Better than I thought it would be

Rating: 7/10 (3 February 2007)

Somehow, I managed to skip watching Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones before I got around to watching Revenge of the Sith. Immediately, while watching it, I wasn't entirely certain as to what was going on. Little tiny Anakin Skywalker grew up to be taller and hairier and somehow married to Amidala, who was about twice his size the last time I saw the movie. Something about that seems a little weird.
Anyway, after hearing the reports regarding Attack of the Clones, including a speech regarding sand and skin, I entered the theater bracing myself for the worst. I guess I braced myself too much because the movie wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be.
All the same problems with the past Lucas effort in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace are still there, minus Jar Jar Binks, who only gets a brief cameo (thank you for sparing us, George!). The dialogue is generally atrocious, the acting leaves a great amount to be desired, and the direction is flat. In fact, the film basically doesn't pick up until some very critical revelations occur (well, they're not really revelations because anyone who's watched the first trilogy will know what's going on). And then the film really does pick up.
While the writing, acting and direction are still pretty poor overall, the plot line and the story become far more dramatic and engaging. Still, the characters behave almost as though they are being rigidly forced to say and think and do what they say and think and do. It's hard to think of any of them, except perhaps with the exception of Obi-won, as being more than one-dimensional.
Spoilers for those that don't know Star Wars IV-VI follow:
Anakin turns to the Dark Side of the force too easily. I actually don't believe his "love" or jealousy for Padme because it seems forced and contrived. Maybe it's because I didn't see their relationship develop in Episode II, but it just doesn't seem real. Since, at the beginning of the film, Anakin was a devotee to the Jedi Code, it was absolutely critical for him to be dramatically devoted to "keeping" Padme. But we don't see that. Instead we see lots of CGI battle sequences without a whole lot of weight to them. In Episodes IV-VI, we had two of the films weighing in at an annihilation of the Rebel Alliance with the battle of Yavin 4 (moonbase vs. Death Star) and Hoth. They were dramatic because if they were unsuccessful, it'd be the end of our heroes. The battles in the following "war" all appeared to be skirmishes--what is the significance of holding Kashyyk besides being told? Again, all this may just be a problem because I didn't see Attack of the Clones, so I'll have to go see the previous movie to better understand Revenge of the Sith.
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Had it been another writer and another director, with Lucas providing the plot line and the basic story, it would've all been more convincing. But as the "middle-point" of his six film series, it's lacking the dramatic core to hold it all together. Still, I'm glad Lucas stayed away from Ewok-like supercheese and Revenge of Sith was still satisfying overall. In terms of my own personal ranking of the films (that I've seen):
1: The Empire Strikes Back 2: A New Hope 3 (tie): Revenge of the Sith & Return of the Jedi 4: The Phantom Menace
Despite the face that an informed viewer will know everything that's going on, the film still manages to hold some tension and the plot and the underlying story still shines through the tarnish of the acting, writing, and directing. So it's not a total loss, but it does expose the many flaws of Lucas. It's unfortunate that the expanded universe of Star Wars manages to be more compelling, dramatic and interesting than the movies it is based on, but in the end, the movies still hold together to be entertaining romps. Lucas might be striking at some larger dramatic core with Revenge of the Sith, but he misses and yet still manages to modestly entertain. 7/10.
P.S. Did anyone think it was hilarious when Darth Vader learns of Padme's death and subsequently rips himself off of his table and howls "nooooooo!"? The limited movement of the suit, the low voice and knowing that there is a remnant of a whiny young brat in that suit made it really hard to contain my laughter. I would've busted out in the theater except that I was afraid of being mobbed by fanboys.