title: What are the critics talking about?

text:
OK - Just got back from the premiere of AOTC in CT on the digital screen.  I am still spinning.  First of all - the clarity of digital is unbeleivable.  There were a few times it looked 3D.  Absolutely astounding and kudos to Lucas for trying to demand that we could all see the movie this way.  If you can get to a digital theater - DO IT!!!  You WILL notice the difference.
OK - so the movie...I read the reviews over the last few days and I read a lot about flat acting, fake digital charactors, and no chemistry between Padme and Anakin.  SO I have to say that, after the many flaws of Phantom Menace, I was prepared to be a little disappointed in this movie - and I doubted that the great George Lucas could still write and direct a STAR WARS quality film.  But tonight I saw a much different movie than what those reviews were describing.  I was chilled, I cried, I sat on the edge of my seat for 2+ hours and left in a whirlwind frenzy from all the excitement.  Anxiously waiting for when I will go see it again tomorrow.
What on earth are those critics talking about?  Did they not see the same movie I did?  The dialogue and interaction between Padme and Anakin was very typical of the way an 18 year old boy might express himself when trying to explain feelings he has never felt before.  Their chemistry warmed me - and Anakin's frequent nudges toward the darkside disturbed me.  His performance was fantastic, as was Natalie Portman's.  The digital charectors were amazing and the fight scenes (yoda in particular) were astounding.  If you see 1 movie this year - SEE THIS MOVIE.  Its fun, Its fast, its emotional, it is everything a movie should be and a great addition to the Star Wars Story.


title: GEORGE LUCAS IS AN ABSOLUTE GENIUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

text: Let's set the record straight here people.  I was fortunate enough to see the first screening of this brilliant film at my local movie theater.  Why then, were people going nuts when the movie started, why then, did people cheer throughout the ENTIRE movie and why then, did the entire audience get up at the end and give the movie a standing ovation??????????????  Because he is brilliant.  Go find out what happened BEFORE and what events led up to the "trilogy" that we all learned to love when we were growing up.  You can't afford to wait and see this on video or DVD in your own home - Lucas's digital effects and sounds were meant to be heard in the theater.  A little side note, every male that sets foot in the theater WILL fall in love with the stunning Natalie Portman (Anniken did).


title: Slow start but finishes well

text:
Does an excellent job of showing how the Imperial Empire came into power... a much clearer picture of the conspiracy of the "Emporor" to gain power, and control a vast army. The story was good... very slow for the first 1/3 of the movie, but picked up steam and ended with lots of action. The special effects were good, but not outstanding. Thankfully the role of that annoying Jar-Jar was very limited. Some good laughs in there too including C3PO getting his head swapped with another droid. We also get to see Yoda in combat which is cool... though I still don't get how he could stagger in to the room with a cane one minute, then turn into Jackie Chan the next.
PEEVE #1: Firstly, I expected a smooth transition from the sweet little "Annie" to the evil tyrant "Vader". But right from the beginning, Anakin comes off as this know-it-all teenager with an attitude, acting like a 5-year old who pouts at anything that doesn't go his way. I found him just plain annoying and wished that he would shut up with his whining. Surely any Jedi training him would have noticed that this kid needs a serious boot to the head. It would have been better if his change to the dark side was the result of bitterness towards some major wrong-doing that he sustained... perhaps a betrayal of some sort. Lucas tried to induce that bitterness with the death of Anakin's mother, but honestly his downfall started with his "head up the..." attitude right from the beginning of the movie. We are left to assume that during the 10 years that have elapsed since the Phantom Menace, something has hardened him... but we have no idea what.
PEEVE #2: Some of the lines were just plain bad, and the acting didn't help. They acted like robots and the dialog was very artificial.
Conclusion? Well, if you are a Star Wars fan, then you gotta see it... regardless of how bad the reviews are. Otherwise, wait until it comes out on video.


title: Just like being a kid again

text: I am quite surprised by the reviews written here.  This is Star Wars, since when does anyone take a critic's checklist to this movie?  Enjoy it for what it is.  It really pays to watch a movie like this like you were a kid again.  This was full of as much imagination as the original 3 movies and just as much fun to watch.  I remember when I was a kid seeing "Empire" for the first time and I felt the exact same way watching this.  When watching this movie, remember it is just a fantasy and try not to take it all too seriously.  This isn't Shakespeare what Lucas is trying to create here.  But it is just a simple fantasy which is a whole lotta fun to watch!  Besides, this is Lucas' creation, if you don't like it, tough!  I for one thought it was incredible.


title: Once again Star Wars fails to deliver

text: I think even the most devout Star Wars fans entering the theatre weren't expecting to worship this film. So when we were challenged by stilted dialouge, bad acting, a convoluted plot and the most spiritless cliched romance I have ever seen, we took it all in stride. We were pleased by the conspicuously limited role of Jar Jar, pleasantly amused by the (for the most part) fun banter between C-3PO and R2D2, and awed by George Lucas' undiminished ability to create freshly beautiful alien landscapes. We didn't object when Lucas lifted scenes and dialogue from Gladiator, Blade Runner and the earlier Star Wars trilogy. We even cheered during Yoda's gravity-defying lightsaber battle at the end of the film. Still, leaving the theatre, I couldn't stave off a sense of regret. Count Dooku pales in comparison to the menacing presence of Darth Vader that gave depth and power to the Dark side. Anakin and Amidala's romance falls way short of the witty banter and magnetic chemistry that characterized Han and Leia's relationship. And most of all, the Force, which used to be a fascinating, mystical synthesis of Eastern religion and Western heroic tradition, has been reduced to a side-effect of some obscure microscopic parasitism (the Medichlorians?!?--in my mind they were indisputably George Lucas' worst science fiction creation ever). The legacy of original Star Wars, an innovative, fun, compelling film of epic proportions, has been reduced to a overly-commercialized special-effects fest.


title: Star Wars Attack of Dramatic Love Story

text: We'll I went seen it. What a suprised I got. The movie starts out with typical Star Wars begining. Setting in the dark waiting for the dramatic Light Saber fight or a great galatic ship fight. It took forever to get to some real action. The scene were the great air speeder chase happens remined me of the movie the 5th Element. I thought for along time I watching a knockoff of Ghost or some other other love drama. I have never been so bored in my life. The movie skipps around letting each actor get in a few sceanes. Someone in Star Wars always gets in trouble and has to be bailed out. The robot factory scene kept me from going to by a ticket for Spider Man. I had lost all faith in the movie up till thin. The movie did explain alot about the last three in the series. Don't forget the Gladiator battle. I think McFarlen has had all these creatures in a comic book once or twice. And talk about a cheap ending. We get a short land battle and a shorter Light Saber battle. The movie end just like the whole movie was about. That dramatic love [junk]. Way to go Lucus make a film about "A Galaxy Far Away" were people fall into love and spend time not save their empire. If you need a good nape go see it or invest your five bucks into one of the lobby video game.


title: Don't delude yourself because you're a loyal Star Wars fan!

text:
I have read a few reviews and discussed this film with many. I must announce this: Lucas was so desperate that he allowed horrible acting and his own feeble writing to continue ruining one of the greatest film series in story telling history. When you concieve a story your thoughts are not complete- granted. When you write a screenplay to complete that story and bring it to fruition, you must be true to the characters and the parameters which the SAGA have been built. Lucas forgot ALL OF THIS. He tried to squeeze too much story into too litle time. If I had to sit in the theater for an extra hour so he could convey the story correctly, I would gladly have stayed.
Jango Fett- a flat, empty character. Boba Fett- a flat, empty character. Anakin Skywalker- a whining, sniviling brat. A rookie policeman with a lightsaber with no real wielding of the Force or realization or conceit of his true potential. Obi Wan- wasted! Don't do this and don't do that! He should have been a nurturing Father-like mentor- not a teed-off dad who's tripped over too many toys at the end of a hard days work. The romance was FORCED- and not by the Force either.
I could rip this film to shreds for hours. If you are a true Star Wars fan, watch it again and see what IS and not for what you hoped. It is not there. Not to mention the stolen scenes from The 5th Element and Gladiator and Monsters Inc. Just realize- not fantasize. This movie, acting, directing, cgi, monsters, dialogue, blocking- and so much more was so much wrong! I am truly saddened and disappointed. This one made Epidode I worth watching.


title: The Force is strong with this one.

text:
On a diplomatic mission to Coruscant, Senator Amidala is attacked by an unknown force.  The Jedi council calls for Master Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi and his young apprentice, Anakin Skywalker, to solve this mystery and protect the senator respectively.  As Anakin and Padme Amidala fall deeply in love for each other, Obi-Wan discovers the creation of a vast clone army, supposedly ordered upon ten years ago by a Jedi Master thought to have been dead.
The film's greatest strength is the focus on Anakin's emotions, and how he handles his aggression.  It's apparent as the story progresses that he starts to realize something isn't right in his world, and the beginnings of his journey to the Dark Side start to take shape.
I was a huge fan of The Phantom Menace, and needless to say, Episode II made leaps and bounds, having more focus on the story, better writing and a load of surprises.  The only general complaint I have for it is that it is unlike any of the past films to date.  The atmosphere, character relationships, and the psychological feeling in Anakin make this a unique experience, but sometimes go outside the usual restraints of a Star Wars film.  Also, the emphasis is definitely on action, and some of the characters' relationships aren't fully developed.
I waited in line for two hours to get in to the first midnight showing, and while there were a few disappointments along the way, it was ultimately worth the wait.


title: The Madness of King George....

text:
I want to say first that I am a fan of the Star Wars movies, specifically the original films, and have seen 'A New Hope' more times than I should have.
I thought this movie was awful for a number of reasons (in the order that they occur to me) :
1 : The dialogue was awful and delivered flatly by actors who are generally very good, but not in this instance.
2: What happened to the John Williams soundtrack?  The scores for the original movies are superb and memorable.  I know and love every note in them.  The music for the prequels was barely noticable and left us cold.
3:  The film was undercut.  Several sequences should have been left on the cutting room floor - particularly the romatic scenes between Anakin and Amadala.  There is a deeply funny moment when Amadala runs up a hill.  It reminded me of 'Sound of Music.'
4: There was no real heavy villain until the very end.  Every mythological tale needs a great villain and this was lacking.
5: An over reliance on creatures and effects.  If you use too much of something, you lose the element of wonder and it becomes really dull to watch.  The creatures should be used more sparingly for greater effect.
6: We are robbed of a potentially great scene as Anakin destroys the Tusken Raiders.  This is a major point for his character development and we were denied it.  Instead we got the romance which would have been nice had it actually worked.
7 : This is a personal thing, but the Tusken dogs were obviously taken from the same program that created the Beast in 'Brotherhood of the Wolf' with minor modifications.  This is nothing new to Lucas, who used some of the Dinosaurs from Jurassic Park in SWSE - namely the Brachiosaurs became 'Rontos.'  We thought that this was unimaginative and cheap of Lucas.
8 : The mythological themes seemed to be completely lacking here unfortunately.  Star Wars without the mythology isn't much good.
9 : The jokes were not funny.
10 : Yoda is a great character.  He is one of the greatest characters in the original trilogy.  But in this he comes across as ridiculous - particularly in the fight scene.  Obi Wan's character seemed once again to be undermined, and still not the Kenobi we know from the classic trilogy.
This had the potential to be a really great story, but Lucas has proved that with a little effort and a lot of CGI, he can make a film that is even worse than Phantom Menace.
Avoid this film.  Watch the original, classic trilogy instead.


title: Episode II - Attack of the Lucas Clone

text:
Let's start with my background, I'm an admitted Star Wars geek.  I camped out overnight for tickets to see Episode I in my Maul facepaint, and I've lost track of the number of times I've seen the original trilogy.  So watching Episode II I was as open-minded and enthusiastic to enjoy this movie as I could be, complete in my Vader outfit with lightsaber.  I was sorrofully wrong.
Let's start with the basics:  THE JEDI.  In "Empire" Yoda tells us that the Force unites us, binds us, and what luminous beings we are.  Well, in Episode II the Jedi seem to have forgotten this.  They're police officers with lightsabers.  Nothing more.  The "religious" aspect is erased as if it never were.
The mythology is also gone.  I guess Joseph Campbell's teachings were lost on Lucas when writing this.  It's just a series of random event after random event.  Anakin getting his arm stapled to a conveyer belt.. WHY?
But let's get to the juicy details, shall we?
DIALOGUE: Whoever said the dialogue in this movie sounds like Shakespeare should be slapped silly.  It's HORRIBLE!  Tacking on "m'lady" at the end of a horrible sentence maketh not Shakespeare!  The fact that most lines are delivered with no emotion and gives you a recipe for corny atrocities and a lot of painful watching.  The classic lines such as "Your thoughts betray you" and "Be mindful of your feelings" are delivered over and over and OVER again.
ROMANCE: This movie has romance?  It's more like Al Gore and Michael Dukhakis reading bad poetry.  NO emotion whatsoever.  I'll grant Hayden that he tries so hard to make these horrible lines work.  "I've been dying every day since you came here." *YAWN*  "My heart is a black hole of torture with foul robots kicking me in the ..."  Yea, George, great dialogue.  Atrocious.
ANAKIN:  I was hoping we would see his descent into madness with this film.  Do we?  NO.  We see him whine.  Again and again.  "You're holding me back!" "I want my mommy!" "It's all your fault!"  on and on and on.
PACING: Is this movie paced?  I would have never known from watching it.  The first hour or so is pure drama, and the last half is one nonstop torture session in how ridiculous things get.  Episode I had pacing. The finale, for example.  Excellently switching between the Maul fight and the space battle.  Episode II just pours it on, and the result is so horrible.
Let's look at some really bad action sequences:
R2 with Jets.  WHY?  He doesn't have them in Episodes 4-6.  Why did Lucas think it would be so cool to have them now?
The big fight.  Is it just me, or do all the Jedi forget how to use the Force?  and I'm supposed to believe that the dumb droids from Episode I can kill Jedi in a tight circle formation?  No wonder Palpatine wants them dead.  They stink!
The vehicles completely lack heart, and the big ship fighting sequence is so emotionally empty I was actually BORED.  I went to this film pumped up in my Darth Vader garb, and I was actually BORED!  and Lucas's attempt to keep my attention by having Natalie bare her tummy was a feeble mind trick that didn't make me forget the movie stunk.
YODA: He went from Ghandi-esque Guru to ... Matrix spinoff character.  His big scene is so absurd I was laughing AT it, not with it.  Episode V's Yoda is NOT the Yoda we see now.
Conclusion: Ewan, Ian, and Shaft do an admirable job trying to salvage this movie from George's insanity, but ultimately fail.  Spiderman and Fellowship of the Ring are two films that blow this one away in terms of completeness...  They prove a movie can have heart, action, romance, comedy, and special effects.  Star Wars has 1 or 2 of these at most.  And if you don't believe me, watch Spider-man right after you see Clones.  You'll realize Episode II is a clone, alright.  Just not of Star Wars.


title: the best yet

text:
For me this was the best starwars film yet!
The romance was what really made it worth while, though it could have been more intimate, rather than all distant and kind of cold.
After seeing the first starwars film No.4 i got into it and have followed since.
The last one proved to be quite sad and didnt live upto its expectations but was certainly well recovered by the release of this one.


title: 95% there

text:
This movie was VERY good! Not perfect, but DEFINATELY worth seeing. I thought that the action scenes ROCKED, and there was a lot of chemistry btw Ani, and Amidala.
The ending had you almost cheering.
You almost wish Anakin was going to end up good!


title: The Force be With You!

text:
Star Wars is one of the greatest sagas ever to be made.  The age old tale of Good vs Evil is retold with such care for detail as has never been seen.  The original Star Wars had everything: drama, action, betrayal, romance, fight scenes, suspense, and surprise.  The movies were sucesses despite their newness.  ESB was loved, even though it is recognizably the darker film.  So what is different?
  Why did people dislike The Phantom Menace so much? Perhaps because there were so many expectations for this new film.  Frankly, any film with all the hype that TPM recieved would likely be called a disapointment.  Look at the new Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings.  Those surely will dissapoint many hardcore fans, whether or not the movies are good.
  So why are people judging Attack of the Clones so harshly?  It's not even released yet.  I admit, the title is somewhat lacking in drama, but it could hardly be called anything else.  The plot promises to be darker, giving us the why for Anakin's turning, as well as his romance with Padme Amidala.  I rate this movie 5 stars because I cannot expect anythng less from s Star Wars movie.  Any true Star Wars fan would love anything Star Wars, despite what the critics say.  So stay true to the Force, to Star Wars, and to the beleoved saga.

May the Force be with you!


title: Well, it is definitely the worst Star Wars

text:
After reading so much of the reviews on this and thinking back to the experiences I had when I watched the original trilogy in the theaters and Episode I, I have to really say this is the worst Star Wars to date.  I think Hayden Christensen was wrongly cast, his acting did not make me believe enough and feel enough for him, there are so many fine actors out there that could have been chosen that could have done so much better a job, I just don't know what's up with Lucas anymore, perhaps he should let others handle some of the work or move it to younger people.
Comparing this movie, I guess you can't compare it to the original ones where it was such a rollercoaster ride, because you have characters from all different backgrounds thrown together in a mix of course they won't always agree with each other and that's what made it fun and develop over time into more seriousness, but when Luke became a Jedi, he was always serious, which is the tone of these new movies.  I think these new movies are right in the tone, because the Jedi order is a very serious group of people and they hardly joke the way the first movies did, but there could have been way better acting to make it more real.
Finally, one really big point I'd like to make is that the music did not flow with the movie, this is one big part that I have to say was bad, a bad movie can be catapulted to a better position if the movie had good music that moves it, but it seems like the composer was not interested in this movie, wasn't emotionally charged like the first 3 movies.  There were some really dead spots in the movie that just didn't have any music or sound at all, I think it made it dull.  If you remember the first 3 movies, the music flowed so well and felt so good.  It wasn't even evident in these new movies.
Well, with all this bad stuff to say about this movie, you're wondering why I even gave it 4 stars right?  Since I am a Star Wars fan, growing up with it, I still have to give it justice and instead of the three stars I would have given it, I give it one more as a fan.  I know you'll hate me for that one, but what can I say.


title: The best star wars movie yet

text: Every thing was great, the graphics the action the roleplay. It was almost as though the actors were ment to be in this movie. Aniken is so cool.The graphics were ausome. And Obi-Wan  was the greatest, the romance was a little mushy but the whole thing was outrageous.


title: What a Rip

text: Being a Star Wars fan from way back, I was really excited to go to this new movie.  I was quickly surprised at the very poor acting and dialog!  It never even occured to me that would ever be an issue in a Lucas film!  The emotion and interaction was wooden and given with all the enthusiasm of Ben Stein!  I can't believe the line ups and the 4 star review.  Did the rest of you see a different movie than I did?  I felt like I'd been hit with a bucket of cold water.  The 5 other people that went with me to the show were equally, or more, disappointed.


title: GREAT

text: It is obvious that episode's 1 and 2 lead up to episode 3whichwill outshine every other starwars movie ever. This was great,not the disaster of episode 1


title: Begun, the Clone War has...

text:
...and now we have to wait for another three years to see its conclusion. WOW. Episode II is definitely MUCH better than Episode I. I would even say it's better that Return of the Jedi. If Lucas keeps up the good work then Episode III will be on a par with A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back.
You can see the plot elsewhere so I'll just try to summarize what was good about it and what was bad about it.
Good:
1. The characters. Almost every one of them (with the notable exception of Amidala - I'll get to that below) delivers a superb performance. I was especially pleasantly surprised by Hayden (Anakin). He fits the role perfectly: the impetuos young Jedi padawan, reckless, impulsive, ambitious, overly confident of himself, lacking patience, determined to be the greatest Jedi ever. But we see as well his occasional bursts of fury, his inner torments and demons, which predict his eventual fall to the Dark Side. We see as well all temptations and trials he is subjected to - his forbidden attraction to Amidala, his love for his mother and how what happens to her affects him - and we can understand how his fall to the Dark Side begins. All the others are good as well: Obi-Wan, Yoda, Mace Windu, Count Dooku.
2. The plot. There are actually two epic lines: Obi-Wan discovering the hidden clone army and dealing with the conspiration and Padme vs. Anakin. The first one is VERY good. The enemy (Sidious) is almost unseen, he doesn't have more than a couple of lines in the entire movie, yet you can feel his presence everywhere, see the shadow of his actions begging to take shape. His is a masterful plan to take over the Republic which nobody sees; he fools all with intelligence. This is the kind of bad guy I love. Also great are all the scenes on the planet where Obi-Wan discoveres the clones and his confrontations with Jango Fett. Suspense, adrenaline and an eerie feeling of outworldliness.
3. The special effects - settings. Each planet has its own distinctive individuality and is created in such detail you cannot believe it is not real. Coruscant: high towers, lights, traffic, agitation. Naboo: beautiful landscapes, waterfalls, pastorality. Clone planet: water, white, rain. Conspiration planet: red, volcanoes, machinery, inhabitans which resemble giant flies. Absolutely stunning.
4. All the small tidbits which are SW trademark, which give us old-timers a feeling of home coming: movie opens with a ship in space, somebody has a bad feeling, Artoo saves the day, Threepio gets into trouble, Obi-Wan jests to Anakin "I've got a feeling you're going to be the end of me" - how true...
5. Lightsaber duels. They are PERFECT. They are shot continuously (not like in TPM where they were always interrupted by other epic threads) and are suspenseful. They even manage to make Yoda duel without him becoming hilarious - he's great, in fact.
Now for the bad parts:
1. Except for the race between Obi-Wan and Jango Fett in the asteroid field, there isn't any space battle at all. All battles take place on the ground.
2. The love-story between Anakin and Padme is clumsily done, rushed and forced. I kept comparing it to Han/Leia and it doesn't stand a chance. Also, Padme was the greatest disappointment in the movie. She is downgraded from the stately royal presence and aloofness to a good-looking young woman who does nothing but get herself into trouble. There were some plot holes here as well: she keeps telling Anakin how they shouldn't be together but keeps provoking him by wearing the most revealing outfits. She is supposed to be travelling undercover in order to avoid her enemies but keeps wearing the most shining costumes.
Oh, but you can skip over the bad parts and enjoy the movie. It is really something.
P.S. In case you were wondering: Jar Jar has less than 5 minutes screen time.


title: Great movie with reservations

text:
I just went to see Episode II and I must say that I am very pleased.  The film has far surpassed my expectations, being an excellent epic action film.  The story spans a huge part of the galaxy, and things seem to tie together quite well.  This is the redemption of Star Wars that we have truly been waiting for since Empire.  Unfortunately, it is still missing some of the magic of the first two films, but it does manage to pull off a great performance.  Now for the criticism, which is what I do best:
Over-used CGI:
It looks like George Lucas discovered computer graphics and went overboard in including them into the film.  Every other scene has some CGI element in it.  Unfortunately, there are a lot of things in the film that seem to have CGI just because Lucas can.  While we don't have the 20 minute fiasco that was the pod race, we still have a few scenes that do no more than show off the pretty graphics of Lucas's computers.  Again, this is not nearly as bad as Episode 1, but it still feels annoying.
BAD CGI:
One of the most important elements of doing CGI graphics is making sure that your final result looks real.  The first step in this is to get great artists to design the characters in 3D and put textures on them.  This was done fairly effectively.  The next step is to get a crack team of animators to put realistic motion into the 3D models so as to make the motion look fluid and realistic.  To get an example of this, just check out Toy Story, Shrek, or Jurassic Park.  Unfortunately, it seems that Lucas ran out of cash and bought a bunch of high school animators to do the work here.  The motion is completely unrealistic and unbelievable time and again.  We're talking Greedo shooting first at Han Solo with his neck snapping off bad.  When Jurassic Park did their dinosaurs in CGI, they had the guys who used to do the physical clay models move them.  This is because they knew what real motion looks like.  The characters here look ridiculous.  In fact, they look like poorly made video game cutscenes.  The same problem happened with Final Fantasy: The Spirit's Within.  When are these people going to learn that you need to mimic the static look AND the motion of 3D characters.  Ugh.
PLOT HOLES:
Lucas has his work cut out for him in the next movie.  He didn't remove any of the plotholes from Episode 1, but added more plot holes into the series, most of which revolve around C3PO and Anakin Skywalker.  <SPOILERS FOLLOW> From Episode 1, we have C3PO knowing Anakin Skywalker but not knowing Darth Vader; and C3PO being built on Tatooine, but not recognizing it when he lands there later.  Now we have C3PO working on the Owen and Beru Lars's farm but not recognizing it when he works there later, as well as Owen and Beru not recognizing C3PO when they buy him in Episode IV.  We also have the issue of R2D2 having rocket packs to let him fly, Darth Vader knowing about Luke but not about Leia, Obi-Wan getting involves with Counciler Organa of Alderaan, and much else.  These are fixable, mostly, but will require a lot of work in episode three.


title: George has always been Back!

text:
I found this movie entertaining, fun, dramatic and star wars! It was so great to watch.
AOTC plot is so complex, and great. I want to see what star wars some fans will make. HAHA
AOTC does have problems but really any movie does, let me go back to the quote "Anyone can find flaws with a film. From "Gone With The Wind" to "Schindler's List," if you enter the film with skepticism you can pick any narrative apart. In the case of "Episode II," it is Lucas' continued imagination that makes it all click"
is AOTC really that freaking bad as some people say. I mean really? Go have some fun!


title: Another Lucas Classic

text: Truly a classic.  Many critics didn't think this was a particularly good movie.  As usual, they were wrong.  This is a true Star Wars masterpiece.  Only negative is that it was over too soon.  Should have gone on for another hour.


title: To put it simply, the movie surpassed all my expectations!

text:
Last night, after waiting 7 hours in line to get the primo spot in the theater (I was on the news too), I watched the film I had been waiting for ever since Episode I, three years ago.  I set my expectations at a reasonable level, and I expected to be pleased with the movie.
Was I pleased? No: I WAS BLOWN AWAY
I can honestly say that AOTC has managed to surpass all the other movies I have seen in my life to provide the best film experience I've ever had.
Believe me, my expectations were starting to be lowered after reading all the bad reviews.  But after seeing the movie, I can't even understand one damn complaint from the critics in those reviews!
Now I'm going to adress each aspect of the film and my opinion on it:
PLOT: One big complaint amoung the critics was that the movie was very slow in the beginning.  I totally disagree.  The beginning is wonderfully interesting and was done very well.  George really knows how to pace his movies.  He managed to fit plenty of character development in with different action sequences.  The movie becomes extremely haunting once you get to Tatooine (more about the Tusken scene later) and Geonosis, very creepy environments.  Of course, it leads to the huge, full blown Clone War, which basically blows every other film climax away.  There is nothing I would have changed at all in the plot and pacing department.
ROMANCE: I didn't expect much from George in this department (I thought it would be massively cheesily delivered), but I tell you, in certain scenes I felt that the love dialogue reminded me of Shakespear's Romeo and Juliet - it is that good!  There was not one line of cheesy romance dialogue in that movie, it was all very poetic and you felt that the characters are really pouring their hearts out to each other.  It was great!
ACTING: I can't believe that people said Hayden and Natalie's acting was bad.  THEY WERE FANTASTIC!  Their acting was superb through the entire movie and completely believable.  Ewan McGregor is so remenicent of Alec Guiness but manages to show us a new side of Obi-Wan, this guy is such a great actor!  I thought Chris Lee played Dooku well (he's very creepy) and Sam Jackson was great as well.  I thought Daniel Logan (who plays Boba Fett) would be like Jake Lloyd, but surprisingly he was very good at it, and so was Temuara Morrison as Jango Fett.
DIOLOGUE: As I've said, the romance diologue was great, but so was alot of others.  In particular, the words exchanged between Anakin and Obi-Wan are so expertly done, showing that they have a friendship, but they still conflict often with each other in a very strong manner.  Also, the audenince cheered loudly in several places when either Dooku, Mace Windu, Yoda, Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Padme said some great lines in the end battle.
SPECIAL EFFECTS: So many times throughout the movie I thought I was looking at something that was real instead of just CGI creation.  The technology has become fantastic!  The FX are the best in any movie and looked great in nearly all the scenes.  The ONLY shot I'd complain about it a single shot of battle droids on a conveyor belt being moved backwards jerkily, and them a claw whipping forward and putting a head on each.  For some reason, I thought that one shot looked like something out of Toy Story.  But I assure you, that is the only shot that looked fake.  The FX are excellent.
FAVORITE SCENES: I'd have to say that I'd like the scene of Anakin an Padme's first kiss.  It was done very well because the love theme builds up and up as Anakin moves in for the kiss, staring into Padme's eyes and then the lovetheme goes full blown when he give her smooched on the lips.  But then Padme pulls away and goes, "No!" and the music stops very quick and Anakin is all taken aback.  Everyone in the theater thought it was great.
Another of my favorite scenes was the part where Anakin goes to find his mother.  I don't want to spoil the scene for you, but I almost cried during it.  It was heart-wrenching to see the entire thing.  And then Hayden gives these fantastic looks of pure rage and hatred.  The scene is extremely powerful and dark and was done perfectly.  You can totally see the formation of Darth Vader taking place.
And then pretty much the entire end battle was great.  Yoda's fight was SOOO cool!  Everyone was completely insane with cheers when you see him beginning to come up behind Dooku from the hallway, they all knew what was coming.  :D  And the Anakin/Obi/Dooku fight was great.  The lighting was very dark during their battle, making it very haunting and forboding.
FINAL WORD: This is the first movie I have ever seen that I don't have one complaint about.  The movie was completely fulfilling, has fantastic character development and relationships, the acting was some of the best I've seen, the scenes were very powerful.  I can't praise Lucas enough for this masterpiece.  It has truely become my favorite movie I've ever scene and has risen aboove The Empire Strikes Back in my book.
Rating: *****/*****


title: Absolutely Fabulous

text: This film met or exceeded all of my expectations.  Short background: I have been a Star Wars fan since I was 5 back in 1977.  For long time fans this is an important installment in the overall Star Wars saga/story.  From a movie-goer perspective the special effects are near flawless and quite believable.  I have read many reviews critical of the acting of the main characters but my thought was that the main characters' acting was right on the money.  Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christiansen are excellent, Hayden showing alternately the child, the impatient adolescent and the coming dark-side.  Natalie Portman is much more free in her dialouge this time around not being constrained by the comportment expected of a queen, and her action scenes are great.  But one character steals the show (I won't say why, but you'll see).  Yoda is the absolute best.  Contrary to popular discussion I found Yoda's scene with the "younglings" the best of the whole movie.


title: ...  Awsome

text: I thought this movie was awsome . it was the best movie i had ever seen and the best star wars movie ever. i can't wait for the dvd to come out . My favorite parts were the lightsaber fights and the clone troopers


title: Lucas needs to be stoped!

text: Ok, seriously does George Lucas actually think he can make good movies anymore? Both Episode I&II have to be the biggest let down to anyone who is/was a fan of the originals and a let down to anyone that has taste in good cinema. It amazes me that Lucas made 3 of the best movies ever (Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi) with barely any money, but give him an unlimited budget and he makes the worst movies ever (Phantom Menace, and Attack of the Clones)...go figure!<br />My advice...SAVE YOUR MONEY!!!


title: Better than Ep.1, but could have been improved greatly

text:
 Although certainly a vast improvement over the disappointment embodied by The
Phantom Menace in 1999, The Attack of the Clones is arguably worthy of its hereditary Star
Wars title. Its most redeeming feature is the minuscule number of speaking lines given to the
returning Jar Jar Binks.
 Although Christopher Lee and Samuel L. Jackson bring visible acting talent to the screen,
the wooden dialogue between Natalie Portman's Senator Amidala and Hayden Christenen's
brazen Anakin prevents any real emotion from showing through. Ewan McGregor plays a more
believable Obi-Wan Kenobi than he did in Episode I, but he is still constrained by the number
and nature of his speaking lines.
 Beyond the dialogue, there is much of interest in Attack of the Clones, from massive
automated droid-building assembly lines to fierce alien gladiatorial beasts, from aerial sky-lane
chases to enormous rooms of jar-contained baby clones. The special effects are incredible, yet
seem to dominate the movie perhaps more than they should. Nearly every shot in the movie
includes a CGI character, structure, or background, and this gets overwhelming by the end, which
features Yoda's first on-screen light sabre battle. Even Yoda is less anthropomorphic now that
the warmth and character of the puppet used in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi
has been lost to a more Shrek-like computer-generated version.
 Another great aspect of the movie was its sound: John Williams' amazing score helps to
tie events in Episode II with other installments of the series, as we hear echoes of Princess Leia's
theme in Amidala's scenes, and a variation on the Imperial March as the Republic's army takes
off from Coruscant in a fleet of Star Destroyers. The choral grandeur of Episode I's Duel of the
Fates, which accompanied the climactic battle against Darth Maul, is also reprised in the
showdown with the sinister Count Dooku. To top it off, an incredible array of sound effects
enhance the movie greatly, most notably the seismic charges deployed by Temuera Morrison's
Jango Fett against a pursuing Obi-Wan over the planet Geonosis.
 The most fun aspect of Attack of the Clones is making connections between what is
happening and what has yet to come: young Boba Fett watches his father die in front of him, clad
in the Mandalorian armour that will become Boba's trademark later on. We meet Owen and Beru
Lars for the first time, who will become Luke's foster parents. And of course, C-3PO and R2-D2
begin their escapades together.
 The bottom line is that plot, characters, and everything else take a back seat to the special
effects. Hardcore fans will be disappointed, youngsters will be wowed; but for pure escapism,
there is nothing like it.


title: Wonderful show... Read the book and appreciate it even more

text:
George Lucas has completely redeemed himself from Episode I. Not that it was a bad picture, Episode I just was there to fill a void in the story. But this on the other hand, gets back to the purest form of the Star Wars saga. A truly magnificent film that ranks up there with The Empire Strikes Back and A New Hope.
Some people are bashing Episode II for its supposed 'bad and shallow' acting. Not true. Everyone in this film portrays their given roles perfectly, and if you need more evidence of this, read Episode II the book and see.
Everything about this works, and you can see the unfolding of the story before your eyes. Anakin's disobedience and favor to Chancellor Palpatine fits in perfectly with the latter movies. Padme Amidala (of course by the gorgeous Natalie Portman) shows how she will be Luke and Leia's mother and plays it perfectly.
Yes Jar-Jar is in this, but he is actually important and has no more then 5 minutes total of camera time, and most of that is not him even speaking thank goodness.
The bottom line - this is worth watching and certainly worth owning once the DVD comes out. Well acted and the last 45 mins are worth the ticket price alone. This fits in perfectly with the story and those who are bashing it dont realize everything that is going on.
Watch it, be amazed, and listen to the "I told you so's"


title: So far, so good.

text:
Obviously, I cannot truly rate how many stars I give this movie since
it hasn't come out yet.  However, I've read many spoilers all over the
internet that come from very reliable sources, and so far they've
proven to be very interesting and exciting.  I'm not going to reveal
anything I've heard here...
Bascially, I
think that Episode II will have much more of what a lot of fans were
expecting from The Phantom Menace.  Those expectations were wrong in
my opinion, given that TPM was the beginning chapter of the overall
story.  And we all know that as the story progresses it gets darker
and darker, eventually leading to the darkest chapter of them all -
Episode III.  So it only proves as logical that TPM would be made as
light in tone as possible to create good contrast with the next two
episodes, therefore putting the entire six chapter saga into a
watchable series altogther.  If all of the movies were dark, that
wouldn't be good.  Episode I was meant to show us when it was
"before the dark times, before the Empire." There was once a
more peaceful and light time in the Star Wars universe, and here it is
right in front of us(although, if you caught it, at the end of the
movie was the beginning of the end of the Old Repubilc; the bad guy
wins and no one knows it).
So to expect a dark movie out of the
first chapter of the Star Wars saga is like expecting chocolate inside
a nice piece of T-Bone steak.  Odds are it ain't gonna happen.  And
also to expect it to feel like Episodes IV-VI is the same way.  The
characters are going to be different, the locations are going to be
different, heck most everything will be different!  We have to get
used to the fact that Star Wars isn't just the same old characters and
stories from the old trilogy anymore.  It goes way beyond that, and we
should be excited about that instead of wallowing about how WE want
the SW universe to be.
Anthony Daniels has said that AOTC was his
favorite SW movie that he's been in.  It has been compared to The
Empire Strikes Back, which is hailed by many to be the best SW film in
the entire saga so far.  Lucas hired a co-writer to help polish the
script.  Hayden Christensen has been raved about as being perfect to
portray Anakin/Vader.  We know that the plot has to go deeper and get
closer to what we're familiar with in the Star Wars universe.  And
finally, we'll get to see what Ben Kenobi was talking about when he
mentioned the Clone Wars in A New Hope!
Like I said, all of the
spoilers I've read make AOTC out to be a really good film in the SW
saga, and I can't wait to see it.  I rate everything I know about
Episode II so far five stars.


title: PUHLEEZ!! But Yoda was cool!!!

text:
Okay, I have been a Star Wars fan since I was a little kid- and I'm sorry, but this film was a dissappointment compared to Lucas' other works.  The Phantom Menace was great, but didn't hold up to the previous SW movies.  The Clone Wars bites.  That's as blunt as I can be.
  Natalie Portman was AWESOME!, and Ewan McGregor was great as Obi. And the only thing that saved this movie for me was Yoda's [rear]-kicking scene at the end.  I mean- he was a bad [rear]!!
 HOWEVER, I wanted to puke at everyone of Christensen's scenes as Anakin.  I had so hoped to see Johnathan Jackson cast as Anakin, and now I wish he had for sure!  Anakin was portrayed as a sloppy, whiny brat, with no remorse, much less a brain.  I know- some people say this portrayal helps us to understand how he could slide into the dark side later on.  And, honestly, I guess so.  Because none of the Jedis would put up with his [rear] for very long.  My guess is that they TOSS him into the Dark Side with a one way ticket.
 But in all honesty, if you're a Star Wars fan, by all means - see the movie. Hell, buy it when it comes out on video.  But take it with a grain of salt.  And remember that Lucas at one point, was a brilliant director.  Now, I wonder what he's been smoking.


title: An entertaining sci-fi movie......or more?

text:
Attack of the Clones (AOTC) is widely regarded by many to be better than The Phantom Menace (TPM), and while this may well be the case, I would only put it marginally higher than TPM in terms of entertainment value. AOTC has many more swashbuckling fights and enhanced special effects (although it is debatable if this makes the movie better), and the plot is a little tighter than TPM (not due to better directing but merely due to the fact that Episode 2 sets the big lay-up towards the Finale of the Prequels.)
As an addition to the original and unsurpassed trilogy, it still falls hopelessly short of the legend that we have come to know and love. Hayden Christensen is not ideal for the part, but is useful in portraying the arrogance and bitterness that hint towards his eventual struggle and defeat against the dark side. He never quite achieves a competent level of acting, and his accent definitely seems way off when considering his future evolution into good ol' Darthy. As for his romance with Portman, that has to rank as one of the most unappealing match of lead characters that I have seen in quite a while. Throughout the movie, he is constantly moody, dark and unfriendly, hardly ever displaying much affection nor sensitivity towards Portman, and only a blindfolded chimp could fall in love with him.
McGregor is made to look a lot older and wiser in this movie, and I tend to think he actually played his character pretty well, serving as a voice of reason and a counterbalance towards the impulsive and over-confident Anakin.
Portman is stunning as ever, and her beauty in some of the scenes shines through radiantly. She has a nice array of outfits and appearances, and was a sight for sore eyes in an otherwise average sci-fi movie.
The Jedi Knights are made to appear helpless and weak in the movie, and I can't help but feel that this does not do them justice at all. The Force seems to have left their sides, and they are no more than ordinary souls wielding light sabers. As for the fight involving Yoda, I was practically cringing because it took a revered Jedi Master and turned him into a comical bouncing Gremlin. How unfortunate.
Overall, the movie left a lot to be desired, in terms of acting, cast selection and plot. If I had it my way, I would actually wish for the Prequels to have never been created because they actually dampen the original franchise. However, that is obviously too late now, and I just hope Lucas can tie up all the loose ends in Episode III and make a movie truly worthy of all the legions of fans out there. We are your humble fans, and above all else, you owe it to us and to yourself to create a true Star Wars movie and not simply another commercial money-maker.
May The Force Be With You......


title: Did Not Dissapoint

text:
The day: May 15th, 2002.
The time: 5:30 am
My good friend and I, both Star Wars geeks, got into the car, drove to the mall, and waited until the boxoffice opened its holy doors at 10:30 to get tickets to Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones.  That night at 11, we entered the theatre for the first midnight showing of the film.  The buzz had been fantastic, the trailers mindblowing, and the last movie horrible, but from the trademark Fox logo to the end credits, our backs were glued to our seatbacks, and the adrenalin was pumping.
Seeing Attack of the Clones that night was my favorite theatre experience ever.  The movie DID NOT dissapoint, but rose to the level (maybe above?) of the original 1970s trilogy.  Here's why.
The movie tells the story of 18-year-old Anakin Skywalker, returning with mentor Obi-Wan to Naboo after 10 years to protect Senator Padme Amidala's life after recent assassination attempts.  After rescuing her from deadly slugs, a chase ensues, that in classic Star Wars fashion, sets the stage for the rest of the movie.  The information ascertained by the Jedi duo 10 minutes in sets events in action that fall into place beautifully, and allows for Anakin and Padme to be alone (and fall in love) while Obi-Wan investigates and finds farely suprising things out.
The first part of the movie does this, it develops relationships and plot, going back and forth between characters and plot.  But after Anakin's nightmare (see the movie), everything gets up to pace.  Anakin then commits a major no-no and disobeys Obi-Wan in a way I won't reveal.  This betrayal sets the scene for one of the most moving and disturbing sequences since Vader saved Luke, and provides real fodder for the gradual damnation of arrogant Anakin.
Via his nosiness, Obi-Wan gets into trouble and requires Anakin to save him.  At this point, about halfway through the movie, the greatest action scenes ever put to film come alive, securing Star Wars as the reigning king of action.
There is more than meets the eye, however...
While the movie is a "kid's movie" (George Lucas, PREMIERE, May 2002), there is an underlying political backbone that's probably too complicated for most children to catch onto.  A growing separatist movement, led by (suprise, suprise) the Sith, is present.  And any Star Wars fan is sure to feel rivers of nostalgia and peace as they watch the movie and feel everything begin to fall into place.
In summary, George Lucas has come back to the Light Side.  The characters are developing, the Empire is growing, familiar faces are showing (think Owen Lars), and Yoda shows why he is the Jedi Master.  To boot, the special effects are possibly the best ever made, the sound is riveting, the visuals are crisp, and I actually got pushed back in my chair a few times by the sheer experience.  Anyone who hated Episode I, get ready.  You're going on one [heckuva] ride.


title: THE BEST MOVIE EVER

text:
Alright, critics, you can all kiss my honey buns, cause you don't know the half of it.  To call this movie bad is to insult truly bad movies, like Battlefield Earth.  Calling this movie bad is considered sacrilege in some places.  In fact, calling this movie anything is sacrilege.  Heck, seeing this movie should be an exercise in torture.  They could call it Chinese Clone Torture or something.
How did George go so horribly wrong?  From Worst to Worse?  Every part of this movie was awful, from the casting to the acting to the dialgoue.  Even the movies much hyped fight scenes weren't up to Phantom Menace standards (if only because Chris "Count Dooku" Lee is a dinosaur...ironically, his movie Sith name was Darth Tyranus).  Sure, Yoda did get to fight.  Or did he?  All I saw was some sort of furry creature on acid, a scene much reminescient of the Monty Python scene with the Killer Rabbit.  Thats right.  Awful.  As I was in a jovial mood when I saw this [junk], I was able to laugh at it.  And laugh I did.  Whenever Anakin opened his mouth to spew some new drivel, (You've grown to, grown more beautful I mean) I just had to burst out.  Whenever Padme did anything that was not a deliberate sexual act ("Are you okay?" Im fine, lets find a ship"), out with the giggles.  Never before have I seen such horror in the movies.  Never.  Not even Samuel L. Jackson could save this sinking ship.
I reccomend Star Wars Episode II to anyone who is depressed with comedies today, as this movie will make you laugh for hours.  I'm sitting here typing this, and I'm snickering, almost five days since I saw the movie.  Yes rush out to see this, give George Lucas your money, buy his toys, obey my dog.  Like George Lucas always


title: Just Amazing

text: What can I say, Luca's did it again.  Episode II kicks butt, because this time you can see a lots of action, tons of lighsaber battles and romance.  Yes!, now we see young Anakin turning into the dark side; also he is involved with the now Senator Padmé, starting their secret romance.  For the first time ever we can enjoy a massive jedi battle and of course master Yoda with his own lightsaber, he is the one!.  I think the performance were fine, the music also.  I don`t know what else to say, Dooku and Palpatine are planning the end of the Republic and the born of the Empire, Anakin is turning to the dark side... I think we can expect a great epic adventure so I highly recommend this film.<br />MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU d:D


title: �Nothing compared to The Hidden Fortress�

text: I must admit, I was a bit disappointed by Attack of the Clones.  The cast is great (especially Hayden Christensen as a wrathful and pugnacious Anakin Skywalker) and some of the special affects are phenomenal.  I especially enjoyed the early chase scene, which takes us on a dizzying ride through the streets of a galactic metropolis.  While the multiplicity of subplots keep the audience interested in the first half, many of the movies flaws become apparent by the half-way mark. The romantic scenes between Anakin and Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman) are corny, and the dialog throughout the movie is cliched.  (Oh, that monotonous mishmash about the force and the dark side!) Some of the man-to-man fight scenes are so out of sync that one wonders if the shots were seized from an '80s video game. Some other fight scenes are just over the top.  For example, at one point, Yoda pulls out his lightsaber and incredulously metamorphoses from a cane-carrying, hard-breathing, furry ancient to a high school gymnast with more hop (and pop) than an energizer bunny running on steroids (or nuclear power!).<br />Take a look at The Hidden Fortress (Star Wars inspiration) by Akira Kurosawa.  The Japanese original is vastly superior even after 50 years. It puts Lucas and his special affects happy capering to shame.


title: "Attack of the Clones"....Did I read that right?

text: Okay, I've got to admit, the title caught me off guard at first - sounded like a total scam (like the Episode II trailer I ended up with). Then I thought about it some more and the more I thought about it, I realized the title is going for that 1930's serial movies feeling... sorta Buck Rogers-ish.  Anyways, obviously it will have to do with the Clone Wars that were listed in the Star Wars backstory/history... Regardless, I know I will see it when it comes out, but I can't say I'm enough of a hardcore fan to go stand in line for the opening weekend.  Will there be more Jar-Jar? One wonders...


title: "Star Wars" is fun again

text: Though not perfect, "Star Wars:Episode II-Attack Of The Clones" is a MAJOR improvement over the uninspired"Episode I-The Phantom Menace". The first film to be shot entirely with digital cameras,"Clones" is gorgeous to look at, particularly scenes of a battle between Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi(a bearded Ewan MacGregor)and bounty hunter Jango Fett on the rainy planet of Kamino."Clones" succeeds where "Phantom Menace" didn't by darkening the tone of the characters, notably the slow descent into evil by Anakin Skywalker, the Jedi who we all know will become Darth Vader in Episode III. Hayden Christensen(also seen as Kevin Kline's junkie son in the small film"Life As A House")effectively shows how Anakin's guilt and personal loss will ultimately transform him into Vader. Where Christensen doesn't click are in the scenes with Natalie Portman, returning as Padme Amidala.She's gorgeous, but neither she nor Christensen make their love story feel all too convincing, especially since they haven't seen each other in ten years, yet fall in love almost immediately. Their relationship is secondary to the main plot of "Clones", in which Obi -Wan Kenobi discovers that a former Jedi turned separatist(Christopher Lee, who's great in a small role) secretly ordered the construction of a clone army ten years earlier.This army is cloned from the likeness of Jango Fett, and at least in this film, come to the aid of the Jedi in a spectacular final 45 minute climax, better than any battle sequence in the entire series. The much talked about lightsaber duel pitting Yoda(who's all CGI now and looks terrific) versus Lee's Count Dooku delivers the goods,although I wish it had lasted longer. Essentially, "Attack Of The Clones" ranks  third best in the "Star Wars" saga, but it rivals "The Empire Strikes Back" in it's dark mood, and you won't get better special effects in a movie ths year. This film gets four stars, or a letter grade of A-. It has me clamoring for "Episode III" already!


title: Reminiscent of the Original Trilogy

text:
Okay, I just finished watching Episode II, and I have to tell you that it is no disappointment!  It still isn't up to par with the original trilogy, but it is definitely ALOT better than Episode I.  They did keep Jar Jar Binks, but wrote him off into a smaller role where he's not in direct contact with the main plot (yay!).  I really don't want to give too much away as to ruin the experience of watching the movie yourself.
I really went into watching it with not too high expectations (after Episode I). The best thing about Episode II is that it really captures the feel of the original trilogy. There are some parts of the movie that are real reminiscent of the original trilogy, which is what I really liked, yet there are some scenes are too reminiscent of Episode I (yuck!).
The best part of this movie is that it really connects with the original trilogy. It explains a lot about some of characters we saw in the original trilogy but never knew more about.
And, oh yes, I know you're all waiting for this, Natalie Portman is still hot! There is definitely one scene that you'll definitely love, trust me! Samuel L. Jackson did an excellent job in this movie, his signature glaring eye, he's one BMF! (I heard he had BMF carved in his lightsaber, in reference to Pulp Fiction, as to what he had written on his wallet, "Bad Mother-...").  Jango Fett fans, I guess he's alright, I didn't really hear much about him before I watched the movie. But it does explain alot as to Boba Fett.
But the biggest suprise is Yoda... Yoda! I absolutely love Yoda after this movie! He, oh man, I don't wanna give it away, but I never really cared too much for Yoda until now! I have the greatest of respect for Yoda after seeing him in this movie!
Well, that's about all I can without giving too much away. Well that's about it, I'm out!


title: Over-the-top

text:
Is this boy-thing really going to grow up and be Darth Vader?  This whimsical, egotistical, vain, prone-to-emotional-outburst, vengeful, and poorly acted Anakin?  Where's the subtlety?  Would Yoda, Obi-Wan and all of the others really have allowed this child to continue to study the jedi arts, and is it possible for him to have completed 10 years of study and still be such a little menace?
The special effects were undoubtedly great, and the final fight scene with Yoda was brilliant fun, but the characters were one dimensional (if that), and there was no real emotion anywhere in the movie.  Anakin's relationship was laughable, and completely bereft of any true quality.
An entertaining movie for 10-year-old boys, but there isn't much to offer anyone else.


title: You have got to be joking

text:
Star Wars - the original trilogy - has been one of my favourite stories ever since I saw it on the 1997 re-release.  When I first saw The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, my jaw dropped to the floor in amazement, I was excited, scared, I laughed, I almost cried.  Of course, I waited impatiently for the arrival of The Phantom Menace, which turned out to be a halfhearted, fart-joke-riddled flick.  However, I shrugged off the disappointment and prepared for Episode II, expecting it to be much better, perhaps on par with TESB (maybe the title should have tipped me off...)
And so I sat down in the theater, the lights dimmed, the Star Wars fanfare blazed, and the Star Wars logo soared through space, just like five years ago... It was an exhilarating moment.
It all went downhill from there.
Yes, it hurts me to say it, but Attack of the Clones [stinks]...I first saw the problem while reading the yellow text-crawl.  "Separatist movement ... unstable Republic ... Senate going to vote ... blah, blah, blah" - what's this, the galactic CNN Headline News?  I was hoping for an improvement once the action started for good, but no such luck.  I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't seen it, but basically, whereas in the first three movies the story took off into hyperspace from the word go, here it putters around in circles and goes nowhere. Despite the fact that we see two assassination attempts in the first ten minutes or so, there is no sense of urgency, no gripping struggle between good and evil.  I guess Lucas was going for a sense of "ominous danger in the background", and that's fine in theory, but for some reason he could not pull it off.  Maybe it's because of the stiff and artificial dialogue; maybe it's the acting, although I think the actors were trying to do their best with shlocky scripts and nonexistent directing.  Anakin was overacting, and his lady, Padme Amidala, while not as stiff as in Episode I (which isn't saying much), still has a long way to go.  My favourite character was Obi-Wan Kenobi, who at least had a personality, although he was too cynical at times (for example, when he says "Good work" to Anakin - if you've seen it, you know what I'm talking about).
The main problem with the movie, aside from the acting/script thing, is that both too much and too little happens.  Too much - because there's a whole bunch of plots and subplots and alliances and conflicts to keep track of:  there's the Republic vs. the Trade Federation vs. the Clones vs. the separatists vs. the Jedi vs. the Sith vs. the ... oh, never mind, who cares.  Too little - because none of the said plots feels in any way engaging.  The romance between Anakin and Amidala had potential, but got bogged down with cheesy lines.  ("I've been dying a little each day since I met you." Groan.)
By the end of the movie, I found myself poking fun at the action on screen (when a character said, "This does not look good," I said to myself, "No duh").  In the original trilogy, when Luke and Vader were fighting, I was on the edge of my seat, biting my fingernails off; here, my reaction at the "climactic" lightsaber swashbuckling was somewhere between resigned boredom and disbelief at how hokey it was.  And don't get me started on the special effects; seems the reason Lucas did many scenes in the movie was to show off how clever his ILM people are with their l'il CGI programs.  The only good thing about the movie was the music (you can always count on John Williams) and the hope that someday Lucas will release the original and still the BEST Star Wars trilogy on DVD.


title: Split personality

text:
Attack of the Clones is supposedly the Empire Strikes Back of the new trilogy of Star Wars movies. It's supposed to be where we really get into the nitty gritty of what's going on with the universe and the characters. It even copies the basic structure of ESB: heroes start together, split up on their own adventures, come back together at the end. But let me tell you, this ain't no Empire.
I'll cut to the chase. Obi-Wan's half: good. Anakin and Padme's half: nothing short of horrific. Obi-Wan goes to mysterious locations, chats it up in a 50's diner (no, I'm not making that up), gets his Jedi kung fu on with Jango Fett, sneaks around in dangerous places, gets into tense situations, uncovers the machinations of the Sith, shows off that Ewan McGregor *is* Obi-Wan. Need I go on?
Anakin and Padme. Spout cringe inducing lines at each other and after a while Anakin gets into a hissy fit while you wait with growing impatience to get back to Obi-Wan's quest. Repeat for each scene. Anakin gets *one* good scene and it's the only real bit of darkness that's revealed in his character. Sadly, the scene is cut short. You see a brief hint of what he does, but then it's cut off and you have to settle for a description of what happened. It would have been nice to at least see the aftermath of Anakin's dark side moment, but sadly, no.
Oh yeah, pretty effects, blah blah blah. Mace Windu doesn't do jack once again. He gets an alright line and wastes one of the major baddies, but he doesn't have a lot to do. And honestly, the battle in the end just seemed to drag on forever. I'm not sure what it is, but I didn't feel any sense of urgency, any idea that this battle even mattered one way or the other.
One final saving grace I'll mention: Yoda is the [best]en you see him approach and you know that it's time for him to do battle, it's little girl squeal time.


title: Star wars Episode II

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Even I know the Saga of STAR WARS is the Story of Anaikan Skywalker (Later: LORD VADER).It is the best of all Stories, which I ever know, so that I think It is not only Phantastic Story (Sience Fiction), but it`s also partwise Coreality in the infinit Reality of the  human Story in the infinit Univers.
It is not impossiple that, in another Co-Universe (Parallel Universe) existes this Phantastic Story as a part of the Reality of that Universe; Then may be the Ideas, wiche we think are Reality of another Univverses; <=Analog=> Ouer Reality may be a Fiction of another Specise.!
  Muharram Salim


title: Too much and not enough

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I was disappointed in this move in a similar way to Phantom Menace. I felt a big strength of the original movie was the lack of dialogue. There was times when Obi-Wan and Luke were reflective, and The Force was a mystical thing that was not taken lightly.
The whole bar scene was a waste to me. The flying to chace down the assassin was a waste. I would have liked something more sinister, trying to show the "dark side" of the Capital city.
I felt the "romance" angle did not work at all for me. Very unbelievable with these actors. The rescue of Ani's mom was too contrived. Also, the "picnic" in the hills could have been cut (big waste of money). Also, the Yoda light saber battle was just too fake.
What did I want? I would like to have seen a guest "ghost" appearance my Obi-Wan's master. I would liked to have seen the young Obi-Wan learn from his mistakes. I think Ani's just too arrogant. The whole archive's plot was too childish. A typical librarian, with a plot that was similar to Logan's Run, Rollerball, and others. I expected something "new" from Lucas.
The plot is followed, and plodding along. Was there anything that was really a surprise to people? Anything that really made a difference? Okay, the source for the clones is a bounty hunter, and I was waiting to see where that was going to be a major element in the movie...it wasn't. Why did the hair style for Amadala move towards the Kerry Fisher look towards the "romance" scenes? With everything available in the advanced civilization, and they still used Tourister luggage? How did she get all those outfits in those small bags?
Okay you say, he's being way too negative for a 3-star movie. Well, I did like the story lines in places. I just felt like Lucas tried to commit too much on the ILM angle, and sacrificed the script to make it work. The characters are all 2-D, and the characters did not move me. I watched Star Wars 15-20 times. I do not feel compelled to see Clones again. I have only watch Phantom twice. I watch Empire 10 times, and Return of the Jedi about the same. I know Lucas has the ability to make something that is fantastic. He has the vision, the talent, and ILM. He was dealing with actors in Star Wars that could make you feel something with just the raise of an eyebrow. Is the actors trying to "make" something happen, or to "be" something? Harrison Ford showed us a rogue, a romantic, and explored multiple facets of the Han Solo character through out even the first Star Wars movie. Luke Skywalker grew from a naive farm boy, to take on a Sith Lord. Should we expect less from the characters on the screen today?
Watch the movie and you judge. Did Lucas surpass the industry, or is he just "putting out movies"? He has more characters, more plots, more spaceships, more types of creatures, but are you getting more? Do you expect more? I do. I want to come out of the movie shocked by the surprise ending ("I'm your father Luke").


title: This is not your father's Star Wars Movie!

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Folks, please try to remember that Episodes I - III are a completely different approach than IV - VI.  While IV - VI are extremely story driven, I - III are more character driven, and that may be the problem for many viewers.  Yes, folks, instead of the linear story of IV - VI, this trilogy is a bit more complicated - you have to THINK and PAY ATTENTION to what's going on.  It's not the roller-coaster ride of the second trilogy - there is a real plot going on here.
That said, Phantom Menace was not the, well, menace, so many depicted it to be.  It was flawed, but still a good movie.  Most importantly, it sets up Attack of the Clones, a combination mystery and romance, which brings us to the (granted, obligatory) climatic battle, which, interestingly, takes place in a desert, where half the battle is obscured by flying sand, instead of outer space.  We finally get to see what (probably) set Annikin on the road to the Dark Side, and what was probably the origin of the stormtroopers.  This movie answers a lot of the questions posed by the second trilogy, but ends with a cliffhanger, preparing the way for Episode III, where, presumably, we see Annikin's final descent towards the Dark Side and the birth of Luke and Leia.
To really enjoy this movie, you have to see it on its own terms.  Don't try to compare it with the second trilogy.


title: The Return of Star Wars

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I just wanna say that I love the classic trilogy they are the best and i'm only 13 years old. Episode I was pretty good but still not as good as the classics. When I saw the originals I was in awe. And from the trailers, Episode II looks great. It looks like Hayden Christiansen is a great actor. And the special effects are definutley amazing. It is definutley better than TPM.
Some characters have wierd names like Elan Sleazebaggano that is messed up, but there was Sy Snootles in ROTJ, so we'll just wait and see.
  Remember the Force will be with us, always.


title: Attack of the Conveyor Belts and Arena Monsters.

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Even after forgiving Lucas for abrupt and irritating changes in tone, in mood, in dialogue, in acting, in CGI, and in plot relevance, this is still bad. It was intended to be very political, but it's not intelligently written. It was intended to convey a character arc, but it wasn't scripted compentently. None of the characters are likeable, they are just cardboard. It's Star Wars - Disney style.

When we finally see the Clone Wars, our heroes just FLY RIGHT PAST THEM, and instead we see a conveyor belt platform game, and a goofy arena battle - none of which has anything to do with this plot. Lucas seemed to think any random idea, or movie tribute he had in mind would somehow serve the story, and it doesn't. He leans too hard on Anakin as James Dean, and we never see him as a powerful threat himself. He's a joke, and his romance is a joke. As a result of this, this entire trilogy falls apart. I'm a fan of this concept, but god, it's so long and boring!

I saw a 10 year old crippled kid w/crutches speak to his dad about the Yoda scene, the one everyone laughs at, where he drops his crutches and uses the force to be upright long enough to fight 'Count Dooku', he said he "really liked that movie" and that reminded me of what GL is doing right.


title: Best Star Wars Movie Since Empire Strikes Back

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I have been a Star Wars fan since I was 4. I got bored one day when I was 4 and my dad put in these movies. They were the 3 Star Wars movies and ever since, I have been in love with Lucas' work. Not many fans like The Phantom Menace but it wasn't that bad.
Then finally came the second prequel, Attack of the Clones. I had been counting down the days for this movie since TPM. But what made the wait so much better was the fact that Hayden Christensen was starring in it. I've been a fan of his for three years already, a year before he even got the role of Anakin Skywalker. When it was announced that he was going to be Anakin, I knew George made the right choice. Hayden is by far the best young actor out there and he does an amazing job with anger scenes, so he is perfect for the role of Anakin.
But when I finally got to see Attack of the Clones, I thought Hayden could have done better. Then I had to keep in mind, all the actors work with the bluescreen. Well after the first half hour of dull acting from everyone except Ewan McGregor (who is just INCREDIBLE and perfect in this movie and everything else he does) the acting was a whole lot better and perfect. Hayden did an AMAZING job as Anakin like I thought (not his best work though). I thought he did a great "going crazy" scene when he found his mother. I didn't believe the relationship between he and Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman). George said to have picked Hayden because of his chemisty with Natalie but there was no chemistry in the movie. It was just there but it's supposed to be.
Ewan McGregor, once again, was just amazing!! I have always liked his work but he is just the perfect Obi Wan Kenobi. You can't get better than him. I have wondered why Ewan doesn't get as much credit as he deserves. He's a rare talent and it shows in Attack of the Clones. He was by far the best actor in the movie and I feel it's his best work since A Life Less Ordinary. I could go on forever about how incredible he is in AOTC.
Now, to the most talked about scene in any movie this summer...(SPOILER) ....Yoda. The best action sequence ever in a movie! It deserves an MTV Award for Best Fight. It was so incredible and everything a Star Wars fan has ever wanted.
I admit, the movie had wooden acting AT THE BEGINNING. After the first 30 minutes, it's amazing. Hayden gave a great performance, Natalie did an amazing job, Ewan is the most incredible thing to ever happen to Star Wars and show biz, and YODA KICKED [butt].
Episode III is going to be the best Star wars movie ever when it comes out. Episode II is leading up to it very well! Forget the critics on this one. Go see it because it's definitely worth the $7! (And for you girls who think Hayden is fine...he has a scene where hes not wearing a shirt and laying in bed. It's very nice.)
So go see it!! DVD comes out November 6, as far as I know.


title: aaa

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I have been an avid Star Wars fan all my life. I remember having an unquechable desire to know if Vadar was really Lukes father or was it just a ploy to seduce him to the dark side of the force. The battle on Hoth even now in my opinion was one of the best orchastrated and climatic battles filmed. You relly didn't know for certain whether or not they would escape, especially after one of the leading characters almost died in the very beginning. That left an impression on me that anything could happen. I remember being on the edge of my seat the whole time the Falcon was running from the empire.
In return of the Jedi it was cool to see Mark Hammle in his finest role yet "a Jedi" not yet of course he still had one obstical to face. The passion in that movie was indeed beyond any lucritive word I could come up with, and the duel between Darth and Skywalker brought me to the brink of awe. For that matter their first exchange on Cloud City was in my estimation incredible, the drama, the excitement of that fight, the acting(almost as real as it gets)DOPE!!!
Star Wars seduced you. Empire gripped you. Jedi simply said " you and your father are now...Mine!  So were hooked there is no escape. Phantom Menace (...) helps you understand the beginning of it all and fits into a mold to bring the other movies together...Hopefully. I believe we are in for a real treat fellas after all we don't really have a choice


title: The most cool movie that I have ever seen-Deserves 10 stars.

text: I must start out by saying that I was not a real big fan of the preceding movie because of that stupid Jar Jar Binks character or however it is spelled. It almost ruined the whole movie for me. I just went to the theater and saw Attack Of the Clones. Oh my God. This movie rocks. What a good solid screenplay and story. The action sequences were the best that I have ever seen in any movie and the special effects were totally awesome. Also I am not big on love stories, but that was even good. Hayden Christensen and Natalie Portman have great chemistry.  I do not possibly see how someone could give this movie a bad review like some of those I have read at Amazon. I can�t wait until the next installment to see how everything gets set up for the original Star Wars from the 1970�s. What an epic story to see how Anakin gets pulled over to the dark side. My hat off to George Lucas!


title: God, this was dull

text: I had to force myself to sit through this, just so I would know all the story lines in case I decide to see Part III.  Including Jar Jar was like GL giving the audience the finger.  The acting was awful.  And, for an essentially animated movie, it was incredibly stationary and plodding.  (spoiler follows)  Y'd think that a scene of many Jedi fighting with light sabers would be exciting.  Y'd be wrong.<br />What a drag.


title: One Word Explains it all: WOW!!!!!!!!

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This movie is great! I could have wept it was so good. The action is truly and literally - non-stop. Right from the beginning when something goes wrong to when you're brought towards the end where you are able to witness the Jedi at their best as well as animation technology (by the by - Yoda truly does kick some dark guy a$$). However the lightsaber duels weren't quite as fast and intricate as TPM; Anakin doesn't appear to have an extraordinary amount of skills and powers as he is thought to have (although he is a clever dude).
While the romance is a little clichéd and Anakin sucks up to Padmé way too much, it is still quite captivating. They look cute together, but their personalities obviously collide - perhaps this is intentional?  Padme's outfits were absolutely GORGEOUS! In my opinion, she doesn't wear each one enough for us to truly take in their beauty. So the romance bit is a little dissappointing, but the end TOTALLY makes up for it!
The sound effects are also excellent! When the ships pass by the characters, you can feel the engines roaring, the lightsabers power, and the moment's intensity. In this movie we also get a good and close look into Coruscant, the Galactic Republic's Capital with its awesome cultures and mystery.
A MUST SEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I admit that I was a little worried when entering into the theatre, but I was blown off of my feet!
Thanks for taking the time to read this review.
-Julia


title: An opinion from a Non-fan

text: Don't get me wrong I like Star Wars fine, I'm just not a practicing member in the church of Star Wars that so many seem to belong to, I saw the film as I saw the Phantom Menace, just like any other film this year.  I liked it fine, of course nothing is perfect.....<br />There is a scene near the end where Anikin and Obe Won and senator (former queen) Amadala are going to be killed, naturally the bad guys fail to simply kill them, instead they set up an elaborate ritual where by the three are chained with there hands above there heads in front of a coliseum crowd, various CGI animals are brought in.  As one approaches the Senator (Natalie Portman) it swipes at here, ripping off just part of her attire exposing her lovely midriff and her right arm and shoulder, I like that creature, it understood what kind of movie it was in, a Saturday mourning adventure, complete with heroes, villains, cute girls in ripped midriff outfits and lots and lots of swordfights, just what we wanted and just what we got.  The CGI and fact that no film was harmed in the making of this picture mattered little, as usual we have far too many CGI characters supposedly interacting with flesh and blood characters, this is doomed from the start, the flesh and blood characters are talking to a blue screen and everyone knows it, but that's the way Mr. Lucas wanted it and that's what he got, so be it.  The only real drawback was the agonizing love story between Anikin and Amadala, the dialogue must be heard to be believed "I have died a little bit every day since you came back"  AAAARGHHHHH!! I will spare you, gentle reader, from any more quotes, at least Darth Vador wasn't in love he never had to say anything  like that.  All in all a good time at the movies, not a religious experience not something to change the world, just good old fashioned entertainment, I will see the next one.  Oh yeah and Jar Jar is given a mercifully small role, there is a God after all!!!


title: Attscking my cloned clever catch phrase

text: I put more thought into the title than Lucas did "Clones." Crappy dialogue, crappy acting, whining Anakin, (I want my moommmy...) cheesy attempts at cuteness, I could go on and on, but I won't. The movie isn't worth that. I loved the original Star Wars flicks, even Episode I (The Pahntom Menace, bum bum bum) was great, with new and exciting things. This is just all that stuff over and over again. The ONLY segments of this film that are wirth the price of the film it's printed on are the spectacular Yoda-Fight-Scene, (Though slightly MNatrixised)and McGregors line about Death sticks. Do yourself a favor, see LotR, SPider-Man, ANYthing but this


title: Spectacular Prequel.  Lucas is a genius!!!

text: I definitly recommand Attack of the clones to buy when it comes out on video. A New Hope was ok. The Empire Strikes Back was wonderful. Return of the Jedi was very good. The Phantom Meanice was allright. But Attack of the Clones has great characters, nice storyline and plenty of action and exciment. I just can't wait to see Episode III is about. But if you haven't seen Episode II yet rent it or buy it when it comes out. Or see it in the movies. It's the best movie this year.


title: A Few Key Points to Keep in Mind

text: This is not a true review, only a few thoughts.  As far as I'm concerned just John William's awesome soundtrack score alone is worth the admission price. Also, just the speacial effects alone portrayed in this movie is worth the admission price. And finally, just the being able to watch Yoda wield a lightsaber and kick some major ... is, by itself, worth the admission price.  And I've deffinately seen it more than 3 times.  Yeah, OK, I'm a huge Star Wars fan from my earliest childhood, but all you naysayers out there need to re-examine what it is you want in a movie.  This film is fantasy set in a sci-fi atmosphere and it's for entertainment and enjoyment.  As far as I'm concerned, It delivers -- big.  Yeah, maybe the acting won't win oscars, but I thought it was fine and fit the story perfectly.  George himself said that these movies almost play like silent movies set to music - It's true.  There is a lot of artistic beauty and imagination to appreaciate in this film. And yes I stay in the theater until the last note of the end title score is finished.  In summary I'm a musician and an artist who happens to love mythology and the classic stories of good verses evil displayed on a grand scale.  This and all the other Star Wars movies appeal to me on these levels.


title: Better than I expected

text: Episode One brought viewers to a different place within the Star Wars Universe: one where story doesn't matter as long as the visuals are pleasant.  This movie continues the focus on eye-candy while falling below mediocre in terms of dialogue, story, and acting.  It does have more story and better visuals than its predecessor, but that is all that makes this better.  It's amazing how poorly a movie can use two and a half hours to drag out a simple plot about characters that the audience grows to dislike.  As characters die off, a viewer has little to say other than "finally."


title: Better than Phantom Menace...whatever that means

text:
I just had the pleasure of seeing this movie, and while it is not as good as the original trilogy (or at least not as good as A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back) it is a far superior movie to Phantom Menace.  In Attack of the Clones there are no parts where I think to myself, "That scene was just STUPID!" for two reasons: Jar Jar's character is minimal, and a decent actor has finally taken the role of Anakin.
The action sequences, also, are very well done.  Yoda's fight scene could either have been really laughable or really cool, and it is luckily the latter--he is simply amazing with the lightsaber.  The other action sequences are also well-done, though the action scene on Coruscant took a little longer than was probably necessary, and the scene on the Kamino landing platform didn't feel long enough.  There are also a lot of nice parallels to Empire Strikes Back.
However, the reason this movie doesn't compare very well to Empire Strikes Back or A New Hope is a result of two things: lack of plot flow, and poor dialogue.  When watching this movie, as in Phantom Menace, I felt that George Lucas in his mind wanted certain things to happen but wasn't sure how to have them happen.  The result, unfortunately, is a movie that is somewhat difficult to get in the mood of.  The same goes for the dialogue, especially most of Anakin's lines and the love scenes between Anakin and Padme.  Christensen and Portman don't have a whole lot of chemistry (certainly not the chemistry of Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher), but this is probably partly a result of the poor dialogue.
Overall, like Phantom Menace, I felt there were a lot of good ideas in this movie, but that they weren't executed to their full potential.  Attack of the Clones could have been fantastic, but in the end it was the essence of mediocre.  I left feeling like I could have written a better movie.  It's worth a watch, but don't feel like you have to rush to see it.


title: Very strong the Force with this one is!

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Make no mistake; Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones is phenomenal. Like Episode I, it takes a little while to get started, but then things really take off. Believe me, this movie raises the bar for special effects in a way that I had not thought possible. It feels far ahead of its time. And the story is great; don't believe the stuck-up highbrow reviewers. George Lucas has really found the magic again.
Like many people, I feared for the outcome of this movie. I truly doubted if a fully animated Yoda would work at all, if Hayden Christensen was worth anything and if the reputed love story would be too much. But my doubts were literally blown away. Speaking of which, there is an awful lot of blowing away going on. But it never gets repetitive, first of all due to the sheer beauty of every single little detail of it, secondly due to its ingenuity and thirdly due to the occasional comic relief provided by new and old friends alike. The battles are truly epic here, both the large-scale ones and the one-on-one duels. Everything is executed with an immense sense of visual style that never wavers from the true Star Wars, but expands upon it.
Almost every second of the movie you are treated to scenery of truly unbelievable beauty. Even if you care nothing for Star Wars, you ought to see it. I will not hesitate a single second in calling this a masterpiece of modern art. Albeit a very explosive and commercial one at that.
Yes, I'm aware that I'm being laudatory and panegyrical now. But I can't help it. This is praise coming directly from the heart.
The actors do a good job, although this movie will probably not win any Academy Awards for acting. This is not meant in a negative way, though. Hayden Christensen deserves credit for his portrayal of the young and passionate, yet rather troubled Anakin Skywalker. Sam Jackson delivers a convincing Master Windu, and Natalie Portman makes an excellent return as Amidala. Our old friends Frank Oz and Ian McDiarmid are as brilliant as ever in the roles of Yoda (or rather, his voice) and Senator Palpatine. And the list goes on and on. Even Jar Jar Binks is well played by Ahmed Best. But my personal favorite is Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi. His performance is truly stellar (no pun intended), ranging from serious, through sly to humorous. He alone carries much of the movie.
And lastly, the music is just spot on. Well-known themes follow every single shift of mood with uncanny precision, mingling effortlessly with new material. This might just be John Williams' best piece to date.
Not convinced yet? Well, here's the bottom line: go see it! Now! And may the Force be with you ;)


title: lucas needs help,fast!

text: This movie is nowhere near as great as episode 1,except for yoda fighting christopher lee,mcgregor and jackson and the opening credits, it [stinks].The romantic scenes in this...make the ones in pearl harbor look good.And just because you FINALLY get to see another head cut off, and some limbs removed,that does not make this as good as "THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK".To come close to that there has to be some acting going on between portman and that new guy,which is sad because portman can act very well. the two most horrible things that have happened to these films are that with digital technology, lucas sticks with the effects and nothing else.He made the big mistake of not hiring someone else for number 2.And dont try and tell me number 1 was the setup and this is the payoff,thats bull.you can watch any of the original 3 and each one works on its own.If what lucas said is true and this thing was part of a thirty year mission to come to the screen,star wars is dead.


title: About What You Would Expect.

text:
All you really need to know is that this one is aimed at young teens.  The last one was for little boys.  The latest is about as good or bad as the last one.
We went to see it in a non digital theater.  I don't even think they have stereo.  At any rate under those conditions it looked like the last Star Wars which was itself a new standard of special effects anyway.  It looked like Lucas used all the stuff he developed for the last one over again.  I'm sure it will be used for the next one too.
In the last film the enemy soldiers were machines.  In this film the bad guys are developing an army of clones.  The implicit message equates the killing of clones with the killing of machines.  Apparently George has done some heavy thinking on this and clones have no souls.  This film will be an interesting historical artifact if the world is someday populated by a finite variety of clones.
The main conflict in the movie is that a number of star systems want to secede from the empire.  I thought, Hmmm, a Yankee message here.  But then it turns out that it's the Unionists who have been infiltrated by the Dark Side of The Force.  So once again we are happily sympathetic to the Rebs in accordance with Hollywood tradition (see every Western ever made).
So the force has a dark side but it's not clear that the non dark side is benevolent.  It's seems neutral, sort of like a cosmic battery you can hook your favorite appliance up to.  Actually it's not clear to me that the dark side is evil.  It's followers are distinguished by dark clothing and sinister voices.  For all I know they're just blues fans.
It was incongruous to see Samuel L. Jackson as a Jedi Knight.  Being aware of him primarily from 2 Quentin Tarantino films each line of his dialogue seemed incomplete.  They lacked his trademark punctuation: "May the force be with you... ...!

The whole Jedi schtick is a kind of dime store bastardized Zen in which the Jedi connect with the force by turning off conscious thought.  The oft repeated advice to the student knights is, Remember, don't think, learn to trust your "feelings," then your actions will be guided by the force.  That's very contemporary, "don't think."
Don't think.
See the movie.
Don't think.
Buy the merchandise.
Don't think.
Buy the ... merchandise!
Uh oh, I think I forgot to remember to forget to think.


title: A thrilling, if overly special-effected movie

text:
From the beginning in Episode One, I thought that there were no outstanding, extraordinary actors in it. All of them did decently, but the outstanding part came in Episode Two in the form of Hayden Christensen. The entire plot revolves around him; his character is the perfect blend of talent and immaturity. He is frank and very teenagery, but I will admit that a boy wouldn't be quite as swept away with his overly romantic language. His transition to evil made me want to be evil, and Hayden Christensen is one of the most amazing actors I've ever seen. (Background: and I'm not a girl who calls Ben Affleck or Josh Hartnett amazing because they look good) The best scenes, in my opinion, are on Tatooine, where his pain is almost tangible from his eyebrows to his actions.
One of the best parts of this movie besides the outstanding actor was the way he and Padmè Amidala both had teenager flaws or characteristics. Last movie, Anakin was a cutesy little kid who was forced to give some dialogue insinuating an attraction to Padmè for purposes of later movies. Padmè was a political leader forced to drop her character to baby a little boy. This movie, each projects a hard, adult front but are still possessed by some teenage tendencies that make the characters more than one-diminsional.
C-3PO is very punny (oh haha) and R2-D2 seems to want his own action movie (Superdroid? Batrobot?) with his lift-off rockets. Obi-Wan's character is slightly annoying but at least he doesn't seem to be reading off a script in a school play anymore. I loved Ewan McGregor in Moulin Rouge, but he and Obi-Wan have some issues. He claims the worst line in this movie because of which I (blushes) burst out in laughter: "Good call, my young Padowan!" Then there are the lines that would-be ironic but are really just planned: Obi Wan--"You'll be the death of me, Anakin."
Call me crazy, I can't wait for Anakin to be bad. One of the most powerful scenes was the scene in which he's mourning his mother and talking about power. The dictatorship scene and that scene both are incredibly acted and amazing. He will be a wonderful villain and I loved each and every dark scene, including the Anakin/Palpatine scenes, better than any others. The death star is also introduced in this movie, but it seems forced in rather than naturally flowing with it.
I saw this movie two times in a row and I'm glad I did. I will see it again. It is mainly for those with passion and feeling; if you are overly responsible or organized, this movie won't do anything for you. It is romantic, dark, funny at times, and thrilling. It is Star Wars.


title: I was soo Surprised

text: i thought this was going 2 be a dumb boy movie but it wasn't. star wars episode 2 attack of the clones was really good. I LIKE JAR JAR ...


title: "Help, Fallen I Have"

text: Yoda walks with a cane.  Master Jedi barely makes it through each scene from what seems to be incredible pain shooting through out his body.  Then, all of a sudden, he jumps into action like Olga Korbet at the olympics!  "Was it supposed to be that funny?"  I would love to give this episode a 5+, but this was just too phenomenal for me to come to terms with.  A die hard Star Wars fan am I.  Continue to see them all I will.  But, I was disappointed.  It was if the directors got tired of shooting and decided to just throw anything in.


title: Better than Episode 1...

text: This movie is FULL of special effeects and action. Th acting is adequate, but Lucas needs to work on his dialogue. I feel like the story is rushed much more than the original movies, and the lack of strong characters like Chewbacka and Han Solo are what's lacking. I am looking forward to seeing how Anakin finally turns, but it seems like it will be difficult to do in only one movie. He still seems so far away from evil in this episode.<br />See the movie, It's fun. Don't expect Empire Strikes Back and you'll be OK. It's a great SF movie.


title: Enjoyable Just As Expected

text:
Those who criticize this film for the dialogue or love story miss the whole point of the Star Wars series I think.
Star Wars is not about love or talk, it's about .... well .... War!
On that level this film more than delivers plenty of action.  If you want love scenes there are all kinds of chick flicks to choose from.  For great dialogue there are plenty of classic films there too.
Folks forget the original trilogy was not characterized by excellent dialogue or hot love scenes either.  People did not go back to see these films repeatedly for the dialogue, it was for the action and special effects.  The original trilogy has grown in the minds of some to mythic proportions but it actually was not a lot different than this film.
If great love scenes and sparkling dialogue are your criteria for an excellent film experience, perhaps this film is not for you.
However, if you want action and special effects, this film meets or exceeds all expectations.  It certainly ranks with any film in the original trilogy.