I just don't get it!

Rating: 5/10 (11 November 2002)

I saw AOTC last night on DVD, hoping to enjoy it, because I'd heard good things, and I enjoyed Hayden Christiansen in My Life as a House, and Natalie Portman in Leon, Samuel L Jackson in Pulp Fiction, and Ewan McGregor in just about everything. Oh dear! Maybe it's me, but I'd get as much enjoyment from and episode of Star Trek. While I can admire the geniuses that created the look of the film, the problem is the script. It is just too simplistic, for what is supposedly a big theme, epic movie... The actors looked uncomfortable throughout, and apart from the "It's star wars!" factor, I can't imagine why they would want to do it... Another thing, I appreciate that the film is part of a series, but shouldn't each episode be able to stand alone in terms of entertainment? At the end of this film, there is an overwhelming sense that it is unfinished, like an episode of a Danielle Steele mini-series, following a great family dynasty over 60 or 70 years... "tune in, in 2005, to find out what happens next between Anakin and Amidala, and find out if Obi Wan Kenobi can save the galaxy before his beard turns white". With Harry Potter, and Lord of the Rings, I didn't get the same sense of incompletion. This is probably going too far, but the film feels like a giant advertisement for Star Wars Inc. The company's outlived its usefulness, lets revive the movies, and give it a new lease of life.
I know there are crazed fans out there who will disagree completely, but I can't help thinking that they are being taken advantage of!

The best thing about the film/films is now, and always will be the theme tune!