-
The love scene dialogue everyone hates is actually Shakespeare adapted for Star Wars
“And now that I’m with you, I can’t breathe.”
“I’m hoping that the kiss you never should have given me does not become a scar.”
The love scene dialogue of Attack of the Clones is done in a very intentional and particular style not seen in any Star Wars film before: that of Shakespeare (as ammended for Star Wars.)
As John Williams’ aptly titled “Across the Stars” plays in the background, two star-crossed lovers play out their role in the second Star Wars movie.
For most with at least a rudimentary background in Shakespeare that you should have gotten from paying attention in a grade school English class, Romeo and Juliette were known alternatively as the star-crossed lovers.
Their fate was to be tragic. A forbidden love between two children of noble birth but rival houses, Juliette and Romeo marry in secret and plan to run away. Juliette obtains an anesthetic from a pharmacist (apothecary in Old English terms) and uses it to fake her own death. She is to be entombed in a mosoleum, so when she wakes, she’ll be able to escape her own grave. Through a mix-up, Romeo has no idea of her plans. When he finds her and believes her to be dead, he kills himself with his own sword to die with his beloved. Only to her horror, Juliette wakes to find the terrible thing Romeo has done, and she uses the same sword to kill herself, thus making the same sacrafice that he did for her, and sharing equally in their love and ill fortune.
Those of you who didn’t know this story should get out and read the Classics from your local library and at least know Romeo and Juliette.
Compare this with Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amdiala. Their fate is to be tragic. A forbidden love between two children of noble birth and non-intermarrying factions (the Republic Senate and the Jedi Order). Padme and Anakin marry in secret and plan to keep their union under cover. Anakin decides to leave the Jedi Order, for other reasons, but one advantage to him is to be out and open about his wife, who’s pregnant with their children. Padme has a plan to sort things out, but she is presumed killed along with their child, and Anakin forsakes everything and has nothing left to live for and “kills the good man that was Anakin Skywalker [to become] Darth Vader.” Only later, upon learning the truth about what happened to Padme, Vader pledges to fight on to be reunited in power with his son Luke Skywalker who he pursues Across the Stars.
“And now that I’m with you, I can’t breathe.”
Darth Vader requires special life support systems because he has no lungs.
“I’m hoping that the kiss you never should have given me does not become a scar.”
Anakin Skywalker in Episode 3 promo pictures we’ve already seen (and by way of the arm Dooku severed in AOTC) has already become scarred as he defies the Jedi Order while in pursuit of his forbidden love. His reckless charge at Dooku in the Geonosian Hanger was spurred on by his anxiety over Padme’s questionable fate when she fell from the Republic Gunship over the dangerous Geonosian wastelands.
In Romeo and Juliette, Romeo pursues his love who protests the inappropriateness of their relationship, but ultimately cannot help but fall for the truly and sincerely in love Romeo.
In Attack of the Clones, Anakin pursues his love who protests the ianappropriateness of their relationship, but ultimately cannot help but fall for the truly and sincerely in love Anakin.
The dialogue was constructed around how people of noble birth court each other, with formal language and impassioned, articulate words displaying their worth in intelligence and culture, as well as their feelings.
By contrast, Han Solo has had a military education and communicates only what is practical to be saying, in as few words as possible. Han hides his feelings and instead of saying “I long to kiss your lips for one last goodbye” he turns his hard-to-admit feelings around and puts the emotional journey upon Leia to undertake with “Afraid I was going to leave without giving you a good-bye kiss?”
A former soldier and a princess are an inappropriate match as well, but Han has no such education telling him that it’s impossible one way or another, and Leia is a princess of a noble house that no longer exists (since the Death Star made her a princess over nothing, no house, no lands, etc.) Their stars become un-crossed.
Han and Leia meet and journey towards being able to be together as love intends for them.
Anakin and Padme meet and journey towards never being able to be together as love intends for them.
At this point, I don’t want to go quoting Shakespeare from Romeo and Juliette, but if someone else sees my point and wants to take up the cause, then fine.
If you don’t like Attack of the Clones’ “Padme in Black Leather” scenes, at least consider the possible reason behind it. Juliette even wore the Victorian style dress (in white though) with the cleavage showing, very similar to Padme’s clothing change (to black, signaling the Dark Side turn things would eventually take if these star-crossed lovers indulged themselves). Padme wears no other strapless low-top in Star Wars.
I think this is all intentional homage to Romeo and Juiliette.
If you want to create a classic epic with a star-crossed romance that turns tragic, take a page from the MOST CLASSIC star-crossed love tragedy in history and pay tribute to the real master: Shakespeare.
It is always a good idea to read more than just the backs of your action figure cards.
I hope this might help you appreciate fine romantic literature in a little story called Attack of the Clones.
-
37 Replies
Sorry, there were no replies found.
Log in to reply.