Overuse of computer graphics kills this film

Rating: 5/10 (16 May 2005)

This is the second part of the new Star Wars films, and as films go is pretty average. Nothing really stands out and this isn't aided by some poor acting in places and a corny and absurd script that tries far too hard to be Shakespearean in places but falls down dismally.
The major problem with this film is that most of it is computer-generated. It doesn't give the film the realistic feel feel of both the other Star Wars outings and other fantasy/sci-fi films produced since. The fact that the originals were fantasy that could have been reality somewhere has been lost in the newer films. I know that computers can cut costs, but they shouldn't be used to cut quality. The are too many CG characters, too many poor CG backgrounds and whole scenes done solely with the aid of a computer.
Mr Lucas needs to take a hard look at Jurassic Park (1992) and the Lord of the Rings (2001-2003) to see exactly how to use computers. JP seamlessly integrates dinos and real landscapes while LoTR uses a mix of actors, miniatures, life-size sets and computer graphics. The trick with LoTR is that something in every scene is real, thus giving it an authentic feel. They also bother to build most of the sets they used. Even the one totally CG character was motion captured and voiced by a human.
This film appears to be building up to Ep III, which looks as if it will probably contain far too much CG too.