Free Republic

It is arguable that the most famous line in “Revenge of the Sith” comes from Padme Amidala. When Palpatine announces to a rapturous Senate that the Republic is to be re-organised as the first Galactic Empire, she says: "So this is how liberty dies. With thunderous applause”. We are supposed to infer from this statement that freedom has been traded for security, and democracy traded for a dictatorship. As such, it is supposed to be a dark day, a tragedy, one which will take 20 years and the original three films to remedy. However the question that no one asks...

First international erotic fair to be held in Belgrade Fri May 20, 1:02 PM ET BELGRADE (AFP) - The first ever erotic fair will be organized in Belgrade next weekend with the participation of international pin-up stars led by Playboy bunny Dita Von Teese, an official said. More than thirty movie distributors, erotic magazines, sex-shops and lingerie designers will take part in a three-day long fair, to be opened on May 26, Andjelko Tripkovic, manager of the Belgrade fair, told reporters. The decision to organize such fair came after a survey conducted in January, which has showed that a majority...

CANNES — The last episode of the seminal sci-fi saga "Star Wars" screened at the Cannes film festival Sunday, completing a six-part series that remains a major part of popular culture — and delivering a galactic jab to U.S. President George W Bush. "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith" was seen ahead of a celebrity-laden evening screening to be attended by its creator and director, George Lucas, and its cast, including Natalie Portman and Hayden Christensen. Reaction at advance screenings was effusive, with festival-goers, critics and journalists at Cannes applauding at the moment the infamous Darth Vader...

'The Force' ins't with President George W. Bush, as least as far as George Lucas is concerned.The blogosphere has been abuzz for days with reports that Episode III contains several barely concealed digs at the Bush Administration.In a much cited scene, Ewan McGregors Obi Wan Kenobi decares, 'Only a Sith Lord deals in absolutes,' after Hayden Chirstensen's Ankin Skywalker/Darth Vader character says, 'If you're not with me, you're my enemy,' an obvious reference to President Bush's statements regarding the war on terror.As the Senate cedes power to Palpatine under the guise of 'intergalatic security,' Natalie Portman's Princess Padme Amidala exclaims...