A Real Disappointment

Rating: Null/10 (18 March 2002)

After years of waiting, this is what we got -- and it's not of the best. Unfortunately, the pacing is bad, the dialogue is worse, the actors are at sea, and when it all comes down to brass tacks, you've got about 10 minutes of good filmmaking here (mainly the Duel of the Fates sequence at the end of the movie). John Williams' music is great, as always, and the Queen Amidala costumes and makeup look stunning (as does the design for Darth Maul). A major mistake is Lucas' resorting to dubious racial overtones for Jar Jar Binks and the Trade Federation, not to mention Watto. Maybe it will seem better in the context of viewing all six Star Wars films in order, but one wonders.