Yahoo Movies In defense of the Anakin and Padmé romance in Star Wars: Attack of the Clones
Okay, haters, cue up "Across the Stars" and set down your blasters, because I've got something to say.
The Anakin and Padmé romance in Star Wars: Attack of the Clones is romantic and engaging and pretty damn good, actually. This is a take I will cling to as tightly as a Bespin weather vane, and one which I defended as passionately as a roll down a Naboo meadow while appearing on EW's Dagobah Dispatch podcast.
I can hear y'all whining as petulantly as Anakin (Hayden Christensen) talks about sand right now, but I am prepared for some aggressive negotiations. Okay, yes, hot beard daddy Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) is RIGHT there — and I don't dispute that the prequels as a whole would be more effective and interesting if the central romance was a love triangle between Padmé (Natalie Portman), Anakin, and Obi-Wan, but that's not what we got.
Lisa Tomasetti/Lucasfilm Ltd. Hayden Christensen and Natalie Portman in 'Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones'
What we got was a romance-novel worthy forbidden romance between two actors who have crackling chemistry, even if they are sometimes hampered by their dialogue. Yes, the script is clunky. It could absolutely use a punch-up by a romance novelist (or Carrie Fisher, at one time our only hope for good Star Wars banter). But that's not to say the roots of great romance prose are not there amidst the mouthfuls of following your thoughts through to conclusion.
The intense, agonizing yearning Anakin and Padmé have for each other is romance 101. Take Anakin's "From the moment I met you, all those years ago, not a day has gone by when I haven't thought of you. And now that I'm with you again... I'm in agony." That is some clinch cover, romance hero shiz right there.
Padmé gets her own scorching confessions too, like "I'm not afraid to die. I've been dying a little bit each day since you came back into my life." Tattoo it on my eyeballs, it's so dramatic, swoony, and over-the-top that I eat it up like half a pear that was just force-floated to me across a table.
Plus, c'mon, how can you not fall for this duo when they're falling in love on Naboo, a.k.a. space Lake Como? If it's good enough for George Clooney, it's good enough for Panakin. You are basically contractually obligated to fall in love when your first kiss is overlooking crystalline blue ocean waters and you bond frolicking in a field of grass. Is the romance, particularly that frolicking, kinda silly at points? Yes. But so is falling in love, y'all!
You don't get to tell me this romance is weak-sauce when there are entire online communities dedicated to how hot some shirtless Jedi Force messaging is. Anakin's shirtless nightmare sequences walked so Reylo could run.
Lucasfilm Ltd.
It's not just the settings that are beautiful, it's the clothes (and the people wearing them). Padmé Amidala has the singularly most stunning wardrobe in the Star Wars universe, and it gets to shine here — from that yellow Renaissance-painting worthy gown and the matching Ren Faire floral headband to a flowy nightgown. Let's not forget the black leather gown with the beaded choker attachment that imprinted so strongly on my 12-year-old self that I bought my sophomore year winter formal gown purely because it reminded me of that ensemble. These are clothes designed to make someone fall in love with you. Not that Padmé needs any help in that department when it comes to Anakin.
But all kidding aside, Natalie Portman and Hayden Christensen, in spite of dialogue that embodies Harrison Ford's infamous quip that "you can type this sh– but you sure can't say it," do craft a beautiful and believable romance here. Their chemistry shines through, especially in quieter moments like when she comforts him after he's slaughtered the Sand People, helpless in her inability to make the situation better (there's also an element of the "wanting to fix" someone trope here, but not gonna open that toxic can of worms).
If you don't believe me, talk to any girl who was a tween or teen in 2002 who immediately plastered their bedroom walls with that iconic photograph of Portman giving Christensen bunny ears as he leans his chin atop her head.
Portman's confidence and Christensen's shyness are perfect foils to each other, and they lend themselves well to Padmé's experience as a queen and senator, and Anakin's awkwardness around a girl he first met as a mere child.
Lucasfilm Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) and Padmé Amidala (Natalie Portman) prepare for battle in 'Star Wars: Attack of the Clones'
As a couple, they're an opposites attract dream-team — an orphaned Jedi and a career diplomat. Plus, unlike in Revenge of the Sith, Padmé is fierce here, leading the charge to free her and Anakin from their gladiator-esque executions and proving that she knows how to wield a blaster (early 2000s absurdly convenient crop top aside).
Add in the fact that John Williams' "Across the Stars" is doing some very heavy lifting as one of the best love themes the composer ever wrote, and it's a recipe for swooning.
Maybe you think this is all the rose-colored glasses of my 12-year-old self, but upon a recent rewatch, I still felt all the feels. That's partly because ever since the Disney acquisition, Star Wars as a whole (save for a few quick Andor scenes) has been completely devoid of even a whiff of sexuality… and I can't say much for any of their more chaste romantic plot lines either. Anakin and Padmé are not a perfect love story, but at least they're one that conveys some real angst, longing, desire, and eroticism.
Listen to my full argument on EW's Star Wars podcast Dagobah Dispatch for more — and if you disagree with me, well, all I can say is… let the hate flow through you.
To hear the entire discussion on why Rise of Skywalker deserves more love and appreciation from the fandom, check out the latest episode of Dagobah Dispatch.
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