Flawed, but still great entertainment

Rating: Null/10 (27 May 2002)

The arrival of a new Star Wars film always prompts expectations of
the perfect action adventure epic, with state of the art effects, all
crammed into 120 minutes. Somehow people always seem to forget that the
original films consisted of little more than great action sequences strung
together with absurd dialogue, perfunctory acting and tenuous plots.
However the fact that everyone is getting hot and bothered over the fifth installment
shows that not even a conscious effort to derail the series, as Jar Jar
Binks surely must have been, can stop this behemoth now.
Attack Of The Clones opens with Obi Wan Kenobi and trainee Jedi
Anakin Skywalker being assigned to protect Senator Padme Amedala,
and soon finds the master chasing across the galaxy to find an assassin whilst
the apprentice struggles with his feelings for the senator. Fitted in
amongst the scenes which show the rise of the evil empire are the usual
assortment of light-sabre fights and space-craft duels.
The film has a darkness to it that few other family films posses.
There is genuine torture and pain shown on screen, possibly as a
reaction to the inanities of The Phantom Menace. Unfortunately this darkness,
typified by Hayden Christensen's broodingly wooden performance as the
future Darth Vader (think of a big gnarly tree on a dark stormy night), seems to
come at the expense of the charisma that characters such as Han Solo
and Princess Leia exuded.
This is compounded by a wayward middle section where the film
threatens to grind to a halt. The scenes of Padme and Anakin picnicking in
grassy mountains looks worryingly like a homage to The Sound Of Music,
whilst Obi-Wan's attempts to become an intergalactic Philip Marlowe are
as pedestrian as a zebra crossing, with Ewan Macgregor's most
mature performance to date being frustrated by having hold his
conversations with an incomprehensible up-turned dustbin. The dialogue of the
original films may have been clunky but at least it was distinctive and delivered
with panache, here the only memorable lines are in-jokes about the
later films.
The film is stolen by an old hand in new clothes. Yoda, now freed
from the indignities of having Frank Oz's hand up his backside, thanks to
some of the most remarkable CGI ever seen, rejoices in being able to wander
freely into battle. His jumbled up dialogue is as eccentric and enjoyable as
ever. However Yoda's greatest moment in the film comes when he
finally draws a lightsaber and engages in battle, a scene which will be played out
to the sound of the jaws of entire audiences hitting the floor in unison the
world over. The fact that a 3 front tall old-codger can convincing be
portrayed as the most powerful warrior in the universe is testament to the power
of Lucas' fantasy worlds, and it is here that the viewer is reminded
why Star Wars became so successful.
The general character and plot limitations are not as bad as
Titanic or Pearl Harbour (though you'll feel only a concerted effort could
produce scripts that inept) and the effects are superior to both. The opening
scenes, based in a over-crowded metropolis are highly reminiscent of Ridley Scott's Blade Runner and have a depth and richness to them that
out-does most real location shooting. However whilst the set-pieces are
well constructed throughout, some of them seem like they were
designed as Playstation games, a feeling which the computer generated effects
only reinforce.
These quibbles are all forgotten in a finale which withstands
comparison with anything committed to film (or high definition digital video).
More than anything the appeal of the Star Wars films lies in their
celebration to the classic swashbuckling films of Errol Flynn and the Zorro
serials and the last 20 minutes serves up giant size portions of Jedi whoop-ass.
The adrenalin rush of seeing such cinematic luminaries as Samuel L
Jackson and Christopher Lee throwing themselves into gravity defying battles
that make The Matrix look like it had crashed are complemented by the
almost balletic choreography and beautifully abstract visuals. Even the addition of
hundreds of Jedi fighting doesn't saturate the senses, with each duel more
exciting than anything in the series to date.
When it is at it's best Attack Of The Clones not only looks truly
amazing, it feels truly amazing too. It has moments where it totally immerses
you in another world. However these successes are punctuated by a
mundane teenage love story that makes Dawson's Creek seem racy and an unsatisfying ending designed to lead into the sequel. The rabble-rousing action-scenes will satisfy viewers who came for the thrill-ride experience and as part
of the series Attack Of The Clones is an excellent linking episode, but
viewed in isolation this is merely a slightly superior blockbuster.