Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith Reviews

Revenge of the Sith is by far the darkest and most dramatic tale of the Star Wars mythology. What makes Star Wars Episode III so compelling is the dramatic fall of our heroic figure Anakin Skywalker. Anakin Skywalker begins episode three as a fully trained and noble Jedi Knight. He is an admired warrior not only because of his skills in combat but because of his heroism, selflessness, and nobility. In the opening space battle scene (I feel that I am not giving too much away) he refers to Obi Wan Kenobi respectfully as "Master" always. There is a sequence in which Kenobi is in a perilous and seemingly hopeless situation, trapped inside his star fighter with only moments of life left. Anakin's attempt to save his master's life puts into risk his own life and the mission to save chancellor Palpatine. Realizing this, Kenobi orders Skywalker to abandon him and continue the mission saying, "there is nothing left you can do." Skywalker's immediate, unflinching response is "I will not leave you master."

Contrast the nobility of Anakin Skywalker in the beginning of Revenge of the Sith with the villainy of Darth Vader, into whom we all know that Anakin will transform into, and you can have only sympathy for Skywalker's fall from grace. How can a man who was so young, so good, so selfless and with so much potential to do even more good become twisted by anger, arrogance, hatred, fear, and lust for power. How can an Anakin Skywalker who refused to leave Master Kenobi to die at the risk of his own life be so willing to turn against and kill all the Jedi that raised him, showed him kindness, and taught him strength, as Darth Vader?

If the original 3 episodes of the Starwars Trilogy is about the Good overcoming Evil, Revenge of the Sith will certainly add the quality of redemption and salvation to its original themes - it is about the triumph of a son's love for his father over the temptation and guiles of the Devil. In Starwars Episode III, we finally unmask Darth Vader and find the good that Luke Skywalker feels is still in his father. We come to understand what it was that Luke Skywalker sensed that compelled him to save his father from the Dark Side of the Force while others felt the man who was Anakin Skywalker truly was killed and consumed by the demon Darth Vader. We come to understand the birth of Darth Vader through Anakin Skywalker's visible transformation from angel to devil, hero to murderer. It is this dramatic transformation which makes this installment of Starwars so compelling to the audience. Starwars Episode III truly completes the tale and journey of Anakin Skywalker.

By: Guest