A Blog by the Editor of The Middle East Journal

Putting Middle Eastern Events in Cultural and Historical Context

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Can This Possibly Be Real? Apparent Syrian Pro-Asad Propaganda Video Uses Darth Vader Theme

This is making the blogosphere rounds and I have to admit I don't know if it's legit. It's supposedly a Syrian state propaganda video. With clips of Nasser, Hafiz al-Asad, and Bashar all talking about Syria. It all looks like typical state propaganda. But (even if you don't understand the Arabic), listen to the background music, which gets louder at the end. That "patriotic" march is, yes indeed, the Darth Vader/Emperor march theme from Star Wars. Either this is a monumental case of somebody choosing the wrong music, or else it's a subtle satire. Either way (but especially if the former) it's funny. Or maybe Bashar sees himself as Emperor Palpatine. (There's a Hafiz al-Asad "Bashar: I am your father!" joke I could make as well.)

I suppose the Horst Wessel Lied would be worse in one sense, but hardly anyone today would recognize it.

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