Is the romance between Anakin and Padmé really that unrealistic? I think it is a psychologically accurate portrayal of a woman falling in love with a man suffering from Bipolar Disorder, an occurrence which happens much more frequently than you would imagine.
I’d like to double down on “what?”
The dramatic scene in which Anakin confesses his love for Padmé is a perfect portrayal of how an extremely intelligent and emotionally repressed young man would express unrequited love, especially an unrequited love which he had kept bottled up inside for almost ten years. In other words, the dialogue was exceedingly realistic given Anakin’s unique situation.
No, it’s how George Lucas imagined a young man would express unrequited love. Unfortunately Lucas can’t wish away his bad dialogue or crap directing.
Critics often scoff at the moment when Anakin responds, “I don’t like sand. It’s course and rough and irritating, and it gets everywhere.” But if you grew up on a desert planet and associated sand with slavery and with leaving your mother at a young age, you would have hated sand as well.
I might have hated sand, but I certainly would have never said that.
Critics often say that George Lucas gave little thought to the Prequels, but George Lucas gave far more thought to them than his critics.
Too bad he didn’t give any thought to directing or dialogue.
Most action movies only portray a normal, stereotypical love story in which a male protagonist saves a damsel in distress, falls in love with her, and sleeps with her. Attack of the Clones portrays a much more emotionally complex and nuanced love story than any other film I have ever seen.
You should see more films.
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The short answer to the question posed in the thread title is “everything.”