We had an absolutely amazing episode this week, showing us more about Ezra’s past, present and future! While all of this was going on we were also teased with another new trailer for The Force Awakens! Slightly bad timing as it … Continue reading Star Wars: Rebels – ‘Legacy’ Review
It’s time for another Scene It? post and for this one I have chosen one of my favourite moments from The Phantom Menace: the Queen-reveal. It’s probably not technically a single scene but it is definitely a single story-beat. It is great in a … Continue reading Scene It? – ‘I am Queen Amidala’
Although Luke Skywalker is, arguably, the main character of the Star Wars Original Trilogy, he is also one of the characters that receives the most flack. From the moment Mark Hamill mentioned power converters and Tosche Station, Luke Skywalker seemed doomed … Continue reading Misperceiving Luke: is it whining or is it character-development?
One of the most fascinating characters in the whole Star Wars saga is, undoubtedly, Sheev Palpatine, also known as Darth Sidious, as played by Ian McDiarmid. In the Original trilogy he was the undoubted villain, the character who had no remorse … Continue reading The Emperor, Palpatine and Darth Sidious: Developing Character over Time
Some time ago I wrote a post about Zam Wessel, one of my favourite female characters to come out of the Star Wars Prequels who is often forgotten about in discussions about Star Wars. Another one of these women who, despite most … Continue reading Star Wars’ Forgotten Women #2: Shmi Skywalker
The second teaser for The Force Awakens starts out with Luke recounting how the Force is strong in his family. The first time he utters these words in the Saga however is just after he discloses to Leia why he needs … Continue reading Scene it? – Luke’s surrender on Endor
I want to share my thoughts with you on the acting in the prequel trilogy, in particular that of Jake Lloyd and Hayden Christensen in their roles as Anakin Skywalker. This is a controversial issue and the media have been, and still are, full with statements that start with ‘wooden acting’ and end with ‘horrible dialogue’ or in reverse order. Some blame it on the actors, some blame it squarely on the director. Many, friendlier, voices can be heard saying that the acting in the Original Trilogy was similar and that this is simply ‘Star Wars’. I want to shed a different light on this, focussing on the portrayal of Anakin. Continue reading “Lloyd & Christensen’s Anakin Skywalker”
Like many of the other Corridor Chat posts, this one could be considered to contain spoilers and therefore I suggest that everyone who does not want to be spoiled reads one of our other posts! Today the sixth installment of … Continue reading Corridor Chat: ‘Star Wars’ Comic Introduces Major Twist (Spoiler Alert)
I am currently on a rewatch of the 200
8 The Clone Wars series and realized that S1E08, ‘Bombad Jedi’ is an absolutely fascinating episode! Not only funny, it gives room to some major development for two of Star Wars‘ most interesting characters: Padmé Amidala and Jar Jar Binks. ‘Bombad Jedi’ works on a lot of different levels, reintroducing the political element of the Clone Wars and showing how war leads to suffering and betrayal. The episode, directed by Jesse Yeh, starts with the fortune cookie-esque ‘Heroes are made by the times‘, but rather than focus on our accepted heroes, Anakin Skywalker or Obi-Wan Kenobi, the episode goes out of its way to show that heroism exists on different levels and can be found in everyone.
From the very start of the episode it is clear that Padmé is in control of this mission. Her unwavering loyalty to her friends has brought her into dangerous territory and yet she goes there believing in the strength of diplomacy and peace, in itself the start of a very heroic quest. In choosing Jar Jar as her companion, she also reveals her recognition of similar principles in Jar Jar. Chancellor Palpatine functions as a good point of contrast to her behaviour when he mocks Jar Jar’s “qualifications”. He not only disregards JarJar but also looks at him with contempt, unable to see the potential Jar Jar holds. Palpatine respects martial strength and Jar Jar’s own brand of strength is not something he recognizes, initially. In some ways this is similar to how he considered Padmé naive in The Phantom Menace only to have to admit by the end of the film that she is a lot stronger than he thought.
Continue reading “‘Bombad Jedi’: Working Against Stereotype”
In today’s Scene It? post I’ll be looking at one of the most heart-breaking scenes in The Revenge of the Sith (2005), the third prequel film which depicts Anakin’s switch to the Dark Side of the Force. I am, of course, talking about the scene between Padme and Anakin on Mustafar, shortly before the battle between Anakin and Obi-Wan. Naturally, this post contains spoilers for The Revenge of the Sith. If you want a quick refresher on the scene, help yourself to the video below, the first half of which I will be discussing:
Some of the criticism directed towards RotS focused on the development of Padme Amidala’s character. In The Phantom Menace she is a young queen, exclusively focused on saving her planet from being taken over by the Trade Federation. In The Attack of the Clones she returns as a senator of Naboo and a key senator in trying to stop the outbreak of a war. We also see her trying to cope with her feelings for Anakin Skywalker and fighting for her life. In The Revenge of the Sith, Padme and Anakin are married, with the twins on the way, while she continues in her role as senator. As the Republic falls apart, so, it could be argued, does everything she has worked for. The difficulty with which Padme switches between her roles as senator and wife is, I believe, on purpose. As Anakin slowly loses himself it becomes harder for her to unite her principles with her emotions. The reason this scene is heart-breaking is because everything Padme believed in has either been corrupted or fallen apart. Below I will discuss why her choice of response to this is one which is probably singular in modern cinema and makes her stand out as one of the strongest women in sci-fi.
Clone Corridor 