STAR WARS EPISODE II KICKS SERIOUS ASS! LET ME TELL YOU WHY

Sure Enough, I went to go see Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (I truly think the title would have been better as "The Clone Wars") on opening day, and I was blown away. Episode II was incredible, in so many ways. I have always been a Star Wars fan from childhood, but this one was truly amazing beyond compare. I found myself staring in awe at the incredible quality of this movie. I was one of the few lucky ones to find a Digital Theater about 5 miles from my house, and I got to see it the way Lucas intended, and man, what an awesome show. I saw Spiderman, and that was pretty good, but Star Wars Episode II was out and out superior. If you haven't seen the movie yet, don't read any further past this paragraph because my discussions of Star Wars will likely spoil the storyline for you, otherwise feel free to continue reading. This one is a must see for any Star Wars fan.

One thing that critics who tend to nitpick at this movie seem to show, is their lack of knowledge of the Star Wars universe and the history of events when the movies take place "Long ago in a galaxy far far away..." Yeah, I didn't like Episode I either, and found it to be a watered down mockery of what the original films created, but Episode II got the series back in gear, and started crafting the bridge between Episode I, II, and III, and the original Trilogy. This film had a significant plot in line with the whole Star Wars timeline. While watching the film, I remembered scenes from the orignal Trilogy, and lines said by Obi-Wan about the past, remember this one, "I fought with your father in the Clone Wars." Luke: "You fought in the Clone Wars?" And remember that Obi Wan said that Luke and his Sister were taken from his mother before she was killed, or died. Attack of the Clones, shows the formation of the Empire, and predecessor tech of Tie Fighters, (The things escorting Dooku), the plans for the Death Star. I loved how much back story was now given regarding Boba Fett, although I would have never pictured Boba and Jengo as looking as they did. In Episode II we discover the secret of the Stormtroopers, they're all clones or Jengo Fett! Perhaps this is why Darth Vader and Boba end up working together by the time of Empire Strikes Back to capture Han (with the intent of getting luke as well). Darth (Anakin) It's safe to tie in that, Darth Vader, already knew of Boba's existence as a Bounty Hunter because they met before. There was huge amounts of foreshadowing for Episode III and even tie-ins to Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Amadala is of course the woman the bares Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa.

One thing I noticed that Lucas carried through Attack of the Clones was the allusions to the other films in the series. Anakin's hand was severed off by Dukoo, just like Luke's hand, and remember in Return of the Jedi when Luke severed off Darth Vader's Hand, Just like his hand was severed by Darth, In Empire Strikes Back. Luke looks at what he has done, and looks at his mechanical hand knowing that he and his father are one in the same. This postshadows the scene where Anakin loses his hand in Attack of the Clones. Notice in the last few moments during the marriage, We see Anakin and Amadala holding hands, and sure enough this is forshadowing of Obi Wan's comment, "Anakin Skywalker became more Machine than Man" and this was a symbol of Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader. The bridge between the films was bolstered emotionally by Anakin's remarks about controlling people, and creating a dictatorship, stemming from his own inability to control the death of his mother, and the life he was originally born into on Tatooine. Anakin is not entirely evil as is shown by this film and the end of Return of the Jedi, but he is troubled by the past, and because of his power he is arrogant about controlling those around him. In essence he is a dictator in the making, and his overall feeling of superiority to Obi Wan will result in their clashing, just like the novels filling in the backstory to A New Hope explained previously. He is obsessive over Amidala like he was of his mother, and the event that causes her death will be probably the main trigger to throw him full fledge into the Dark Side. The Jedi Council warned Obi Wan about taking on a Paduan too late in life because he had made emotional attachments, and those emotional attachments could cause him to be unstable and easily provoked. Remember the lessons Yoda taught to Luke on Dagobah? We also see the relationship between Darth Sidious (who becomes the Emperor Palpatine) and Dukoo, and as such they use the dark side of the force to set the wheels in motion to create the Empire, and subtly manipulate the Jedi Messiah Anakin Skywalker to craft the framework of thier twisted vision of order. Now, in Episode I, it is said that Anakin is the Jedi to bring balance to the force, and in fact the balance doesn't occur until, Return of the Jedi, when defeated Anakin, throws the Emperor down the shaft in the Death Star II.

The Jedi in Attack of the Clones were infact manipulated to get involved in a war and get themselves and their influence eliminated, and this all went according to the devious plot crafted by Dooku and Palpatine, and thus the Clone Wars began. At the end of the movie we see star destroyers lifting off and heading into space, setting the stage for the creation of The Empire. I Remember in A New Hope when the Imperial Commander Gran Moff Tarkin in the war room was talking to Darth Vader about the Jedi flame being extinguished, thus referances the time period of "The Clone Wars."

I thouroughly enjoyed getting to know more about the Jedi and how individuals became Jedi, and Lucus did provide some insights into the training, and their influence on Star Wars' galactic society. Yoda's role was out and out one of the high points of the film, and getting to see this character in all his glory left me with a good feeling, and of course who didn't like when Yoda and Dooku fight, Yoda can kick ass! I was thrilled when I saw him whip out the lightsabre with the force, and start swinging with intent at Dooku. Then of course, he grabs his cane and humbly troddles away. That was a little of that Star Wars magic that so many people had been longing for, and I'm sure Lucus knew it as well.

The comedic side characters of C3PO and R2D2 was a warm return. One thing Lucus failed to realize with Jar Jar in Episode 1 was that Jar Jar was trying to take the place of what he had done with C3PO and R2D2 in the Trilogy. The two droids were in essence the comedic artifice of those movies, but Jar Jar was comedic overkill in an otherwise epic story that must remain true to this vision of adventure and vastness. Crafting an epic is great, but attempting to overlap a comedy on top of an epic is self-destructive to the original intent of the film. People don't realize that C3PO, R2D2, and Han's crass pessimism from the first films are a part of the memorable moments of the first movies, but these characters didn't act foolish, as Jar Jar did. C3PO retained this aire of naive self assuredness that always proved to be his own undoing as he fell into various tough situations. Lucus relearned to put the comedy in the background of the epic rather than keep it in the foreground as in Episode 1.

The Action Scenes and the Special Effects were truly incredible. The only thing I must say though that makes the modern era Star Wars films feel a little different than the Trilogy is the fact that many of the alien characters are digitally animated, and as such they look that way, there's a subtlety that makes them appear digital and not entirely real, but the original characters and aliens from the first three films from over a decade ago were all masks and suits, and thus they looked more realistic yet not as lively

. I was truly in awe at much of the scenery and epic scope that this movie created, with such emphasis on the diversity and individuality of each alien culture. When ever I talk about the "feel" of epic, the settings and locale's in this movie are a manifestation of that sense of the word. All the settings on Naboo were breathtaking. Coruscant was out and out marvelously crafted as an advanced world of high technology, with airways of starships travelling though various levels of the sky. I so much wanted to get a spaceship and find places like that after watching Episode II, and was a little disappointed that I lived in 2002 on Earth where such technology is a few hundred years away.

I guess if I were to be critical of the film, I could say that Lucus has never been able to evoke deeply emotional dialogue and distinctive personality nuances as well as some other directors. The actors in Attack of the Clones, did a pretty good job, but their lines seemed a little ordinary and expected. The growing love between Amidala and Anakin was a requirement to fit in with the storyline of Star Wars, but at times it almost seemed unnatural, and the actor's sincerity almost seemed distant. The Acting and characters weren't as contrived and generic as Episode 1, was, but you wonder what level of depth they would have achieved if a director like Kubrick, or Speilburg were involved.

After watching the movie, and exiting the theater in a way I felt the same way I did when I was a kid and saw the first films, like I had just been on an adventure. When I drove home, I drove a little faster and thrilled myself on the curvy streets pretending I was in a speeder in Coruscant. And when I got home I grabbed one of my Katanas and swung it around like a light sabre making the noises. It was all good fun again, and that's what makes Star Wars so memorable to people like myself that grew up with this series back in the early 80's.

I went back to see Star Wars Episode II a second time, but this time it wasn't on a Digital Screen like last time, and I can tell you this, Lucas was 100% right when he commented that the film deserved to be seen on digital projectors, because from what I saw the true depth and feel of the film is so much enhanced with the clarity and vivid detail of Digital. The analog version was a little pale, fuzzy, and grany in comparison to the digital version that I saw first. If you go see Star Wars either for your first time, or your 10th time, be sure to find a digital theater and experience the incredible detail and scope of this amazing adventure the way it's intended to be seen.