Every time I see this movie, it gets better

Rating: 10/10 (9 August 2002)

Lucas has outdone himself here. Brilliant, just brilliant.
There were a couple of places where the CGI slipped, but generally, the movie was beautiful to look at, which is a big plus. Hayden Chistensen is a fantastic Anakin--he studied and merges four different performances, along with giving his own interpretation. Really phenomenal performance (despite being burdened with cheesy dialogue in places). And I haven't seen a better physical actor in years. Ewan MacGregor is also a lot of fun, and he has the attitude down pat.
The wonderful symbolic imagery throughout this movie is fodder for discussions for years. I won't get into all of it here; if someone is interested, Paul MacDonald's essays at Suite101 are top notch for critical exegesis.
The love story is much maligned, but really very much in keeping with the tone of the prequels--it's high romance, the knight in shining armor wooing the queen. Both people are appealing, and I buy it from beginning to end. (I do note that it's mainly TPM-bashers who don't buy the romance... they seem to be missing that the groundwork was all laid in TPM, and now you have two people amazed to find that, after ten years, that old familiar friendship was right there waiting to grow.)