The Phantom Fixer

Rating: 10/10 (16 May 2002)

Episode II has done a lot for the Star Wars saga. I went into that theater expecting something average. I expected that rather then answering questions about the Star Wars universe, it would pose more, like Phantom did. I was wrong. It not only answered a lot of questions posed by Phantom, but also questions posed by the first films.
The acting is... well, it's Star Wars. McGregor delivers an average performance, going too far to try and measure up to Sir Alec Guiness's Obi-Wan. He plays a great clueless down-and-out in films like A Life Less Ordinary, but as a Jedi master, especially as one trying to live up to a standard set by someone like Sir Alec, he fails miserably.
The familiar english accents that have become a key part of the Star Wars universe have pretty much been phased out by shooting in Australia, and the changes in the accent base are a little too much for me. It may seem a minor point, and I'm certainly all for using Fox Studios and supporting the Australian film industry, but they get in the way a bit.
Christensen is so one sided, it is hard to believe anything he says. His dark peircing eyes are his only quality, and his emotional range is apparently easy to forgive because of his glance. Jake Lloyd was bad, but young. What's Christensen's excuse?
Temuera Morrison delivers an outstanding performance as Jango Fett, as does his clone-son Daniel Logan. The fight with the Fetts has to be one of the highlights of the whole piece.
Sam Jackson takes the show away from the McGregor/Christensen focus though. His performance in a part he was no doubt determined to get perfect is incredible. *Sentence includes slight spoiler* The entrance he and the Jedi make on Geonosis will blow you away.
Once again the colour themes are continued. It is my theory that in each of the films, a different colour throughout the film sets the themes. In Hope, it was a yellow reflecting the mediocre aspects of Luke's life. A cold Blue for Empire as the darkness of the saga is emphasised. A dark Green in Jedi hinting at the Saga's end. Phantom chose a light green to pick up on the beauty of the Old Republic. Clones too uses this same colour theme in Orange, as the dawn of the Wars are brought out.
The action is back to the grand Star Wars battles. *Spoilers ahead* Geonosis, The Dooku fight, the Coruscant battle, it's all spot on. You get to see more of the great planets in the saga. Coruscant almost reminded me of Speilberg's cities in AI when you get right down to ground level.
*More Slight Spoilers* It's interesting to see Ahmed Best and Anthony Daniels putting in cameo appearances in the Coruscant bar scene, and while 3-P0 is slightly more annoying then usual, he's also very funny. In a particular scene he quips "What a drag" as R2 pulls his head along the floor of the Geonosian arena, and minutes later remarks how he's "Beside himself" as his head gets dropped next to his body.
*More Slight Spoilers* The Yoda fight sequence is incredible, the little jedi hobbling in, bouncing around for the fight, and, at the amusement of the audience, composing himself and hobbling out!
I've not had as much fun in a Star Wars film since I first saw Jedi, and I'm glad it's back on form. You'll find clones improves your view of Phantom, and it'll take a couple of screenings until you've taken it all in!
Phantom Menace was such a drastic change from the familiar Star Wars universe that, after clones, you can understand why it wasn't accepted very well. Certainly, I'll be watching Phantom again now, as I feel much more happy with it then when Clones wasn't out.
Check this film out, you won't be disappointed. It really IS Star Wars after all!