MovieChat Forums > Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) Discussion > Should Anakin have chosen pure evil?

Should Anakin have chosen pure evil?

posted 8 years ago by otter
12 replies | jump to latest

I've always been so disappointed that Anakin turned out to be this dope who was manipulated into becoming a Sith and the emperor's puppet, deluding himself all along that he was doing the right thing. This makes him out to be a very weak character under the armor.

So... would the films have been stronger if Anakin had gone ahead and chosen to become evil, chosen to become a Sith because he preferred it to being a Jedi, and not because he was a wuss-ass dolt who thought that was the only way to save his babymomma? Would it have been a better story if he'd not only tuned against the Jedi, but turned against Padme, made a conscious choice to be as evil and powerful as he could become? Of course, the twist to that plot would have been that he could never be as evil and powerful as Palpatine, and that his quest for ultimate power could only end with him becoming the Emperor's slave and lap dog, a worse fate than putting up with all the Jedi rules and restrictions.

Agree or disagree!

“Seventy-seven courses and a regicide, never a wedding like it!

[–] RyanEvo9 8 years ago

I don't think his redemption would be quite so believable, then.

By the beard of Zeus!

[–] Conan-1982 8 years ago

"would the films have been stronger if Anakin had gone ahead and chosen to become evil, chosen to become a Sith because he preferred it to being a Jedi"

YES !!!!!

YYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSS !!!!!!!!!!!!!

I need to emphasize how right you are so I must insist :

YEEEEEESSSSSS !!!!!!!

YYYYYEEEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!!!!

FFFFFFUUUUUUUUUXXXXXXXXXXXXX YYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!!!!

You know what the worst part is ?

That it shouldn't need to be pointed out, it should be fxxxxn' obvious !

"Vader was seduced by the Dark Side of the Force" : when did THAT happen in those damn prequels ???

[–] KingCobra686 8 years ago

I dont think that Anakin viewed his actions as evil. He had hinted a couple times earlier in the prequels that he didnt agree with the Republic form of government and that a dictatorship might be better suited. In that respect, Palpatine and his Empire were exactly what Anakin believed was the correct route for governing the galaxy. Based on that, Anakin probably believed that he was helping people by supporting Palpatine, not hurting them.

[–] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Volley2020 8 years ago

And therein lies the problem.

Anakin wiped out children. Younglings as they are called in the movie. He wiped out people he had not only trained and worked with for the past 13 years, but he grew up with, it's absolutely sickening.

Anakin proceeds to purge and wipe out even more Jedi in the 19 years that follow Revenge of the Sith, and then allows Tarkin to wipe out some 2 billion people on Alderaan... There is no redemption for this kind of evil. The good Luke senses in Return of the Jedi from Darth Vader was definitely real, but it was written and filmed before this plot hole of a film was created. Just another reason the Prequel Trilogy needs a total rewrite to properly match up with the Classic Trilogy, in all aspects.

Anakin knew better, and his rush into the dark side for Episode III wasn't believable, just like when he was talking like a psychotic maniac in front of Padme in Episode II about killing sand people, and the women and children, and earlier loving dictatorships, and she still hangs around with him instead of telling Obi-Wan something is very very wrong with Anakin, and then she proceeds to get married to him in the same film... come on.

Literally hours before their marraige Anakin was lobbing off heads and killing children. You've got to be kidding me.

[–] KingCobra686 8 years ago

Good point, almost forgot about that. I still stand by my post though. People don't "choose to be evil". Everyone in the world finds ways to justify their actions, no matter how bad they are.

Anakin doesnt really seem them as innocent young kids, he probably sees them as brainwashed child soldiers. He sees them as future threats to the Empire and order in the galaxy. We know that he has convinced himself that Palpatine is the justified leader and this is just one step towards getting rid of the Republic and implementing the Empire.

Hes already killed women and children from the Tuskan Raider tribe that captured his mom. He probably justified that by considering it revenge or justice, or blaming them for making him lose control and do things that he didnt want.

[–] blackbird-44953 8 years ago

We're the Ruskin raiders human under their masks or some form of non human? Are they literally more animal than human? Here is the reason I ask. In this universe we love animals such as dogs and cats and pets and being cruel to them and or killing them is awful. However awful and disturbing these actions are(and there are penalties) it is not the same level as killing a human. So in the star wars world was killing the tusken raiders akin to some person going out and shooting a bunch of harmless stray dogs. Awful yes but not to the same level as humans.

[–] blackbird-44953 8 years ago

The reason I ask this is because it would make it easier for padme to forgive him and get past it. Especially since he clearly had remorse and regretted doing this.

[–] KingCobra686 8 years ago

I think they are humans, but I don't know if I have any proof of that. They are definitely more human than animal though.

[–] thenmadewild 8 years ago

No one really consciously chooses to be evil. The bad guys usually think they're the good guys. I'm sure Palpatine also deluded himself into thinking his actions were for the best. "This will bring peace and stability, and end all the corruption and decadence that has gone on too long," etc. Of course he very clearly wanted power, but I'm sure he lied to himself about why, at least a little. When you think about it, what did we see of the republic's leadership? Corruption, in-fighting, super-fancy accommodations and clothes...and meanwhile some people were still living as slaves. And what did we see of the Jedi? A bunch of people with sticks up their rear ends who couldn't even figure out Palpatine was a sith. The writing was kind of on the wall for the Republic. It had become stagnant and inward-looking, like Rome. It fell because it was going to fall.

[–] manchof1 8 years ago

I'm glad this is the direction they chose for Anakin's turn, something else like that would have made it seem one-dimensional and wouldn't have made his redmeption as powerful.

[–] tenantennae 8 years ago

The way Luke was almost seduced in ROTJ was perfect. His reasons for nearly slipping over the edge were clear-cut (defeat the Emperor, kill Vader to protect Leia).

Anakin's motivations, however, were lame.

Sidious: Uh, I don't actually know how to save your wife, but go kill all your friends and I'm positive we can figure it out.

Anakin: Seems legit.

That's not even a guarantee. What a MORON. 