Be warned the title of this post was originally planned “The Hand Job” but I was a little worried people might have other expectations about the article. LOL. It is what it is, a brief comparing of three moments throughout the Star Wars saga when iconic couples or pairings get to hold each other’s hands in a “romantic” way. I am excluding moments prior when they would help each other out, for instance when Anakin helps Padme get out of the gondola on Naboo by holding her hand, because the emphasis is obviously not on bodily contact or physical interaction, and there is no romantic tension. On the contrary, each of these key scenes represents the moment when the characters have to start dealing with physical attraction and romantic longing. It is put out there and they have to deal with it and react to it. From then on, they cannot, as hard as they may, ignore the changes in the relationship. The fact that it always takes place in the second installment is also important. The first movie is supposed to build things up, and the third is the consequence of what happened after the hand holding moment. Finally, the way each scene is set (and that includes the setting, the dialogue, the costumes) potentially gives us clues about where the relationship may be going.
First stop: Attack of the Clones. Padme and Anakin are on Naboo, her home planet. He does not belong
there, and it is the place where she will eventually be buried, a subtle
way of saying that this relationship will be the death of her.
He is there as her bodyguard, she resents that, but still, he is there to protect her, which puts her de facto in an inferior position.
Right after the infamous and possibly worst line ever about sand, Anakin makes clear to Padme that he wants something more out their relationship. This is what I will call the “Vader Danger” moment. You can tell by looking at Padme how tense she is. She is looking away. She lets him touch her hands, then her bare back, but she does not move or say anything. Note that the scene does not start as a close-up but begins from a distance. The intimacy between the two is not natural. She acts a bit like a deer caught in headlights. Unable to process, she lets events unfold. Anakin will later talk about the “kiss she gave him”, but she actually did not give him a kiss. She let him kiss her, then stopped it, and regretted it. Her hands remain clasped the whole time, signifying her refusal to totally give in. She will not initiate more, he is always the one initiating physical contact and the clarifying of the relationship. He is pushy and she is evasive.
Even the god-awful dialogue says a lot about their relationship. Yes, you are coarse, rough, and pushy, Anakin, and yes, she is gentle, smooth and maybe too fragile for this relationship to function. He is sand, she is water. Sand cannot hold water. With her graceful, flimsy, gown that looks like petals, she is dressed the part of the fragile little flower.
I know some may argue that in the same episode she fights and behaves like a warrior. She is a powerful woman in her own right, and she is brave and intelligent. But, if anything, the way she is presented in this particular scene is as a dainty little flower, and NOT a warrior queen. This foretells a lot about what will come next. She will not be strong enough in this relationship. And I will hardly say that the way she recoils from him every time he tries to “seduce” her is a good sign. I think it is also the moment when there is a slight shifting in their relationship. She was up to that point, even when they meet the new queen on Naboo, the one making all the decisions and ordering him about. He starts becoming more assertive as he starts being more direct and open in his attraction to her.
Second stop: Empire Strikes Back. Han has been trying to get Leia admit her feelings for him since the beginning of the movie. So far, not so good. But at one point, he manages to literally corner her while she is busy working on repairs in the Millennium Falcon. He interrupts her while she is busy working on her own. She does not want to be bothered, she even pushes him back when he tries to help. The very much independent princess will have none of that. He is invading her space. She also refuses his sarcastic way of addressing her (Your Worship). She wants to be called Leia. She is represented very much as she truly is: a sensible, no nonsense, practical woman who can hold her own. Even in the way she is dressed: she may be donning white, not necessarily a good colour for DIY jobs, but it is still practical and comfortable. And the outfit was also designed as a camouflage for Hoth. So, she is wearing battle clothes of sorts. So, most definitely, working clothes for the princess.
In their dialogue, she insists on them being equals, since she refuses her title, and she wants to help with mechanical duties on the MF as much as anyone else involved at the moment (Han, Chewie, C3PO). She is no damsel in distress. When she hurts herself, her reflex is to take care of herself. And this is when, sensing an opportunity, he starts holding her hands and massaging them. Even the way he touches her is rather practical when you think of it. He grabs her hand without much ado, as if it were natural. This is no Vader Danger for her, but it gets her flustered. She is attracted to him, but embarrassed.The scene is shot very differently from the Padme/Anakin scene. There is more intimacy between them, they look at each other, she does not turn her head. They are not in the open but in a closed environment, his ship, his turf and workplace. They are brought together on his terms. Incidentally, this is also symptomatic of what will drive them apart. He will keep on flying and going on adventures, and she wants to keep on working.
The way he approaches her is also more direct than Anakin. No metaphor about sand and water. It is more like, “hey, you like me, I am a guy, you are a girl, we like each other, let’s make out”. Contrary to Padme who only reacts after the kiss, Leia, uncomfortable, argues right away and demands that he will “stop it”. Just like Anakin, he will not, and will initiate a kiss, but she has already somewhat voiced her approval by agreeing that she kind of liked him. There was verbal consent. But the fact that they keep on arguing and exchanging banter up to the moment of their kiss is also very symbolic of their dynamic, as well as the way their first kiss is eventually broken up by C3PO’s intrusion with a comment about work. Work, for these two, will always get in the way. It is a romantic relationship, but these two are practical people who put work and duty before anything else.
Final stop: The Last Jedi. This is very divergent from anything we have seen before. Of course, the first big variation is that so far the characters were antagonists, whereas in all previous relationships they started out on the same side and/or friends. There is normally no love lost between these two, and even if it should be obvious from TFA that Kylo has a crush on the scavenger girl, Rey has come a long way from wanting to kill the guy.
What brings the characters together is also outstanding. The second diversion is that they are not technically speaking physically together. They meet through a Force bond. They are not supposed to share the same space. As far as they are concerned, there is no space but their own. The previous sessions have established that they only see the other, as if he/she was magically transported into their surrounding. So, at the beginning of the scene, Kylo sees her in his private chambers and she sees him in the little hut where she lives during her stay in Ahch-To. Which means that, from the get go, this is officially the MOST intimate scene we have ever had so far, and the perfect compromise. Naboo was Padme’s world, the MF was Han’s world, here Kylo and Rey’s worlds literally combine. She did not ask him to be there, he did not want to be there, but here they are, not normally playing a part in each other’s life. He is not there to help her or protect her, and she is not doing anything. She is telling a story by the fire and he is listening. No metaphor and no work. And no name. She is not defining him and he is not defining her. For these two people that have been constantly alone their lifetime, they come to the magnitude of the realization that at this moment, when they are together, they are no longer “alone”. There is no demand. He says: “You are not alone”. She answers: “Neither are you”. They are stating this obvious : their strange relationship has intertwined their lives.They are there as perfect equals, both sitting, both seeing the other as he/she really is. He is not asking her anything, neither is she. These two people are not physically in the same space but are somehow represented as more intimate than any of the other two previous couples, thanks to extreme close ups, and the way they let themselves be totally overwhelmed by the moment. They are focused on each other in a way we have not seen before.
As for Rey’s costume, this is virtually her in her pyjamas. Even if she is wearing her Jedi trainee outfit, she is covering everything up under a blanket, as if she were tucked in in her bed. Actually, both their costumes become here inconsequential, since the extreme close ups prevent from paying attention to what they are wearing, unlike in previous scenes. Only the hands and faces matter, the way their hands touch and the way they react to each other.
And now for the huge big diversion: SHE initiates the touch. She is the one holding out her hand. But she does not touch him, she waits, she lets him ponder. And when he decides, he removes his glove, reaches back and meets her halfway. They do not impose the touch on each other. They communicate and agree non verbally. He does not push his way like Vader, nor does he argue his way into her affections like Han. They both respect each other’s space, before touching each other.
No kiss, though… Well, that is, if you discard the fact that like Romeo and Juliet, these two, like saints “have hands that pilgrims’ hands do touch/ And palm to palm is holy palmer’s kiss”. This is indeed represented as a divine union, a spiritual experience, where they each have visions, and which deeply affects them. And note that this is not work that stops “the kiss”, but a spiritual father, a figure that is very much Godlike, amid the thunder and the storm. Which puts their relationship on a deep spiritual level, and not just an erotic one. Neither of them tries to stop the process, which means that it is stronger than them, that they cannot resist it. And it is strong enough that it brings him into her space, that she, technically, pulls him into her world, by the fire, that is to say to the light. He is not the one pulling her to his side. At the same time, it is also a place where neither belongs, and a place that is sacred to the Jedi, once again stressing the spiritual level of their interaction.
If we compare this last scene with the first two, we can see many big differences that could give us clues about where this is going for them.
- They are equals: both Force sensitive, both portrayed merely as a soul and a face
- They both want the same thing at the same moment
- They do not necessarily need verbal communication
- She initiates the first touch and he does not invade her space
- Their relationship is as much physical as spiritual
- They do not kiss
For people who used to declare Kylo abusive and the relationship toxic, I am going to state that, for the first hand scene, they went out of their way to show them in the most consensual romantic moment we have ever had in Star Wars love stories. It is very revealing that when their relationship was at its best in the throne room they indeed did not have any verbal communication. Talking is what got them into trouble. So verbal communication is what they need to work on. The good thing is they probably will have more Force sessions to figure that out. They are the first couple who has not kissed in the second installment. But kissing did not necessarily guarantee a happy ever after obviously. At the end of episode 2, Han and Leia got separated whereas Padme and Anakin got married. I will take it as a good sign they are separated. The better to try and be reunited. It is obviously through their spiritual connection that they are destined to be together, and if you take the hut scene as a rehearsal: she may probably be the one luring him through their desire to be together…