MN Attack of the Clones Reviews

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Corrected email, made it linkable

 

Just my quick thoughts.

Jackie Chan + Jet Li = Yoda


All the action in this movie was Wow. I don't even know how to word it.


There where a few scenes in the middle with Anakin and Padme that I thought where a bit forced Acting wise and They dragged a bit. Just a bit mind you. But that was because I was like, 'Yea yea they fall in love, I get it, now let's get back to Obiwan.'


Sidious is a real sneaky guy. I mean Wow his planning and twisting of events is just beyond what you would think is even Possible.


Anakin is evil but in a way you feel sorry for him. What happened to his mom was sad but it really didn't hit me until he was Telling Padme about What he did. I mean Wow All of them. I knew he was going to dish out some pay back but my gosh. A whole tribe. That made me sad because you can understand why he did it but yet it is still horrible. Your almost sorry for him Falling to the Dark Side. I know he isn't all the way there yet but I think he is well on his way.



I don't even know where to begin with Yoda. He is a god. No other comment is needed.

Mace's entrance into the area was just awesome. He even had a cool line to say. That was just perfectly cool.

 

Hey,

This is Karen from startribune.com and the e-mail address you provided is incorrect. Please have fans direct their reviews to starwars@stribmail.com

Thanks and it sounds like you guys had a great night. Whoo hoo!

Karen V. Paurus
FreeTime Movies editor, startribune.com
paurus@startribune.com
612.673.7119

 

I'm working on a couple of hours sleep, but I thought the movie was incredible! The pace was a lot faster than Episode I, which really helped move the story. The acting was great and I actually got chills when Anakin described what he did...*slipping into Count Floyd mode...spooky spooky!*. As for the end, it was a little tame for me.....NOT!!!!! Oh My G*D!!! At times there was almost too much action on the screen. It was hard to keep track of it all!

All in all...a fantastic movie. George is back on track!!!

Mike
Master Eki

 

Crouching tiger, hidden yoda.

I think it rocked. could do without the cheesebow one liners, but guess thats the norm.

Mace kicked as well. loved seeing him as his bad ass self.

still digesting thoughts, must see again.

 

It just doesn't get any better!!
Who needs sleep when you have Star Wars?
The Yoda scene was a bit Gremlin/Matrix but I do think my fav scene is the arena battle.
I think they should have had Darth Maul be the sith in this one and have killed off Dooku. Maul fought way better and Obi kicked his butt. But the movie rocked and I'll be at Megastar at 7 to see it again for the 3rd time.

 

Based upon a first viewing, I thought it was an amazing film. Outstanding work Mr. Lucas! There are so many undertones to this film. Who's conspiring with who, and for what reason. Most people complain about the politics of these movies, and I absolutly LOVE them. It's fascinating to see how the Republic falls apart, and how Palpatine does it. He's VERY ingenious. Who knew that Jar Jar Binks was going to almost single handedly be the downfall of the Republic, by giving Chancellor Palpatine emergency powers, hence allowing him to use HIS clone army. Clearly Palpatine is the one who ordered them.

I agree with the consensus that the romance was the weakest part of the film. With that being said, I also didn't think it was as bad as some have criticized it as being.

The most amazing battle sequence was the introduction of the Clone troops and they're elimination of the Battle Droids. I also liked how long the battle lasted. I thought it was over when the Jedi were rescued from the arena, but that was just the beginning. It was handled SOOOO much better than the battle in TPM. I also liked how Lucas went with one battle, instead of 4 or 5 at once, and then cutting in between them all. It played so much better this way.

As for Yoda. Words cannot describe how cool it really was. You just have to see it for yourself. If I had any complaint about it, he's so powerful, the fight didn't last as long as I would have liked. It was over too quickly. Can't blame Yoda for that. He's just too d*mned powerful!!

My favorite tiny moment in the film was the inclusion of the Death Star in it's planning stages. How friggen cool was that?!!? I just about lost it when I saw that scene.

In conclusion, I want to say Star Wars is back!!!!!

 

Best Episode Ever

 

Now I know why I got an error when I sent mine. Sorry about that. That is what I get when Posting links when dead tired. If Femme or Subulba could fix that in my first post I would appreciate it. Thanks.



Edit: Sebulba is so fast sometimes it scares me.

 

I loved it! Definitely going to be seeing it several more times, prefereably soon.

Yoda's duel was the high point, but Obi-Wan vs. Jango, Mace vs. Jango, all of the Jedi vs. thousands of droids, and the chase were all very cool.

I didn't have any problem with the romance, except possibly that it seemed like Padme changed her feelings pretty quickly.

The only complaint I have about the movie in general is that there were too many characters who just popped in and popped out. Owen Lars, Dex, Zam Wessell, and most of the jedi, to name a few. There were a lot of characters who have action figures who you don't really get to know in the film.

The effects were simply amazing. I can't imagine what it must look like in a digital theater. The opening sequence reminded me of the Star Destroyer passing overhead in Star Wars in terms of the amazing technology used and how realistic it looked.

Some people thought there was too much humor, but I loved it, especially when characters used the same or very similar lines as characters from the original trilogy.

But Yoda kicking butt with a lightsaber was AWESOME!

 

I am catching the 315 show today so I may have even more to say later.

 

I don't have time for a full review right now (must go out and buy the book! and Star Trib & Pioneer Press ...). But I'm glad that JediGseif brought up Jar Jar. I've never been anti-Jar Jar, but now that he is largely responsible for the downfall of the Republic. And here everything I was reading seemed to be just dismissing his presence in the movie entirely! Grrr, I just wanna slap him!

But overall ... veryveryvery cool. More later.

 

What did I think???

WOW! I'm still trying to absorb it all.

Thanks so much for organizing this event! I had sooooo much fun!

What I absolutely loved:

Yoda! (no other explanation necessary)

Christopher Lee- This man has a handle on the acting craft, and how to deliver lines. His screen presence is amazing. He is by far the most convincing Villian next to Vader. Step over Darth Maul, here comes Darth Tyrannus!

Ewan McGregor - His Character had much more to do in this movie. Consider that most of what he had to act with was digitally created, he was very convincing, and won me over. Everything from his facial expressions to his line delivery gave me the same nostalgic feelings from the classic trilogy. He wasn't Han Solo, but much better than anything from the Phantom Menace.

The Final Battle- From the Arena Battle to the Clones, the action at the end of this movie kept my heart pumping. All I can say is.... WOW!

The little pieces of the plot that clarified the entire saga, and the lines ( and puns from threepio) that came right out of the other movies. There was much more humor in this one. I loved it!

----

What didn't work for me :

The middle of the movie seemed to be a collection of scenes that rushed right by. Characters were introduced and then they were gone. I felt like there was a lot missing. Dexter, Owen, Beru, Lars, Kaminoians, and even Jango Fett.

The Love story was more convincing than I thought, but didnt quite hit the mark for me.

Even the scene with Shmi Skywalker was well done, but lacked background.

I felt like something was missing. I have to see the movie again ( or read the book) to absorb more of the story. I may feel differently after seeing it a few more times, so I will come back with specifics.

--------------------------
My overall opinion: I LOVED THIS MOVIE! Much better than the Phantom Menace. Thank you George!

 

Here's my review ... from a more "casual" fan.

I really liked this one ... SOOoo much better than Episode 1!

What worked for me:

The effects were truly incredible! Even if someone doesn't care for the story, the effects still have to be commended.

The fight/chase scenes were pretty amazing! In fact, from the 3rd row ... it was hard to take it all in. My peripheral vision couldn't catch everything! But they really kept you rapt. (oh, and I'm 6 1/2 months pregnant and the baby got pretty excited during those scenes too!)

I liked the interwoven love story. To me, that made the movie more desirable, since I'm always a sucker for a good love story. However, I do agree it was at times a little forced and not developed enough. But I also realize it wasn't necessarily the focus of the film either.

The character development of Obi-Wan was particularly interesting to me. I thought Ewan MacGregor did very well and some of his attitude was reminiscient of Obi-Wan in the original trilogy, so the continuity is definitely there.

I too enjoyed the humor ... Jay and I were laughing quite a bit.

And yes, the Yoda kicking butt scene was awesome! I couldn't stop laughing, because it was so unexpected. And after it was all over and he goes back to hobbling along with his stick ... it was too funny. Way to go Yoda!

What left me hanging? Some of the story and character connections that weren't completely explained ... I hate guessing and assuming. But that's really my only complaint.

~Alison

 

CRAP, CRAP, CRAP, CRAP, CRAP!!!

I had just typed up a really long review and somehow accidentally deleted the whole darn thing.

So, here's the short version:

I liked this a lot more after the first viewing than I did TPM. But I still like TPM.

I really liked Hayden, Christopher Lee was just awesome, Padme was ok, except for some really wooden dialog in parts early on in the film. Yoda is THE MASTER. Digital film looks beautiful, can't wait to see it digitally projected. 3P0's puns were annoying and although humorous at times, his whole head & body seperation sequence was a useless plot point. I really like Kamino and Geonosis, as well as their inhabitants. The arena battle kept my heart racing the entire time, and the final saber fight(s) were sweet!

So, as a whole, the good out weighing the tiny bad, I whole-heartedly enjoyed this movie!

 

Review of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
There is always a mixed sense of anticipation and excitement in air when a new Star Wars movie hits the theater. I'm going to lay this statement down now that this review is currently rough because I've only seen the movie once since it hit the big screen. There is a ton going on in this film, that one theatrical viewing isn't just enough. Well before I start sounding more like a Frito-Lay commercial then a stunned fan; who saw movie magic a mire eighteen hours ago. After seeing the opening crawl were instantly taken away from the beginning and more innocent story of The Phantom Menace.
Attack of the Clones fully embraces us with cruelty of life. Immediately we see signs of death; first there are the Senator Padme Amidala assassination attempts, which leads us through the lower depths of Coursant. After that, the movie revolves around death and separation. George Lucas and John Hales never stray from this fact; they keep it honest and truthful. Throughout the movie Lucas gives an ugly look at war, and how death affects us. While the popular thing these days is to be patriotic; Lucas goes in the exact opposite direction he reminds us that no matter how much we think were right, hurting others also hurts ourselves. Which leads to the main focus of the film, Anikin Skywalker throughout the film we see him make poor choices, but he still has a good heart. Anikin seems to want to fall into a different destiny that the Jedi Council asks him to serve. This is what makes the movie absolutely great. Everyone character in the film seems to sense this and center itself toward Anikin as change completely takes shape. Attack of the Clones drives us deep into the Star Wars Saga, it evolves the story straight off of The Phantom Menace and stays dedicated to the original trilogy. On that note, this movie is still definitely Present Trilogy; people who dogged TPM for the CG will dog the CG in this movie. As for myself the adrenaline rushes I get from watching dozens of gorgeous worlds and species is to much to bare, you just got to bask in its riches. This movie is definitely worth a few theatrical viewings. On the technical side of things, the dialog was typical for a Star Wars film wooden but forgivable. For once the rocky dialog paid off for Star Wars as the love scenes which seemed to be very cheesy, but when you think of the characters Padme and Anikin, they really are such high regarded people with infinite amount of intelligence that knowing how to express feelings is going to lead to shady communication. This film is a complete throw back to The Empire Strike Back; the similarities are very eerie. Obi-Wan provides the wit comedy of Han Solo, Anikin provides the recklessness, but gifted student like his son Luke, Jango provides his cleverness and loyalty like his son, Count Dooku adds the confidence and treachery of Darth Vader, Mace Windu adds an edge, and Yoda redefines the phrase "Bustin' out the Woopin' Stick." All in all, a sweet film for the world to enjoy.
Shifty Jedi

 

Ok now that I have seen it a second time I can put it a bit better.

ok what can I say

Yoda,

Everything with Obiwan in it, Except maybe how quickly Dooku took him out at the end. I know Dooku is a master well beyond the master Obiwan is but I thought he would last a bit longer.. BTW there is no doubt Obiwan is a Jedi MASTER They went out of the way to make that clear. Obiwan's investigation was plain fun. I really loved the way he bluffed his way into seeing the clones. I thought Dexter?s 50's like cafe was really cool. Including the roller-skating Waitress droid. I loved the whole look of Coruscant. It really reminded me of some of the locations from the Jedi Knight and Dark forces games. I thought that was very cool. That really let me feel in the SW world.



The chase. Was just pure fun excitement. I liked the free falling. Having Anakin go into a dive to match Obiwans fall was just really cool and exciting. Obiwan catching Anakin's lightsaber was very cool too. It was a nice touch. The night club was very cool, Even with GL's daughter as a purple twilik checking out Anakin. (seriously look for it next time)

The arena Battle was Awesome. The way the other Jedi Entered, Especially Mace, was just way cool. Made you cheer. I like that. During my second viewing I just kept watching Jedi in the background. Very cool stuff is going on there. You see a few Jedi swinging around 2 lightsabers. You see them slicing up droids and kicking and jumping. Much better than watching 3po. I was a bit surprised by how easily some Jedi where taken out but I guess not all Jedi are as skilled as others so it makes sense.

The asteroid chase was cool too. Not as exciting as the ESB one but still very cool. And the sound on those charges Jango used. My gosh. I think I felt a filling come out of my tooth.


So what didn't I like.

2 scenes really bugged me.. Acting wise and what was going on in them....
First was Anakin and Padme when she was packing to leave. I thought Anakin jumped on his Obiwan tantrum just too quickly and the way Handen played that part was a bit over the top with the poutiness. I think if it was played as if he were bitching it would have been better than doing it as a whine.

The other scene I didn't like was the one near the Fireplace on Naboo. When Padme was telling him about how they couldn?t love and he was talking about keeping it a secret. I am not sure why but I just didn't get into that scene.


The big Question.. Was it better than TPM? MMMM. At fist guess I would say yes but that could be just because TPM is 'old and busted' where AOTC is the 'new hotness'

I thought AOTC dragged a bit after the Chase. The Romance was ok but like I said a few Scenes didn't work for me. TPM had the Pod race just when things where getting slow. So it really never felt like it dragged at any time. The end Battle in AOTC was way better but still Maul/Obiwan/Quigon was a much better saber fight than Dooku/Obiwan/Anakin but I think the Yoda/Dooku part may have more than made up for that. That fight is one of the greatest things I have ever seen on a movie. So anyway I am not ready to say which one I liked better.

 

Ok, I want to comment on two things.

First off is the scene where Padme's packing and Anakin starts complaining about Obi-Wan. I like this scene, and here's why. There's tension between Anakin and Obi-Wan, as we see in the earlier scene where Anakin steps out of line and starts mouthing off to Obi-Wan regarding investigating who's trying to kill Padme. And so, later as Padme's packing she asks Anakin how things are. Finally, someone is lending their ear, and Anakin takes the opportunity to vent. If a padawan spends his days around the Jedi and in training and what-not, he doesn't really have anyone to complain to. It'd look bad for him to complain about Obi-Wan to other masters and padawans and they would probably take Obi-Wan's side anyway, seeing as how Anakin is merely an apprentice.

BTW, I'm not knocking your feelings on the scene Doright. I just wanted to add my perspective on it.

Anyway, the other thing I wanted to mention is in regard to Yoda's meditation during Anakin's slaughterfest. I don't know if others caught this or not, but when Mace walks in and Yoda opens his eyes, they are welled up with tears because he's feeling Anakin's pain during the ordeal. I was just waiting for one tear to roll down his face and I thought it was a really nice, subtle touch.

 

I'm really going to have to pay attention to that transition to Yoda after the Tusken slaughters. In addition to what Vader mentioned, I remember hearing some voices right then, but I couldn't connect on who it was exactly. Now I'm reading that it's Qui-Gon ... very cool.

 

You know today when I saw it again, Quigon was who popped into my head too when I heard that voice. But then I just past it off thinking it was just Obiwan sounding like Quigon. Was it confirmed somewhere that it's Quigon's voice?

Oh Vader that's cool. Knock away. I got the scene like you said. I know that was the point. I just thought Haden just didn't pull it off with that whine. I was just thinking maybe it would have come off better if he was just complaining. You know ranting or something. That Tantrum was just a bit over the top. I didn't mean to bash. I was just being honest in my review. I loved this movie. I am still giddy from it. I will be sitting here all quiet and then I will think of Yoda and start giggling to myself. My coworkers keep giving me dirty looks. I have seen it 2 times already and I am going again on Sunday with my wife and again on the 26th and I am sure a few more times here and there.

 

I think it's confirmed in the book that it's Qui-Gon, but I haven't read that far yet.

 

Just saw it yesterday afternoon. Attack of the Clones is so much better to empire in so many ways Here are about five or them.

1. The tension between Obi-wan and Anakin is beutifully portrayed by Hadyen cristensen and Ewan Macgregor. The scene in the eleavator where Obi Wan is trying to have Anakin chill out is beautifull. It shows alot of what is to come


2.The asteriod battle was beautifully shot by the people at ILM Jango and Boba Fett are a reason this film is great

Ben

3. The jedi batle on geonosis was great for two reasons. 1. Jedis fighting 2. c-3po being given some great movment in the scene where is head is put on the body of a battle droid and his body is given the head of a battle droid . Thats an image that will be in my head for a long time

4.Anakin's speach about how the goverment should be run. Haunting but beautifully delivered by Christensen

5. The lightsaber battle between Count Dooku and Anakin. This is so much cooler than the battle between Luke and vader at the end of empire by a long shot

a few things that were just plain bad about the moive

1. The Anakin Amdala romance somtimes seemed like Peral Harbor. but saves it self by bring some tension into the courtship

2. Jar Jar Bikns Starting the Clone made me so angry. What point does this character have besides being a total waste of screen time and man that was dumb

Ben

 

Do'h put my name in the wrong place

 

Yeah, in the book, it's Qui Gon. In fact, Yoda is amazed that he could hear him as no Jedi, until that point, had ever been able to reach other jedi after death... so the spectral "obi-wan" thing doesn't come until much later.

Mike
M.E.

Edit: Found this on TF.N About the voice

 

Dorightsaid:
First was Anakin and Padme when she was packing to leave. I thought Anakin jumped on his Obiwan tantrum just too quickly and the way Handen played that part was a bit over the top with the poutiness. I think if it was played as if he were bitching it would have been better than doing it as a whine.

I didn't like that scene either. I thought the same thing - it was way over-the-top and his feelings changed too quick. Just did not seem to be a clean transition.

I LOVED the movie! I'll write more about it later. Hayden's acting was only so-so at best. It wasn't as bad as JL's though. I wasn't overly impressed with NP's acting in TPM either and she did wonderful in AOTC so maybe Hayden will improve as well in Episode 3.

EM is way cool and way hot! 'Nuff said...