A Thousand Stars: Episode IV, Part 13

[matril]

I was occupied with Thanksgiving all day yesterday, so here's a post a day later! Let's look at the first scene aboard the Death Star.

We've seen the brute strength of the Empire, represented by stormtroopers and the imposing presence of Darth Vader. Now we get a look at the administrative side of things. Don't be fooled by the apparent mundanity. This is where men in crisp uniforms sit around a table and coldly discuss how to keep an entire galaxy in thrall. Later on in the saga we'll meet the Emperor and his over-the-top, cackling exultation in evil, but these men are villains too, make no mistake of it. The sort of evil that takes the form of committees and bureaucracy, following orders and ticking off checklists while human lives are at stake.

Next time, grief in powerful understatement...

Comments

[krpalmer]

Having watched my way through the Star Wars movies again last week, I did have an eye open for what I supposed you'd be getting to next here. This scene might be a bit understated visually (although that leads to the unfortunate temptation of imagining a more elaborate set with big displays on the walls or something), but I can see the point of it illustrating the "banality of evil" you were talking about. I did also wonder a little about whether some people fixate more on the end of the scene and Darth Vader choking one of the Imperial officers, although there I'm thinking back to a point Fernwithy once made about that beginning to suggest Vader isn't just one particular-or-distinctive part of the evil machine...

[matril]

I agree that people focus on the choking bit just for the "cool" factor, while I find it more interesting that Vader's zealotry is not shared by the rest of the Imperial leadership -- and he backs down at Tarkin's command, showing he's not really in charge. Plus, the guy he strangled doesn't exactly look ready to convert to Vader's religion. It's kind of hollow posturing.