Begun, the Clone War has...

Rating: Null/10 (17 May 2002)

...and now we have to wait for another three years to see its conclusion. WOW. Episode II is definitely MUCH better than Episode I. I would even say it's better that Return of the Jedi. If Lucas keeps up the good work then Episode III will be on a par with A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back.
You can see the plot elsewhere so I'll just try to summarize what was good about it and what was bad about it.
Good:
1. The characters. Almost every one of them (with the notable exception of Amidala - I'll get to that below) delivers a superb performance. I was especially pleasantly surprised by Hayden (Anakin). He fits the role perfectly: the impetuous young Jedi padawan, reckless, impulsive, ambitious, overly confident of himself, lacking patience, determined to be the greatest Jedi ever. But we see as well his occasional bursts of fury, his inner torments and demons, which predict his eventual fall to the Dark Side. We see as well all temptations and trials he is subjected to - his forbidden attraction to Amidala, his love for his mother and how what happens to her affects him - and we can understand how his fall to the Dark Side begins. All the others are good as well: Obi-Wan, Yoda, Mace Windu, Count Dooku.

2. The plot. There are actually two epic lines: Obi-Wan discovering the hidden clone army and dealing with the conspiration and Padme vs. Anakin. The first one is VERY good. The enemy (Sidious) is almost unseen, he doesn't have more than a couple of lines in the entire movie, yet you can feel his presence everywhere, see the shadow of his actions begging to take shape. His is a masterful plan to take over the Republic which nobody sees; he fools all with intelligence. This is the kind of bad guy I love. Also great are all the scenes on the planet where Obi-Wan discovers the clones and his confrontations with Jango Fett. Suspense, adrenaline and an eerie feeling of outworldliness.
3. The special effects - settings. Each planet has its own distinctive individuality and is created in such detail you cannot believe it is not real. Coruscant: high towers, lights, traffic, agitation. Naboo: beautiful landscapes, waterfalls, pastorality. Clone planet: water, white, rain. Conspiration planet: red, volcanos, machinery, inhabitants which resemble giant flies. Absolutely stunning.
4. All the small tidbits which are SW trademark, which give us old-timers a feeling of home coming: movie opens with a ship in space, somebody has a bad feeling, Artoo saves the day, Threepio gets into trouble, Obi-Wan jests to Anakin "I've got a feeling you're going to be the end of me" - how true...
5. Lightsaber duels. They are PERFECT. They are shot continuously (not like in TPM where they were always interrupted by other epic threads) and are suspenseful. They even manage to make Yoda duel without him becoming hilarious - he's great, in fact.
Now for the bad parts:
1. Except for the race between Obi-Wan and Jango Fett in the asteroid field, there isn't any space battle at all. All battles take place on the ground.
2. The love-story between Anakin and Padme is clumsily done, rushed and forced. I kept comparing it to Han/Leia and it doesn't stand a chance. Also, Padme was the greatest disappointment in the movie. She is downgraded from the stately royal presence and aloofness to a good-looking young woman who does nothing but get herself into trouble. There were some plot holes here as well: she keeps telling Anakin how they shouldn't be together but keeps provoking him by wearing the most revealing outfits. She is supposed to be traveling undercover in order to avoid her enemies but keeps wearing the most shining costumes.
Oh, but you can skip over the bad parts and enjoy the movie. It is really something.
P.S. In case you were wondering: Jar Jar has less than 5 minutes screen time.
Rating: 8/10