The saga is showing its age

Rating: 5/10 (19 May 2002)

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, in my opinion, flatlined in its first thirty minutes. George Lucas has failed miserably in capturing the charm, wit, fun and excitement of the previous Star Wars films, especially the original trilogy. The acting was generally wooden throughout and the Skywalker/Amidala romance has to the sappiest most pathetic romance I have ever seen. If anything it is the non-humans that did the best acting - *SPOILER* I did enjoy the interaction between C3P0 and R2D2 near the end of movie, and Yoda's (again not a human) fight and "use of the force" with a light sabre was also entertaining, the films only redeeming features.
I am surprised to see this one in the Top 250 already. Obviously most of the top marks are coming from die-hard Star Wars fans who have no appreciation of what really makes a good film. No offense to all of you. While I am no big Star Wars fan, I am of the opinion that only the original 1977 Star Wars movie really belongs in the top 250 (and the AFI top 100 list). I guess time will tell.
Don't bother seeing this one unless you're a die hard fan. If not do yourself a favour and wait until it hits a "cheap" theatre in a few months so you don't waste full price admission on this one (or don't see it at all). Parents, take the kids to see Spiderman instead. Roger Ebert, a film critic I highly respect, got it right in his thumbs down of Attack of the Clones. 5/10