Lucas has fallen to the dark side...

Rating: 3/10 (14 May 2002)

Being a huge Star Wars fan myself, I was very eager to see the next chapter in this saga. I must admit I have been dissapointed by the Phantom Menace which I found evasive and quirky compared to the more "serious" or "classics" sequels. Nevertheless, I had heard the second one would be different, that it would be targeted at a more adult audience and I hoped some people might have learn from their past mistakes... But what I saw makes me beleive Lucas has fallen to the dark side of the force...
It is true that the special effects are very impressive, realistic and beleivable. I personnally didnt see much improvement on that matter since the first episode. The settings are better looking, the mood of the movie is therefore more "star-warsih" (if you see what I mean). I cant deny the fact that the movie looks good (it's been filmed in digital format) and that it sounds good. Attack of the clones is like a nicely wrapped up gift.
The only problem is what you find when you open the gift; Merely nothing. Young Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) really doesnt look like much of a jedi; he doesnt seem to have a personnallity of his own. It's the same thing with most of the characters; they speak out their dialogue and that's about it. Even the "seduction" scenes between Nathalie Portman (Amidala) and Anakin look passionless...
Another big problem is the structure of the film. The beginning of the movie is quite promising, the situation is critical, the Republic is on the verge of a crisis and something must be done. Senator Amidala (former queen of Naboo) is on Coruscent to vote on the creation of a Army of the Republic. The story is interesting, certainly better than the one in episode 1. Problem is, from this point on, you almost forget about the story and are sent on a roller coaster ride of action scenes intercutted with love scenes, all of which are overdone or poorly executed. I'm sorry, but if R2 would have had rockets on his sides so he could fly, he wouldnt have let himself fall down in the sand in the beginning of Return of the jedi.

Some fans might disagree about my review, yes there are good scenes in Episode 2, not all of it is bad. But like a brick wall cimented with dental paste, it just doesnt hold too well.
3/10 -