Two totally different takes on Hayden

I have found, in regards to those who dont like Haydens acting in Epi 2, that it has more to do with these people having a hard time coming to terms with the fact that Darth Vader, who appears cool in the OT, is really a whiny messed up kid. They'll often say Hayden's too whiny in his acting. Well, Anakin is whiny. Poor Jake Loydd got the same flack when he was only playing the character properly. Anakin has hang-ups. He has trouble getting over things. Thats his character.

Sure on the surface Vader does look cool. But this plays so well into the whole story. The dark side is seductive. Vader looks cool because he embodies that seduction. ""wow, wouldn't it be cool to be Darth Vader"" I remember when I was young, lots of people thought that way. But Vader is a mass murderer, as far as we knew from the OT. And now people slowly may be getting it. No, Anakin is not a cool guy. At times he may be, but he's clearly a torn character. At some point, you also learn that outside appearance is nothing compared to what makes a person. Vader looks cool but he's made up by a whiny kid hidding behind that mask. Well, until Episode 6 when he lets go.

I hate the Hayden bashers.

Dont give in to hate....that leads to the dark side.

Isurus the White

 

Dont give in to hate....that leads to the dark side.

While normally I'm more of a Sith advocate, in this case I would agree.

I can't see how anyone who watched AotC can walk away with the impression that Hayden sucked. I was worried about it at first, but once I saw LAAH I knew he was a competant actor. (Then again, Portman is also a competant actress, and obviously the overwhelming opinion of her (one I don't necessarily share) is that she didn't do a good job with the role of Padme)

The things he does in Anakin's role are amazing. He truly does bring it to life, not just in the big picture (I had no problem believing he was Anakin Skywalker), but also in the little things; the little ani and vaderisms that go into his performance, as well as other subtle bits of acting, like when he kisses Shmi's hand-Totally natural movement that you don't even think about, because it's so normal.

 

I'll restate my orignal point which is that Nat and Hayden are both good actors as their other work as shown, but Nat is terible in SW. Hayden is good but could be 100000 better if his dialogue wasn't so insanely bad.

 

Anakin is idealistic in ways yes, but not meek like Luke. He's the opposite, overconfident and eager to show off his powers.

Both have done a fantastic job and have given me reason to really like the character of Anakin. I mean I know he's Darth Vader after Episode III, but I always know that under that black suit and mask, shoved in a deep dark corner is none other than Anakin himself.

This passage is from the first page. Not only do I think Hayden did a marvelous job, I don't "hate" the character of Vader, I mean my God, he's the only one in the whole SW Universe that is not a 1 dimensional character, his is in fact a 3 dimensional character. Okay well, there is Han and Leia (2 dimensional). I like Luke, but he doesn't show me depth of character in the OT (Mary Sue), at least until ROTJ.

Hayden did a outstanding job, and I could tell that if the dialogue were a little better written that he would have done much better. Same for Portman. His performance in LAAH blew me away.

 

Hayden did a good job but that doesn't mean I like Anakin. The real problem I have is when I compare Luke to Anakin, Luke is the much better character.

 

Luke is a better person, but, in my opinion, not so much a better character. I find Anakin more realistic because I've known quite a few Anakins. Of course, if I could find a nice guy like Luke, I'd drag him to the altar.

 

I agree Hayden did a great job as Anakin Skywalker. He projected all the right emotions at the right times.

"good job."

 

I think vader is pretty 1 dimensional, he was pure good, then between ep1 and ep2 he became bad, the end.

 

Hayden did an awesome job with Anakin's character and will do a great job as Vader!

He has got great facial expressions and all the gestures down right!

He took on a huge role by filling in as a young Vader, I'm sure he was overwhelmed and nervous -but you would never know!

Lady Lexi

 

I have had to explain this to a few non- star wars fans. Anakin turns into Darth Vader ( a puppet of evil for the emperor) If he was a more nobel character that would not have happened. Hayden took his role very seriously he researched it intensly and did his own stunts. I think the problem is in the screenplay. I cringed when I heard a man say loudly who wrote this *%^*&!
I really loved Hayden/Anakin he had the same affect that Qui Gonn/Liam Neeson had. Without him I would not have enjoyed this film as much as I did.

 

I agre, the problem is in the script, nobody could make that dialogue sound good.

 

I don't think that's true at all. There are some actors who can make any dialogue sound terrific, particularly Harrison Ford, or, if you want a more obscure reference, Tom Baker. If an actor believes in the dialogue they're delivering, it'll sound wonderful to the audience. In my opinion, of course.

 

Thats true to a point, but I mean the greatest chef int he world can't make a good a good meal out of cow crap.

Besides, even if thats true, an actors job shouldn't be damage control.

 

Sometimes Hayden does a good job portraying a confident, young Jedi apprentice. In other parts of the movie, especially in scenes with the disinterested Natalie Portman, he seems like a, annoying little child who I would like kick. That could be due to the script or the confusing direction of GL.