This fight is better than any in the sequel trilogy for one reason: it’s STORY driven. Notice how there’s barely any actual fighting going on in all of this. Even in Empire, the real conflict wasn’t really physical, but psychological. And that’s what makes the OT so special, even despite some flaws in Return of the Jedi, like the second act & ewoks. This segment alone stands out as one of the all time great Star Wars moments, and I love it!
Wait, the second act of Return of The Jedi? I would have thought people hated how the first quarter of the movie takes place on Tatooine, within the confines of Jabba’s palace and skiff, just trying to get Han Solo back into the squad. If I saw this for the first time in 1983, I would have assumed that George Lucas spent a lot of time on that one part of the movie, completely forgot that there was all of Endor and Death Star II to film, and then scrambled to get Endor done quickly while also incorporating the Ewoks for the little kids watching. Not gonna lie though, I loved Return of The Jedi, especially the final space battle.
itwontcomeout5678 I would probably say that this movie pulls a Rouge One/Endgame move in the sense that the third act makes up for almost any complaint you have had with the movie before... if that makes sense?
@@TheInvincibleH except in the instance that he's had interaction with Force ghost Obi Wan since ESB. So there's a good amount he still could have learned from him, given that he visited Luke and Yoda often enough.
In the novelization of ROTJ it goes into what Luke is thinking at that moment. He decides Leia is the only hope if he fails. He can't let Vader get to her. He'll kill Vader and himself to stop that from happening.
" I will not fight you " Nerd fanboys : " OMMMMMGGGGGG HE TRAINED HE TRAVLLED AND DONT WANNA FIGHT LUKE IS THE MMMMMMMMGGGG HE IS THE GAAAWD " Then after luke rage a bit swing is sword left to right with no accuracy whatsoever You fanboys still be like : " OMMMMG SOOOO GOOOD WRITING " So whats good now that hes the " good guy " or the " raging guy " Cause in the end he won cause of his rage and not cause hes good xD The writing in this 3 first movies are so bad.
@@Innersanctum_ Mate, the "sequels" (calling them that is a joke in and of itself) are what I wipe my ass with after trying to digest the epicness that is Episodes IV to VI.
The anger that Luke felt wasn't an anger of hate, it was one to protect the ones he loves. Much more powerful than Anakin's anger he felt when he wanted to gain power to help those he loved. This movie/scene brings so many emotions that you honestly don't care about the fight itself, rather the battle to save the ones you love from the Dark Side. This movie brings a great moral, it's easy to hate and destroy, but to love and fight for something, someone else is one of the greatest gifts we can give.
but at the same time, we see that Luke looks at his own robotic hand and then back to vader's robotic hand to signify that he realizes that his anger is just like his own father's and if he continues then he'll turn to the dark side, hence why he throws away his lightsaber after his realization.
@sonicartzldesignerclan5763 vor 1 Sekunde Love and hatred is ruled in a human brain in the same section what makes both the same feeling but you as human feel it different. That makes your point pointless.
@@myamdane6895You're missing the entire point if you think this is righteous anger. This is what Palpatine wanted Luke to do. Luke's fear was triggered, just as Anakin's fear was. Fear is a very unhealthy emotion that can lead to anger and aggression. Understandable aggression? Absolutely. But can it lead to the dark side? Yes. Like Obi-wan said: "Your feelings do you credit, but they can be made to serve the Emperor"
4:04 NOTHING will EVER top this sequence for me in all of Star Wars history. The emotion is so perfect, if there was a way to convey the force being distraught by conflict it is the music in this scene. If you could see the force visually you would see energy waves flushing out of every swing from Luke as he dominates Vader's own strength.
I love the fact that Vader does the safer option by doing the saber throw instead of engaging Luke at the High ground. It suggest that Vader has learned his lesson when it comes to engaging an opponent who has the high ground.
Imagine if Luke didn't care as much as he did here and went... "Ok fuck this shit Sidious you're too fucking annoying and dangerous to be kept alive, I'm going to kill you because I want to practice my Jedi beliefs in peace!" (Wham!) Technically, the whole scenes from start of the Throne room was more like a family gathering and deadly argument between Father and Son. Darth Sidious you're a fucking outsider with no business butting into their family affair gtfo man.
Sidious wasn't going to defend himself. He would've willingly been a martyr for Luke's anger to just take his place knowing the only known Jedi just screwed up his chance to make things right.
UltimaKeyMaster If he don't, Luke decided not to kill him out of anger but out of the fact that as long as Darth Sidious stays alive, Luke will never be able to practice his Jedi beliefs in peace. Then went "meh" at the Dark Side and went to live happily ever after because Darth Vader suddenly doesn't seem to care that much about striking down in anger or not because he's too busy going all over the places telling everyone that he has a son and a daughter.
Rught. I dont Vader did that to plead Luke to spare him or anything. It was more like him telling him to calm down for his own good and not join the emperor. Vader’s ulterior motive has been to have Luke join him against tge emperor, nit the other way around. Vader didn't care if he died, it was just a plead for him to stop him on the progressive track he is on.
Well, Vader has been in Luke’s position before. Anakin should’ve spared Dooku, because it was not the Jedi way to kill an unarmed prisoner. In the same manner, Sidious tries to rid himself of Vader’s unrealized potential. But Luke comes to his senses and tosses down his weapon, declaring himself a Jedi in the footsteps of his father.
The parallel between Vader’s missing hand and Luke’s matching, also robotic, black gloved hand is so perfect. A gentle reminder that Luke is one bad choice away from being consumed by the Dark Side, but he continues to fight to protect rather than to attack. Best Star Wars movie
I love when Darth Vader says "Obi-Wan was wise to hide her from me, now his failure is complete" when discovering Leia exists as well. Theres something so heavy about Anakin's absolute resentment toward Obi-wan that he views the possibility of corrupting or destroying his own children as a means of achieving some sort of victory over his former master. His darkness makes him so desperate to prove Obi-Wan is inferior - that part of him would destroy his own children just to prove that Obi-wan failed to keep them safe. What a twistedly tragic character Anakin is.
I believe anakin said all that about leia to trigger his son's rage. Mind games. I sense that anakin wanted luke to kill him. Wanted to be put out of his misery
No that's what Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious wanted him to do and not spill the beans just like Count Dooku did when Anakin Skywalker killed him. Luke wanted to strike down Palpatine because he thought: "If I kill Palpatine I end the war right? And my dad goes free no killing him."
Still one of the most emotional fights in Star Wars History. Just them talking to each other as a Father and Son. Luke wants to save his Father at all cost. But when Vader said about Leia, all the best were off. It went from wanting to save his father, to Protect my Sister. Still hits you in the feels and you watch them fighting again and Luke is so aggressive to point Vader can no longer keep up. The Story telling in this Trilogy will always be my all time favorite.
I'm old enough now to understand the significance of that line about her. He's trying to provoke luke. Vader wants to see his son's rage. Typical fatherly mind games Only a parent can bring that kinda rage outta u😅
I remember watching this in the theatre the day it was released. from 4:19 - 4:39 the entire audience, we were on our feet jumping and cheering wildly. amazing memory.
I too saw it on opening day in a packed theater. They didn’t cheer until Vader’s hand was sabered off. Then they cheered again after Vader threw his master off the ledge. They never got on their feet but a good memory regardless.
@@randyjoe8253 Wow! you were in the same theater my friends and I were? My cousins were there too, remember? Crazy! What an amazing coincidence! Not that I don't believe you but do you remember the name of the the theater and the location and the time of the showing? I do. Small world though. 🙄
Palpatine wanted to know if Luke was powerful enough to defeat Vader(he was). It's basically the Dooku situation(both scenes are purposefuly similar). If Luke dies, Palpatine still has Vader as his powerful apprentice and the threat of a Jedi that could surpass Palpatine is gone. If Luke defeats and kills Vader, he gets an even stronger apprentice. It's a win-win scenario for him(until Luke refuses to kill Vader, of course)
The tracking shot past the stairs with Luke and Vader fighting behind it is one of my favorite shots in any movie, EVER!!! Especially with the amazing score on top of it!
Same! The anger Luke shows while fighting his father combined with the musical score that plays after Luke yells “Never!” still gives me goosebumps to this day, just like it did when I first saw the movie with my mom back in 2011.
Lukáš Semecký Lol ur only saying that because you hate Ren as a character, I personally say this fight would last about 2 minutes, whilst Ren is extremely powerful, he doesn't have the experience or skill to defeat Luke.
Vader hated himself after a lifetime of bad decisions. Ben was on the edge between dark and light, and the prospect of someone so strong with the force giving in frightened Luke, so much he instinctively drew his weapon. He reigned himself in, but by then his nephew saw all the evidence he needed to commit to the dark.
@@Avenger85438 hence why vader was conflicted but luke saw the light still in him, anyways thats not the point, the point is luke saw good in vader even after everything he did from hunting jedi he once knew and trained with etc to killing children, i would consider killing children a no going back momentm yet even after that luke still saw good in his father, yet luke could not see good in his own nephew and that was without ben drawing his lightsaber to lukes jedi academy
"Obiwan has taught you well" It only just _now_ occured to me...Vader thinks Obiwan has been teaching Luke all this time... _He never learned of Yoda..._
I love how the movie handles Luke's short fall. it's not the offer of power, or anything like that. Rather it's the fact that wants to protect his sister, it overwhlems him and for a moment he slips and he falls into it. And then seeing his dad's robotic hand, the same to what he has, it pulls him back. It's the urge to protect his family that pulls him towards the dark side, and it's seeing what the dark side did to his family that pulled him out
Notice how Vader is never on the offensive in this scene. The whole fight is him blocking Luke’s attacks. And when he does try to take a swing at him, he goes for either his arms or legs as if to incapacitate him rather than kill him.
@@VaderPopsVicodin10 Here's another little fact that will get you thinking even more. In Empire Strikes Back he proposes to luke to join him and kill the empire. Vader was in conflict with many things.
@@originaler31er67 which can relate with how anakin choked padme and was tricked by the emperor that he killed her. Now he don't want the same fate happen to his son and he wants luke to join the darkside
1:48 this split part was genius. Luke mentions not wanting to fight him and Vader slowly walks up the steps as if he doesn't to either. The fact they made that small clip relatively quiet before Vader struck at Luke waa smart. It genuinely gave me a jumpscare lmfao
Here's an interesting thought. When Luke was about to strike down the Emperor, did Vader block it to protect his master, or did Anakin stop Luke from falling into the Dark side the way the Emperor wanted him to?
The novel confirms Vader did it to protect Palpatine. He dien't believe killing Palpatine would be enough to turn Luke. He INMEDIATELY regrets the decision, since Luke focuses his anger on him.
And then disney trilogy happens... Prequels may not have been perfect, but at least their final duel was just as meaningful and emotional as this one. TROS end battle was just nonsense.
This franchise, this whole thing, the idea that it’s not a story between good and evil, but the fact that man can choose good or evil, the duality of man, is still the best and most beautiful portrayal of this concept I have ever seen. This scene specifically, portrays a concept that I, and maybe a lot of other men can relate to. The conflict between father and son. The struggle between impressing him, and still deciding what is good and what is bad yourself. I often come back to this scene when I have conflict with him. Even though as a grown man, he still somewhat scares me, I fear that my fury and anger will not just beat, defeat, overcome his shit, but will also make the process of me becoming him complete, as the Emperor says. George Lucas is a genius, and this franchise/movie remains the most beautiful piece of art I still have yet to see in my entire life.
4:04 When Luke screams "never" and charges vader always gets me. The background music is so powerful. John Williams is a legend and No one can ever really replace him.
Very, very true. Although, I'd say that should it ever come to needing a replacement that either Michael Giacchino or Alan Silvestri would be the best choices. Not saying we *need* - or *want* - a replacement of John Williams, but if there ever is one, I'd say it's a choice between Michael and Alan.
My kids always said "Vader just gave up there, didn't really fight, that was lame". I had to explain to them that Vader didn't want to kill his son in the first place, and that when Jedi fight there is another level to it than just swinging glowy sticks around. The absolute righteous wrath Luke brought to bear completely overwhelmed Vader. That is why Luke was able to win so quickly. And when he let go of that wrath immediately after, that is when he truly won. When Vader saw that, and the punishment Luke withstood from Sidious, the decision was made. His son before anything else.
Luke: *has the high ground* “You couldn’t bring yourself to kill me before and I believe you won’t destroy me now” Vader: “you underestima- wait a second...”
I always liked how Luke looks at Vader's missing hand and sees it's machine and then looks at his own machine hand, and realizes he's on his way to becoming his father.
For all the new kids watching this, you have to understand when this film came out back in the day there simply wasn't any sci fi film like this (not that I can think of any way). There were no 4K ultra HD TV's or cameras, smart phones and all this other tech we have in our hands now. There was no RU-vid or PS5 or Xbox. Now imagine the impact a film of this level had on people in a techless world.
Sometimes it feels like open disrespect how they club you in the face with lines like that. I think it might feel cool and like they're purposely echoing the original movies if they just made better shows to put these lines in.
@@TheMisterGuy don’t know wtf you’re talking about ahsoka is just about the best thing Disney has given us in Star Wars other than clone wars season 7 or mandalorian season 2
Notice how Palatine said "strike me down and your journey to the dark side will be complete" Luke goes for him, but is stopped by Vader. Like Vader was preventing Luke from fulfilling the same fate as he once did...signs of Anakin coming back...
Vader could've backstabbed the Emperor. Luke alone, or Vader alone maybe couldn't beat the Emperor, but together they could beat him easy. If they had killed him they would both be on the dark side? Is this not what Vader wanted, to rule with his son? If he changed his mind about turning Luke then backstabbing the Emperor seems ideal, but then Vader would stay on the dark side and inevitably Luke would follow? Or was Vader so conflicted that it affected his reason? It seems, for the sake of the story, Vader had to die in order to be redeemed. Him surviving would not have done it. Say he did backstab the Emperor and then turned to the light. What then? That's not enough for redemption, also no one would ever accept Vader back in the rebellion, or new republic or whatever - the "good guys" wouldn't have him that's for sure.
It is so good. The final clash is insanely good. This is a cinematic masterpiece. I feel bad for whoever is leading heaven's orchestra, because when John Williams passes, they are out of a job.
It rises like a dread fear at the fearful power of good in us all.. just because you have the enemy backed into a corner and defeated doesn't mean you should beat them to death until there's nothing left. That is how evil changes travels from one form to another.
For those arguing Luke did indeed surpass Vader once he used Jedi Fury,fully tapping into the darkside. The novel itself states that Palpatine himself was afraid of that power being used against him,with Sidious saying Luke could destroy them,with many other sources also sighting this. The novel also says that Sidious confidence in that moment was an act as Luke looked within him and sensed his fear. So Luke very briefly attained power comparable to and superior to that of Sidious but once he calms down he loses the rage boost and fatigue also sets in(as it happens after a fight is over and you calm down from rage)leaving him vulnerable,along with dropping his lightsaber like the lovable naive fool that he is. This is impressive for Vader cause he held his own against this power and Luke still had to put a lot of effort to beat him down,this solidifies that Vader is relative to Sidious power in this film,Lucas statement of EP6 Vader being 80% of Sidious makes a lot of sense under this context. Without using the darkside Luke was an equal overall tier with Vader but definetly weaker and on the lower end,with him somewhat gaining the advantage by using his aggressive feelings when kicking Vader down. But normally you can tell Vader has a definitive edge
100% agree. I've said before in conversations with people about this scene that in those fleeting moments during Luke's rage, he could've beaten almost anybody, including Palpatine himself. Palp always knew that a Luke with no restraint would be a threat, but to see it right in front of you makes that threat much more immediate and startling.
Can we just appreciate Ian McDiarmid in this? You can truly FEEL the darkness in sideous, you can feel the weight of his words, his gravitas. A truly incredible performance from a truly incredible actor.
How about when he smiles in delight after saying "and now young Skywalker you will die" and starts frying him again enjoying the pain he he is inflicting.
YES!! I totally agree. The “good” in him saved Luke right then and there, although at that point he hadn’t fully turned back to the light and was still conflicted. Good call!
I am glad that I am not the only one who had that thought! Also, even though I had already watched the prequels, when Vader prevented Luke to kill Palpatine I came to the conclusion that even as a Sith Lord, Anakin is still the Chosen One, the end of the Sith will come by him not by Luke.
Proceeds To Cut His Own Dad Own Arm. I DoNt wAnT tO fIgHt yOu dAd! i fEeL gOod iN yOu Vader After Luke Cut His Arm : yeah you feel good in me because i was good and the bad one was you who lied to not fight and then cut someone hand then want to get help from people who his hand were cutted by you
4:20 is my absolute favourite shot in all of Starwars, the camera movement and Lukes desperate anger mixed with the soundtrack gives me goosebumps every time.
Something that crossed my mind was that Vader was right. If Luke failed here he would have certainly been able to turn Leia. The death of her planet and finally her brother would definitely tip her over the edge and make her much more susceptible to the dark side
thats exactly what happened in that "What if" comic they made if Luke's torpedo failed to take out the Death Star. Vader and Palps captured Leia again, and found out through the force the truth behind her heritage. They started to train her, and well, she went full sith
I watched the movie again yesterday and i just wonder: Why Lea? Why even Luke? Sidious knew Luke was stronger and wasnt easy to convince to become part of the dark side. It was obvious he wouldnt turn, so the whole dark side aspect was kinda irrelevant. Even more with Lea. She wasnt even a Jedi, why would they try to get her to the dark side? Im certain vader only said that to anger luke and lure him out of hiding.
@@CODA96 because Luke is the son of the chosen one and has tons of untapped potential power. Palpatine wants the most powerful force user as his apprentice, which he apparently wants to possess at some point. That fight between Vader and Luke was basically a test. between who is the most powerful force user. When Luke chose the light over the dark, this right here was a temper tantrum if anything. Palpatine finally ad someone who could beat his best servant, and this guy refused to work for him.
@@ethanharmer5151 I still dont get the whole situation at all. Luke had no reason to join the Dark Side. Literally none. Anakin joined the dark side because he believed he could save Padme with these powers. Palpatine was slowly manipulating him for years about the Jedi Council being corrupt and fueling his hate towards not becoming a master, aswell as his arrogance to be the strongest. It made perfect sense, but why Luke??? Palpatine neither manipulated him, and neither did they have Lea or Han as a Hostage. Hell, Palpatine even showed him that the rebellion is ''lost'' and everyone would die, if anything thats MORE reason to destroy Palpatine and NOT join the dark side. I really dont wanna say this, but this just feels like bad writing. Palpatine should have blown up endor while Luke was on it and be done with it. Luke had 0 reason to join him and was stronger than Vader, so Palpatine literally killed himself.
Imo, the music makes this the best lightsaber duel in the entire series. It's the only one that feels like there's any emotion behind it, aside from the end of RotS. But we're not gonna go there.
Almost like in 50ies/60ies epic Bible movies, like The Ten Commandments. Also check out the music in Conan the Barbarian. It's similar and i love this scene in which he discovers his later sword in an ancient tomb: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-RlBcDnRzmM0.html
Yoda never changed, he was always a serious Jedi until the end of his days. The same thing with Obi Wan and both had sense of responsibility even when they died and they became force's ghosts. They both lived a worst tragedy than Luke because of the order 66 and the exile for about 20 years suffering a lot. The direction Disney took on Luke doesn't have any sense.
Dameon Echol There is no real Luke. If u study sociology u would understand that people change according to their circumstances and surroundings. The “real Luke” u speak of is the Luke from 30 yrs ago/ the Luke in Last Jedi is one now. You must accept this young skywalker u have a lot to learn in life.
The last jedi makes Luke so fuckin stupid, here we see he's trying to convince and get his father back to good and in the last jedi he tried to kill Ben just because of a vision??
For me this feeling is that right now happens something terrible, something pre-destined, prophecied. And epic as well. The fall of one more hero of light.
and fallen order was decades before battle of yavin New Hope or even ROTJ, and was 5 years after anakin became darth vader, so at the time he was fully more powerful and at great potential as a dark lord. but as powerful as he is even at old age, yes he defintelty still have power but its not as strong as in the past, and yet he was holding back (his dark side feelings too) against luke so luke won.
With Ahsoka: “I won’t leave you, not this time.” “Then you will die.” With Obi Wan: “I will do what I must.” “Then you will die.” With Luke: “You couldn’t bring yourself to kill me before and I don’t believe you’ll destroy me now.” “You underestimate the power of the dark side. If you will not fight, then you will meet your destiny.” I love this story.
That shot where Luke and Vader are fighting behind the staircase all dark with the green/red lightsabers glowing and the music is my favorite moment in the entire Star Wars saga. I get the chills and want to cry every frigging time!
Here after the Ahsoka episode and originally I thought she said that on Malachor, but she said "I won't leave you." I love how he said "I've heard that before" basically confirms that she wasn't fighting a vision of Anakin, but actually him.
Love that final fight scene, Luke just flailing at random directions like a nutter. Vader must be thinking "omg noob do you even know what you're doing? you're just spamming attacks! what happened to coreography and aaaaagh my hand!"
Jared Griffin what I don't get is he cut off Vader's hand a robotic hand.so why the hell would he got so fked up even with his breathing getting all raspy like gulping for air.why would that happen when he lost his hand
He is integrated in a *cybernetic* suit that also acts as a life support system. I assume such a complex piece of technology doesn't handle being cut apart very well. Also, his integration into the suit is not without problems, and he is in constant pain from it +his injuries. He is basically a cripple and Luke just took a wheel off his wheelchair...
watching all the star wars movies etc, that moment now when I go back and watch this part and he says Obi won has taught you well and the theme music starts. It really hits you. So strange no other tv show or movie has done that for me.
I love how Luke and Anakin are basically the same. The way he taps into the dark side to take Vader down is exactly how Anakin was in the later seasons of Clone Wars.
They did a few scenes in TCW where Anakin uses several overhanded chops downward which is a nod to how Luke finishes Vader in this scene. They also primarily used the same saber form and are around the same age
No, not basically the same. At the pivotal moment, Luke turned away from the dark side; refused to strike down an evil, yet defenceless, opponant. Anakin meanwhile slaughtered innocent children without hesitation, not to mention murdering defenceless Dooku whilst still ostensibly a follower of the light.
4:20 its pretty interesting to see how during this shot you can see darth vader's mastery over luke's. yes, Luke is winning, but look how effortless darth vader defends himself, while Luke is quite literally giving all that he has. Annakin had such a dominant prescence with the force when he was a Jedi and that cadence is still evident here. I just love that shot so much.
@@Present771 I guess I just meant in a purely physical sense. Like i get that he is losing. I just mean he’s literally using so much energy and Vader is just chillin. Lol
@4:19 - 4:27: One of my favorite shots in the entire franchise. The music, the way Luke stands, the big swooping arcs the lightsabers make before contact, the anger and emotion, the silhouettes, the camera strafe... it's damn beautiful.
I think Luke tapped into the saber style that only Mace Windu was known to use - VAAPAD (im only saying this because Luke did use dark side agression....but he was able to control iit after he had rendered Vader defenceless)
@@Darklord666123 he didnt control his dark side while fighting, he suppressed it afterwards. But who can really tell for sure with this horrible choreography