An Enjoyable Movie Going Experience

Rating: 8/10 (28 January 2004)

I must admit that while I saw "Episode I: The Phantom Menace" as soon as I could, I waited until this film came out on video before making any effort to see it. The first film lacked the intellectual depth of the original trilogy and did not hold my attention as much as I hoped it would. I left the theater somewhat disappointed. This film, however, was a lot more fun to see, and had a little more substance than Episode I, although it too failed to reach the mark set by the original trilogy.
The Pluses: Non-stop action and a little romance.
The drawbacks:
Episode II does not advance the story much. I felt that other than grow up and become more bad tempered and arrogant, Anakin does not really develop as a character. He pouts, he whines, and he uses bad pick-up lines on Padme-none of which seem to go with Vader's personality in the later films. Somehow, I cannot picture Anakin becoming Vader. Other than the fact that both can be ruthless, they do not seem to share much in common. Anakin seems the perfect candidate for juvenile hall, he lacks the class (yes, you heard me right!) of Vader. Vader may be evil, but he is not immature. Yes, I know what you are saying, Anakin is very young in Episode II. Granted, he is probably very young, but he is also old enough to be given the responsibilities of an adult, and old enough to be a jedi warrior. Even at this point in his life, you would expect to see those qualities that later made Vader such an effective leader, since many great men (and women) show greatness at a very young age, and Vader is great in his own twisted way.
It may surprise you to know that I own a copy of this film on video and that I intend to be the first person in line when Episode III comes out in 2005. What can I say...I had fun watching this film, and I have faith that George Lucas will make his last film count.