It's Getting Better Folks!

Rating: 6/10 (17 May 2002)

After I had been disappointed by Episode 1, I decided to watch Episode 2 with less expectations and it paid off. I went into the cinema, preparing myself for another kiddie sci-fi comedy and this film delivered. It was largely comical and better than its predecessor in many aspects: digital/special effects were more real, better characterization, more drama, lots of limbs-flying fights and we got to see Jedi Knights in battle, lots of them.
SPOILERS
There were more chemistry between the characters and in this aspect, Lucas seemed to have taken notes that many true fans were largely disappointed with several elements in Episode 1. So scenes involving JJ Binks and Watto were short. In fact Jar Jar was relatively quiet when he did appear. Anakin on the other hand, remained as annoying and arrogant as he ever was. Christensen gave this teenage Anakin an evil edge and throughout the movie, he was more of the local-bar jerk than a promising Jedi knight. He's far from that prophesied Jedi who would bring balance to the Force, whatever that means (won't he fall to the dark side anyway?).
Jimmy Smits made a nice cameo as Senator Bail Organa, Leia's future adopting father. Temuera Morrison made an interesting John Waynesque' Jango Fett, with references to classic Western movies. As you probably know that New Zealanders played all the character of Jango Fett, Boba Fett and Captain Typho, so whenever they appeared on screen, the audience here were laughing and cheering at their opportunity to be in Star Wars, and mostly for their kiwi accent.
C3PO and R2-D2 (the real heroes of the saga) started their dynamic relationship here, with plenty of fun and laughs. Well, what can I say about Natalie Portman, she's as beautiful and intelligent as ever, and Lucas made sure the movie exploited her sexuality further (a titillation for those 12-13 years old hormones). She changed her costumes so many times that it was getting a bit ridiculous though and old Lucas was probably planning to cash in through her many toys later on. The two last costumes she wore were so sexy and exposing her 'assets' that some audience couldn't resist to say: "Oooooh! Aaaaah!" and `Rrrrrrrr.'.
The romance between Amidala and Anakin was the cheesiest scenes in Star Wars saga unfortunately. The Sound of Music' part was the funniest of all. I understand that this movie was the only chance Lucas had to emphasize on their relationship and doomed romance, but he could've done it in a way that their scenes had been sweet not cheesy. The most surprising part of their supposedly romantic escapade was Anakin having a wet dream about Padme, and when he was found out, he lied and said that he dreamt about his mother. What was Lucas thinking?
The dark part of the film had something to do with Anakin, his mother and the Tusken warriors. The revelation of what Anakin did to them had a notorious echo of his falling to the dark side. Other than that, Episode 2 is only darker than Episode 1, simply because there were more shots in night time Coruscant, rainy Kemino and the red-fiery landscape of Genosia.
I always believe that puppet/costumed animation is better than digital, but with Episode 2 Lucas had taken it to a higher level. So all the vehicles, droids, aliens, etc. were more real and especially the Coruscant cityscape (which was a reminiscent of Blade Runner).
In terms of plot, Lucas was running out of idea so he borrowed a lot from The Empire Strikes Back, among other classic movies. So expect to see vehicle-chasing scenes right at the beginning of the movie, Anakin got his right hand chopped-off and went to sleep, and lastly the last scene of Episode 2 was a complete take on Episode 5's own scene.
Christopher Lee was charismatic as the separatist leader and I was amazed at how well he fought with a light sabre (considering his age). His sultry voice and commanding presence was one of the uplifting elements in the film. The best part of the movie, which I believe will be the most memorable scenes from Episode 2, is a fight between Count Dooku and Master Yoda. Simply put, Yoda kicks ass.
There were several plot holes and narration problems that caused the story to develop incongruently, however again, the overall script was better written this time. The background music was also something new and added a different feel to Episode 2, almost Middle-Eastern in tone.
So my conclusion is that Attack of the Clones' is a much better film compared to The Phantom Menace'. It may still not worthy of the Star Wars heritage because it is simply a different movie that raised more questions and mystery than answers to Episode 1's plot holes, but overall it is genuinely entertaining, funny and better made. It's a heart-lifting comedy of galactic proportion.
Still a Star Wars fan, R.