Star Wars Episode II-Attack of the Clones

Review by Mark Newbold

First things first, I’ve got to lay the cards right out on the table.  I adore this movie, unashamedly and completely.  It was a long three-year wait that was worth every second. But on reflection was it really a three-year wait?

No, it was a twenty-two year wait.

This is the best Star Wars movie since the Empire Strikes Back, and successfully evokes the dark underside of Star Wars in the same manner as the 1980 classic.  While following on neatly from The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones vastly expands the saga in a less kiddie-oriented manner, broadening the machinations of Darth Sideous (and ironically showing far less of him in the process) while truly showing him to be the phantom menace of the prequels title.  Joining the story a decade later, Anakin Skywalker is now a broody, impatient teenager, eager to demonstrate his skills to his master Obi-Wan Kenobi.  The Republic has been led for a decade by former the Senator of Naboo and now Supreme Chancellor of the Republic Palpatine, and his previous posting now taken by the former Queen of Naboo Padme Amidala. 

But during the time between the two stories much has happened.  Palpatine, now embedded in the office of Supreme Chancellor, publicly speaks of his love of democracy and his devotion to the Republic.  But in reality, he is pushing for plans to develop an army of the Republic to assist the overwhelmed ranks of the Jedi Knights and counter the increasing threat of the Separatist Movement, led by the mysterious former Jedi Count Dooku.  Dooku has thousands of star systems ready to join his movement, but in reality he is in league with Darth Sideous, Dooku also being known as Darth Tyrannus, Sideous’ apprentice and the man who enlisted bounty hunter Jango Fett into becoming the template for the cloning programme begun on the water world of Kamino.  Now well into its development, this army of the Republic, ordered by the now dead Jedi Master Sypho-Dyas, is ready to be used in action, and sees that action on the rocky world of Geonosis. 

Meanwhile, Master Yoda and Master Mace Windu sense the growing threat from the sith, and as their connection to the force wanes they begin plans to counter the threat, while in the political arena Jar Jar Binks, acting on behalf of the beleaguered Amidala, unknowingly gives terrible powers to Palpatine…

There is so much going on in this film, and on so many different levels, that it’s truly impressive that the movie, which is two hours and twenty-two minutes long, moves so swiftly and so easily from scene to scene, plot point to plot point.  Action scene follows action scene while all the time pushing the story on through different worlds, showing us parts of familiar locations we haven’t seen on the screen before and all the while developing the relationships between the characters.  The increasingly adult relationship between Anakin and Obi-Wan, where it is abundantly clear that as the film ends Obi-Wan begins to see Anakin as an equal (the fight against Dooku being the key, Obi-Wan insistent that they take Dooku together, Anakin eager to go alone and prove himself) whereas Anakin feels that his master is jealous of his abilities, holding him back for no good reason.  The growing love between Anakin and Padme, a step on from the nine-year-old boys need for a mother figure after leaving his own mother on Tatooine, to an intense teenage love.  And much more subtly, Anakins barely hinted at relationship with Palpatine, in a scene added during late in the shooting schedule, where we learn that Palpatine has counselled young Skywalker and has indeed `watched his career with great interest. `

The acting is excellent, far more relaxed and easy than the sometimes stiff, 1930’s style performances of Menace.  The easy banter between Macgregor and Christensen evokes Han Solo type quips, and it’s fantastic to see Artoo and Threepio bickering as ever.  Natalie Portman grows in the role as the film develops, and the subtleties in the acting between her and Hayden Christensen are smooth and well observed.  But it’s Ewan Macgregor who steals the film, clearly enjoying being the key character and revelling in the part.  Fingers crossed that this carries on into Episode III.

As for the supporting cast, Christopher Lee brings all the dark menace that we all knew he would to the role of Dooku, and Ian Mcdiarmid once again presents a carefully constructed performance that so deftly hints at his future (or is it past?) performances.  Samuel L Jackson is as cool and serious as ever as Mace Windu (and gets the movies best line in the process) but very special kudos must go to Frank Oz, not performing with the Yoda puppet for the first time but bringing together, with the work of ILM, a Yoda who turns out to be the true action hero of the summer. If this work doesn’t bring ILM its first effects Oscar since 1995 and Forrest Gump (a ridiculous piece of stunt Oscar voting that ignores the amazing strides taken in effects since then and led, as ever, by the Marin County crew) then the world has truly gone mad.  As stunning as the work in Lord of the Rings is, as action-packed as the ever-amazing Spider-Man is and as magical as Harry Potter may be, none of them can live with the depth and detail presented here.

And the effects are just fantastic.  While keeping the look and texture of Menace (a film that, in reality, had a five year birth as opposed to Attacks three) it’s evident that there are things being shown here that were simply impossible at the end of the last century.  The afore mentioned Master Yoda, the all-CG Clonetroopers (how cool is it that these used to be the good guys), the Coruscant chase, too many things to mention.  Partnered with the phenomenal work of Skywalker Sound, it feels as if you are almost there.  No, scratch that.  You are there, and it takes the drawing of curtains and the raising of lights to bring you back to reality.

The script is tight and eager to keep moving, topped off with dry wit (as opposed to the slapstick of Menace) and some genuinely moving scenes.  Anakin and his mother Shmi, his revelation to Padme at the Homestead, Padme admitting her love for Anakin.  Jonathan Hales has added the gold Leif to an already taut story, something that perhaps, in retrospect, Lucas might wish he had done on Menace.  All three previous movies benefited from either script doctoring or other writers doing drafts (the late Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan on Empire, Kasdan on Return of the Jedi).  Menace lacked that, and consequently suffered.  Perhaps, while Lucas dreamed up the saga and is undeniably its chief creator, he is too close to the characters to breathe them efficient life.  Maybe other eyes can draw the characters to the page better, their perspective being uncluttered by the greater arc of the six (or is it nine?) stories that must clutter his vision.  Whichever, Attack is a tight, fast-paced movie.

After watching Episode II, I watched the other four movies, and it was with little surprise that that viewing felt somewhat different.  The Darth Vader that I’ve known for so many years now seems a different entity, the tragedy of his youth making the horrors of his adulthood seem, while never excusable, more understandable.  Anakin Skywalker clearly lived through traumatic times, and was to some degree a child of his age and a product of his society.  The parallels Lucas talks so often of, recurring themes and motifs that rise and fall through the two trilogies, become more apparent (for example, using Han and Leia’s pain to draw Luke to Bespin evokes Shmi’s pain bringing Anakin to Tatooine).  And, almost without realising it, it manages to bring an extra dimension to Menace.  In many ways, this is a truer trilogy than the original three movies.  Lucas made A New Hope as an almost self-contained movie, and it didn’t require a sequel to make it work.  Empire on the other hand, would make little sense as a single movie.  Nor would Jedi, Menace or Attack.  So, these three prequels truly need each other, and Lucas now has the chance to develop themes and tell a much broader story than before.  We won’t appreciate the true subtleties of these movies until Episode III arrives in May 2005.

So, on balance I think it’s clear what I think of this movie.  I left the cinema punching the air, a satisfied grin spread across my face and an eagerness to see the movie again right away.  It fulfilled every requirement, serviced the story and added rich layers to the Star Wars mythos.  If I had to grade Episode II-Attack of the Clones, I would give it a solid nine out of ten, and place it just behind Star Wars, Empire and Raiders of the Lost Ark in my top five movies (nudging Fellowship of the Ring into fifth).

The force is truly back, and this time there are no midichlorians - it’s the real thing.