MODERN STAR WARS PROJECTS HAVE A FLASHBACK PROBLEM

In the Star Wars universe, flashbacks are a revolutionary innovation that reveal a narrative flaw.

Flashbacks are a typical storytelling technique that have been used in films from the beginning of the medium. However, the use of flashbacks in live-action Star Wars is a fresh invention that didn’t appear on screen until 2015’s Episode VII: The Force Awakens, which marked the beginning of the franchise’s contemporary, Disney-led period. When George Lucas was in charge of the Star Wars franchise, the movies focused more on conversation and nostalgic exchanges to describe earlier times in the lives of the characters and the timeline of the universe.However, the Disney+ series and live-action Star Wars films simply and unapologetically depict the past, endorsing the standard, time-honored cinematic tactic. Even though these visual flashbacks are frequently done successfully, they lack the originality and specialness of the word-of-mouth reflections from the original and prequel trilogies. Ironically, George Lucas’ Star Wars was able to craft a more fascinating, extensive storyline by defying the first storytelling rule and “telling rather than showing.”

When Was the First Star Wars Flashback?

The first live-action Star Wars flashback occurred in The Force Awakens when Rey (Daisy Ridley) initially touches Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber and has a force vision. By traditional Star Wars standards, this was almost acceptable because the scene’s portrayal of her as a young child was more psychological and Force-driven than expository. Though the opening sequence of Jyn Erso’s (Felicity Jones) next year’s Rogue One featured a jump of more than ten years from her childhood to maturity, the film also included a number of quick flashbacks. The Last Jedi followed, with flashbacks playing a significant role. It told the story of the fateful night when the Master nearly killed the Apprentice by showing various perspectives of the same incident from Kylo Ren’s (Adam Driver) and Luke’s (Mark Hamill) memories. Since then, Star Wars has made considerably more frequent use of flashbacks. The Book of Boba Fett largely ignored linear narrative; Obi-Wan Kenobi showed various sequences of the titular hero and Anakin from over a decade prior; and, most recently, Andor opened with its first three episodes switching back and forth between Cassian’s boyhood and his modern life. Flashbacks were used in The Rise Of Skywalker and The Mandalorian to depict important moments from the past.

Again, many of these flashbacks provide engrossing visual windows into earlier Star Wars eras or earlier periods in the lives of the protagonists. But they hardly ever feel really noteworthy. Typically, they don’t go much farther than to provide an explanation for “what happened.” Contrast that with a few of the historical-related discussion sequences from the original and prequel trilogies. Obi-Wan teaches Luke about the Clone Wars and his father’s relationship in A New Hope. In Return of the Jedi, he continues to narrate this story while adding new elements. Both moments are noteworthy, and Alec Guiness’ portrayal of the past has a much bigger impact than any overt flashback in a contemporary Star Wars film.

That Revenge of the Sith Moment Shows Star Wars’ Pre-Flashback Power

Of course, one could counter that the prequel films did give viewers flashbacks to those Alec Guiness scenes, and that Obi-allusions Wan’s to Anakin and the Clone Wars are largely remembered today because they connect the original and prequel eras of Star Wars. The same could not be said, however, of one of the prequel trilogy’s most memorable scenes, which is a thoughtful conversation in which Palpatine recounts Anakin the Tragic Story of Darth Plagueis the Wise. The events from Palpatine’s story have not yet been represented in a Star Wars movie or television program, despite the fact that this scene from Revenge of the Sith is still an often cited and acclaimed moment in the franchise. Palpatine is portrayed by Ian McDiarmid with the same masterful storytelling abilities as Alec Guiness’ Obi-Wan, which gives the scenario more fascination than any visual flashback could. The Star Wars Pillow universe is given a feeling of mystery, relativity, and grandeur by hearing the story from the perspective of a multifaceted character. It implies that the diegesis itself contains a wealth of unexplored myths and legends—a mythos within a mythos.

Similar to how sharing these personal anecdotes from the past adds a subtle subjective element, people and ideas are enhanced by the potential for ambiguous narration. With The Force Awakens’ flashback appearing to take place inside of Rey’s skull and The Last Jedi’s depending on skewed recollections, early contemporary Star Wars still has elements of this. The latter’s samurai-like aesthetic is somewhat reminiscent of Rashomon and the Akira Kurosawa movies that served as the original inspiration for Star Wars. The more recent Star Wars content, on the other hand, has been much less deft with its flashbacks, and even in these early Disney attempts, the subjectivity feels a little tarnished when a visual goes along with the recollection. The camera is an impartial entity in Star Wars, as it is in the majority of narrative movies. In general, what appears on screen represents the diegetic reality.

References to Off-screen Events Muddy the Truth in Interesting Ways

But when things happen off-screen and characters just talk about them, the audience finds the reality to be far more intriguing and debatable. These uncertain times may have consequences. Consider Obi-Wan giving Luke the “truth” about Darth Vader “killing” his father “from a specific point of view” in Star Wars as an example. The greatest twist in film history—the identification of Darth Vader as Luke’s father—was made possible by Obi-omissions Wan’s and subjective account of Anakin’s past. The unveiling might not have been feasible, or at least not nearly as powerful, if A New Hope had included visual flashbacks of Anakin and Obi-Wan, their battle on Mustafar, and the metaphorical “death” that occurred when Anakin chose the dark side.

In movies and television shows, flashbacks are perfectly acceptable. The strategy has been praised by great movies like The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Citizen Kane, and The Godfather: Part II as well as television classics like The Sopranos and Breaking Bad. It can be a powerful approach to develop a narrative or elucidate a point. Some of the flashbacks have even provided intriguing spins on the narrative device in more recent Star Wars films. But the more frequently the franchise uses them, the less impactful they are. Similar to this, if Star Wars depicts every instance of an event it alludes to, it deprives the universe of its limitless scope, deprives the narrative of its possible mysteries, and eventually distances the material from the complex mythos that George Lucas emphasized in his original vision. Maybe it’s time for Lucasfilm to toss out the manual on screenwriting and start “telling” instead of “showing,” taking a cue from the series’ originator.

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