alas its a bit long and slow

Rating: 3/10 (20 May 2002)

i really wanted to like this film and heard it was better than episode 1. it wasn't.
the film is a bit long. ** TIMELINE SPOILER **: wait about 1 hour 20 mins for anything to happen, a bit of action (really nice though), and then another 15 minutes of drawn-out yada yada before some good CGI-intensive battles.
Hayden Christensen stomps around like a stroppy 10 year old, Natalie Portman reels off her lines like she has a gun pointed at her head, and Ewan McGregor sounds like he is in a carry-on film. Everyone is upstaged by the puppet yoda (expect some amazing action from him) and the legend christopher lee, the only live actor who actually acts. even c3po gets better lines than the humans!
its not really a movie for adults - the script seems hollow. there is a scene with annakin and his mother (not going to spoil it): i guess its meant to be endearing and filled with emotion but its a bit of a "shrug, whatever" moment. Other than lee, the actors plod around trying to look thoughtful, hard [as in "hard b*astard"] or angry but it comes across as acting by numbers. walk, speak, frown, speak, listen, mince off angrily. yawn.
its not for kids either: not enough action! surrounded by kids when i saw it, there was much fidgeting and whispers of "wheres the light sabers" and "want to see the fights".
laugh, anyone who says "rollercoaster" must like long stretches of dull activity followed by a sudden shake at the end.
shame, it seems that george lucas is trying so hard to be a great story teller that he forgot about the story. its the sort of film where you can go to the loos anytime until that last 30 minutes and not really miss anything. at least there is spiderman and lord of the rings 2 to look forward to!