CONTEST: Post your SW2 Review here!

First off, this review contains spoilers, but I assume if you're reading any of these (especially this far) you understand as much.

I give the movie 9/10.

As of the end of the first day, now that it's officially May 17th, I've seen the film four times. No, I didn't see it in costume, so I'm not QUITE as big of a fan as a lot of you reading this, but c'mon, that's a healthy enough number of times in the first day to consider myself obsessed, right?

Anyway up through the first half of the film the first time I saw it- I was disappointed. It was laden with dialogue that didn't seem to advance it anywhere. Most of the scenes seemed to be things from a so-so fan-made trailer or something, they didn't seem GOOD enough to be Star Wars. Music was simply absent from a lot of scenes that seemed to DEMAND IT (read: Obi-Wan chasing Jango and Boba near Geonosis). And a lot of the movie seemed to simply be Star Wars Episode 1: Revisited. Hey look, it's Anakin and Padme- again. Hey look, they're back on Tatooine- again. He's protecting her- again. And finally, the romance scenes didn't seem to build up to ANYTHING. I couldn't see them falling in love in a near-2 and a 1/2 hour period the way things were going.

But once Anakin snapped- wow. From that point on I not only accepted- but enjoyed the movie. And then there was Yoda. I've heard a few negative comments about that scene, but that MADE the film for me. Each successive showing I still grinned and cheered like a kid when Yoda busted out his Jedi skills.

Now keep in mind those were my thoughts on the FIRST showing. I was so mind-popped from the wimpy 4-hour wait I endured for the midnight showing and so exhausted from the work week that I couldn't really think about anything, much less the major cinematic impact I was viewing. I mean- It's STAR WARS. Regardless of if it's good, bad, or simply a two-hour hand puppet show filmed with a handheld camcorder, it's going to go down in history. It's STAR WARS!

So after a nice 4 or 5 hours of sleep I got up and went to endure the lines three more times throughout the day. The first time I watched it I kept thinking "Man, this is overkill, I'm going to get bored by the 2nd showing and not WANT to see the 3rd." By the 2nd I was slapping myself for not buying the next screening or two because I knew I would enjoy it so much that I'd want to see it again, and again, and again...

To get to the point, it was MUCH BETTER for me the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th time around. I STRONGLY appreciated the opening bits of dialogue, Zam is an amazing character and I wish there would've been more of her. The special effects were awesome, the character development great. Anakin's evilness, rebelliousness, and foolishness are conveyed very well. There were things I looked forward to every viewing. The speeder chase through Coruscant, Obi-Wan's conversation (kinda) about Death Sticks, Anakin's "rescue" of Shmi, Padme in the droid factory, pretty much anything on Geonosis or in the cloning facilities...

And then there was Yoda. I'm dead serious, that was the greatest thing I've seen in a while. I'm left mouth gaping every time... Just thinking about it makes me wish I had tomorrow off of work for my 5th-8th viewings.

But there IS room for improvement. I appreciate the relationship development between Anakin and Padme much more now, but I still think there needed to be more to it. Also, the scene where Anakin levitates a piece of fruit for Padme- very hokey and the worst special effect in the film. It's painful to watch him pretend to cut it and her pretend to bite a piece off, it needed a lot more detail. Also the music STILL needed to be a bit more prevalent and didn't have to be dark all of th time. In the end, however, I appreciated the darkness A LOT. I love the part where Obi-Wan and Anakin are watching Amidala in her suite and Anakin is talking about his sleep problems. Everything is just so- wrong. Off. Dark and disturbing. Great.

In the end I went from being a little let down to enjoying it to, well, thinking it IS the best of the ser

'Star Wars: Episode II- Attack of the Clones'
REVIEW by Sabersparx
(sabersparx@hotmail.com)

**** (4 of 4)

Summary: Lucas taps into the very soul of the human spirit, and returns us to that galaxy that, to many 'The Phantom Menace' haters, that is so far away.
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MILD-SPOILER REVIEW:
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Where do I begin? First off, I highly enjoy 'The Phantom Menace.' As in, I STILL highly enjoy it. What many people don't understand about 'The Phantom Menace' is actually quite simple: it's the beginning of the larger story. Not just 'a' larger story- but -the- larger story. As in, the larger story already exists. Many critics and fans said that it didn't have much of a plot- if that were true, then Episodes IV-VI, the original trilogy, wouldn't have had a good story either. And bad stories = no fans, and since 'Star Wars' has more than enough fans to keep it popular, I'd say 'The Phantom Menace' did a bang-up job.

But I'm not here to preach about 'The Phantom Menace.'

I'm here to preach about the newest ace in the saga, 'Attack of the Clones.' And what an ace it is. Saga creator George Lucas and co-screenwriter Jonathan Hales have nailed the very human soul that many thought was lacking in the previous episode.

What is so different this time around? What gives it human soul?

Simple. The future twins of destiny must come about somehow, and for there to be birth, there must first come love.

'Attack of the Clones' is, and make no mistake about it, a primary love story. And by 'primary' I mean a quite basic love story. It doesn't overlap the film, yet it isn't shallow either. For this movie to work for me, the love story must have succeeded. It could not have worked any other way. I'm rather glad to report that not only does the film pull off the love story, but it actualy does a great job at pulling you into it.

Padme Amidala, now a senator for Naboo, is a prime target for assassins. Assigned to protect the senator until the source of the assassins is discovered, is none other than Anakin Skywalker, who may just end up being a key player in the original trilogy films. But this is a non-spoiler review, so I can't quite reveal his true identity to you.

As everyone already knows, Anakin has had a thing for Padme for quite some time.

"Are you an angel?" -Anakin, TPM

Not only does this set up the love story, but it lets us travel across the lands we are more than familiar with, including the grassy plains of Naboo and the scorching, desert sands of a certain planet I shouldn't even bother naming. It rhymes with 'Tatooine.' That's the biggest hint I can give you. Several key scenes occur on these planets, such as the introduction of a younger Owen (Joel Edgerton) and Beru(Bonnie Piesse), and more importantly, lets us meet Cliegg Lars (actor unavailable), who married Anakin's mother, Shmi (Pernilla August), shortly after Anakin departed her some 10 odd years ago. Anakin has had many of a nightmare about his mother, which ultimately leads up to a key emotional scene that was, without a doubt, beautifully handled. I was scared Lucas couldn't pull it off, but he does it in spades. I would also like to note the make-up work for this particular scene as well. Kudos.

Meanwhile, the handsome rogue Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor), is hot on the trail of the assassin with a Kyber dart as his only clue...or is he? Obviously not, as stressed by Jedi Master Yoda (Frank Oz), because Obi-Wan has "lost his planet" as stressed by the humorous green hulk. On the note, this is clearly Yoda's film. This has been said in many a review, but it's so true and it must be mentioned here. Yoda really is a lead character this time 'round.

After careful studying and clues provided by Yoda and his younglings (Jedi children students), Obi-Wan embar

Times change so does everything else. I remember as a child that whatever happened before the original trilogy must have been even more amazing than what I was viewing at the time. I grew to become one woth the ot. After all I have seen them all in their original releases. EP1 was a decent film. I can't say I was unsatisfied. Ep2 rules however. I have absolutely no complaints at all. The acting was superb! Effects were mindblowing! Story was peerfect! It has been said that Lucas listened to the fans. NO. He just made the best picture he could and it worked. I can't wait three more years...

It was a good movie. I especially like the creatues in the meadow on naboo. What were they? Giant Bums ? Im a big fan of bums myself, it was a good scene. Thumbs Up!

Ok so here it goes. First off, just plain loved it, the whole thing. It was everyting that TPM was not and more. And I defended tpm to many a critic. I thought the effect were first rate , the story flowed well to the point until I got out to my car and looked at the clock I did not realize that it is the longest SW movie to date. John Williams hit another home run on his scoring of the film and I imagine alot of the credit for the better dialogue this time should go to Mr. Hale. Basicly I rank ep iv and v as a tie fy my favaorite sw film and AOTC would come in a the second best, even above ROTJ.

Of course all this being said Upon further reflection there were some things i would have liked to see. First going to the book which i read first, I think the sences with padme and her family, and shmi and the lars' would have added alot to the film and if they were filmed adding them to the dvd would be great. the reasons for this are simple, padme's upbringing and life actually mirror anikin's. these scences, show her being torn between duty and the life she wants, her regrets for following public service and not starting a family and lay better grounding for why she is willing to allow herself to fall in love with someone she knows she is not allowed to be with. And for Shmi, it does add a bit more tragicness to her death knowing and seeing that she had been freed made a life for herself and a family and had some measure of happiness to her life before dying.

The only other thing i would like to see is the Yoda puppet come back. Now before anyone goes screaming at me let me explain. First off obviously not possible to use for fight scences (which i loved) etc. but i found the close up and dialogue scences little lacking with the cgi yoda. I would ask this, I know using the puppet in the past ws hard, hiding people underflooring and such, but how about using the digital stuff to take the puppeteers out of the frames later instead of just creating him from scratch. Especially the puppet used in ep1 had great facial qualities that in the hands of a master like frank oz really have come to life for me and i personly feel some of that true life feeling was lost in some of the more expressive scence that yoda had. that being said all in all i will be contributing a tidy sum to the overall box office reciets of this movie and rate it at a 9.5 out of 10

in a word... WOW! ATTACK OF THE CLONES delivered! i went into the movie with high expectations, and they were definetly met. AotC just had the right feel to it. although the movie moved VERY fast... almost too fast... but it was better for it. unlike tPM, there was no segment of the movie that lulled. the pacing was brisk and that kept the movie flowing nicely. the mystery of the clones and the love story more than kept my intrest in the film. the wit and dry humor from the OT is back, although i attribute this to a less 'kid-friendly' plot overall.

i accepted the love story. although it would be kinda hard to believe that anyone could really fall in love in such a short time, after seeing what anakin & padme go thru in that short time makes it more believable. oh, and the dialog is not as bad as the FORBIDDEN LOVE trailer made it out to be. i especailly like the scene where the 2 jedi take the elevator up to padme's apartment. very cool exchanges there between obi-wan and his still-infatuated padawan, and its such an odd scene to have in a STAR WARS film... very cool!

i love the cast! especially ewan macgregor and christopher lee. they really excelled in their roles. thanks to ewan, obi-wan has become the PT's han solo... the cynic. he was great, and he totally has the alec guiness mannerism down pat! ewan, good job! christopher lee was able to make the most of his limited screen time. he was memorable. george couldnt have picked a better person for count dooku! natalie and hayden's acting at times were a little wooden, but they always came across as being sincere. and when they needed to be sincere, they were really great, anakin when showing flashes of darkness, and natalie right before they were carted out into the arena. the only other actors that come to mind are ian and sam... they were good. sam was much, MUCH better in AotC, however, i liked ian more in tPM, but that could be due to screentime. what happened to jango? i was soooo looking forward to seeing him steal the show, but he made less of an impact than darth maul did... still, he looked cool in the few scenes he got.

for some reason, i didnt think that the effects in AotC were that much more improved over tPM. and in a way, they didnt need to be. because but the effects in tPM raised the bar so high, just matching the quality of those effects will already merit a 'job well-done' for the ilm guys. case in point... jar jar, watto, and sebulba seemed more realistic in tPM as opposed to yoda, dex, etc... and IMHO ilm was unable top the pod race this time around, but they came close with the end battle... still too many obvious blue screen effects in some of the arena fights tho.

well... i hope this review made sense. i dont know if its tiredness or excitement, but i know i am chemically imbalanced right now. but i had to write this fresh, having just caught the 10:30 showing... so giving AotC a rating out of 10... definitely a 9!

For all of you that think this movie was good, great, or more than attempt by George (I have no vision anymore) Lucas to make money, you're wrong. This movie lacked anything of merit aside from a really well-placed and scripted sequence with Jedi Master Yoda. The plot, casting, acting, and costuming was annoying at best.

I would give a blow-by-blow, but we'd be here all week. Besides...enough people have done that. I'm just here to disabuse any of you of the notion that this film was anything but an attempt to take your well-earned dollar.

One of my favorite on-line comic artists said a lot of people claim Lucas has ruined the Star Wars franchise. He disagrees, and so do I. Lucas hasn't ruined Star Wars. Considering his early work, he HAS put out two seriously inferior pieces of work. And for a man who is so anal about his world that he is taking it to the grave with him (he's publicly announced no more movies after Episode III), he sure is trying to destroy the magic of it.

Episode I was written for a young boy. It was not written for its target audience (*I'M* the target audience). It sucked. It was a piece of eye candy meant for material gain and not artistic expression. The acting was half-wit at best, the casting was mediocre, and the plot was horrible. I enjoyed it for the fact that it was the first new Star Wars movie. My parents started my Star Wars obsession at the tender age of four (1977). They saw Phantom Menace with me, and they attended the latest Lucas debut with me. It's a tradition and I still associate a lot of good feeling with Star Wars. But the good feelings are waning, and not enough to carry me through these films anymore.

In Attack of the Clones Lucas makes his own movies cliche. The succession of Jedi training (Yoda, Dooku, Qui-Gon) is almost as bad as the background stories of your average on-line X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter squadron, where everyone is related to Luke Skywalker or Wedge Antilles or has owned R2-D2 at some point. No originality and no depth there at all (I can only assume that some of you who liked this movie belong to such on-line groups and are equally unoriginal). Speaking of our favorite droids, I couldn't stomach their bad puns and obviously forced mis-adventures. The magic of their relationship disintegrated before my eyes. Overall the characters lacked depth and life. Lucas couldn't write a love story to save his life! And it's obvious he can't write good dialogue anymore--or direct it for that matter. The plot was a cut & paste job of all the other Star Wars films. We saw replays of scenes from Jedi, Empire, Star Wars, and even some throwbacks to Menace. Lucas didn't write this whole! If he did he should be forcibly removed from the franchise. He must have cobbled it together from bits off the cutting room floor.

I'm disappointed in the direction of Lucas' work because I've seen the good stuff. He's fallen and he shouldn't even make another film if he's not willing to do it right. He's not killing Star Wars, but he's slowly sucking the magic out of it. I'm just disgusted with the direction these films are going. I was so full of hope for Episode II...but from the day it was named I should have known better.

Episode II was hardly worth the time I spent viewing it, and not even the trailers could compensate for my loss. I'll be writing Lucas next to demand my money back. I doubt I will buy the DVD or a VHS (both of which I was dumb enough to buy when Menace came out). If I do, I'll eternally watch the Yoda sequence and ignore the rest of this trite tragedy. For the first time in my life I find myself wishing I hadn't seen a Star Wars film. It hurts.

Ok...not a review but something to let you all know about the Dialouge, JarJar and The Phantom Menace.

Now when was a StarWars Movie made for you?I'm talking about any individual person. I'm tired of hearing you miserable BASTARDS complaining like little babies. "that was good, "no, that wasn't good" or cheesy this or cheesy that... there isn't a seen that I cringed on dialouge, you people just want to feel like when you were like 5 or 4 year old miserable selfs. Remember people StarWars is ONE BIG MOVIE! no one can make a 16hr movie...why cant you cry to me or to MR. LUCAS after Episode 3 comes along, infact why dont you cry like little girls( that goes for the guys)when you see all six Episodes? Damn it! Oh and poor Ahmed Best and JarJar...I didn't find anything annoying witht that character...I just thought it was interesting to have a character like that in StarWars but NOOOOOO....we got little 5yr old Grownups that find him Offensive,Annoying and disturbing. And to top it all off they kill em off in a way when he has to vote for Amidala for a critical and important vote for the state of the REPUBLIC and we all know what happens after that! Now I know how it feels when Anakin finds out the Raiders beat and hurt Shmi...I quote ANI on this one and I feel the same way sort of . "I hate them!" "they live like animals!" "They will die like animals!". Thats me talking to you all DIALOUGE, JARJAR and PHANTOM MENACE haters.... ::SLASH::SLASH:: I THOUGHT YOU POEPLE ARE GROWNUPS....GROW UP!!!!!

Posted by HolySith:
"Now when was a StarWars Movie made for you?I'm talking about any individual person. I'm tired of hearing you miserable BASTARDS complaining like little babies. "that was good, "no, that wasn't good" or cheesy this or cheesy that... there isn't a seen that I cringed on dialouge, you people just want to feel like when you were like 5 or 4 year old miserable selfs."

"I THOUGHT YOU POEPLE ARE GROWNUPS....GROW UP!!!!!"

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Might I suggest an English lesson for the discerning grown-up who wants to be taken seriously?

I don't usually bother with minor spelling and grammar errors (I make them, too) but you're just a bit "pot calling the kettle", my very young apprentice.

Now that i've got your attention...
AMAZING, simply AMAZING.
I just saw so much of the movie as I believe Lucas intended.
The story flowed brilliantly. And the tempo (even the Padme-Anakin parts) just skipped along at a great pace.
I felt just absorbed for 2 and a bit hours, it felt so much like i think we would've felt when A New Hope came out, everything new and incredible. I didn't feel that in Ep I even though it was the 1st movie i'd seen of the series in the cinemas for the 1st time.
Several things stand out:
- The chase in Coruscant was something special and undoubtedly the crowning moment for ILM so far.
- Anakin was very good, even though he seemed to spit out his lines at time I think it was more a reflection on the dialogue than his acting - cause I reckon he was GOOD at being Bad and BAD at being good in some ways... He's got that evil surging to the surface through his gaze/stare thing down pat. Also he was excellent athletically (as in all the action scenes) and the 2 lightsabre sequence against Dooku was mezmorising. It's almost disappointing to see him turn, even though you know it's gonna happen, you enjoy it.
- Padme (not a fan of that name to tell you the truth) grew through the movie and you can see the strength Leia gets is from good old Mum. No doubt she's a rare beauty and in truth that's a clear influence over the movie - and Anakin. Though she does seem to hide her feelings well at times and it's clear that clouds her ability to recognise that Anakin is cleary on the way to the Dark Side and thus shouldn't be 'loved'. Again - people might claim Portman and Christiansen can't act but some of the lines they are supposed to say are lame.
- Ewan McGregor IS Obi-wan and I love the fact he's an action man as well as a wise old dude like in A New Hope. Being able to see him do all the things we hope a Jedi can and may have done is the clincher for me. He epitomises the very essance of the Jedi.
- Mace Windu evolved but is still clearly the 2nd banana to Yoda despite Lucas' best efforts to make it appear they were on level pegging in Ep I. A lot of people reckon Jango dies to quick in the Colosseum but for mine - Jedi Master vs Bounty Hunter - no contest. "This parties over" great line - Shaftish.
- Palpatine was seen a lot early but was sort of injected into the action by Lucas rather than the dominant character when on screen - thus adding to the shadowy way he's taken power under the noses of the Jedi. One note a mate and I picked up - it's clear the Dark Side has started to eat away his 'public' appearance cause he's gone from a warm faced Senator to a gaunt white emotionless face. Another great Lucas piece of irony - in this EP particularly you see Palpatine surrounded by non-humans in his counsel - brilliant.
- Jango Fett was ok, not scene stealing but simple and sturdy enough to hold his own - his fight with Obi-Wan was unreal - very believeable in the way that if one combatant got hit - they got hurt - just the way things happen. I was however waiting for his head to fall out of the helmet when Boba picks it up (ok sadistic but would've been cool).
- New planets - the water planet was eerie and beautiful both visually and audiolly (?), and Genosis was rugged and Tatooine like. Coruscant was clearly shown as "one big city" covering the planet. Naboo was impressive once again and Tatooine the same sand pit but I liked them going to the Lars residence again nice touch.
- Clones were methodical but very likeable - particularly in their ability to answer to orders calmly and professionally. It'll be a shame to see what I believe will be Palpatine's Dark Side influence turn them.
- As for Dooku... or Tyrannos or Sarumon... he was good, real good. Just the type of villan that I like, evil but measured and calm in his delivery. Given I was spoiler free, his first words to Obi-Wan (when in force field) had me thinking - what he's a good guy? Still trying to figure out how his bent lightsabre handle is more efficient but he weilded it well (even if stunt doubled for parts) and i particularly

While i agree that Aotc isnt perfect, what u are saying is rubbish.

The only magic gone is that your not a kid anymore. No one could make SW like its done before. Its a different time, people are different. After TPM i just learned to accept that SW is indeed a space opera. And i really think besides some crappy editing, 'some' lame dialog and once again muscial rape, Aotc does deliver. Its darker, much more serious and with meaning this time around.

btw: Opiate
you need to chill out. Some people dont give a damn about grammer at 2am. Sheesh.

I must say I'm relieved more than anything else. I wasn't hyped this time, and a small part of me feared I could end up watching a film that as Star Wars is OK, but as a movie isn't good enough. Thankfully I enjoyed every minute of it (well, apart from some parts of dialogue). Overall, I thought it was a much better film than Episode 1, and as part of the SW saga, it's great to see all the pieces falling into place.

I wasn't too keen by the intermission, but it really picked up in the 2nd half.

• Things I liked:

:: The action scenes were all very well done. The whole Arena thing was great, as was (against my expectations) the Coruscant chase.

:: Stuff cropping up from the original trilogy - The homestead was lovely, the Jawa transports looked great and the death star popping up was superb.

:: Other nods such as the scene on the retracted bridge (like ANH) and getting good old trademarks like "I have a bad feeling about this" and hands being cut off.

:: Some great individual scenes - Anakin riding his speeder to the sound of DOTF, Yoda with the kids, the archives, Dooku's strategy table, the Diner, the waterfalls.

:: Better acting than Episode 1 - When the first line was delivered I thought "Oh No" - but it got better. Still not as good as what we've seen from these actors, but that's probably Lucas' and the Blue screen's fault.

:: No mention of Midi-chlorians anywhere, and less Jar Jar.

:: C3PO and R2D2 getting the screen time they deserve.

:: Some moments of humour which really worked well.

:: Getting to see Jedis in numbers. Samuel L. Jackson also looks great in action.

:: The language spoken by the head Genosian (sp?) - with clicks and all.

:: The scene where Anakin gets revnege for his mom. Chilling stuff. I thought Hayden did quite a good acting job actually. He sure knows how to look nice but seem evil deep down.

:: The music. Hearing the Imperial March again on the big screen is worht any ticket price. The love theme works great too, and the the other themes make some great and notable appearances.

:: CGI Yoda.

• Things I didn't like:

:: The dialogue. The script is better than Episode 1, but it's still littered with strained lines, which varied from ok to cringe-inducing. However, by the 2nd half they were practically all forgotten.

:: The natives of Kamino. Too A.I.

:: I know that the Star Wars galaxy is littered with different creatures, but does Lucas have to create 4 different CGI ones for each scene? Some looked sort of extra.

:: Some sequences gave me the impression that Lucas just thought they'd look good, without wondering if they were necessary. The conveyer belt sequence for example.

:: I'm quite sure some of the music in the arena scene was recylced from TPM.

:: The camera pans up after the Title crawl. It's supposed to pan down.

:: The pacing during certain parts in the first half, such as the conversation while Obi- Wan and Anakin are watching over Padme.

:: Every time Obi-Wan gives Anakin advice. I dunno exactly why, it just seemed very artificial. Maybe it's meant that way.

____________________________

Overall, I'm pleased. Looking forward to viewing #2. Oh, and btw - I really recommend staying Spoiler free. I walked in there having only the vaguest ideas about plot, and it helped the experience greatly.

Rating: 7/10

first of all my friend OPIATE..this was done in a hurry its frickin, 3:46am...and it feels good that I finally struck a nerve on someone! lol Oh and dont forget your diapers and baggage along the way...why dont you do me a favor...dont ever come back to TFN or any other StarWars related Website...go live with your miserable self and rot in pure Porn I think thats what you wanted to see in StarWars Movies, right? you must be on crack to stop liking something that is actually not even done?....REMEMBER STARWARS IS ONE BIG MOVIE my young fool.

Posted By Katana:
"The only magic gone is that your not a kid anymore. No one could make SW like its done before. Its a different time, people are different."

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You must be smoking something!

Of course times have changed. Of course I'm not a kid anymore. Times are more violent and harsh. I'm not advocating more violence, but face facts, man! Even as a child I had better taste in movies than THIS! I remember every inch of my Star Wars education. I went to see the original over a dozen times the year it was released. I've watched them all innumerable times since.

This movie...and its predecessor...fall VERY short of the mark. It has nothing to do with age, but with the handling of the material (Episode I) and the writing (Episode II).

Episode I was aflame with lines about people dying, but no one so much as BLED! In Episode II we have a beheading and a lost arm...and dead clones. But do we actually see anyone get shot...even when they're standing three feet from an enemy firing blasters? And what about Anakin's supposed slaughter? It was two guards and it was too quick to deserve mention. Dark? Try Empire. Even Jedi was darker by comparison.

Sure...the movies are space opera. Star Trek was better space opera than these two most recent installments of Star Wars. Just because it's space opera doesn't mean it has to be a condensed version of every SOAP opera ever written. Space opera is, like kabuki, a respected art. And Lucas just pissed on it.

Crappy editing? How about crappy everything. I really don't want to nit-pick, but clues

Amidala's shirt ripped...
Amidala knew about the hangar...
Mandalorians?
droid ROCKETS? (screams plot hole)...
switched heads...
love story...
Anakin rants...
"...my very young apprentice." is heard about a dozen times in less than 60 seconds...
raising Boba...
overwhelming odds...
Coruscant chase scene...

I don't think you saw the same movie I did. This piece of theater trash was bad from beginning to end, with one good but not-so-redeeming scene. If Lucas DID take these movies seriously, we might see something out of the franchise after waiting so many years!

Supergenius theory:

It's 4:00 am where I live. My grammar, punctuation and spelling have not suffered for lack of sleep or ethereal time dilation. So either I'm normal and those who can't hack it are morons, or I'm a supergenius and the incorrect are normal. It's logical...and it's a joke, so don't post a response.

Basically, there's never an excuse for being sloppy. But I digress. I said, I don't usually pick on grammar. But for someone to post and call others morons while being incapable of distinguishing between versions of the pronunciation "your", is inane at best.

A history lesson for the ad hominem idiot:

George Lucas wrote the originally released movies as one script. He's CURRENTLY writing the first three episodes. They were never previously commit to paper. So the entire Star Wars franchise is NOT...I repeat, NOT...one big movie. Episodes 4-6 could be considered one big movie if you care to take that tack. But the first three episodes are three separate films being made in sequence to provide the PREQUEL or back story to the first big movie.

It doesn't matter what Lucas writes for the next film...the first two episodes were handled with ham-fisted care and a lack of real vision. Lucas is less interested in these movies being made than the rest of us, and it shows.

Personally I think he's just bored or he's had an embolism.

Oh and OPIATE dont forget your diapers and baggage along the way...why dont you do me a favor...dont ever come back to TFN or any other StarWars related Website...go live with your miserable self and rot in pure Porn I think thats what you wanted to see in StarWars Movies, right? I mean what did you want to see here damn it? GAY JEDI ON JEDI action or something there pal?you must be on crack to stop liking something that is actually not even done?....REMEMBER STARWARS IS ONE BIG MOVIE my young fool. what do you think LUCAS is some kind of CIRCUS or something he's there to amuse you and do whatever you want? Whats da matta with you...SHEESH OPIATE its hard to believe your past 25yrs old

Message removed. User banned for flaming.

If one were to look at "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones" from a completely impartial state, then AOTC could be called a mixed blessing at best.
For twenty years, a phenomenal hype was built between die-hards and newcomers alike. So when "The Phantom Menace" came out and subsequently disappointed a vast majority of movie-goers, it comes as no surprise that most have entered AOTC's premiere with just a little skepticism.
Episode II gave us a lot of what was wanted, and enough of what wasn't - or at the very least, reluctantly accepted. At least three-quarters of the acting in AOTC was more than just decent. Actually, it was rather believable and intense. Hayden Christensen did extremely well at portraying a young, arrogant, and oft times angry Darth Vader. It wasn't hard to relate to a boy who was always being criticized by his mentor, made to live a life he was completely unfamiliar with, and forced to hide away parts of his personality that made him who he was. Every teen at some time or another feels similar pressure from someone in their life, so just about every member of the audience could sympathize with Anakin's position in life.
When Anakin was upset, Hayden managed to very convincingly make us fear his anger; to feel afraid in ourselves at just what this wild card may do. With his dying mother in his arms and when confronting Padme with his evil deeds, you felt his frustration and pain. How Hayden got us to stop thinking in terms of right and wrong, and more in terms of "why me?" I dare say his were the more moving of any performances in the five Star Wars movies yet.
Samuel L. Jackson was dynamite as a Jedi Master second only to Master Yoda. He was strict, powerful, yet calm and decisive. You could tell that Mace Windu was not the type to do anything foolishly, but when he acted, it was with a fervor that hell itself would be hard pressed to stop. He is the epitome of Justice and Peace, while matching this with Strength and Wisdom.
Though focused upon less than most of the cast, Ian McDiarmid as the soon-to-be Emperor Palpatine could make you hate and fear the character. I found myself shaking my head in disbelief of such cunning many times through the length of this movie. It's easy to see how well planed out his scheme is, and how easily it seems that he got the whole galaxy to fall into his line.
As is usual with each new installment to the series, John Williams concocted a beautiful masterpiece of a soundtrack. With each scene, you felt the tension, or excitement, or serene beauty imbedded into his music. It made the scenes stand out even more so, while not overtaking the film in general. His work continues to be the staple of a Star Wars movie, and an extremely welcome one at that.
Once again, George Lucas and his ILM team have outdone themselves in special effects. Everything was so fluid, so realistic that sometimes you might find yourself believing a CG ship or character to be some sort of model or puppet. And the work they did on Yoda was well worth the change! To move from puppet to 100% CG is a big, and perhaps controversial step. Fans all over grew with the jittery little rubber puppet. To not only replace him with a computer generated image, but keep his motions true to a puppet's is not something to be taken lightly. But from close-ups to all-out battle, Yoda stays true to his heritage and the look of old doesn't die easy with the implements of new.
Now for the down. And this movie did have it's fair share - but what movie (except for "The Shawshank Redemption" ) isn't? I think Shimi has to be the worst of them. Pernilla was rather good in TPM. But her death scene in AOTC just teetered too close to the edge of corniness and maybe even hilarity. For a brief moment when Anakin finds her there and is hopeful that he can save her, tears near flowed from my eyes. It truly was touching. But then her dialogue seemed to roll on - just like her head at the end of the scene. I kid you not when I say the whole theater was in an uproar of laughter.
Christoph

Episode II, for me, had all but one element of a good Star Wars movie. I'll get that one thing out of the way first: there was no big space battle. I guess that's why I don't like ESB as much as most people, because there is no space battle there. Sure in Episode II we have the cool asteroid field scene (like we have the cool asteroid field scene in
ESB) but nothing beats fleets of ships in space with dog-fighting starfighters.

But what about the rest of the elements? We have:

Emotion -- Whew! How about that look on Anakin's face when his mom dies? And the anger in his voice when he confesses to killing all the Tuskens? Padmé's confession of love just before the execution nearly made me forget to breathe. I put it right up there with "I love you. I know."

Acting -- While the quality of acting was all over the map, it was much more on the good side of the map than it was in Episode I. Some of the worse parts may stem from Lucas's lack of talent at writing dialogue, but I must say for the most part I was very pleased with the performance of everyone in the film. (No one is a worse actor than Mark Hamill. Ok, maybe kid Jake Lloyd in Episode I.)

Humor -- "Die Jedi Die!" Coming from Threepio's mouth on the head of a battle droid? HILARIOUS! Obi-Wan's quips throughout the movie were quite hilarious as well. Also, the little Jedi kids training with their kiddie size lighsabers was cute and funny at the same time. And the best part, nary a fart joke in sight. Yoda switching back to hobbling after his fight...classic.

Action -- This movie is full of action. What do you expect from a Star Wars movie? Lots of action. We have speeder chases, an asteroid dogfight/chase, a gladiator-style round of combat, and a full out battle between clones and Jedi and battle droids. Not to mention what I think is one of the best lightsaber battles in the series (Anakin and Obi-Wan vs. Dooku). With nothing but the light of the lightsabers for lighting, it's a very moody scene. I take issue with claims of Yoda's fight scene being overdone. Anything less than what I saw in Episode II I would claim as under-done. Yoda is *the master*. He can catch Force Lightning for God's sake! He is the best saber fighter there is. Throughout Yoda's fight scene I found myself laughing. Not because it was funny, but out of pure glee at seeing Yoda get up and move that fast to kick some evil villain ass. After Episode II, you truly do see why Yoda gets as much respect as he does.

Plot -- Episode II has got more plot than any other Star Wars movie. We have clones being built by renegade Jedi, battle droid armies being built by another who is really working for the guy building the clones, death star plans being ferried about, disappearing family members, assassination attempts, political maneuvering... I could just go on and on. Episode II weaves the most complex plot I've seen in a Star Wars movie, and I like that.

Fun -- If you want to measure the movie by the elusive "fun factor" or amount of "entertainment" provided, I'd rate the movie up there as the most fun movie of all time. Chase scenes, explosions, lightsaber battles, Jango Fett's arsenal of gadgets...the list goes on and on.

Planets -- Location. Location. Location. We see: Tatooine, Naboo, Geonosis, Kamino, and more of Coruscant than ever before. The range is quite diverse and each one is put to good use to highlight the different places in the galaxy.

Villian -- No, Count Dooku is not raw evil as Darth Maul and Darth Vader before him (well Darth is after). At least not at first. But then again, he's not supposed to be. He's a politician, like Palpatine. He's creepy evil, not "Holy ****! What a badass!" (Maul) evil. He's suave, sophisticated, cunning, and deceitful. Not exactly an angelic mix there if you ask me. That said you do get to see him do some badass things, like seeing the way he throws around lightning with ease.

Special Effects -- Some parts make you go "wow". Some parts make you go "why didn't they finish that scene?". There

AOTC is a soul-stirring tour-de-Force. My faith in the saga, dampened by the slow-moving, overly-kid friendly Ep.I, is utterly renewed. Hayden Christensen is like a hard-edged diamond, cutting through the layers of his complex role. Somewhat languid pacing during Act II, and occasionally poor line readings by Portman and others, do little to detract from the sense of awe, wonder, and excitement I felt while watching this film. The final act is a hair-raising, bar-raising, envelope-pushing power-punch to the senses. Congratulations, George Lucas and company! The Force is with us again ... and always!

Initial Thoughts...

Gorgeous. Bloody Beautiful. Some lovely designs

Kinda rushed, but still sometimes drawn out. I think that some of the actions sequences could have been trimmed and added in a bit more characterisation, especially the Anakin/Padme romance.

Anakin: Bloody good, his character makes perfect sense.

Padme: Still a bit of a cipher, can't quite tell what makes her tick.

Obi-Wan: Good in some scenes, very odd in others, beard sometimes looks fake.

Palpatine: Excellent

Yoda: I miss the puppet, but forgive itfor Yoda's freedom to move.

Mace Windu: Slightly poncy walk, funky sabre

The Fetts: the stand out actors for the film.

General pointers: Don't sit too close to the screen, the action is very dense and you'll miss a lot.

Digital Projection: Very nice, MORE MORE MORE

CGI: Great, except for some beast riding scenes.

Overall, I still feel like the prequels are just trying to get somewhere as soon as possible, they say The Phantom Menace is just setting things up, I think this one is still doing that. Maybe I just need to relax into it (do not watch star wars when stomach cramps, it's a long movie). It still didn't have the emotional impact of the original trilogy.

ATTACK OF THE CLONES REVIEW
By Dexter Sy
teamreavers@yahoo.com

Let me say that STAR WARS EPISODE II ATTACK OF THE CLONES, despite reviews from some professional critics to the contrary, is most certainly a good movie in the STAR WARS canon. For those who don?t want to read through my entire review, here?s a quickie 10 second review: Exhilarating fight scenes, and enough references to the much-revered ORIGINAL TRILOGY to keep the long time fans giddy.

And now, your Feature Review:

I love the STAR WARS films, and each new instalment brings out a kind of madness within me. After being genuinely burned by THE PHANTOM MENACE?s immense hype, I?ve been more cautious this time around with both my spending on ATTACK OF THE CLONES merchandise, and reading magazine articles of the film that for some reason or another, has a tendency to give much of the film?s plot and visual designs away. Despite being cautious, my anticipation had been building for months and reached a crescendo Wednesday evening when a good friend of mine unexpectedly asked me if I wanted to catch the midnight showing of the film with him?I had bought tickets for a matinee showing opening day. This unexpected turn of events sort of set my STAR WARS madness into overdrive, hours ahead of schedule. The theatre lobby was electric; with fans lining up in front of the sold out THX showcase theatre for the 12:01 showing. We lined up for a 12:10 showing on a smaller theatre, but yes, like everybody else, we did line up. And for a brief moment, there was this sense of comradery --a few hundred STAR WARS fans together in two lines waiting for that adventure in a galaxy far far away. After the highs I experienced earlier in the evening, the first viewing was in many ways anti-climactic. As the credits rolled, I realized that it was all over. The three-year wait (sort of) had evaporated in a 2 hour and 15 minute film. I was in a daze. Imagines of Zam Wessel, the final battle, Dooku?s face, and Kamino all came crashing down on me at once. It was 3 in the morning; I had classes in a few hours, giving that ?I hate today? feeling all of us get on Sunday nights, when we realize the weekend is over. On the way home, my friend and I discussed what we thought of the film, about what we liked and what we didn?t like. We both agreed to talk about the film in more detail, including weighing in on our final assessment of the film?s quality once we?ve seen it a second time.

During the second showing, I let myself revisit many of the emotions I felt earlier, to confirm my feelings for the film and where stand on its quality. With a much different crowd-- less die-hard, more casual, the electricity in the air was different. I was lucky enough to have a kid, of about nine years old, sitting two seats away from me. Throughout the showing, his reactions to the film-- ranging from awe, to going totally ballistic with enthusiasm during the final battle--confirmed what I was feeling and reminded me of my own enthusiasm when I felt those fresh emotions years ago, watching my first STAR WARS film, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, on television.

What I especially like about ATTACK OF THE CLONES, is the film's grand introduction. The first 40 minutes took me into Coruscant with a force that was highly reminiscent of the original films. The chase through Coruscant is fresh, with a film noir detective story capping an exhilarating, dark, chase sequence that puts the ten-minute pod race in TPM to shame. And as an added bonus, in the last 50 minutes, Lucas comes back and tops the film?s first 40 minutes with a spectacular, no holds barred battle sequence that will have any moviegoer wanting more.

For the record, I felt characterization and acting in the film was strong. Anakin?s anger and his dysfunctional love-hate relationship with a wiser Obi-Wan Kenobi was a highlight of the film for me. But the critics were right about one thing. Lucas? love haiku, inspired partly by a similar courtship sequence in the middle of Kurosawa?s classic epic, SEVEN SAMURAI, slowe

I just saw AOTC yesterday afternoon and will definitely have to see it again just to take in everything that's going on in each shot, especially the whole Qui-Gon voice thing that I totally missed. All I got was Yoda meditating and hearing a jumble of voices. Hopefully, I'll pick it up on subseqeunt viewings. Predictably, this film has been compared to TPM and OT, especially ESB. I think I'm in the vast majority in saying that this is superior to Episode I although, overall, I enjoyed TPM despite its widely publicized flaws. However, I would have to respectfully disagree with those who declare AOTC to be the best Star Wars film ever. In my opinion, that honor goes to ESB and I have no doubt that it will still stand as the best when Episode III comes out. That's not a knock, just that ESB can simply not be duplicated, no matter how hard anyone tries. But I'm going off on a tangent about OT versus the prequels and that discussion is actually far more complicated than just personal tastes but goes deeper into how things have changed in general from 1983 to 1999, so I'm just going to try and stick to AOTC from here on in. At this point, I've only seen it once but here are some of my impressions.

I definitely enjoyed the Coruscant chase scene and the whole underworld bar scene. Along with Dexter Jettster at the diner, I felt like I was seeing an entirely new dimension of the SW universe. Why can't I find a bar or diner that's as cool as that?

Besides the trailers, one of the first elements that I had been exposed to from AOTC was the soundtrack and I loved it so I definitely enjoyed the music that accompanied the action although in some spots it maybe didn't work as well as it could have. Also, the asteroid sequence might have been enhanced with some music.

Now I've actually met Anthony Daniels in person, however briefly, and I have a signed C-3PO action figure hanging on my wall so there's no way I'm going to turn on Threepio and start trashing the character. Having said that, I felt that the whole schtick in the droid factory and the puns about switched heads and bodies was taken a little bit far but still true to the characters of R2-D2 and Threepio in a weird way. Also, did anyone else find this Threepio head thing a bit odd in juxtaposition to the record number of much more serious and permanent decapitations? Actually, I felt that Threepio and R2 should have gotten a little more screen time and maybe the whole factory bit could have been scrapped altogether for something else involving the duo. The complaint is very minor though and it seems to work okay as a source of light-hearted relief in a relatively darker SW film. However, a tiny nagging question: Anakin just takes Threepio? Was he Anakin's property all along? And speaking of Anakin, some more interaction between Threepio would have been neat in terms of foreshadowing and I'm definitely looking forward to finding out how the droids get to where they are in Episode IV and why C-3PO doesn't recognize the name Skywalker. Maybe they both get their memories wiped since you'd think that R2 might have mentioned it to him sometime.

I think my biggest complaint for AOTC would be some of the awkward romantic dialogue. Actually, the thing that irked me the most was the dialogue that wasn't in the film. When Anakin confesses to killing all of the Tuskens, the film cuts with a shot of Padme consoling him. I felt that the dialogue (which was originally shot) should have been left in there to show that Anakin actually felt bad about what he did and that Padme understands him. What we actually get requires the audience to make a greater leap of faith in Padme falling in love with this guy who just let loose on a bunch of Tuskens in a murderous rage, albeit not unprovoked, but still, we're talking women and children too, yet Padme doesn't seem as taken aback as she should be. The question I have is: will this incident come back in Episode III to Obi-Wan or the Jedi Council?

But really, it's the roughly the last half of the movie that everybody talks about and will

Simply this. Best movie George has ever made. This movie was by far one of the best movies I've ever had the pleasure of watching, and the best Star Wars film by far. You can't top this movie for quality entertainment. George out did himself on this one. A work of art. I was like having a very lucid, very entertaining dream. The movie burned itself into my brain very deeply with it's impact, and I've only seen it once. It's got everything a great movie should and could have. It hits you on many levels, and makes you forget you ever saw The Phantom Menace.