Star Wars is for many people the greatest film franchise ever made. George Lucas hit the galactic spot with 6 films that have captured our imaginations since 1977 and introduced us to the Lightsaber; a toy I always wanted as a kid but never got. The girl who had her first crush on intrepid Hans Solo and wanted to cuddle up to Chubaka is long gone, now grown into a woman who has noticed so much more than just foolish fantasies.
The character I was and continue to be intrigued by the most is Darth Vader, Lord Vader actually. Where did this dark, striking figure come from and why did he end up in such a morbid place? The man behind the mask is revealed in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith which for me is tinged with so much sadness that I find it hard to watch. A conflict ensues between good and bad and all this in the mind of one man.
Before Lord Vader there was Anakin, the chosen one but not even the goodwill and love of his mentor, father figure and Jedi Knight Obi One Kanobi could dissuade him; the dark side pulling him in like a magnet. Anakin was loved and in love yet these dark forces seemed to be stronger than his feelings for pregnant Padame or any words of wisdom spoken by the Grand Jedi Master Yoda. This miniature yet immense cult figure is what I imagine a Tibetan space monk to look like; perhaps this is the insightful image George Lucas wanted us to see?
Revenge of the Sith is another epic journey into solar space but as the story unfolds, you are aware that this is really a journey of how a man makes decisions and the consequences that will undoubtedly affect everyone close. The initial hurt to others wears off like the layers of Anakin’s skin when burned as a result of his confused state but his pain will last a lifetime as the scars turn to anger, bitterness and regret resulting in ongoing wars with his petrified enemies and himself.
They say women are a mystery but what a man is thinking we will never really know. Being torn between what is perceived as right or wrong in our eyes is seen very differently by him; this is one battle he will choose to go into alone leaving his Lightsaber at the spaceship door he’ll do it his way. Will the force be with him? Only he knows his own strength.