Star Words: Episode IV, Part 3
Apr. 4th, 2019 11:16 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
matrilThe scene I'll explore in this entry is portentous both from the perspective of an audience member in 1977 as well as for someone who has seen the prequels. Let's look at both viewpoints, shall we?
Our first introduction to Leia is in the opening crawl, as an agent of action, a guardian of precious information for the Rebellion. Then we see her slipping expertly through narrow corridors, evading capture and sending the stolen plans away to (relative) safety. Even when she gets captured, it's only after putting up a considerable fight. She's clearly a force to be reckoned with (ah, there's just no way to avoid "force" puns when talking about Star Wars).
On the other hand, we're introduced to Vader as a terrifying shadowy figure, masked and ominous, coolly surveying the wreckage of battle. And then we witness him interrogating a terrified rebel before strangling him with one hand and tossing him aside like a piece of garbage.
So our admiration of Leia can only increase when she is brought to him and immediately offers an unflinching reproof, without even giving him a chance to talk first.
"Darth Vader. Only you could be so bold."
She goes on to assert the Senate's certain disapproval of his actions and insists upon her cover story of a diplomatic mission. I mean, the sheer brazenness of it all! Let's be honest, Leia -- it's not only Vader who could be so bold. You might just be the boldest being in the galaxy. Vader rages furiously against her, yet she never loses her poise. What a glorious change from the leading ladies we'd seen in sci-fi or action films prior to Star Wars. They screamed, they fainted, they clung to the brave men who rescued them. At last we have a heroine who does something different, who takes on the role previously reserved for leading men.
After the prequels, though -- even after Episode VI -- this scene becomes exponentially more powerful. It's possible Leia and Vader have crossed paths before, but this is the first time we see it. And knowing what we know -- knowing that they don't know it -- oh, the pain and angst. Not only is Vader confronting his own daughter as an enemy, proceeding to take her captive and torture her, but Leia is behaving a great deal like her own mother would in similar situations. She, too, is an impassioned advocate for the oppressed, for fighting against tyranny. Does Vader see a glimmer of Padmé in her face -- whether literally or metaphorically? Is he perhaps all the more vindictive against her because she resembles the wife who, in his warped view of things, betrayed him? Ugggghhh. The possibilities are vast, and universally tragic. None of this was part of the storyline in 1977, of course, not for the audience or the actors or even Lucas himself, but it's fun to retroactively interpret things afresh. Leia is still awesome, and Vader is still terrifying, but layered on top of that is an unwitting father-daughter reunion.
Next time, first impressions of Luke....
Our first introduction to Leia is in the opening crawl, as an agent of action, a guardian of precious information for the Rebellion. Then we see her slipping expertly through narrow corridors, evading capture and sending the stolen plans away to (relative) safety. Even when she gets captured, it's only after putting up a considerable fight. She's clearly a force to be reckoned with (ah, there's just no way to avoid "force" puns when talking about Star Wars).
On the other hand, we're introduced to Vader as a terrifying shadowy figure, masked and ominous, coolly surveying the wreckage of battle. And then we witness him interrogating a terrified rebel before strangling him with one hand and tossing him aside like a piece of garbage.
So our admiration of Leia can only increase when she is brought to him and immediately offers an unflinching reproof, without even giving him a chance to talk first.
"Darth Vader. Only you could be so bold."
She goes on to assert the Senate's certain disapproval of his actions and insists upon her cover story of a diplomatic mission. I mean, the sheer brazenness of it all! Let's be honest, Leia -- it's not only Vader who could be so bold. You might just be the boldest being in the galaxy. Vader rages furiously against her, yet she never loses her poise. What a glorious change from the leading ladies we'd seen in sci-fi or action films prior to Star Wars. They screamed, they fainted, they clung to the brave men who rescued them. At last we have a heroine who does something different, who takes on the role previously reserved for leading men.
After the prequels, though -- even after Episode VI -- this scene becomes exponentially more powerful. It's possible Leia and Vader have crossed paths before, but this is the first time we see it. And knowing what we know -- knowing that they don't know it -- oh, the pain and angst. Not only is Vader confronting his own daughter as an enemy, proceeding to take her captive and torture her, but Leia is behaving a great deal like her own mother would in similar situations. She, too, is an impassioned advocate for the oppressed, for fighting against tyranny. Does Vader see a glimmer of Padmé in her face -- whether literally or metaphorically? Is he perhaps all the more vindictive against her because she resembles the wife who, in his warped view of things, betrayed him? Ugggghhh. The possibilities are vast, and universally tragic. None of this was part of the storyline in 1977, of course, not for the audience or the actors or even Lucas himself, but it's fun to retroactively interpret things afresh. Leia is still awesome, and Vader is still terrifying, but layered on top of that is an unwitting father-daughter reunion.
Next time, first impressions of Luke....
