Vader Unmasked

Return of the Jedi

The final act of Return of the Jedi is 30 of the best Star Wars minutes. The ground battle on the Forrest Moon’s surface and the space battle above are both scintillating, but it’s the duel in the throne room between father and son that is most distinctively gripping.

It’s stacked with emotion, reaching a climax when Anakin Skywalker finally returns to throw Emperor Palpatine down the reactor shaft, triggering the beginning of the end to the Galactic Civil War. The chosen one has finally come through to restore peace.

The lightsaber battle itself will be covered in a separate article and as for a clue as to where that will place on the top 50 list, well, put it this way – you’ll be waiting a long time to read my thoughts on that one.

#33 on the list is the moment immediately after the throne room tussle has ended. The Imperial sirens are sounding as Wedge Antilles has landed the shot to destroy the second Death Star. Amid the chaos, Luke has dragged his father to a shuttle, preparing to escape the crumbling station.

When the two pause, a dying Anakin has a final request. “Luke, help me take this mask off. Just once, I want to look on my son with my own eyes.”

What Luke reveals is a human face – an elderly man, a damaged and scarred individual. Kenobi had told us that Vader was more machine than man, but as we look on this individual, it flies in the face of this description. Luke has found the man behind the mask.

Anakin smiles at his son, with pride etched on his face.

“You already have [saved me] Luke. Tell your sister, you were right. You were right about me.”

As Luke says in The Rise of Skywalker trailer, “no one’s ever really gone” and it’s this belief which led to this re-connection between father and son. Luke knew that Anakin Skywalker was not gone. Vader was not Anakin’s destiny. Against the odds and even Vader’s expectations, Luke managed to unlock his father and it leads to this beautiful redemptive moment.