Armchair Pundits

How Do You Say It? Ah Yes...............The Show

Drums. Fanfare. A Long Time Ago In A Galaxy Far Far Away.........

For those of us growing up in the 70's and 80's, few films capture the imagination like the Star Wars franchise. In fact, I would go so far as to say that the best sequel ever made in cinema, was The Empire Strikes Back, but I am digressing.

The prequels have been met with anticipation and some criticism, but there is much hype about the latest & final installment (due May 19) entitled Revenge Of The Sith. I have been extremely excited for this film as it finally puts to rest the method of transforamtion whereby Anakin Skywalker becomes Darth Vader. Incidentally, that is something I've wondered about since I was probably 8 years old. I have downloaded the trailer and read the hype. This has done much to fuel my anticipation.

I have been unbelievably fortunate this week, as a friend of mine, who happens to be an industry insider took me to see an exhibitors' screening of the film. It was....well....to put it bluntly SWEET! Ok, I know I sound like a hormonal teenager when I say that, but sweet jiminey cricket --I enjoyed myself. First, Hayden Christensen's (Anakin) acting has improved. 2) as you would expect the effects were dazzling, 3) it was over 2 hours, and my two favorite aspects would be the lightsaber battles and the well-written dialouge concerning Anakin's seduction. I found it to be a powerful symbol of the subtlety with which people/societies compromise their values for the sake of something good (fill in what you want here) only to find out years later that the bag of goods being held is not what was ever intended or imagined. If you will--it pictures the craftiness of sin.

This is a dark film and most certainly deserves the PG-13 rating that it is slated to be given. There is nothing gratuitous in the film's violence, as it certainly created the desired effect of telling the larger story. In fact, it is stirring at times, and I found myself feeling bad for characters in the film. Such sympathies enhanced the experience of the film. Even so this does not change the fact that this is not a film for young children and as such my oldest child will not be seeing it (much to his disappointment I can assure you).

Of course when you grow up with a saga such as this, it tends to take on a mythos of it's own, becoming larger than perhaps it should be, which can make it difficult to rise to expectations. That being said, it is hard to not be a little critical, and there are a few lines in the film which seemed out of place to me. But for anyone who grew up reading Marvel titles like G.I. Joe, and are familiar with the concept of the editor's "No Prize," such minor issues can easily be explained away or rationalized. None the less, this film clearly lived up to my expectations and I look forward to seeing it again on opening night. I think that Star Wars fans around the world will agree with me when I say that this was clearly the best of the three prequels and does not disappoint.

I give it 4 and half out of five stars.

Post Script: Warning! Read the first comment on this post before proceeding.
Review #1
Review #2

posted by Grisby @ 2:12 PM