Blows "Phantom Menace" Out of the Water -- Though That's Pretty Faint Praise

Rating: 7/10 (26 September 2006)

This second installment in the "Star Wars" prequel trilogy is leaps and bounds better than "The Phantom Menace," and there are moments in the film, unlike "Phantom," when it begins to FEEL like a "Star Wars" movie.
The little kid Disneyland quality that figured heavily in the first film for the most part gives way to a darker and more adult sensibility as Anakin grows into a young man. It doesn't help matters that Hayden Christiansen delivers a God-awful performance as Anakin, and that he plays a gradual descent into the dark side of the force like a petulant teenager who's been denied use of the family car. But more pieces of the puzzle that factor into the original trilogy click into place here, which makes it much more fun for "Star Wars" fans than "The Phantom Menace." I have to admit that the end of this film, when we first see what will become the Imperial army amassed as the Darth Vader theme blasts away on the soundtrack, sends chills down this "Star Wars" nerd's spine.
Grade: B+