Anakin question Why did he have to be arrogant?
#1
Posted 29 November 2004 - 12:52 PM
George Lucas has said in many interviews that Anakin is supposed to be like a tragic hero like Achilles - a talented individual who is done in by his own pride. In trying to do this, George Lucas turned Anakin into a combination of a whiny brat-tacular teen and a mass murderer with a rapist leer.
The question I like to ask is why did Anakin have to be arrogant? There are SO many arrogant, rebellious young men in cinema - Luke Skywalker of the old trilogy could be viewed as a "rebel" of sorts - why did we have to take the same route with Anakin? It comes across as really cliche. A better characterization would have been to portray Anakin as insecure, reclusive, having a bit of an inferiority complex, maybe even scared of his own abilities. The Dark Side taps into a part of his personality that wants power not for power's sake but for security, to defend ones-self against a cold, cruel, uncaring world. As he garners more power, his personality gradually splits in two - the essential good half that is Anakin and the mean, sadistic half that calls itself Darth Vader. The Darth Vader half then proceeds to pursue the power of the dark side while the Anakin half unsuccessfully tries to resist it, until finally the Darth Vader half consumes the Anakin half, leaving Darth Vader as the dominant personality.
At least, that's what I think.
I'd like a qui-gon jinn please with an obi-wan to go.
#2
Posted 29 November 2004 - 12:58 PM
Buy the New LittleHorse CD, Strangers in the Valley!
CD Baby | iTunes | LittleHorse - Flight of the Bumblebee Video
Chefelf on: Twitter | friendfeed | Jaiku | Bitstrips | Muxtape | Mento | MySpace | Flickr | YouTube | LibraryThing
#3
Posted 29 November 2004 - 02:50 PM
#4
Posted 29 November 2004 - 03:46 PM
its the desire for power to keep things which turns to greed which turns to the lust for power which turns to episode 3. obviosuly, Obi wan is going to sense that hes going too far, and try to stop him.
yeah thats my biggest problem with it so far. with 3 in place, TPMs going to feel more like the odd one out then anything else.
although, Anakin clearly was a talented little git in TPM, so its not too much of a stretch to follow that on with Obi Wans line "his abilities have made him, well, arrogant".
#5
Posted 29 November 2004 - 04:19 PM
its the desire for power to keep things which turns to greed which turns to the lust for power which turns to episode 3. obviosuly, Obi wan is going to sense that hes going too far, and try to stop him.
yeah thats my biggest problem with it so far. with 3 in place, TPMs going to feel more like the odd one out then anything else.
although, Anakin clearly was a talented little git in TPM, so its not too much of a stretch to follow that on with Obi Wans line "his abilities have made him, well, arrogant".
making anakin a little kid in TPM was a big mistake. i know lucas had to get in the big emotional thing of an eight year old leaving his mother - his only family to join the jedi but he should've made him only slighly younger than luke was in ANH and write in another emotional thing in order to track anakin's emotional development as a jedi and a person and his relationship with his mentor obi wan and girlfriend padme. so far the prequel trilogy has been pretty uneven to say the least in portraying anakin believably.
#6
Posted 29 November 2004 - 05:18 PM
#7
Posted 29 November 2004 - 10:10 PM
#8
Posted 29 November 2004 - 11:45 PM
Quote
#11
Posted 30 November 2004 - 06:51 AM
Baby Berias and teenage Himmlers do not have the makings of "a tragic hero."
What oh what was Lucas thinking?
#12
Posted 30 November 2004 - 07:19 AM
Revan I actually wrote a fanfic focussing on how his fall to the Dark Side might have begun. It's not very good; however I think I can say with some confidence that it's more realistic than what happens to Anakin Skywalker.
No, of course not, but in real life the Dark Side doesn't exist. If you're not willing to accept the concept of the Dark Side then of course nothing in the Star Wars movies makes any sense. It's like watching Lord of the Rings and saying "Oh, come on! Does anyone really believe that putting on a ring can turn you into an evil, power-crazed tyrant?"
- J m HofMarN on the Sand People
#13
Posted 30 November 2004 - 08:20 AM
Exactly, arrogance or even the death of loved ones wouldn't change an individual the way Anakin does. He would probably have been tremendously angry at the Emperor when he discovered the truth, his favorite politician is a Sith Lord working to destroy all hope and goodness in the galaxy, primarily the Jedi. But instead of striking him down, he actually joins him! It's the same old anger makes you evil problem. It follows that the Dark Side somehow enthralls him to the will of the Emperor. "I must obey my Master".
#14
Posted 30 November 2004 - 12:09 PM
Thanks Madam! Even non Star Wars fans love those two little guys
Going back to Anakin, I've read two novels, and comic books, yes comic books, that have a better grasp on what the teenage Anakin should be like and how his relationship with Obi Wan should be handled. Why does it seem everyone but the man who created him know how to write this character
#15
Posted 02 December 2004 - 04:37 AM
There appears to be no real tenets or philosophy of any type behind this made-up mysticism. Okay, fine. Its a cinematic McGuffin. Yes, I can accept that even Lucas was too embarrassed just to have characters come out and simply say "I fight for good" or "I love eeeeevil."
BUT....this paper-thin concoction cannot then be used to explain otherwise inexplicable character development.
Let me once again bring up the comparison of the Godfather. Like Anakin, Michael Corleone is also turned from a good hearted but naive youngster in that film into a cold blooded monster by film's end. Contributing to that downfall is the Mafia's moral code which he initially wishes to have no part of but then comes to embrace and be corrupted by as he takes over the Family. The Code is not a few mumbo jumbo magic words and pablum catch-phrases that the director throws in. Its a palpable thing whose tenets (the code of silence, family loyalty, respect for authority) are understood and grasped by the audience before the movie is done. We can understand HOW the code corrupts.
But what is there, after five long movies, that we know about the Dark Side of the Force? Really.
How does one train to be a Dark Side Jedi? What questions are on the "Dark Side" jedi graduation exams. Is there an actual Dark Side philosophical school of thought? Nobody here can even guess because after five movies we've been given nothing.