![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Star Words: Episode III, Part 17
Aug. 16th, 2018 05:56 pmAs Obi-Wan departs for Utapau, we are granted another glimpse of Anakin's visions of Padmé's death, this one with an appearance by none other than Obi-Wan himself. Anakin is visibly troubled by this, perhaps wondering why his former master would be there when there's no sign of Anakin. We can assume that Anakin has been plagued by these visions repeatedly ever since that first nightmare. No wonder he looks so haggard. And now we see the hints of a suspicion that Padmé and Obi-Wan are keeping something from him.
He asks if Obi-Wan has been in the apartment, almost accusingly, but Padmé answers with reassuring calm, speaking warmly of their shared concern for Anakin. This brings Anakin to a more vulnerable place, exhausted rather than accusatory. He feels lost; he doesn't feel the Council trusts him. Padmè is sure those fears are unfounded; surely the Council trusts him with their very lives. But Anakin might have good reason to assume their distrust, something Padmé hasn't been fully aware of until he tells her.
"I'm not the Jedi I should be. I want more...and I know I shouldn't."
This line, the wording and the perfect delivery, give me goosebumps. The distant gaze, the suddenly intense stare, and then looking down in shame and bitterness. All of Anakin's conflict is encapsulated here. He longs to be a model Jedi, but he strains against their restrictions, their prohibitions and exacting mandates. Most of all he desires the power to ensure that he will never again have to endure a loss like when his mother died in his arms. He tells this to his wife, confiding in her at least a part of the secret quest he has been pursuing. He's found a way to save her.
From Padmé's surprise at this declaration, she hadn't realized just how much his nightmares have tormenting him. She tries to reassure him, to promise that she won't die in childbirth. But Anakin just responds emphatically, "No, I promise you." There's that portentous word again. Promise. Anakin has said that word to his loved ones quite a bit. But for some promises, the cost to fulfill them is far too steep.
Note also that this scene mirrors Anakin and Padmé's first conversation in this bedroom. He confides in her as they stand apart, they draw closer together, he pours out his fears in rising distress. But while the first scene ends with the promise of romantic sparks, the second finishes with ominous foreboding. The end is near.
Next, a callback to the original trilogy...
He asks if Obi-Wan has been in the apartment, almost accusingly, but Padmé answers with reassuring calm, speaking warmly of their shared concern for Anakin. This brings Anakin to a more vulnerable place, exhausted rather than accusatory. He feels lost; he doesn't feel the Council trusts him. Padmè is sure those fears are unfounded; surely the Council trusts him with their very lives. But Anakin might have good reason to assume their distrust, something Padmé hasn't been fully aware of until he tells her.
"I'm not the Jedi I should be. I want more...and I know I shouldn't."
This line, the wording and the perfect delivery, give me goosebumps. The distant gaze, the suddenly intense stare, and then looking down in shame and bitterness. All of Anakin's conflict is encapsulated here. He longs to be a model Jedi, but he strains against their restrictions, their prohibitions and exacting mandates. Most of all he desires the power to ensure that he will never again have to endure a loss like when his mother died in his arms. He tells this to his wife, confiding in her at least a part of the secret quest he has been pursuing. He's found a way to save her.
From Padmé's surprise at this declaration, she hadn't realized just how much his nightmares have tormenting him. She tries to reassure him, to promise that she won't die in childbirth. But Anakin just responds emphatically, "No, I promise you." There's that portentous word again. Promise. Anakin has said that word to his loved ones quite a bit. But for some promises, the cost to fulfill them is far too steep.
Note also that this scene mirrors Anakin and Padmé's first conversation in this bedroom. He confides in her as they stand apart, they draw closer together, he pours out his fears in rising distress. But while the first scene ends with the promise of romantic sparks, the second finishes with ominous foreboding. The end is near.
Next, a callback to the original trilogy...
