PT Darth Vader's Nooooooo

This is easily the least most poorly written sentence the English language *joking! *joking!

 

The No is the moment when all of Anakin's attempts to twist fate, to save Padme, to gain power over the Jedi, are destroyed in one single moment. Anakin is left as a pathetic figure in an Iron Lung, lost the love of his life, and reduced to his master's slave. This is his lowest point. An existential howl to the heavens, followed by a collapse on the floor feels totally apposite.

Throughout ROTS, Lucas goes to great pains to show that Anakin isn't a 'badass' for becoming Vader. He murders innocent children, the slaughter of the Sepratists is shown in a thoroughly sympathetic light towards them, and his choking of Padme has a whiff of domestic abuse about it. Nothing to cheer about really, just to squirm uncomfortably while watching, which is basically the point of those scenes.

 

I see what you’re saying — though some may interpret the slaughtering of the Separatists as justice, even if it’s being dished out by Vader, not the Jedi. Gunray’s “The war’s over!” whine comes off more as a cowardly plea for his life.

 

What if English is not their first language? Wouldn't you just feel like a git?

 

Poor scene. Anakin is thrown into the Vader suit just so he can shout the most cliche film line ever? Give me a break.

 

I think its the voice that puts it off for people. While I have no issue with it, one of the complaints Anakin gets in the prequels is his dialogue, even though Vader in the suit has just as much, if not clunkier lines. People are just willing to accept it when heard with a big bolstering voice, and when they hear that voice not being intimidating that get confused.

People expected him to snap right into 20 years of the suit Vader, so I'm sure they were put off by hearing JEJ use the word "Padme" and everything.

 

Well the truth is in ROTS Anakin talks like a normal person. OT Vader has a much more rigid tone and expansive vocabulary.

 

Think the "NOOOOOOOOOO" of Lord Vader is ... Useless ... I prefer the silence in the original version ...

 

I partially agree with the OP. I think that Darth Vader definitely changed between RotS and ANH, and the reaction we see would have been natural for him at the time of RotS. I think that during the time between the PT and OT, Vader definitely hardened in terms of his mind and got a lot calmer and more collected, as we also see in the R1 scene at the end, where even though he is killing a lot of soldiers at that moment, he seems utterly calm and unmoved at all by what he is doing. The Vader we see in the R1 scene and in the OT is more likely to stay silent after such a revelation than the RotS Vader.

 

ROTS it could work.
I agree -- ROTJ =awful timing

I think the issue of rots is that as he says it he's kind of just moving back and forth with his arms outstretched. But how do you play vader as dramatic but emotionally involved?

 

My suggestion would be that Palps (positioned across from Vader) tells him about Padme. He has the Force tantrum, breaks free, takes a few steps but stumbles to his knees right in front of Palpatine. As he does he says a short sharp angry guttural “No!” rather than the long cheesy melodramatic one. We leave the scene with the image of him broken & on his knees in servitude to his master. Better & more thematic. IMO.

 

Well played, darth downunder.

 

Do fans react as negatively to Luke's "NO" in ESB? Because I think it was a bit over the top as well.

 

That was my favorite part! I always wondered what his first words as suited Vader would be and it gave me goosebumps to hear him ask for his wife. It was chilling to hear someone I had always thought of as so cold and menacing sound so broken and bereft.

 

Exactly. He's still Anakin at this point, Vader in name only and appearance. Up to this point, he already lost his Mother (which led him to embrace the Dark Side for the first time),the Jedi Order, his best friend and mentor, his self-respect ( he KNOWS the things he's done are wrong), and his actual physical self. But all that still mattered to him was his wife and unborn child.Even with all he's done,all he's lost, how far he's fallen, he still has them. If she is safe,it was all worth itno matter the cost. Only for him to find out that not only is she dead,but HE was responsible for his death. The last thing he had left,the last piece of Anakin Skywalker's old life,was gone as well. He lost EVERYTHING!

I don't see it as the first cry of a born Vader, but as the last cry of a dying Anakin, who realizes he has destroyed everything he loved and cared about.

 

I think the difference there is that we can see the pain and emotion on Luke's face as he shouts that. With Vader, it's up to the vocals alone to convey all of that pain instead.

I don't have any real problem with the scene rather I think the wrong emotion is being given. Palpatine lies to him, he's enraged to the point where he's destroying his surroundings so I would think that any scream he emits would echo that rage. Instead, to me, it comes off being more sad than angry which doesn't really jibe with his destructive actions in the lab.

Perhaps more of a primal scream version of NOOOOOOO!!!!!

 

That response was a theater by theater one, because both times I saw it and in two different theaters, the reaction was not that.

 

He doesn't know Palpatine has lied to him. And his first emotion is indeed primal rage and frustration, as evidenced by his lashing out at his surroundings through the Force. But that rage and frustration gives way to inconsolable despair, for the reasons @Darth Mikey outlined. He sacrificed everything he believed in for the woman he loved only to end up destroying her in the process. He's a shambling corpse trapped in a living hell of his own creation. If you really try to see things from his perspective, the pain is almost unbearable.

 

Nor I. I saw it seven times, in abooouuuuutttttt...four? different theaters-in two different states actually. Never any laughter. Lots of laughter at the funny bits at the beginning though...But that was it.

Just goes to show I guess, that the dislike for ROTS (and by extension, the PT) isn't all as widespread as dissenters would have one believe.

 

I love ROTS, but that moment did take me out of the movie. It's not the fact that he said no, but the way that he said it. He sounds like an opera singer and random opera singing has no place in the scene. I love everything else about the scene so much that I just try to overlook it.

 

this "no" is much better than Brad pitt's no in "seven" climax. That was cringe worthy

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I don't mind the fact that he said "no" at the end. But the way he says it, just the tone of it and the inflection of the elongated "oooh", is what I think makes it a bit hokey. It could have come off as much more shocked, angry, and confused. That would have been much more in keeping with the Vader we've come to know. And it would have also made that ending just a bit darker and would give the audience a greater sense of unease with seeing Anakin this way. Which we could then fast forward and connect up to the more determined and focused Darth Vader we see in ANH. Instead, as it is, it's borderline comical the way he dramatically wails out the "no", and it kind of takes you out of the scene a little bit.

 

Was a needless change for ROTJ, probably the silent acting is more effective but the vocalized emotion does not bother me all that much. But character's saying "Noooo" like that seemed pretty common during Lucas's tenure from what I recall, we have Kenobi yell it in TPM, Maul in SOD(twice even if you count his Lotho Minor no's), Jinn in AOTC and Vader twice(ROTS & ROTJ).

 

Another one that comes to mind is from the assembly plant scene in AotC. Surely Lucas had seen Galaxy Quest?