The downward spiral continues.

Rating: 1/10 (27 May 2002)

Spoilers.
I remember when The Phantom Menace first came out and I couldn't wait to see it. Then I saw it, and was disappointed. The movie was very boring, but could be forgivable because it was the first... it had a lot to explain.

But when I saw Attack of the Clones, I was even more disappointed. The vigor and epic quality of episodes IV, V, and Vi was missing. The tediousness of Attack of the Clones surpasses the dire boringness of The Phantom Menace. I was imagining that the explaining times were over and the battles would begin. The movie does have some great battle sequences and action scenes, but they are too short and there are too few. Basically, the movie revolves around setting the plot for the next movies and Padme and Anakin's romance.
I think it's great how it all fits... all the storm troopers we see apparently are clones of Jango Fett, as is Boba. We finally see Anakin's turnaround, where he begins to fall to the dark side. But that just isn't enough to make a movie. It totally lacked the adrenaline rush Phantom Menace's lightsaber duels gave.
Speaking of lightsaber duels, let me point something out. Count Dooku is the WORST villain in the history of bad villains... he is an old man, introduced in the film's final half hour. There is no way he, or anyone else, could match up to Darth Maul. The biggest mistake in all of Star Wars was the quick elimination of Darth Maul. Without him, this movie was just kind of blah...
John Williams puts forth two great themes, and a nice love theme that pretty much appears every five minutes and gets (get this) boring. The other themes I am talking about are The Chase Through Coruscant and Jango Fett Escapes. They have a nice, energetic quality to them. But the final conflict's music is nothing compared to Darth Maul's theme, otherwise known as Duel of the Fates. In fact, it is a rehash of themes from Phantom Menace and some themes from Attack of the Clones.
The great parts about Attack of the Clones really stand out. We finally see Yoda in action (but once again, the scene involving Yoda and Tyranus lasts less than thirty seconds) and the final conflict is great (disregarding its rather puny music). The amount of detail put into the movie is astounding. There is always something going on in every part of the screen. The CGI and actual footage blends together excellently.
Attack of the Clones could have been a great addition to the Star Wars series, but it falls short because of its suffocating character development, its long periods of tediousness, and its short action sequences. Basically, the worst thing about this movie is the boredom one will experience.
Darth Maul could have saved the movie. But he was replaced with a crummy Count named Dooku.