*** Official "STAR WARS EPISODE II ATTACK OF THE CLONES" Review Thread (1 Viewer)

[Inspector Hammer!]

I just returned from seeing it, I LOVED IT!
I got exatly what I went in for, the movie simply rocks! I loved just about everyone in the cast, particularly Hayden Christensen, he IS Anakin Skywalker! With every moment he was onscreen, you could almost taste the bad vibes coming from him, he is becoming a very dangerous individual. I also loved Ewen here, his potrayal of Obi Wan is spot on, he has grown and matured into a very skilled and disaplined young Jedi, plus, he's starting to practically turn into Alec Guiness! And then of course we have Natalie, my goodness gracious! And she's great in the film too.
I thought the effects were the best i've seen in any film thus far, that whole chase through Courroscant with Ani and Obi Wan was exhilerating to watch, it almost made me dizzy!
Yoda, oh boy Yoda. This scene alone should satisfy any 'SW' fan until 'EP III', it had the whole theater in an uproar, including myself!
In closing, another piece of the puzzle is in place, and a very high quality piece it is.
Star Wars Episode II Attack of the Clones is outstanding in every way. :star: :star: :star: :star: :star: out of five for me.

 

[BobH]

Yet another mixed review here. I may not say anything different, but since I stood in line during a volcanic eruption to see ESB, I qualify as a SW fan.
1. Really surprised and off-put by the grainy picture during the beginning third, poor blacks, halos, etc. Can't believe Lucas can claim this is the best he could do. The simple scenes with just people were the worst. DP should be fired.
2. Story interesting but really thin. Liked the basic setup better than most (maybe all) other SW films since it is more realistic (Darth Sidious is far smarter than anyone else and represents a much better adversary). Good guys were hamstrung. Obiwan has a few painful cuts and he is taken completely out of the battle???? Who wrote this?! Oh, yeah, forgot for a moment.
3. Acting was generally better despite pretty stolid lines. Anyone on the set have a sense of humor? Padme and Obiwan were much better characters this time.
4. Battle scenes were overwhelming. I felt like I was watching Armaggeddon again! Fast and loud is what we all want, right? Sorry, but I came out of the theater not wanting any stimulation for an hour, thank you. It's just gone too far. Lucas is right here; he put out what most people want but I must decline. Louder, faster, busier, brighter is not better to me. Balance is nearly gone from this movie. Even TPM was a better balanced movie but the original SW and ESB were better still. I imagine E-III will be one three hour battle. Might just as well name it now: The Clone War.
5. The cute references were, well cute. Maybe they seem too obvious to me because I know the series so well. Too contrived is my judgement (this is a review thread).
6. The worst: I can't believe Padme reacts to what Anakin did (avoiding spoiler, but you know what I mean) with compassion and love. A normal human would have been completely revulsed! Inexcuseable and clearly the reason to abandon any hope for redemption. This also makes the ending of RotJ ring false. How can we feel warm and fuzzy at the scene of Anakin, Obiwan and Yoda around the fire at the end of RotJ?! Spoils it for me completely! Lucas took it too far and ruined the series for me.
7. The best: It's Star Wars and I'm attached to the characters. Everybody's here and I look forward to more just to see how it plays out. I will buy the DVD but I might only watch it in the theaters once more (maybe). Light sabre battles were really impressive and actually rather artistic color dynamics. Rather cool.
:star: :star: :star: out of :star: :star: :star: :star: :star: (3/5)
Have to rate it only marginally better than TPM and not nearly as good as any of the first three. Dissapointed after the early reviews. It's not supposed to be great art, it's supposed to be fun. It wasn't.
In short: A lot of flash but no substance.

 

[Matt Stone]

I found this to be a major distraction, as did many people in the audience. From the reviews coming in here, it looks like other people have had similiar problems. Some people, on the other hand, did not see this "problem" with the print. Although the majority of reviewers commenting on the picture quality are indeed seeing what I am.

I noticed it, but it never took me out of the film...and I still don't think we can blame the film, for theaters not upgrading their projection systems. From what I understand (and I could be wrong) Lucas expected DPL systems to be installed in many, many theaters across the nation, by the time E2 opened...and it just didn't happen.

Either way...as I said before, it didn't effect the film for me.

 

[Pete_w]

BobH....3/5..pretty high considering your review was pretty negative.

 

[DarrenA]

Those movies aren't magic because we were kids back then, those movies are magic because they captured something amazing we haven't seen since on film.

Actually, I do feel that way. I have really enjoyed all five Star Wars movies thus far. But to be honest I watched the original trilogy recently, and the dialogue felt just as flat and forced as Episode I or II. That's not to say it ruined the original trilogy, but rather these movies have become "legendary" in their status due to the length of time passing between the two trilogy's. To me it's the same as when the title "The Phantom Menace" or "Attack of the Clones" were revealed. Both titles were panned horribly in the press and on this very forum. Now you don't hear anyone complain about the titles of these two installments.

I think when all 6 titles are available for viewing in our own home in chronological order, it will make the series feel much more complete and rectify most of the complaints about the movies individually.

 

[BobH]

Pete_w

Yeah, it's just hard to rate any SW movie low. Considering the movie quality out there in general, I have to give it three stars. One half more for some pretty impressive special effects and basic nostalgia.

For the first time, though, I came out of the theater not wanting to see it again for a while. That is sad, and I feel cheated by Lucas. Unlike most, I thought TPM was ok for an introduction, which is what it was supposed to be. But I was ready for some real meat here and I only got noise (relatively).

 

[Duane Robinson]

This is my second review after my second viewing of this movie in one day and I swear I love it even more than I did after my first viewing. Everything I had a problem with the first time through just either disappeared or was greatly diminished. It was like taking out a blind date and not knowing what to expect so you act apprehensive and look for and focus on any possible flaws. After enjoying the first date and realizing that you like the person only then can you relax and truly enjoy the other dates after it. When I first saw the movie I was looking at certain scenes knowing they were CGI and unreal and just looking for flaws in the way it was brought to the screen. My brain just couldn't process what I was seeing so I would judge certain things negatively or not enjoy them as much as I possibly could. After knowing what to expect and watching the movie again a lot of the imagery strangely seemed more "real" to me and I could let myself go and enjoy it even more.
The love story dialogue bugged the hell out of me the first time and I actually caught myself laughing at Anakin's attempts to woo Padme until I thought about the kinds of lives they had lived up until that point. They weren't your normal young people so placing my interpretation of how they should act about their love onto their interactions was incorrect. They had never had an average growing up since Padme was groomed to be a politician and Anakin was a slave for part of his life and a Jedi in training for the other part. Of course they wouldn't be familiar with how to go about this whole courtship thing like Han and Leia who had lead more varied and "normal" lives. I've read complaints about how their lines felt forced and if you came to that conclusion then I think Lucas got the reaction he was aiming for. Their interactions are supposed to seem forced since these feelings are unnatural to them and they aren't familiar with the "correct" method of going about the courtship process.
I also loved the pace of the film even more after thinking that it was a tad slow at first. Their is a lot of information that has to be dispensed to show just how much Palpatine has to go through to bring about the downfall of the Jedi and the rise of the Empire. If the movie had spent time on giving characters individual quirks and unnecessary backstory then when the downfall of the Jedi came around people would be complaining that it was all too easy for Palpatine and seemed implausible. This movie had its share of flaws just like any other movie, the original trilogy included, but it didn't hamper my enjoyment of the film. The strenghts far outweigh the flaws and if a film does that by the margin that Episode II did then I'm happy.
Maybe it's because I didn't grow up with the Star Wars Trilogy so I don't place it on any sort of pedestal and instead just view it as I would any other series of films. When I first watched the OT I loved it instantly despite its many flaws such as bad acting from certain characters, cheesy dialogue, and dubious effects (although they were great for the most part). These films hold a special place in my heart now among many other films but that doesn't mean that they were perfect or didn't have their bad moments that make me wonder why the hell I like them. To me Star Wars isn't about a lot of the things that a lot of the fans (fanatics maybe) have made it out to be. They just seem like good, escapist fun and an involving story of good versus evil.
I've read stuff on some web sites that make me think these people view these movies as a damn near religious experience and I just don't feel that way about them. They're good films but that's all that they are to me. I'll leave George to tell HIS story and not try to foist my interpretations or desires on his tale and then get disappointed when it doesn't fit into the mold I made for it. If he tells a good story, like I feel he's done with this film then I'll be happy. If he doesn't then I'll move on to another movie and shut up about it. I won't feel like he raped my childhood just because his vision differed from mine.
If I feel so strongly that my vision is better than what he presented to me and that he didn't do a good job I'll just get of my butt and try to tell the better tale I feel I could. As of right now I feel no such need since the story he presented to me is pretty damn satisfying and highly entertaining. This one is up there with the OT in my eyes and during certain moments eclipses anything I've seen or felt in any of the other Star Wars movies.
:star: :star: :star: :star: and a

 

[Tim Glover]

Have to agree with many here about AOTC maybe becoming my favorite of all the SW films. I guess time will tell.
I'm still pumped by it and I liked the scenes with Anakin and Padme. I fell for them. Yeah some of them were cheezy but to me there supposed to be, for them.
We know that their love goes against what they should do, but they choose to ignore it and give in to their feelings for each other. True love/passion can sometimes make you say and do things that don't always make sense, like"
'I don't like the sand, it's too coarse, not smooth like your skin!!!!"

I love this movie!

 

[Darren Crouse]

I'll have to confess that I wasn't entirely sold on this Star Wars venture. I feel that Lucas should relinquish some of his authority to sources other than the 'yes' men he surrounds himself with. I believe that ESB was largely successful because of Kershner and Lucas. For the first time in my life, and being a SW fan, I can only offer pejorative opinions about the film. It may have been eye candy but it just did not deliver for me. I feel kind of awful because I typically believe that if one has nothing important to say than one should remain silent (or atleast keep their keyboard silent). There is a sense of arbitrariness to Lucas' scripts that feel forced. I wasn't a fan of Yoda's lightsabre sequence either. It just seemed out of place and not in character for him. Seeing him break out into gymnastic-like flips, dodges and feints looked almost unintentionally funny. It didn't seem like Yoda at all. The film had elements of profundity that seemed to have been lost. I know what he was trying but it didn't work for me at all. I do hope no one is offended by my review but as Alexander Pope writes in his Essay on Criticism, "know thyself". I really hope that Lucas redeems himself on the next film. Of course bear in mind that what I offer is only my opinion.

Take care,

D.

 

[Steve Y]

AOTC is a hell of a lot of fun, but some people are taking it a little too seriously. It's a cheesy and ambitious piece of science fiction entertainment.
The original trilogy has a superior sense of pacing because the scripts aren't trying to do so damn much with the plot. A lot of the exposition that does exist in the original trilogy is no less laughable than AOTC; there's just a lot less of it.
AOTC could have perhaps learned a lesson from this sort of script-writing, but these issues in no way impede my enjoyment of this fun, silly romp through space. Besides, I admire the imagination at work here. At least it's "trying" to be about something.
Han and Leia's romance had the benefit of Harrison Ford's charisma. But to those of you that thought Anakin is essentially "stalking" Padme, re-watch Han's passes at Leia in the m. falcon after they leave Hoth in "Empire"... if we weren't so attached to Han it would be a little "creepy"!
It does hurt that we are watching Mr. Christiansen for the first time. Jake Lloyd (and not blaming him entirely) was not exactly the ideal introduction to this character.
As for Mace Windu having "no real character development", I can't disagree. But you're telling me Boba Fett had any character development in ESB? Darth Maul? Any of the generic rebel commanders in ANY episode of the original trilogy? The wingmen? I think the star wars novellas and fan fiction have supplied much of the "character development" to the backdrop characters that we mistakenly attribute to the films themselves.
I like how some of the exotic locations are much more "lived in" this time around, rather than simple "backdrops" for expository material (gungan underwater city and coruscant basically served as "background mattes" for the endless exposition in episode 1)
Technical notes: The sound wasn't "enveloping" in our theater seemed to be only coming from the front... on top of that, the theater's lights came up suddenly during the tuskan camp scene.
It would seem AOTC is officially receiving "mixed" reviews now! I think the negative reviews on this thread are FAR superior to those found in the mainstream media. Not only better thought-out, but less cynical and snide. Major newspaper writers deride the horrible writing, but then allow titles such as "attack of the groans" or "star worse" over their critiques?? The hatred just oozes off them... embraced the dark side they have!
~Steve

 

[Elbert Lee]

I LIKED THIS EPISODE as a STAR WARS MOVIE, but I ALSO SEE MANY FLAWS in it as FILM.

Compared to EPI, the tone of EPII was much more consistent, especially with the absense of kids and the Gungans. Furthmore, most of the cinematography is MUCH better and not limited to just a few CGI shot to capture the world(s) of STAR WARS, like EPI. In addition the more close up scenes contained much more depth and moving "extras" in the background. EPI lacked the cinematography and CGI fill in the background, especially during the final sequence, which made a significant portion look like it was truly filmed on a large soundstage instead of a real location. EPII was able to overcome that shortcoming and truly creat 4 different locales in CONVINCING fashion. -

STORY - YES the TONE of the film was much more consistant than EPI. THe sweeping music of John Williams wasn't as "spotty" because of the absense of his "children's fairy tale" musical scores. The integration of the original trilogy themes was done much better.

EDITING - This is the area that was the MOST FLAWED - The jumping back and forth between OBIWAN's scenes and the Anakin/Amidala courtship really presented a problem in this movie. Lucas seemd to have done away with the "chapter" turn used in the other ST films and instead just "jumped" back and forth. There was no "build" up of the more romantic scenes, which made the lines come off as somewhat corny and, dare I say it, downright BAD. You just can cut from the Jengo Fett/Obi Wan fight to the Anakin/Amidal fireplace scene where he practically starts the conversation CRYING!! There simply isn't any prep for the audience and I can definitely see why critics panned the dialogue. Lucas seemed to be FORCING the idea of Anakin's discontentment throughout the dialogue. C'mon - you would think that Anakin would have grown up learning not to make a fool out of himself by pouring is guts out to the woman he's trying to hook up with! A guy macs on a girl and not cry like baby about how life is unfair. It would have been much better had Lucas approached this inner frustration with more tact and not SPELL it out to his audience so early in the film. I liked the introduction of the friendship between the apprentice and Master, but Lucas really made it seem as though Obiwan was the "bitchy and nagging mother" at times and Anakin as the immature son. No subtlety at all, but it was adequate.

Action - I can see why detractors may have been disappointed with this film in terms of action. Yes - the ending light saber duals at the end didn't have the length and cool martial arts that EPI ended with. But, we were treated to seeing Yoda in action. Sometimes I wonder WHY ANAKIN is supposed to be so powerful and "gifted". None of the movies have shown him to be nearly as powerful as the emperor, Yoda, or even DOOKU. Testimony from central characters throughout the SW films have always brought out the fact that "Vador is powerful", but, TBH, he doesn't seem to have excelled much more than another other of the Jedi.

Overall - I think that the positive reviews of the film are based on the fact that Lucas seemed to steer the tone of the film back on the right track - Instead of writing the story around 2-3 major action sequences (a la pod race scene in EPI), EPII really felt as though the story took center stage and the action was broken up into shorter and more scaled down sequences.

As a movie, EPII does not inspire the same amount of emotional attachment to its characters the way the original trilogy has. Again, the return to so much "formality" during the political moments, as well as the fact that EPI did nothing to establish an emotional bond between the audience and the central characters, really hinders EPII's ability to deliver on its emotional impact the way the ESB was able to. Ewan Mcgreggor has grown into his role quite well as has Hayden Christiansen and Natalie Portman, but they are hindered by choppy and "literal" sounding script.

For those who thought that the acting was poor in EPI, the blame must be on Lucas and not the actors. It is up to Lucas to provide the direction, and because the actors really had little idea of what was happening in each scene in relationship with the entire movie, it was difficult for them to truly act. Lucas has always been known to cast well and let his actors just rehearse away until the chemistry was formulated. Not so in EPI and not so in EPII - fortunately Mcgreggor and Christiansen are decent actors>

Elbert

 

[Dan Keefe]

Haydn got the job as Anakin after Time Magazine annointed Jonathan Jackson(ex Lucky on General Hospital)to the role. Obviously, Lucas doesn't like to be told what goes in his movies(JarJar living through this movie is a perfect example)It's a shame because I think Jackson would have done a much better job as Anakin. I am going to go see this movie again, maybe it will grow on me. I think Lucas is trying to hard to impress us or at least feeling pressure after the last movie.

dan

 

[Randall Z]

I must admit that my feelings on this film were mixed initially. I found myself very tense for the first 30 minutes or so of this film waiting for it to get bad (as so many critics stated). But it never happened. Once I was able to relax, I found myself enjoying one of the best installments of the saga yet.
After my initial viewing here are my takes on the criticism leveled against this film.
Poor acting: I couldn't disagree more. I felt that the acting in this film exceeded that of any SW film, with the possible exception of ROTJ. I felt that all the performances were right on.
Unbelievable Romance: Yes, there were some lines during the love scenes that were bad. But most of the romance was very good. I would also have to say that I felt that this love story was even more developed that Han and Leia's.
The story drags: Sure it does. But no more than in any other SW film. Sure Episode IV started with a bang, but once threepio and artoo got to Tatooine, the film takes a while to get going. I found the pacing of AOTC to be very good.
Poor picture quality: Having seen this on film, I must confess that some scenes were a little out of focus, but it didn't take away from the film at all.
Now the positives, the light-saber fight was great. The effects were great. The sound was among the best I have ever heard in a film. The way the film comes together at the end is very satisfying. This film will get many repeat viewings from me
So AOTC gets:
:star: :star: :star: :star: /:star: :star: :star: :star: :star:
Other SW episodes:
ANH: :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:
TESB: :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:
ROTJ: :star: :star: :star: 1/2
TPM: :star: :star: :star: 1/2

 

[Derek Bang]

AOTC: :star: :star: :star: 1/2 out of :star: :star: :star: :star:
What a fun movie. Star Wars is back on track. After 2 viewings yesterday, here's my take on some of the criticisms:
Picture quality - saw on two different screens and really have no complaints. Maybe I don't have the discerning eye of others, but believe me, I was looking for out of focus scenes after reading some reviews. I'm wondering if the prints are inconsistent. I remember thinking several times that it is amazing how good this looks - oh yeah, it's completely digital! Amazing.
Hayden - very pleasantly suprised. Some of lines didn't necessary work, but he did a yeomans job. What I enjoyed about his performace was really his facial expressions and mannerisms more than his line delivery. He emoted conflict and I could feel it just by looking at him. The return to Tattoine sequence was excellent.
Natalie - so-so. She's very easy on the eyes, but I don't think she offered a lot more than the delivery of her lines -which was a mixed bag. However, I still think the romance worked and I enjoyed it.
Exposition - as said earlier, all SW films have some degree of it. However, I've approached the prequels as Lucas described them: The OT was character driven, the prequels are plot driven. Hence, more exposition is inevitable. There's just so much ground to cover. It didn't bother me. I really enjoyed seeing the tie-ins to ANH and ESB emerge.
What Lucas has delivered I believe is truly amazing. He is really pushing the envelope on technology. The worlds he has created are extremely cool. While at times the film slightly suffers for it (Anakin riding on the boar-type thing), I appreciate what he is trying to do.
The ending really tied things together for me. The Dooku showdown was classic. Yoda really delivered.
I also noticed several Lawrence of Arabia homages (or maybe its just me). From the Naboo scene previously discussed to the footprints in the sand on Geonosis.
Bottom line, I can certainly find flaws in the movie as I can with all the other SW films. To me, the flaws are extremely minor in comparison with the successes in AOTC. I'm ready to see it again.

 

[RogerB]

I saw it yesterday, standard projection, but in a THX certified theater.

I loved it. Great pace, top-notch action and the CGI work was the best seen on film to date. Talk about photo-realistic! Nothing fake looking here.

I have to agree with Elbert (above) regarding the editing in the scenes with Obi-wan and Anakin/Amidala. There were a few times when the settings were so similar it took me a second to figure out that it switched from one to the other.

But all this talk about poor performances and bad dialog....have you seen the original trilogy lately? These movies take place a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. The characters do not talk and act like Lester Burnham or Tyler Durden. I have no complaints about the acting or dialog in AOTC.

I give it 5 out of 5 stars.

 

[Neil Joseph]

I was very entertained by this film and felt a sense of regret when the end credits came onscreen. That said, it was not a perfect film and it had it's problems, then again, all of the Star Wars films have their flaws if you examine them closely enough. I have to mention that this film seemed so totally different from the others, like it was directed by someone else other than Lucas.
The parts that were my favourite were the beginning, the protection of Amidala and the subsequent chase of the bounty hunter though the sky's of Curuscant. I also loved the duel between Obi-Wan and Jango Fett, as well as the final Jedi battle near the end also. The beginning ... partnership between R2D2 and C3P0 was particularly funny from a retrospective point of view since we all know how their relationship was in the first trilogy.
I went into this movie not wanting to know anything at all about plot etc so I was surprised afterwards when I read the movie was 145 min (or so) in length. It could have been trimmed here and there and brought down to around 135 min. Don't get me wrong, it did not feel like 145 min though.
BTW, Hayden Christianssen deserves some major recognition for his performance in the film. A difficult role he played and a fine job he did.
:star::star::star::star:1/2 out of :star::star::star::star::star:

 

[Christian Morley]

Absolutely loved it. It accomplished everything i hoped it would...4.5/5

 

[Alex-C]

Chock up another fan of this film. Even though I may be in a minority on this, I believe the OT and PT should be taken in and judged separately. The OT reflected a different milieu in filmmaking than does our current trilogy.
That being said, I don't really find it necessary to point out or seek out inconsistancies with the upcoming OT. Taken on its own, I found AOTC to be genuinely exciting and fun to watch.
Going into this movie, after reading some reviews and dissecting the trailers, I expected Hayden to be stiff, the setup to be dull and other things. What I found was completely wrong: I thought Hayden was fine, he seemed comfortable in that role. In other words, my expectations were exceeded in every way, so the obvious question is why do I seek out expectations by gleaning insight from some reviews before a movie ? Its a waste of time. Will I do it again for Ep 3...probably (its hard to ignore the hype machine), but I will have to remember how I feel.
For me the most exciting part of the movie was the beginning of the executions with the 3 large beasts. That was really well done (smacking of MIB a little maybe). I guess by that time in the movie, you are ready for some ass-kicking.
In summary, I like AOTC better than TPM (am I the only one who, partly because of the romance aspect, thinks this movie was much more adult or at least young adult focused than TPM ? you could hear the younglings in the theater getting ancy and fidgety).
I give it:
:star: :star: :star: :star: out of :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:

 

[TerryRL]

I'm not going to go into a lengthy post about what I loved and what I didn't like (the flaws are VERY minor imo), I will say that I absolutely loved it and it's without a doubt one of the most entertaining movies I've ever seen.
George Lucas Strikes Back
:star: :star: :star: :star: :star: out of :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:
The SW Saga...
ANH :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:
ESB :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:
ROTJ :star: :star: :star: :star:
TPM :star: :star: :star: 1/2

 

[Derek Faber]

I'll just say, a total blast. On top of the pile with Empire.
Attack of the Clones:star: :star: :star: :star: /:star: :star: :star: :star:
Star Wars :star: :star: :star: :star:
Empire Strikes Back :star: :star: :star: :star:
Return of the Jedi :star: :star: :star: 1/2
The Phantom Menace :star: :star: