tried to find her and maybe, just maybe have turned back.
Vader offering Padme or Luke to rule by his side: Yes, I love the parallels. I truly believe that Vader/Anakin never cared for power in itself; it only had meaning for him, because he could use it to protect the ones he's close to. And both Padme and Luke don't take him up on his offer which must hurt him deeply every time. He doesn't understand that they don't want power, they would only want him as a loving husband/loving father. Seems as if Anakin is so insecure deep down he cannot accept that he himself would be enough.