Tonight's marathon is all about witnessing the downfall of three major empires. The first being the old Jedi Republic at the hands of Chancellor Palpatine, followed by the downfall of Nazi Germany at the hands of Adolf Hitler, and finally the downfall of the 300 year old Romanov Empire, and the abdication of Tsar Nicholas ll. Tonight we have the following films on our menu.
Star Wars Episode lll: Revenge of the Sith 2005, Downfall 2005, and Rasputin 1996
With all three of these films combined, a story arc is formed. Revenge of the Sith begins the spectacle with wall to wall action but also presents a story about a good man who was seduced by the dark side and turned his back on the old Republic by an evil and manipulative chancellor turned dictator. Ian McDiarmid's performance as Palpatine is amazing, and paints him as a mysterious figure who was able to capture an entire galaxy with his grip, and wipe out the old rule. This story is followed by Downfall which shows Nazi Germany on the brink of losing the war to the allies, and Adolf Hitler slowly realizing that his plan to conquer Europe was failing, making him lose his mind. What the film Rasputin does is it gives the story its proper closure by showing the full effects of these three individuals manipulating others, and causing a domino effect in which those around them suffer from the actions of these three madmen. Palpatine, Hitler, and Rasputin can all be summed up as being dark servants of destiny, because they altered the course of history forever in their own universes. Tonight's marathon is a representation of the themes of betrayal, seduction, manipulation, revolution, and ultimately the harsh realities of war and political corruption.
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