Fallen Man, Son of Man

Continuing our series on the Star Wars Saga (just arrived? Start here).

In Episode 1: The Phantom Menace, Anakin appears innocent enough– not a bad bone in his body.  We even discover that he is “divinely created”.   Still, we know from subsequent movies that he will be tempted and fall from grace to embrace the dark side.  Skywalker will serve the Emperor, his Lord and ruler,shackled to him like a dog.   “I must obey my master”.  The Emperor—perhaps better known to the discerning Christian as a representation of Sin Incarnate—takes Anakin under his wing. (Notice in The Phantom Menace, the first “Sith” apprentice we see is Darth Maul—who looks a lot like Satan, “sin’s” first apprentice.)   Under “Sin’s” tutelage, Anakin, like the biblical Adam in the garden of Eden, becomes corrupt of mind, spirit, and body, literally masked by the face of death itself.  By himself, Anakin is now helpless to reverse his condition.  (All have sinned, and fallen short… if you will.)  Little Anakin is now Darth Vader, his innocence lost.  He has become much like you and I… trapped in bondage to a wrinkled, lecherous old master call the sin nature.

A Disturbance in the Force

As we continue exploring the Star Wars Saga (see the first post), let us return to my personal favorite of the films, The Empire Strikes Back… Luke has his vision of Han and Leia in danger, but Yoda tells him to stay on Dagobah to train.  “If you go now”, he insists, “help them you could… but you would destroy all for which they fought and suffered.”  Forfeit his friends for the greater good—how utterly sensible.  Luke loves them, however; he willingly puts his life on the line, (spoiler alerts) loses a hand, and discovers that Vader is his father.   And guess what, ladies and gentlemen…(with a drum roll, please, and a dash of John William’s incredible music) Yoda’s prophecy is wrong!

The Force Unleashed

Hold please. This review series was supposed to be about Star Wars, not me… well, it just so happened that about the time I got “thawed out” (1998) and began to retrain in the ways of our Lord—“unlearning what I had learned”, as Yoda would say—it was announced that a new Star Wars film would soon be unleashed on the world.  Another seven year cycle, curiously… and now, at twenty-six, I both reconnected with my Savior and prepared to revisit my childhood love.  Watching all three films with my newly-converted cadre, then attending the first midnight premiere of Episode 1: Phantom Menace (now, about to be re-released in 3D), I saw the movies with reshaped eyes.

These movies were originally a point of controversy…

Will the “Real” Han Solo please stand up?

I was so upset that Han Solo sold out… (see previous post, “Confessions of a Star Wars Junkie”)

MY hero would never let himself be saddled by a woman; he would never become an upstanding member of the Rebel Alliance. Fortunately, I remembered this was war, and realized that stress must have simply made Han suffer from temporary insanity. After Return of The Jedi, I knew he took off with Chewbacca to soar the spaceways—to find his own path—romancing a new girl on very planet (or very large asteroid) they encountered. Occasionally he would bump into Leia—courting and bickering in equal portions—or he would race to Luke’s side, when the young Jedi was in trouble. Han stayed one step ahead of the bounty hunter (Jabba had friends, after all) and two steps ahead of responsibility.

What a cool guy… what a real man…

After seven years, and with no promise of future episodes back in the 80s, my interest in Star Wars began to wane. I moved on to more adult pursuits (like comic books and transforming robots) but the spirit of Han Solo remained. My heroes were those which embodied his spirit (don’t kid yourself…. Indiana Jones and Han Solo are the same person). At nineteen, I determined to live like that “noble pirate”, to slide through life dodging duty; and, just as Han had no use for the Force, I had little use for religion. I believed in God and the Bible stories, yet overlooked the need for Christ; I would make it my way, and no one would stop me. God would have to let me into heaven, because I would be too damned cool to go to Hell.

Entrenched in a galaxy far, far away…

It’s the first film I remember seeing… vague recollections of peering between adult heads at a world-sized movie screen as X-Wings locked their S-foils in attack position. At the tender age of five, the wax cylinders in my brain were still soft, and these images carved deep impressions. Exposed to the concepts of war, death, desire, love, heroism, and victory of a raspy, breath-sucking evil, the next seven years of my life would be dominated by these images, with a message as powerful to a young, impressionable mind as the Bible itself. My parents would read Scripture to me at bedtime, and I would listen to the Star Wars story on my record player in the morning.

My older brother and I spent most days creating new and exciting adventures for Luke Skywalker and Han Solo (there were, after all, three agonizing years between each movie installment) and non-Star Wars toys we received became casting extras. GI Joe’s were drafted into the Rebel Alliance, and Fisher Price racecar drivers became sleazy bounty hunters that consorted with Boba Fett and IG-88. We knew every intimate detail of the Star Wars Universe…

They must not have 3D in Switzerland, because nobody seems to be neutral about it. I will completely agree it’s been overused, abused, shoddily applied to unnecessary films, but I also believe it has its place. Despite mixed opinions about its narrative and message, Avatar looked gorgeous in Cameron’s 3D cameras. Even the converted Thor benefitted, adding a layer of wonder to the Asgard sequences. The concerns about converting classic films – “ruining” them – are understandable, but come on… Spielberg patterned Indiana Jones after the old cheesy pulp serials of the 30s and 40s: can you honestly tell me that giant boulder rolling at you in 3D wouldn’t make for a fun cinema revisit with a bunch of friends? (Just make sure to follow Indy’s advice and close your eyes when the ark is opened in 3D. I won’t be held responsible.)

Joss Whedon has a heavy cross to bear… namely the bulk expectations of not just comics fans, but the increased fan base the recent years of interconnected Marvel movies has accrued. Those who’ve enjoyed the amazing solo entries of the upcoming Avengers surely have big, bombastic hopes and dreams for what the assembled film will provide, in sheer spectacle as well as character advancement for their favorite among the heroes. (I’m praying for you, Joss!)

Along that Marvel mindset, I bumped into another writer for comics, theater and cinema, Jim Krueger, last week in Florida and shared engaging conversation over dinner regarding his own work with these superheroes.

Revisiting a well-worn graphic novel of his in my possession, Earth X, I discovered the forward was by none other than Whedon himself. If Joss’ words of high praise hold true I hope stories like Earth X inspire the Avengers director to go big and thought-provoking as he weaves these larger-than-life characters together.

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