Hey look here’s me in 2007, all dressed up for a masquerade ball at the student union. Look what’s behind me! My Revenge of the Sith poster. (sadly no longer with us.) I got it free in either Empire or Total Film magazine, I think, just as the movie was coming out in 2005.
I took that poster to uni with me not because I loved the design of the poster (I still think it’s the worst Star Wars teaser poster that’s ever been made, sorry!) but because I loved the movie so much, and I loved the experience of going to see it. Some things I remember in no order:
During the scene where Anakin first walks in on the children hiding in the council room, one lady in the theater went “awww!” as the first little kid spoke. Mission accomplished on the part of Lucas there I guess, cos right after that… well you know the rest. Meep.
I had a sad-smile at Obi-Wan declaring “I will do what I must” because I recognised it as a callback to Qui-Gon, and he was my favourite.
So many Star Wars posters at the cinema! That one up there, my one, a huge version dangled over this drop inbetween where the first-floor cinema was and where it looked like a elevator should’ve been. There’s a climbing wall there now I think, or there was at one point.
After seeing the movie me and my friend went to either HMV or the Virgin Megastore (I believe neither of them exist anymore) and I frantically leafed through the novelisation of the film, looking for any more story.
It was sunny! It was really sunny. Every single one of the Star Wars prequels, I associate with being outside in the sun.
I really love this blink-and-you’ll-miss-it bit in Revenge of the Sith. It takes place just as Anakin gets in his ship to go save Palpatine, and it’s a perfect bit of visual foreshadowing of what that decision will lead to:
Back when Revenge of the Sith was filming, I found this behind the scenes image…somewhere. What scene is it? What exactly is going on between Obi-Wan and Anakin there? Sadly, I don’t know
One thing everyone forgets about Revenge of the Sith (which I suppose is fair enough, it was ten years ago) is how political and mildly controversial it was at the time.
When
reviews started coming out for it they all highlighted the point. The Washington Post called the movie “a blistering critique of the war
in Iraq“, the New York Times reported that “Mr. Lucas is clearly jabbing
his light saber in the direction of some real-world political leaders”,
and Slant Magazine called it “an anti-Bush diatribe”. Even Hayden Christensen jumped in there and said the film was “absolutely” a shot at Bush and other US presidents, and George Lucas took some time out during the press tour to explain his thoughts on US foreign policy.
Some people went as far as to recommend a boycott. (It didn’t work, obviously) To this day
I’ve heard people say that Anakin’s line “If you’re not with me, you’re
my enemy” is lifted direct from a Bush speech – it’s not, but it’s very very close. People went wild about it.
ROTS was absolutely a movie of its time, and that time’s gone now, and time hasn’t exactly been kind to the movie either. But it seemed quite important way back then, and it’s definitely as, well, as angry as a Star Wars film ever got.
I watched Revenge of the Sith last night (after DW) and it’s actually way better than I remember. I mean, I always liked it, but watching it again reminded me it’s a really bloody good movie.
