All hail Master Yoda.... and George too! :-)

Rating: Null/10 (28 May 2002)

The force of Star Wars is back and back with a vengeance! Attack of the clones redeems the series and puts the brilliance and wonderment back into the Star Wars name. After the mediocre Phantom Menace, I did have my doubts as to how good Episode 2 would be. After seeing the trailers and reading some relatively positive preview reviews, I decided to take a chance. I figured the very least, it would offer some amazing eye candy and awesome sound, even if the plot or character development was straw thin. And its a chance I'm glad I took, because Attack of the Clones ROCKS in every sense of the word!
The first thing one notices about the movie is the tone. It is noticeably darker than Phantom Menace and while many scenes in the former film occurred under harsh sunlight, The majority of scenes in Clones occurs during the twilight hours and even when a scene is set during the day, there is always an overcast look to it. This might have been a artistic decision on George Lucas's part to highlight the fact that it is a darker film in general, since Annakin is half way there to becoming Darth Vader. In fact in episode 2, we get to see a bit of the dark side that is starting to build in Annakin, but we also get to see what drives him to take that path.

Another thing worth noting is The CGI in this film. It is simply incredible. Not only in quantity, but in quality. There is almost an over abundance of CGI in the film. So much so that I would consider this film in essence to be a Final Fantasy with real actors. There is NOT a single frame in the movie where CGI isn't used. The battle scenes near the end of the film will make your jaw drop in its level of detail and mind boggling complexity. Film fans will also notice that while ATOC is an original work, it draws inspiration from a variety of other films most notably from The Matrix (in the clone factory and the way humans are *grown*) and Gladiator (the pseudo colosseum)
Lucas is known for using state of the art digital technology to enhance the look of his films and while this on the whole is a good thing, at times one can see that the actor's performance suffers since the acting was done in front of a blue screen without the benefit of environmental and situational context. But let's face it, no one goes to a Star Wars movie for the acting.
Of the CGI actors, non fans of Jar Jar will be glad to know that he is relegated to only a few scenes in episode 2 and while we're on the subject of CGI stars, Yoda finally shows that he's not called *Master* Yoda for nothing! He showcases a martial artistry that would make even Bruce Lee green with envy, at the same time displaying a comedic flare in his fight that would make Jackie Chan jealous! :-) I was glad that George Lucas showed that beings of all races and ethnicities (alien or otherwise) could study to become a Jedi which in turn implicitly explains why the Jedi fighting style had so much eastern flavour during its prime! This in my opinion, is noteworthy because it is undeniable that the fighting techniques used in Episode 1 and 2 are more reminiscent of eastern martial arts rather than the European sword fighting techniques that were used in the first 3 films.
Overall, the film is a remarkable return to form by Lucas and Company as he heralds in a new age in modern day digital film making.