Better but not perfect

Rating: 7/10 (30 September 2008)

While this film is by no means a masterpiece I'll always have a soft spot for it as it was the first film I ever saw on DVD. It is a step up from the previous instalment with a better story and more excitement.
Set a decade after the events in The Phantom Menace this film has a darker tone; we see far less of comedy relief Jar Jar Binks and Anakin is no longer a child but an almost fully trained Jedi. As the film opens we learn that Padmé is no longer the queen but the senator representing Naboo and somebody is trying to kill her. Obi-Wan and Anakin are assigned to protect her and in doing so learn that a weapon used was made on the planet Kamino which strangely appears in no records.
Obi Wan heads to the site Kamino is meant to be Anakin takes Padmé back to Naboo where they grow closer then they should. On Kamino Obi Wan discovers that a vast army of clones is being prepared apparently at the request of a Jedi who had died ten years ago. Also there is the man this army was cloned from, a bounty hunter named Jango Fett, and his son Boba. When Obi Wan attempts to take him back to be questioned by the Jedi council he manages to escape but not before Obi Wan can put a tracking device on his ship which enables him to follow Jango to the planet Geonosis where a droid army is being constructed.
Meanwhile back on Naboo Anakin is being haunted by dreams of his mother and decides he must return to Tatooine to help her. There he learns that she is no longer a slave and has got married, unfortunately a month before she was captured by Tuskan Raiders. He sets off to rescue her but is too late as she dies shortly after he finds her, in a fit of blind rage he slaughters everybody in the encampment.
On returning to his ship he learns that Obi Wan has been captured on Geonosis so along with Padmé he heads there to attempt a rescue but this doesn't go according to plan and they too are captured and sentenced to death along with Obi Wan. They manage to break free but are still trapped in a large arena with three deadly creatures trying to kill them thankfully Mace Windu and the other Jedi arrive to help them fight the battle droids.
Most of the major characters in film appeared in the previous film although Anakin is now played by Hayden Christensen. His character changed quite a lot too, instead of being a fun loving young boy he has become a whining teenager. The CGI seemed better than the previous film thus the battle scenes were much more believable. The dialogue has also improved but still contains several less than impressive one-liners, the romantic scenes between Padmé and Anakin don't seem very believable proving that George does special effects not people.
If you liked The Phantom Menace or even thought it was just okay then I think this a film you would enjoy. I would certainly recommend watching that film before viewing this. The darker tone of this means it might not be suitable for very young children.